The defending Class 4A girls soccer champs are gaining ground.
Lewis-Palmer jumped a spot to come in at No. 2 in the 4A CHSAANow.com girls soccer rankings. They sit only behind No. 1 Valor Christian, the team the Rangers beat in the title game last year.
They weren’t the only one making their way up the poll, however. Windsor jumped two spots to land at No. 5 and Evergreen better their position by three spots, coming in at No. 7.
Rounding out the final set of girls rankings is Durango, the only newcomer in 4A.
Cherry Creek kept its grasp on the No. 1 spot in the 5A poll, but this week it’s Mountain Vista sitting at No. 2.
Columbine jumped a couple of spots to land at No. 5, but it was Rocky Mountain with the big leap, gaining four spots to take the No. 6 position.
Legacy was the lone newcomer to the 5A poll, coming in at No. 7.
Jefferson Academy remains the top team in 3A, taking seven of nine first-place votes. The other two went to No. 2 Colorado Academy.
Overall, the top seven teams in the 3A rankings held their spots from last week.
There were no new teams in the 3A poll.
No one in 2A could unseat Denver Christian who held on to the No. 1 spot in the poll.
Front Range Christian jumped two spots to land at No. 3.
At No. 5, Telluride is the only new team in the 2A rankings.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association.
New polls are released each Monday during the regular season.
LYONS — The resiliency of No. 8 Lyons baseball was once again on display.
It was shown in a 3-2 win over Highland in which the Lions scored two runs in the bottom of the sixth to take the lead. It was shown in an 8-7 extra-inning win over Fort Lupton after Lyons gave up the tying run in the bottom of the seventh.
And now, it was shown in an 8-4 win over Dawson School to clinch the Class 2A Mile High League title.
“That’s exactly what they’ve been doing all year,” Rosales said. “We have a bad inning and they come and get runs on us, we come back with a bigger inning.”
The Lions absorbed every blow that came at them on Tuesday and came back with a harder punch.
With the Lions leading 5-4 in the top of the sixth, Justin Lear walked the first two batters he faced. Then, he got down to business.
“He does that day in and day out. He comes in and cleans up for us at the end,” Lyons coach Ken Rosales said. “I told him no more of those, my heart can’t take those.
Lear struck out five of the six batters he faced as Lyons went on to beat Dawson School 8-4.
“That’s kind of my thing: strikeouts. I get a lot of them,” Lear said. “So, when I have runners on base, I’m not worried too much because this season I’ve always pulled through. I’ve got that confidence.”
In the bottom of the sixth, Lear started a four-run inning with a double in the right-center gap after striking out three batters. Lear had a cushion and could cruise.
“I was just ready to shut it out. It was just me and my catcher,” Lear said. “That’s all that was in my mind, just throwing the baseball.”
Austen Clark started on the mound for Lyons and gave five strong, while going 2-4 with two runs batted in. Clark reached base in every at-bat.
“It felt good out there,” Clark said. “I was just trying to be me, stay relaxed out there and do my job.”
After a sloppy second inning that included two errors, a walk, a wild pitch and two runs all with two outs, Clark went out in the third and posted a 1-2-3 inning.
“We’re resilient. We don’t get too low,” Clark said. “We just fight every time. We’re a great team, we have great team chemistry, we believe in eachother and we have a lot of confidence.”
The Lions have a right to be confident. They are now 14-1 (9-0 league) and are set up for the top seed in district play.
“That’s a huge advantage for us,” Clark said. “Just a huge win that proves that we’re competitors.”
Lyons went out with a gameplan to go right after the Dawson hitters.
“The gameplan was to pitch to them. We knew they could hit,” Rosales said. “The whole thing was pitch to them and get out of the inning with little to no damage.”
But, the Lyons didn’t always execute on defense. All of Dawson’s runs resulted from errors.
“You know, we had those bad innings, but you have to have a short memory in baseball because the next play is coming at you right after that,” Rosales said.
The Lions executed Rosales’ words exactly to hold on and beat the Mustangs in a nail-biting Mile High League win.
Dawson School’s Hannah Isenhart was thrown into the spotlight and is basking in it. She is an anchor of a leader in an otherwise young Mustangs team which starts six freshmen.
“This season, we have a really young team, so all of us are working super hard,” Isenhart said. “I never really stop working with soccer.”
The senior is seventh in the state with 50 points (third in Class 2A), and 14th in goals with 19 (second in 2A). Isenhart’s 6.3 points and 2.4 goals per game (both lead 2A) is an incredibly hot start, but a sickness forced her to play limited minutes in the loss to No. 2 Denver Christian last Thursday.
“I don’t give up easily,” Isenhart said. “That’s another reason why sitting out was so hard. I did not want to stop playing. I don’t give up. I really try to lead the team into the same headspace that we’re not going to give up.”
Isenhart has played, on average, two less games than the stat leaders.
“Hannah is just getting better. She’s developed this year i think into a better, more well-rounded player,” Dawson School coach John Siegrist said. “She’s incredibly fast, she’s faster than she was last year, her ball control is better, but I think more than anything, what we’ve noticed is her field vision is really good, especially this year.”
In the first seven games before Denver Christian, Dawson outscored opponents 55-6. Against Denver Christian, Dawson was outscored 5-0.
“The refreshing thing about Hannah is that she’s very adaptable and she listens. You can put her anywhere on the field and she’ll adapt to it and play well,” Siegrist said. “She’s a great captain, a great leader, good kid, good student.”
The impact that Isenhart has for Dawson School is most evident in the aforementioned stat line.
“She’s just solid,” Siegrist said. “She doesn’t get riled up about stuff, she’s got a calm demeanor, she’s not selfish. That’s huge for us to have that player that is in the midfield that isn’t selfish and can distribute the ball well.”
But, Isenhart’s impact spans further than stats; it’s the intangibles where she truly makes a difference.
“Her ability to work with the younger players that we have,” Siegrist said. “Having them jump right in, Hannah is a huge impact player for us. She’s distributing the ball super well.
“She has an incredible work ethic. That makes coaching easier because you have a kid that comes out and gets right on it. I get out to practice and they’re already started. That tone is set by Hannah. When we need help, she’s the go to.”
Isenhart’s leadership is working as the Mustangs are 8-1 so far.
“You can tell by the way she approaches the game,” Siegrist said. “It seems like sometimes I don’t need to speak to the kids, Hannah brings them in and gets them going and rolling.”
And what may have set this in motion is Isenhart’s commitment to Tufts University. The recruiting process can be a looming cloud over an athlete’s head that affects play and creates distraction.
“I think that since she’s made that commitment to Tufts, that’s behind her,” Siegrist said. “She has that taken care of. It’s a weight lifted off her shoulders. She comes to practice with a smile on her face. She’s enjoying this, she’s not uptight at all.”
“I just try to play my game and not let anything else get in my head,” Isenhart said.
Isenhart and Dawson School lost to Vail Mountain in the 2015 and 2016 state championships, but Vail Mountain moved up a classification to 3A and is ranked ninth.
Those losses stay in Isenhart’s memory as motivation.
“It’s been a lot of motivation,” Isenhart said. “I think the people that have been there for the last two times that we made it to state, or even just last year, we’re pretty frustrated with the results. We want this to be our year.”
The roadblock of two years was cleared, which leaves the Mustangs in an opportune spot.
“We’re working hard every single practice to mesh together,” Isenhart said. “It keeps progressing. Everyone is really excited, and when we start picking up speed, we all are rallying behind the idea of a state championship win and all want to work hard towards that.
“I hope that if we get there this year that it won’t be the same result. Third time is the charm.”
Siegrist agrees.
“She’s an easy kid to get along with. This group of kids that I have get’s along well,” Siegrist said. “The chemistry is very good, and that’s why I think there’s a potential for this group to go far. It’s a balanced team, they get along well, they’re willing to work hard.”
Just as Isenhart continues to get better, she sets the tone throughout the program.
“She’s the first one out on the field and last one off the field,” Siegrist said. “She doesn’t take anything for granted. She feels fortunate to play for Dawson and she takes pride in that.”
After falling out of the top spot last week, Jefferson Academy is once again standing tall in the Class 3A girls soccer rankings.
The Jaguars regain the No. 1 after grabbing wins over SkyView Academy and St. Mary’s Academy last week.
Colorado Academy falls just one spot to No. 2.
Manitou Springs has continued its steady climb, gaining one spot to take position at No. 4.
At No. 10, Denver Science & Tech: Stapleton is the only new team in the 3A poll.
The 2A poll also saw a change at the top spot. After beating Dawson 5-0, Denver Christian comes in as the new No. 1 team. The Mustangs fell a spot to No. 2.
Front Range Christian is the only new team in the 2A poll, coming in at No. 5.
(Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com)
After a close battle on Saturday, Cherry Creek and Broomfield hold onto their spots at No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, in the 5A rankings.
The Jaguars come in at No. 2 this week and the Sun Devils dropped one spot to No. 4.
Manitou Springs jumped one spot thanks to a 1-0 win over No. 6 Colorado Springs Christian School.
At No. 8, Liberty Common is the only new team in the 3A rankings.
(Jeff Tucker/jefferywtucker.zenfolio.com)
The 5A poll once again saw a sizable shakeup as Cherry Creek now sits in the No. 1 spot.
Chaparral jumps up to No. 3 and Mountain Vista, an unranked team a week ago, stormed up the poll to No. 4.
Grandview rejoins the poll at No. 9 and ThunderRidge is also a newcomer this week, coming in at N0. 10.
In 4A, Valor Christian regains the top spot after The Classical Academy held it a week ago.
Defending champion Lewis-Palmer is still at No. 3 and the general layout of the next five teams are fairly consistent from last week’s poll.
Air Academy (No. 9) and Evergreen (No. 10) are the two new teams to the 4A rankings.
Dawson is the only team to hold on to its No. 1 rankings as it sits firmly atop the 2A poll. Heritage Christian (No. 3) and Fountain Valley (No. 4) traded spots from a week, but the rest of the 2A rankings remained intact.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association.
New polls are released each Monday during the regular season.
The mass shakeup of the Class 5A CHSAANow.com girls soccer poll was not a one-week thing.
Following last week’s crazy shuffle of top-10 teams, this week is once again in disarray.
Broomfield takes over as the new No. 1 team thanks a 1-0 win over Monarch last week. The Eagles were the No. 2 team in last week’s rankings.
Cherry Creek jumped three spots to come in at No. 2 while Regis Jesuit (No. 3) and Legacy (No. 4) each jumped four spots.
And then things get crazy.
Cherokee Trail falls to No. 5 and Mountain Vista — despite not playing a game — falls three spots to No. 6.
Two newcomers in Chaparral and Arapahoe fall in at No. 7 and No. 8 respectively while Grandview jumps one spot to land at No. 9.
Columbine, last week’s No. 1, remained in the top 10, but fell all the way to No. 10.
The 4A poll remained a little more consistent.
Valor Christian still holds the top spot, but it was The Classical Academy who climbed six spots to take over at No. 2.
Mullen (No. 4), Wheat Ridge (No. 5) and D’Evelyn (No. 6) are all one spot better than they were a week ago.
An injury-plagued Cheyenne Mountain team went 2-0 last week, but dropped to No. 8.
There were no new teams in the 4A poll.
Kent Denver took seven of nine first-place votes to remain the No. 1 team in the 3A poll.
Overall, the top five teams from last week’s 3A rankings went unchanged. The only new team, Colorado Springs Christian, comes in at No. 8, one spot behind Tri-Peaks rival Manitou Springs.
The most consistent poll of the week goes to 2A. Dawson took all six top votes to stay at No. 1 with Fountain Valley (No. 2), Denver Christian (No. 3) and Evangelical Christian (No. 4) also holding firm from last week.
Telluride is the only new team in the poll, rounding it out at No. 5.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association.
New polls are released each Monday during the regular season.
Pine Creek 18, Legend 15, Rocky Mountain 15, Denver South 6, Prairie View 3, Smoky Hill 3, Ralston Valley 2.
Dropped out:
Rocky Mountain (6), Ralston Valley (9).
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Valor Christian (7)
4-0-0
96
1
0-0-0
2
The Classical Academy (3)
4-0-0
83
8
1-0-0
3
Lewis-Palmer
4-1-0
66
2
1-1-0
4
Mullen
4-1-0
58
5
2-0-0
5
Wheat Ridge
5-0-0
56
6
1-0-0
6
D’Evelyn
4-0-1
47
7
1-0-1
7
Windsor
4-1-0
37
3
1-1-0
8
Cheyenne Mountain
3-2-0
34
4
2-0-0
9
Air Academy
3-3-0
18
9
0-1-0
10
Evergreen
3-2-0
12
10
1-1-0
Others receiving votes:
Sand Creek 11, Northridge 6, Palisade 5, Green Mountain 4, Ponderosa 3, Pueblo South 3, Silver Creek 3, Standley Lake 3, Littleton 2, Thomas Jefferson 2, Battle Mountain 1.
Dropped out:
None.
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Kent Denver (7)
3-1-0
87
1
0-0-0
2
Colorado Academy (1)
2-1-0
73
2
0-0-0
3
Jefferson Academy (1)
5-0-1
72
3
3-0-0
4
Peak to Peak
4-0-0
60
4
1-0-0
5
The Academy
3-1-0
43
5
0-1-0
6
Coal Ridge
2-1-0
34
7
0-0-0
7
Manitou Springs
4-1-0
26
8
1-1-0
8
Colorado Springs Christian
4-0-0
22
–
1-0-0
9
Vail Mountain
3-1-0
19
9
3-1-0
10
Liberty Common
1-1-0
14
6
1-1-0
Others receiving votes:
SkyView Academy 8, Prospect Ridge 6, Alamosa 4, Sterling 3, The Pinnacle 3, DSST-Stapleton 2, St. Mary’s 2, Aspen 1, Faith Christian 1, Florence 1.
Dropped out:
SkyView Academy (10).
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Dawson School (6)
3-0-0
30
1
0-0-0
2
Fountain Valley
0-0-0
24
2
0-0-0
3
Denver Christian
2-1-0
15
3
0-0-0
4
Evangelical Christian
2-1-0
9
4
1-0-0
5
Telluride
3-2-0
8
–
2-0-0
Others receiving votes:
Front Range Christian 2, Clear Creek 1, Rocky Mountain Lutheran 1.
When the dust settled on the first set of girls soccer rankings since the preseason, much had changed.
Ultimately, it was Columbine that emerged as the new No. 1 team in a transformed Class 5A poll that added three new teams, and also all kinds of tumult following an early two weeks where just about everyone was beat by someone else.
The Rebels, off to a 3-1-0 start, received just one first-place vote out of the 10 in the classification, but rose to the top with 84 overall points, ahead of new No. 2 Broomfield (four first-place votes, 73 points).
Mountain Vista dropped one spot to No. 3, Cherokee Trail jumped from No. 10 to No. 4, and Cherry Creek — unranked in the preseason — rounds out the top five.
Rocky Mountain was the lone team to hold its spot at No. 6, Regis Jesuit is up to No. 7, and newcomers Legacy (No. 8) and Ralston Valley (No. 9) joined the fray. Grandview, the preseason No. 1 which is off to an 0-2-0 start, fell to No. 10.
Each of the three No. 1 teams in the other classes held firm. Those are Valor Christian (4A), Kent Denver (3A) and Dawson (2A).
The 3A poll added No. 8 Manitou Springs and No. 10 SkyView Academy, but there were no new teams in 4A or 2A.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association.
New polls are released each Monday during the regular season.
The memory of how it all unraveled still lingers for the Pueblo West baseball team.
And, naturally, it stung for a long time.
The Cyclones had done just about everything to put themselves in position to take home the Class 4A crown coming down the closing stretch of the 2016 season.
They began clicking at the right moment, rattling off 16 wins over the 17 games leading up to the state championship finale against a Valor Christian squad that needed to win not once, but twice, to flip the script on what appeared to be inevitable.
That’s why it’s not easily forgotten, as Pueblo West is still searching for its first baseball title in school history.
“It left a bitter taste in our mouth,” senior pitcher RJ Dabovich said. “We were that close, one win away from a (championship) ring. That’s been our main motivation throughout the offseason.”
Rather than letting themselves dwell on what almost was, this year’s team has turned it into firing power entering their 2017 campaign, which begins Saturday at Lewis-Palmer.
“It’s definitely something that has stuck with us, and we’re using that to work harder and get better,” senior outfielder Ian Garcia said. “Everyone that was there is just that much hungrier to get back there and try to win it this year.”
Seven players from last year’s team were lost to graduation. The Cyclones did, however, retain much of their offensive production that led to their success a year ago.
Ian Garcia and his twin brother, Alan, are expected to play key offensive roles on this year’s sophomore-heavy team, according to 13th-year coach Dan Sanchez. They combined for 65 hits and 34 RBIs in 2016.
“We’ve been working to improve our fundamentals, really focusing on the little things that lost us that last game,” said Alan Garcia, a Dodge City Community College signee along with his brother. “We’re ready to redeem ourselves.”
Dabovich, who signed to Central Arizona College in January, is expected to lead the Cyclones on the pitching mound. The right-hander recorded 27 strikeouts and had two saves among a senior-led rotation last season.
“I’m excited because we’re about as athletic as we’ve ever been,” Sanchez said. “We were able to do some really good things last year and I fully expect us to be in the hunt again this year.”
The Eagles graduated 14 players while the Mountain Lions had only three seniors. Valor Christian will also be in its first season under new coach Brian Bonn.
[divider]
Class 5A
Cherokee Trail is also one of three defending champions to come in at No. 1 of their respective classes in the preseason poll. Returning seniors Conner Nantkes, Nick Perez, Eric Cox and Michael Morris accounted for more than half of the Cougars’ 283 hits in 2016.
Cherry Creek came in at No. 2 and will face Cherokee Trail on April 6. Headlining the Bruins’ list of returners is junior Tanner O’Tremba, who received All-American honors last season. No. 3 Rocky Mountain, the 2016 runner-up, will meet Cherokee Trail in a title-game rematch on March 24 during the regular season.
Class 3A
Knocked out in the semifinals last season, University is now back as the top-ranked team in 3A. The Bulldogs return seniors Paul Medina and Beau Hawley, who led the team in hits in 2016, as well as leading pitcher Cameron Multer, now a junior.
Defending champion Faith Christian is No. 2 in the season’s first rankings. The Eagles graduated seven seniors from a year ago, including top hitter and 3A player of the year Austin Stone, who was named to the MaxPreps small schools All-American team.
Class 2A
Top-ranked Paonia suffered only one defeat throughout the 2016 regular season. Despite being upset in the semifinals, the Eagles will return nearly their entire stately team from a year ago with the exception of two players.
Defending champion Dawson is ranked No. 2. The Mustangs lost six seniors from their title-winning squad.
Class 1A
Defending champion Holly was the only team in the preseason rankings to receive a unanimous vote for No. 1, while Eads and runner-up Fleming were voted Nos. 2 and 3, respectively.
The Wildcats, who return all but one player from their championship team, will play the Eagles on the road April 28 in the regular-season finale.
“He’s got good skill and IQ, but really I think his top attributes are more on the intangible side,” said Mountain Vista coach Jamie Munro, who happens to be Colin’s father. “There’s plenty of guys that are bigger, stronger, faster and just as skilled, but the real key is can you be a good teammate, can you work hard, can you come through for your team in good moments and can you be a smart player?
“We always talk about play hard, play smart, play together. I respect that about him more than anything else.”
Munro won the prestigious Minto Cup championship in Canada this past summer — the 21-and-under national championship of the Junior-A league.
“He’s spent the last seven summers up in Canada playing box lacrosse, which has been a game-changer for him as far as being able to learn how to play a brand of lacrosse that so many Americans don’t get to,” Munro said. “The Canadians are known for being the best goal scorers and stick handlers. They’re really smart at moving off the ball because that’s what their game teaches.”
However, there’s just one thing missing from the accolades: a CHSAA boys lacrosse state championship.
“We spent a lot of time in January and February just meeting as a team and talking about it,” coach Munro said. “At the end of the day, you go into a year with the idea of wanting to be able to play for that championship on the last Friday of the season.”
Mountain Vista boys lacrosse came oh-so-close to a birth in the Class 5A championship last year, but fell short in a 9-8 loss to Arapahoe in the semifinals. The previous year, the Golden Eagles lost 11-4 to Regis Jesuit in the semifinals.
“The goal is to definitely get past that,” Munro said. “I know most guys have a pretty bitter taste in their mouths after last season. We want to play on the last day of the season.”
(Lance Wendt/LanceWendt.com)
This season, Munro and Mountain Vista believe they have the tools and ability — they’re ready to get over that hump. The Golden Eagles are ranked No. 3 in the preseason.
“We’ve got the battle scars of experience,” the elder Munro said. “I think this team is more focused on the process of trying to do it right and play the right way. We know we have the ability to win games, what we really have to be able to do is just to be consistent. We’ve lost in the semifinals the last two years, and we’re hungry to take the next step and compete for a championship.”
The Golden Eagles are returning five of their top goal-scorers from last year: Munro (54), Jake Govett (36), Jake Frane (27), Ryan Nunes (19) and Evan Place (19).
“We are an unselfish team, he’s a pretty unselfish player,” Jamie Munro said. “Guys are willing to play whatever position, including him. He played midfield as a freshman and attack as a sophomore. We just move it around and see what the team need and go out and do it.”
Munro’s experience with indoor lacrosse gives him a unique skillset that has resulted in prolific stats. Indoor lacrosse uses a smaller goal, with a lot of movement off the ball. Where field lacrosse tends to be a one-on-one game, indoor lacrosse tends to be a picking, cutting and feeding game.
“His real advantage, actually, is that he’s received good opportunities to learn both games,” Munro said. “To be able to deal with tighter confines, the physicality of box lacrosse – that chippy, in-your-face type of culture that you get in Canada, combined with what he’s learned from field lacrosse. Everything from the X’s and O’s to the ability to dodge, it gives a good balance and versatility.”
Munro’s 84 points last year were second among juniors. He netted 54 goals, good for fifth best in Colorado — second for juniors.
“We have a really good offense and I think the best part about my points is they come off of team offense,” Colin Munro said. “We do a really good job of playing together and then whoever ends up with the ball at the end gets the goals. I did a good job shooting last year, so that definitely helped.”
The Munros credit Colin’s success to having opportunities like spending the summer in Canada and playing club lacrosse, both against older competition. Munro played in British Columbia for the last two years, and in Ontario for five years prior.
“Especially playing in Canada this past summer – playing with 21-year-olds that are really tough and physical makes coming back to kids your own age a lot easier,” Colin Munro said. “You get used to getting pounded all the time and when the pounding is not as gruesome, it makes a big difference.
(Lance Wendt/LanceWendt.com)
“It really allowed me to be more of an off-ball guy and learn to play different ways than I have in the past. Instead of just playing with the ball in my stick, I played with the ball out of my stick. It helped to learn the game more, learn different parts of the game.”
Another opportunity came as coach Munro had an 11-year stint as the head coach at the University of Denver.
“Definitely, that’s going to set me up for college,” Munro said. “I know what it’s like, I’m ready to go. Being around all the college players all the time and seeing their work ethics and seeing how intense their practice is, I think I can definitely take a lot of that with me.”
The Munros have been a player-coach duo since about first grade for Colin.
“It’s been the best thing for me as a player,” Munro said about his dad doubling as his coach. “Even though I know he definitely gets on me more than he gets on other players, he definitely knows what he’s talking about. He makes me a great player. I listen and take everything in, try to do everything he asks to the best of my ability.”
“I’m his dad and his coach, so I’m always going to be his biggest critic,” Jamie Munro said. “It’s a tough position to be in as the player of the coach of your dad. It’s also a tough position to be in as the coach when your son is a player. I hold him to the standards that are important for us and he probably has to hear about it more than other players, but luckily he’s got pretty thick skin, too, so it works out.”
This will be the last year of that relationship. The elder Munro will be able to be dad watching his son, simply a fan of spectacular talent.
“It’s going to be weird next year. It’s bittersweet. I think it’s going to be really weird to say goodbye to that special relationship that I have with him and his classmates,” Munro said. “At the same time, I’m psyched for him to take his next step in life and go off to college. It’s going to be sad to see him go, but happy for him. Then, I’m just a dad and I get to enjoy watching him.”
Before Munro moves on, the Golden Eagles have some business to take care of.
“We all have a bitter taste in our mouth after last year,” Colin Munro said. “Played three seasons, haven’t gotten a chance to play in the final game of the season yet, and I think it would be really special to do it for my dad, the rest of the seniors and the Hermann family. It would mean a lot to me just to play in the championship game.”
They start off with a home game March 10 against Legend. A week later, Mountain Vista has a date with the Arapahoe team that ended their season.
“I think we have a really good bond – especially in our offense,” Colin Munro said. “We’re moving the ball, sharing the ball, people know their roles. We have some big, athletic midfielders this year that will be able to make a difference. They’re going to really put some pressure on other teams.”
Coach Munro continually harped on doing things the “right way.” Yes, the talent is there. Yes, the experience is there. But the process needs to be trusted.
“Are we showing up on time, are we doing the extra workouts, are we being good leaders and good followers, good students and good kids off the field? These all add up,” Jamie Munro said. “Winning and losing, there can be some luck involved, but what doesn’t involve luck is doing it the right way.”
First Team: Colin Munro, Mountain Vista, A/M, Sr.; Asher Nolting, Cherry Creek, A, Sr.; Joey Soran, Regis Jesuit, D, Sr.
Second Team: Chase Douglas, Arapahoe, A, Sr.; Hunter Graefe, Chaparral, LSM, Sr.; Mac Tezak, Regis Jesuit, D, Sr.
4A:
First Team: August Johnson, Cheyenne Mountain, M, Jr.; Gianni Orlando, Valor Christian, M, Senior; Eric Pacheco, Valor Christian, M, So.; Gavyn Pure, Dawson School, A, Jr.
Second Team: Ryan Burdi, Green Mountain, G, So.; Mason Meyer, Conifer, A, Jr.; Kyle Sudol, Dawson School, M, Jr.; Lance Tillman, Valor Christian, A, So.; Dalton Ziegler, Valor Christian, M, Sr.
