Tayne Ila led an offense that rushed for seven touchdowns by scoring three times himself. Cole Simmons and Trent Blundell each scored twice.
“I was very proud of the boys tonight,” Montrose coach Brett Mertens said. “I thought we played hard and played as a team. Our kids are so much fun to coach. We are going to enjoy this win and then keep trying to get better every week.”
Tied 7-7 after the first quarter, Montrose scored three times in the second quarter to built a 28-14 halftime lead.
Montrose also scored on the opening drive of the third quarter, capped by a 3-yard TD from Simmons.
After stopping Heritage on downs on the next drive, Montrose scored again, this time on an Ila touchdown. That made it 42-14.
“We prepared through practice and we knew it was going to be a dogfight,” Blundell said. “It’s league play and we came out to play. We came out ready and we got it done.”
Heritage’s Connor Cummiskey threw three touchdown passes in the loss, two of them long scores to Erik Olsen.
“We were up and down,” Heritage coach Tyler Knoblock said. “Montrose is really good at what they do. Couple of early turnovers set them up. Always proud of my kids, a lot of good things ahead of us.”
Seven new teams joined this week’s football rankings: Conifer (3A), Eaton (2A), The Classical Academy (2A), Wray (1A), Hotchkiss (1A), Dove Creek (8-man) and Briggsdale (6-man).
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. Polls are released each Monday.
Fruita Monument 24, Brighton 22, Ponderosa 19, Golden 12, Wheat Ridge 9, Greeley West 8, Grand Junction 4, Mesa Ridge 2, Monarch 2, Silver Creek 2, Air Academy 1.
Dropped out
None.
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Palmer Ridge (15)
4-1
193
1
L
2
Mead (6)
5-0
183
2
W
3
Pueblo South
4-1
175
3
W
4
Discovery Canyon
4-1
115
4
Bye
5
Green Mountain
4-1
101
5
W
6
Frederick
5-0
88
6
W
7
Lutheran
4-1
72
8
W
8
Conifer
5-0
52
–
W
9
Durango
3-2
49
10
Bye
10
Palisade
2-3
25
7
L
Others receiving votes:
Harrison 24, Erie 23, Holy Family 17, Pueblo Central 16, Thomas Jefferson 14, Northridge 12, Roosevelt 10, Fort Morgan 9, Niwot 9, Pueblo East 8, Battle Mountain 6, Skyview 4, Eagle Valley 1, Evergreen 1.
Dropped out
Erie (9).
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Rifle (13)
5-0
200
1
W
2
Delta (4)
4-0
180
2
Bye
3
Platte Valley (1)
4-1
152
3
W
4
Sterling (1)
4-1
150
4
W
5
Resurrection Christian (2)
4-1
137
5
W
6
Faith Christian (1)
4-1
114
6
W
7
Basalt
5-0
96
7
W
8
La Junta
4-1
55
8
W
9
Eaton
3-2
38
–
W
10
The Classical Academy
3-2
22
–
W
Others receiving votes:
Elizabeth 21, Alamosa 9, Moffat County 9, Englewood 8, Lamar 8, Bayfield 7, University 3, Aspen 1.
Dropped out
Lamar (9), Alamosa (10).
Class 1A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Strasburg (20)
5-0
218
1
W
2
Limon
4-1
188
2
W
3
Holyoke (2)
5-0
156
3
W
4
Florence
5-0
151
4
W
5
Centauri
4-1
111
5
Bye
6
Meeker
4-1
102
7
W
7
Colorado Springs Christian
4-1
101
6
W
8
Wray
4-1
42
–
W
9
Highland
3-2
40
10
W
10
Hotchkiss
4-1
36
–
W
Others receiving votes:
Buena Vista 15, Flatirons Academy 15, Rye 15, Peyton 9, Burlington 8.
Dropped out
Burlington (8), Rye (9).
8-man
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Sedgwick County (12)
6-0
138
1
W
2
Fowler (2)
5-0
113
2
W
3
Mancos
5-0
108
3
W
4
Dayspring Christian Academy
5-0
107
4
W
5
Merino
4-1
66
6
W
6
Caliche
4-1
63
5
W
7
Sanford
5-0
54
7
W
8
Vail Christian
5-0
39
8
W
9
Pikes Peak Christian
3-1
26
9
W
10
Dove Creek
5-1
11
–
W
Others receiving votes:
Soroco 10, Rangely 9, West Grand 9, Sargent 6, Hoehne 5, McClave 5, Holly 1.
Fruita Monument 26, Ponderosa 22, Silver Creek 18, Brighton 13, Greeley West 10, Golden 9, Grand Junction 9, Wheat Ridge 9, Skyline 5, Air Academy 4, Windsor 4, Longmont 3, Vista Ridge 2, Mesa Ridge 1, Rampart 1.
Dropped out
Ponderosa (7), Silver Creek (10).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Palmer Ridge (19)
4-0
202
1
W
2
Mead (1)
4-0
190
2
Bye
3
Pueblo South
3-1
167
3
L
4
Discovery Canyon
4-1
120
4
W
5
Green Mountain
3-1
101
5
W
6
Frederick (1)
4-0
95
7
W
7
Palisade
2-2
62
6
L
8
Lutheran
3-1
50
8
W
9
Erie
2-2
40
10
W
10
Durango
3-2
39
9
W
Others receiving votes:
Conifer 27, Holy Family 16, Thomas Jefferson 16, Northridge 15, Pueblo Central 15, Fort Morgan 12, Roosevelt 10, Harrison 8, Lewis-Palmer 7, Pueblo East 7, Battle Mountain 6, Skyview 4, Lincoln 1.
Dropped out
None.
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Rifle (13)
4-0
204
1
W
2
Delta (5)
4-0
192
2
W
3
Platte Valley (2)
3-1
165
3
Bye
4
Sterling
3-1
157
4
Bye
5
Resurrection Christian (2)
3-1
137
5
W
6
Faith Christian (1)
3-1
117
6
W
7
Basalt
4-0
66
9
W
8
La Junta
3-1
64
8
W
9
Lamar
3-1
51
–
W
10
Alamosa
3-1
49
7
L
Others receiving votes:
Eaton 21, Moffat County 15, Elizabeth 9, Aspen 6, University 6, Englewood 3, D’Evelyn 2, Arvada 1.
Dropped out
Eaton (10).
Class 1A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Strasburg (17)
4-0
188
2
W
2
Limon (1)
3-1
162
1
L
3
Holyoke (1)
4-0
142
3
W
4
Florence
4-0
119
4
W
5
Centauri
4-1
98
7
W
6
Colorado Springs Christian
3-1
95
6
W
7
Meeker
3-1
79
5
Bye
8
Burlington
2-2
35
10
W
9
Rye
4-0
29
9
Bye
10
Highland
2-2
23
–
L
Others receiving votes:
Hotchkiss 21, Buena Vista 19, Wray 14, Flatirons Academy 10, Peyton 6, Grand Valley 3, Paonia 2.
Dropped out
Buena Vista (8).
8-man
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Sedgwick County (13)
5-0
148
1
W
2
Fowler (2)
4-0
120
2
W
3
Mancos
4-0
117
3
W
4
Dayspring Christian Academy
4-0
106
5
W
5
Caliche
3-1
71
4
L
6
Merino
3-1
67
6
W
7
Sanford
4-0
62
7
W
8
Vail Christian
4-0
40
8
W
9
Pikes Peak Christian
2-1
26
–
Bye
10
Rangely
3-1
17
10
Bye
Others receiving votes:
Hoehne 15, Soroco 14, West Grand 10, Sargent 5, Dove Creek 4, Elbert 1, Holly 1, Plateau Valley 1.
This week’s football rankings feature seven new teams: Legend (5A), Vista Peak (4A), Silver Creek (4A), Frederick (3A), Eaton (2A), Vail Christian (8-man), and Briggsdale (6-man).
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. Polls are released each Monday.
Loveland 32, Greeley West 25, Skyline 15, Fruita Monument 14, Windsor 13, Grand Junction 11, Golden 6, Monarch 6, Rampart 6, Hinkley 5, Longmont 5, Wheat Ridge 4, Brighton 3, Air Academy 1.
Dropped out
Loveland (8), Windsor (9).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Palmer Ridge (18)
3-0
200
1
W
2
Mead (2)
4-0
187
2
W
3
Pueblo South
3-0
162
4
Bye
4
Discovery Canyon
3-1
107
6
W
5
Green Mountain
2-1
91
3
L
6
Palisade
2-1
89
5
W
7
Frederick
3-0
85
7
W
8
Lutheran
2-1
35
–
W
9
Durango
2-2
31
10
W
10
Erie
1-2
30
9
Bye
Others receiving votes:
Roosevelt 27, Pueblo Central 18, Fort Morgan 16, Thomas Jefferson 16, Conifer 13, Holy Family 11, Northridge 10, Pueblo East 8, Battle Mountain 6, Skyview 4, Denver North 3, Harrison 3, Lewis-Palmer 3.
Dropped out
Roosevelt (8).
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Rifle (15)
3-0
205
1
W
2
Delta (4)
3-0
172
3
W
3
Platte Valley (1)
3-1
146
4
W
4
Sterling
3-1
140
2
L
5
Resurrection Christian (1)
2-1
121
6
W
6
Faith Christian (1)
2-1
112
5
W
7
Alamosa
3-0
105
8
W
8
La Junta
2-1
71
7
W
9
Basalt
3-0
67
9
W
10
Eaton
1-2
17
–
L
Others receiving votes:
Bayfield 8, Bennett 8, Moffat County 8, The Classical Academy 6, Lamar 5, D’Evelyn 4, University 4, Bishop Machebeuf 3, Elizabeth 3, Englewood 2, Kent Denver 2, Aspen 1.
Dropped out
Bayfield (10).
Class 1A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Limon (15)
3-0
193
1
W
2
Strasburg (4)
3-0
169
2
Bye
3
Holyoke (1)
3-0
167
3
Bye
4
Florence
3-0
125
5
W
5
Meeker
3-1
101
4
L
6
Colorado Springs Christian
2-1
92
6
W
7
Centauri
3-1
83
7
W
8
Buena Vista
3-0
57
9
W
9
Rye
4-0
37
10
W
10
Burlington
1-2
21
8
L
Others receiving votes:
Highland 19, Hotchkiss 11, Wray 9, Paonia 6, Peyton 4, Wiggins 4, Monte Vista 2.
Dropped out
None.
8-man
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Sedgwick County (12)
4-0
129
1
W
2
Fowler (1)
3-0
97
2
Bye
3
Mancos
3-0
95
4
W
4
Caliche
3-0
93
3
Bye
5
Dayspring Christian Academy
3-0
75
5
W
6
Merino
2-1
48
6
Bye
7
Sanford
3-0
44
8
W
8
Vail Christian
3-0
33
–
W
9
West Grand
3-1
26
9
W
10
Rangely
3-1
19
7
L
Others receiving votes:
Hoehne 18, Pikes Peak Christian 16, Soroco 8, Holly 6, Sargent 5, Dove Creek 3.
Lakewood 12, Legend 12, Castle View 11, Smoky Hill 10, Mullen 3, Chaparral 2, Mountain Vista 1, Overland 1.
Dropped out
Legend (10).
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Pine Creek (19)
2-0
217
1
W
2
Broomfield (1)
3-0
204
2
W
3
Montrose (2)
3-0
165
3
W
4
Pueblo West
3-0
150
4
W
5
Dakota Ridge
2-0
114
5
Bye
6
Chatfield
2-1
106
6
W
7
Ponderosa
1-2
78
8
W
8
Loveland
1-1
61
7
W
9
Windsor
1-1
27
10
L
10
Heritage
1-1
26
9
L
Others receiving votes:
Vista Peak Prep 25, Silver Creek 18, Monarch 14, Skyline 14, Fruita Monument 11, Hinkley 11, Greeley West 8, Longmont 4, Wheat Ridge 4, Brighton 3, Grand Junction 3, Rampart 2.
Dropped out
None.
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Palmer Ridge (16)
2-0
184
1
W
2
Mead (1)
3-0
163
3
W
3
Green Mountain
2-0
142
4
W
4
Pueblo South (1)
3-0
138
6
W
5
Palisade
1-1
90
2
L
6
Discovery Canyon
2-1
83
5
L
7
Frederick
2-0
54
–
W
8
Roosevelt
1-1
53
9
Bye
9
Erie
1-2
33
7
L
10
Durango
1-2
27
10
L
Others receiving votes:
Fort Morgan 23, Pueblo East 21, Northridge 18, Holy Family 17, Pueblo Central 13, Lincoln 10, Lewis-Palmer 7, Battle Mountain 6, Thomas Jefferson 6, Lutheran 5, Conifer 4, Harrison 3.
Dropped out
Pueblo East (8).
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Rifle (7)
2-0
171
2
Bye
2
Sterling (7)
3-0
170
5
W
3
Delta (2)
2-0
150
3
W
4
Platte Valley (2)
2-1
140
4
W
5
Faith Christian (1)
1-1
111
7
W
6
Resurrection Christian (1)
1-1
111
6
Bye
7
La Junta (1)
1-1
99
1
L
8
Alamosa
2-0
75
–
W
9
Basalt (1)
2-0
39
–
W
10
Bayfield
1-1
37
10
Bye
Others receiving votes:
Eaton 32, Kent Denver 26, The Classical Academy 14, Aspen 6, Bennett 5, Elizabeth 5, Bishop Machebeuf 4, Brush 4, D’Evelyn 4, Englewood 2, Lamar 2, University 2, Moffat County 1.
Dropped out
Kent Denver (8), The Classical Academy (9).
Class 1A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Limon (15)
2-0
196
1
W
2
Strasburg (4)
3-0
167
2
W
3
Holyoke (1)
4-0
164
3
–
4
Meeker
3-0
133
4
W
5
Florence (1)
2-0
123
6
Bye
6
Colorado Springs Christian
1-1
89
7
W
7
Centauri
1-1
78
5
L
8
Burlington
1-1
54
8
W
9
Buena Vista
2-0
47
9
W
10
Rye
3-0
42
–
W
Others receiving votes:
Highland 20, Hotchkiss 14, Paonia 10, Flatirons Academy 7, Monte Vista 6, Peyton 2, Wray 2, Wiggins 1.
Dropped out
Highland (10).
8-man
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Sedgwick County (14)
3-0
140
1
W
2
Fowler
3-0
103
4
W
3
Caliche
3-0
102
2
W
4
Mancos
2-0
99
5
W
5
Dayspring Christian Academy
2-0
79
7
W
6
Merino
2-1
59
3
L
7
Rangely
3-0
47
8
W
8
Sanford
2-0
35
10
W
9
West Grand
2-1
20
–
W
10
Hoehne
0-2
19
6
L
Others receiving votes:
Vail Christian 18, Pikes Peak Christian 17, Sargent 17, Soroco 6, Holly 5, Dove Creek 4.
Alamosa and new coach Drew Sandlin have a signature win early in the 2019 season.
The Mean Moose knocked off defending Class 2A champion and top-ranked La Junta 22-6, on the road, no less. It put an end to La Junta’s 14-game winning streak, which had been tied for the longest in the state.
Alamosa led 7-0 at the half, and pushed it to 14-0 midway through the third. La Junta returned an interception for a score later in that quarter, but then Alamosa scored again, securing the win.
[divider]
8-man: (5) Mancos 48, (3) Merino 34
Trailing 8-0 after the first quarter, Mancos rallied to score 18 consecutive points in the second quarter to build a lead. The Bluejays continued the momentum in the third quarter, and ultimately fended off a late rally to secure the top-5 win.
“We made a lot of mistakes in the beginning,” Mancos coach Josh Gardner told the Colorado Preps Scoreboard Show. “And one of the messages I was trying to get to our boys last night at the hotel, and today, was you’re going to make mistakes, but you have to forget about it, you have to move on. And so at halftime, we just kind of sat together and talked about it. We said, ‘Hey, you made mistakes, that’s ok. You’ve got to forget about it, and you’ve got to move on.’ And I think that was the difference. We were able to move on from those big mistakes.”
Chase Moore had three rushing touchdowns, including a 52-yard score in the second quarter which got the scoring started for Mancos, and a 39-yarder early in the third quarter that made it 24-16.
Anthony Medina had two rushing scores, while Breccen Morelli had a score through the air and on the ground.
Mancos pushed its lead to 34-16 as the fourth quarter started. Two quick touchdowns from Merino made it 34-28. Morelli threw a 74-yard touchdown with four minutes to play to put Mancos back up two scores, but Merino responded with a score with less than two minutes to play, making it 40-34.
Medina then added his second rushing score, a 57-yarder, in the final minute to make it 48-34.
“It was pretty crazy,” Gardner said. “Merino was a hard-fighting team, and they just could not let us get any distance. They fought real hard, we fought real hard, and yeah, it was a little wild and crazy at the end.”
Mancos is now 2-0 this season.
“We’re trying to change the mentality of our program,” Gardner said. “We’re trying to be as confident as we can be. We’re trying to just play with a positive attitude, and just keep our spirits high, and you’ve just got to forget when you make mistakes because everyone makes mistakes.”
[divider]
3A: Frederick 21, (7) Erie 20
Frederick won its rivalry contest against No. 7 Erie thanks to this stop of a two-point conversion attempt:
Frederick gets a stop on the 2-point conversion and defeats Erie 21-20 🏈 Miner’s Trophy returns to the Warriors! @BoCoPreps@CHSAA @Warriors_of_FHS pic.twitter.com/AUrvK5D2Uq
Frederick coach Travis Peeples told the Scoreboard Show that it was “a great night to be here. A great win.”
The Warriors, now 2-0, were led by quarterback Jake Green.
“He kind of took the game over,” Peeples said. “He was a big difference tonight in getting us the win.”
Of the late two-point conversion stop, Peeples said: “We kinda were ready for what they were going to do, and we prepared all week for it. … It was exhilarating. The crowd, it was a packed house, and it was just an unbelievable win. Our kids kinda willed themselves to win the game. They wanted this really bad for our community and our school.”
Green Mountain quarterback Trey Towndrow threw four touchdown passes, two each in the first and third quarters, as the Rams went on the road to secure a big win.
“It was a great win, a great battle,” Green Mountain coach Jesse German told the Scoreboard Show. “Our kids, they just hung in there and they just kept fighting.”
Palisade tried to rally late, but Green Mountain wouldn’t let the Bulldogs get back in the game.
“Huge win for us,” German said. “Super proud of our boys just to keep fighting and finishing that game.”
On Towndrow, German added: “He’s one of the top quarterbacks in the state, and really one of the top athletes in the state. I think he’s a game-changer for us.”
Following this win over Cheyenne Mountain, Sand Creek has matched its win total of the the previous four seasons combined.
The Scorpions, led by first-year coach James Everett, are 2-0 for the first time since 2013.
“This is exciting, man,” Everett told the Scoreboard Show. “The school is behind us, the community is behind us. We had a packed house tonight. we had guys outside of the gate watching the game. It was a nice atmosphere to be in tonight.”
In 1A, Pagosa Springs knocked off No. 5 Centauri 28-20.
4A No. 8 Ponderosa also made a stop on a two-point conversion attempt to seal the top-10 win at the end of the game, beating No. 10 Windsor 24-23.
An upset in 6-man, where Granada knocked off No. 8 Eads 54-46. “It was a hard-fought victory,” coach Manuel Gonzales Jr. told the Scoreboard Show. “We had just enough in the tank to pull it out.”
Skyline 22, Silver Creek 18, Longmont 16, Vista Peak Prep 16, Fruita Monument 13, Brighton 10, Denver South 9, Greeley West 9, Rampart 7, Bear Creek 5, Grand Junction 4, Monarch 3, Greeley Central 2, Fort Collins 1, Golden 1.
Dropped out
Skyline (7).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Palmer Ridge (19)
1-0
197
1
W
2
Palisade
1-0
164
2
W
3
Mead (1)
2-0
157
3
W
4
Green Mountain
1-0
116
6
W
5
Discovery Canyon
2-0
114
7
W
6
Pueblo South (1)
2-0
100
8
W
7
Erie
1-1
68
4
L
8
Pueblo East
1-1
59
9
W
9
Roosevelt
1-1
45
5
L
10
Durango
1-1
35
10
L
Others receiving votes:
Frederick 23, Holy Family 20, Fort Morgan 13, Pueblo Central 10, Northridge 8, Battle Mountain 6, Thomas Jefferson 6, Lutheran 5, Denver North 4, Evergreen 3, Harrison 2.
The event brought back the popular Sweepstakes race, mixing together the best teams from each classification. This year, on the boys side, Fort Collins won the event with 153 points. Rock Canyon (178) placed second, and host Heritage (206) was third.
Individually, returning champion Cole Sprout captured the Sweepstakes with a time of 14.38.40. Cherry Creek junior Parker Wolfe was second in 14:47.30, and Fort Collins’ Kevin Conlon (15:09.50) was third.
Cherry Creek won the girls race, totaling just 78 points. Cherokee Trail (97) was second, and Arapahoe (121) placed third.
Sydney Thorvaldson of Rawlins (Wyo.) won the Sweepstakes race in 16:40.60. Cherry Creek’s Riley Stewart (17:12.60) was the top Colorado finisher, ahead of Cherokee Trail’s Cameron McConnell (17:24.60).
Overland’s Grant Bradley was the individual champion in the Division 1 boys race, and Fossil Ridge was the top team.
Ralston Valley’s Elizabeth Schweiker captured the Division 1 girls race, while Jackson Hole, Wyo. won as a team.
