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Doherty boys basketball jumped into the 5A rankings this week. (Matt Daniels/MattDanPhoto.com)
Going into the final CHSAANow.com boys basketball rankings of 2015, the top teams from last week’s polls all remained in place.
And even though the top of the rankings look similar, new teams were added in all classes, giving some squads a momentum boost as the schools head into winter break.
In Class 5A, Overland came in as a unanimous choice at No. 1 fresh off winning the Tarkanian Classic in Las Vegas, Nev.
The top six teams from last week’s 5A poll all held their place as they are playing quality basketball heading into the break. It was Chatfield who made the biggest jump, going from No. 10 to No. 7, thanks in part to an overtime win against Palmer on Thursday.
An impressive looking Doherty team cracks the rankings this week after taking down Legend last week.
In 4A, the top teams are all playing high quality basketball. Longmont posted three impressive wins this week while Valor Christian won a nail-biter against Pueblo Central, surviving Mike Ranson’s 44-point performance.
Even with the loss, the Wildcats broke back into the rankings at No. 8.
Denver South and Mead were other two newcomers in 4A, coming in at No. 9 and No. 10, respectively.
Colorado Springs Christian remains at the top of the 3A poll. They didn’t see any official action last week, although they did compete at the City for Champions tournament at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.
There were two new additions to the 3A rankings as The Pinnacle comes in at No. 8 and Denver School of Science and Tech – Green Valley Ranch breaks in at No. 10.
Sanford received every first-place vote this week to hold their position atop the 2A rankings.
A win and a close loss to Ignacio was good enough for the voters to make Center the lone newcomer to the 2A rankings as they grabbed the No. 10 position this week.
Like all other classes, there was not a chance at the top of the 1A rankings this week as Fleming still comes in at No. 1. Longmont Christian did make quite a splash as a newcomer. Unranked last week, the Warriors came in at No. 4, even snagging a first-place vote along the way.
Front Range Baptist also broke into the 1A poll as they jump in at No. 10.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. During the regular season, they are released each Monday.
Legend 8, Dakota Ridge 4, Boulder 3, George Washington 2, Lakewood 2, Greeley West 1, FNE Warriors 1.
Dropped out
Legend (7).
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Longmont (10)
6-0
143
1
3-0
2
Valor Christian (3)
7-0
133
2
2-0
3
Pueblo South (2)
8-0
120
3
3-0
4
Lewis-Palmer
5-1
94
4
0-0
5
Pueblo West
7-1
89
5
0-0
6
Golden
3-3
47
7
0-2
7
Sand Creek
5-2
45
6
2-1
8
Pueblo Central
5-5
34
–
1-1
9
Denver South
6-3
29
–
2-0
10
Mead
5-3
21
–
2-1
Others receiving votes:
Conifer 17, Evergreen 16, Thomas Jefferson 12, Vista Ridge 7, Rifle 6, Windsor 6, D’Evelyn 2, Wheat Ridge 2, Ponderosa 1, Vista Peak 1.
Dropped out
Vista Ridge (8), Thomas Jefferson (9), Conifer (10).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Colorado Springs Christian (8)
3-0
112
1
0-0
2
Colorado Academy (2)
5-4
92
2
2-1
3
Sterling
4-1
83
3
1-0
4
Lutheran
6-2
66
5
0-1
5
DSST-Stapleton (1)
6-0
61
7
1-0
6
Alamosa
5-2
56
6
1-0
7
Faith Christian
3-4
39
4
0-0
8
The Pinnacle
3-1
29
–
0-0
9
Eaton (1)
5-1
23
9
3-0
10
DSST-Green Valley Ranch
4-0
21
–
1-0
Others receiving votes:
Grand Valley 17, Bennett 13, SkyView Academy 12, Strasburg 9, Manual 7, St. Mary’s 6, Arrupe Jesuit 4, Pagosa Springs 4, James Irwin 3, Platte Valley 3.
Dropped out
Bennett (8), Grand Valley (10).
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Sanford (10)
6-0
100
1
1-0
2
Resurrection Christian
7-0
87
2
2-0
3
Ignacio
5-0
81
3
1-0
4
Sedgwick County
6-0
71
4
2-0
5
Meeker
4-0
43
5
1-0
6
Rye
4-2
41
8
3-0
7
Holyoke
3-1
29
7
1-1
8
Paonia
6-1
26
6
2-1
9
Simla
4-0
25
10
1-0
10
Center
4-1
13
–
1-1
Others receiving votes:
Highland 12, Dayspring Christian 10, Burlington 4, Crowley County 4, Haxtun 2, Merino 1, Rocky Ford 1.
Dropped out
Dayspring Christian (9).
Class 1A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Fleming (6)
4-1
77
1
1-0
2
South Baca (1)
6-0
65
3
1-0
3
Holly
5-2
61
7
3-0
4
Longmont Christian (1)
5-0
53
–
2-0
5
Kit Carson
5-1
46
2
2-1
6
Ouray
5-0
45
4
3-0
7
Arickaree/Woodlin
4-1
29
5
2-0
8
Sierra Grande
5-1
24
6
2-0
9
Front Range Baptist
6-0
17
–
0-0
10
Wiley
4-2
12
8
2-1
Others receiving votes:
Shining Mountain 6, Community Christian 3, Dove Creek 1, Springfield 1, Faith Baptist 1.
Chatfield boys basketball is ranked No. 10 this week. (Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com)
Once again, there were minimal changes to the top of the CHSAANow.com boys basketball rankings.
Overland, Longmont, Colorado Springs Christian School, Sanford and Fleming all maintain their positions as the No. 1 teams in their respective classes. And while new teams made their way into this week’s set of polls, it appears that taking down the top teams in every class is going to be a formidable challenge.
The Class 5A poll might’ve had the most interesting turnaround since last week. Cherokee Trail certainly got the attention of a lot of teams with their 85-81 win over Denver East. The win helped the Cougars jump from No. 10 to No. 6.
Eaglecrest and Regis Jesuit each climbed two spots and remain undefeated on the young season.
On the strength of a 4-1 start, Chatfield joins the 5A rankings, coming in at No. 10 this week.
In 4A, the top seven teams remain the same from last week, with only Pueblo West and Sand Creek changing positions. The two teams swapped spots, putting the Cyclones at No. 5 and the Scorpions at No. 6.
The largest set of newcomers to any poll took place with the 4A rankings as Vista Ridge, Thomas Jefferson and Conifer come in this week and occupy the last three spots of the top 10.
Very few changes took place in the 3A poll as there were no newcomers. Lutheran and DSST-Stapleton each jumped two spots with Lutheran landing at No. 5 and DSST-Stapleton coming in at No. 7.
Dayspring Christian jumps into the 2A poll this week at No. 10. They are the lone newcomer.
After going 3-0 last week, Meeker made a significant jump in the poll, going from No. 8 to No. 5 as they look to set themselves up as a contender. Paonia also jumped three spots from No. 9 to land at No. 6 this week.
The top nine teams of the 1A poll went unchanged, although Arickaree/Woodlin did move from No. 7 to No. 5. Norwood cracked the top 10 this week, taking the No. 10 spot.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. During the regular season, they are released each Monday.
Boulder 21, Aurora Central 13, Grand Junction Central 6, Doherty 6, Mountain Vista 4, Cherry Creek 3, George Washington 2, Greeley West 2, Rampart 2, Dakota Ridge 1.
Dropped out
Arvada West (8).
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Longmont (14)
3-0
183
1
2-0
2
Valor Christian (3)
5-0
161
2
3-0
3
Pueblo South (2)
5-0
152
3
1-0
4
Lewis-Palmer
5-1
121
4
2-0
5
Pueblo West
7-1
102
6
4-1
6
Sand Creek
3-1
75
5
1-1
7
Golden
3-1
68
7
1-0
8
Vista Ridge
5-0
46
–
4-0
9
Thomas Jefferson
4-2
28
–
3-0
10
Conifer
6-0
16
–
3-0
Others receiving votes:
Pueblo Central 15, Denver South 14, Windsor 12, Evergreen 10, Ponderosa 10, Mead 9, D’Evelyn 8, Mountain View 3, Air Academy 2, Centaurus 2, Holy Family 2, Rifle 2, Wheat Ridge 2, Green Mountain 1, Vista Peak 1.
Dropped out
Pueblo Central (8), Mead (9), Green Mountain (10).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Colorado Springs Christian (10)
3-0
125
1
1-0
2
Colorado Academy (2)
3-3
94
2
2-1
3
Sterling
3-1
86
4
1-1
4
Faith Christian
3-4
77
3
2-2
5
Lutheran
6-1
67
7
3-0
6
Alamosa
4-2
56
6
2-1
7
DSST-Stapleton (1)
5-0
55
9
2-0
8
Bennett
4-1
34
5
1-1
9
Eaton
2-1
21
10
1-1
10
Grand Valley
3-1
21
8
1-1
Others receiving votes:
The Pinnacle 17, St. Mary’s 16, DSST-Green Valley Ranch 13, Manual 6, Platte Valley 6, SkyView Academy 5, Buena Vista 3, Peak to Peak 3, James Irwin 2, Kent Denver 2, Pagosa Springs 2, Strasburg 2, Jefferson Academy 1, Manitou Springs 1.
Dropped out
.
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Sanford (10)
5-0
100
1
3-0
2
Resurrection Christian
5-0
87
3
2-0
3
Ignacio
4-0
71
2
1-0
4
Sedgwick County
4-0
62
5
2-0
5
Meeker
3-0
48
8
3-0
6
Paonia
4-0
39
9
2-0
7
Holyoke
2-0
34
4
1-0
8
Rye
1-2
26
6
0-1
9
Dayspring Christian
4-0
24
–
1-0
10
Simla
3-0
20
10
1-0
Others receiving votes:
Center 14, Highland 9, Crowley County 5, Burlington 4, Akron 3, Rocky Ford 2, Soroco 2.
Dropped out
Burlington (7).
Class 1A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Fleming (8)
3-1
80
1
2-0
2
Kit Carson
3-0
70
2
2-0
3
South Baca
5-0
64
4
3-0
4
Ouray
2-0
50
5
1-0
5
Arickaree/Woodlin
2-1
36
7
1-0
6
Sierra Grande
3-1
35
6
1-0
7
Holly
2-2
30
3
1-2
8
Wiley
2-1
26
8
1-1
9
Shining Mountain
2-1
25
9
1-0
10
Norwood
3-1
8
–
3-1
Others receiving votes:
Longmont Christian 5, Otis 4, Springfield 2, Creede/Lake City 1, Dove Creek 1, Eads 1, Heritage Christian 1, Walsh 1.
The 2015 volleyball players of the year. From left: Antonya Schaffert, Otis; Bethany Cullity, Cheyenne Mountain; Shannon Webb, Cherokee Trail; Tara Traphagan, Yuma; Caiden Rexius, Eaton. (Photos: Matt Daniels/MattDanPhoto.com; Kai Casey/CHSAANow.com; Ray Chen/ArrayPhoto.com)
The 2015 all-state volleyball teams are presented by CHSAANow.com, ColoradoPreps.com and MaxPreps.
These team were created following a lengthy process which included nominations from leagues and then a vote of coaches.
Scroll down to see the teams, or use the menu below to navigate to the class of your choosing.
Arvada West is No. 8 in the 5A boys basketball rankings this week. (Dennis Pleuss)
The No. 1-ranked teams in this week’s CHSAANow.com basketball polls held steady, but a flurry of new teams were added.
With play beginning last week and most teams in action it was only a matter of time before the look and feel of the polls started shifting, specifically in the higher classes. But the top teams of Overland (5A), Longmont (4A), Colorado Springs Christian (3A), Sanford (2A) and Fleming (1A) all held on to the top spots in their respective divisions.
The Class 5A poll saw the addition of two new teams in Arvada West at No. 8 and Rock Canyon at No. 9. The Wildcats started the season on a tear, taking down Smoky Hill, Northglenn and Mountain Range.
Rock Canyon overcame a season-opening loss to Eaglecrest and rattled off three straight wins of their own, good enough to crack this week’s poll.
In 4A, Valor Christian showed they can pose a threat to Longmont as the top seed in the class as they ran out defending champion Air Academy. But the most impressive jump this week came from Pueblo South, which jumped from No. 10 to No. 3 on the strength of a 63-59 win over Lewis-Palmer.
The Rangers only fell one slot thanks to a one-point win over Pueblo Central, which still looks like a good team despite the loss of Kobi Betts for the season.
Mead and Green Mountain are this week’s 4A newcomers, coming in at No. 9 and No. 10, respectively.
It was the 3A poll that look the most different from the preseason rankings. They added four new teams, a staggering number for any week. Bennett, Grand Valley, DSST-Stapleton and Eaton all jump into the top 10 this week.
It was Bennett who made the biggest impact, breaking at No. 5. They topped Lutheran (who jumped one spot this week to No. 7) 49-47 Friday. Grand Valley, DSST-Stapleton and Eaton came in at 8, 9 and 10.
No new teams were added to this week’s 2A rankings, but there was some shuffling that took place.
Rye fell two slots to No. 6 after a 61-57 loss to Alamosa and Sedgwick County jumped three spots from No. 8 to No. 5.
Three new teams jumped into 1A’s top 10 as Sierra Grande (No. 6), Wiley (No. 8) and Shining Mountain (No. 9) all jump into the basketball rankings for the first time this year.
Fleming was the only top seed to actually lose this week as they fell to Holyoke 68-65. Even with the loss, they held on to the top spot in this week’s rankings. Holyoke is ranked No. 4 in 2A.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. During the regular season, they are released each Monday.
Chatfield 14, Boulder 9, Dakota Ridge 9, Abraham Lincoln 6, George Washington 5, Cherry Creek 4, Fort Collins 3, Mountain Vista 3, Rampart 3, Doherty 2, Aurora Central 1, Fossil Ridge 1, FNE Warriors 1.
Dropped out
George Washington (4), Dakota Ridge (10).
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Longmont (16)
1-0
194
1
1-0
2
Valor Christian (2)
2-0
171
2
2-0
3
Pueblo South (2)
4-0
141
10
4-0
4
Lewis-Palmer
3-1
122
3
3-1
5
Sand Creek
2-0
115
6
2-0
6
Pueblo West
3-0
94
9
3-0
7
Golden
2-1
73
5
2-1
8
Pueblo Central
1-3
31
4
1-3
9
Mead
1-1
26
–
1-1
10
Green Mountain
2-0
19
–
2-0
Others receiving votes:
D’Evelyn 16, Holy Family 16, Denver South 14, Windsor 14, Conifer 11, Air Academy 9, Thomas Jefferson 7, Vista Ridge 7, Evergreen 5, Mesa Ridge 3, Mountain View 3, Ponderosa 3, Sierra 2, Centaurus 1, Delta 1, Falcon 1, Rifle 1.
Dropped out
Air Academy (7), Denver South (8).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Colorado Springs Christian (8)
2-0
130
1
2-0
2
Colorado Academy (4)
1-2
104
2
1-2
3
Faith Christian (2)
1-2
98
3
1-2
4
Sterling
2-0
97
4
2-0
5
Bennett
3-0
53
–
3-0
6
Alamosa
2-1
52
5
2-1
7
Lutheran
3-1
49
8
3-1
8
Grand Valley
2-0
29
–
2-0
9
DSST-Stapleton
3-0
26
–
3-0
10
Eaton
1-0
23
–
1-0
Others receiving votes:
St. Mary’s 20, Monte Vista 15, Jefferson Academy 11, Kent Denver 9, Liberty Common 8, Platte Valley 8, Manitou Springs 7, Bayfield 6, Moffat County 6, Sky View Academy 6, The Pinnacle 5, Buena Vista 3, Pagosa Springs 2, Ridgeview Academy 2, KIPP Collegiate 1.
Dropped out
Kent Denver (6), Jefferson Academy (7), St. Mary’s (9), Brush (10).
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Sanford (10)
2-0
100
1
2-0
2
Ignacio
3-0
83
3
3-0
3
Resurrection Christian
3-0
79
2
3-0
4
Holyoke
1-0
56
5
1-0
5
Sedgwick County
2-0
51
8
2-0
6
Rye
1-1
49
4
1-1
7
Burlington
1-0
39
6
1-0
8
Meeker
0-0
33
7
0-0
9
Paonia
2-0
24
10
2-0
10
Simla
2-0
17
9
2-0
Others receiving votes:
Dayspring Christian 14, Akron 4, Rocky Ford 1.
Dropped out
None.
Class 1A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Fleming (5)
1-1
75
1
1-1
2
Kit Carson (2)
1-0
67
4
1-0
3
Holly (1)
1-0
64
2
1-0
4
South Baca
2-0
53
5
2-0
5
Ouray
1-0
40
6
1-0
6
Sierra Grande
2-1
35
–
2-1
7
Arickaree/Woodlin
1-1
28
7
1-1
8
Wiley
1-0
24
–
1-0
9
Shining Mountain
1-1
16
–
1-1
10
Heritage Christian
1-1
11
9
1-1
Others receiving votes:
Jim Elliot 9, Sangre De Cristo 6, Longmont Christian 4, Primero 3, Rocky Mountain Lutheran 3, Community Christian 1, Norwood 1.
Dropped out
Sangre De Cristo (3), Norwood (8), Jim Elliot (10).
CSCS players get instructions from coach Mark Engesser (right) during practice. (Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)
COLORADO SPRINGS — Colorado Springs Christian School basketball coach Mark Engesser hates losing. Can’t stand it. His desire to win coupled with his players’ hard work and motivation helped the Lions come away with the Class 3A state championship last March.
And oh boy, do they want to get back to the top of that mountain.
It helps that the Lions are returning two all-state players in forward Sam Howard and guard Justin Engesser. It also helps that those two guys were also two of the primary catalysts of last year’s title team. This year, they take the court with not only the hope of winning another championship, but with the pressure of trying to repeat.
“I wouldn’t necessarily say pressure,” Howard said. “We always want to do our best and no matter what people expect of us, we want to do what we think we can do. We’re just going to focus on playing our best and staying humble and whatever happens, we’re okay with.”
Staying humble may be the key. In the first month and a half of last season, the Lions were barely tested. It looked like they were going to cruise through their regular season schedule without a blemish.
But then something unexpected happened. On Jan. 23, the Lions hosted Tri-Peaks rival St. Mary’s and things did not go as planned. The Pirates kept the game close and were able to come away with a 51-49 win, ending CSCS’s chance at a perfect season.
“Nobody wants to lose,” Justin Engesser said. “If we learn from that, I guess, mistake; it’s better that we learn it early in the season rather than in the state tournament.”
That loss to St. Mary’s set the tone for the remainder of the season. It was a great reminder that nothing is given and for the Lions to reach the level that they wanted, they would have to continue to get better through the course of the season.
Sam Howard (33) and Justin Engesser watch as Howard’s shot falls during practice. (Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)
“When you’re winning all of your games, (Coach Engesser) has no reason to yell at us,” Howard said. “When you lose, it really gets your attention. There’s a lot of stuff you can work on. We looked at the film of that game and that’s what really carried us. We saw where we were weak.”
And they improved those weaknesses.
Like in any classification, there’s no ease to getting through a state tournament. Schools such as Jefferson Academy, Colorado Academy and Kent Denver routinely play for state titles. There are also programs like Faith Christian that have the ability to rattle off multiple state championships in a row.
“I thought we played harder than some of those teams,” Coach Engesser said. “We were diving on the floor, taking charges, playing harder. If you play hard on every single possession, good things will happen.”
And they did happen. When it was all said and done, the Lions came away as champions. Now as CSCS comes into the 2015-16 season with the expectations of winning another title, it’s also feeling a little bit of that pressure to defend that title.
But which comes more into play, the pressure or the expectation?
“I think the expectation,” Coach Engesser said. “It was a great moment for those guys and they want to experience that again. Expecting that moment… I guess it puts pressure on you too. I’ll say both. Pressure and expectation.”
Overland, which won last season’s title, leads the 5A boys basketball ranking. (Kevin Keyser/KeyserImages.com)
Overland, Longmont, Colorado Springs Christian, Sanford and Fleming lead CHSAANow.com’s preseason 2015-16 boys basketball rankings.
Of the group, Overland, Colorado Springs Christian and Sanford won championships last season. Longmont and Fleming finished as a runner-up.
Overland was the lone unanimous selection as the No. 1 team, and the Trailblazers lead the Class 5A poll with all 15 first-place votes. They return probably the top player in the state in senior De’Ron Davis, who recently committed to Indiana.
Behind Overland is Legend, a team which reached the Great 8 last season. The Titans return their top six scorers, who were all juniors last season.
In the preseason No. 3 spot, by the narrowest of margins, is ThunderRidge. Last season’s runner-up, who spent a significant time in the No. 1 5A spot during the regular season, figure to be led by Wyoming commit Austin Mueller.
George Washington is No. 4, and Rangeview rounds out the top-5. Regis Jesuit, Denver East, Cherokee Trail, Eaglecrest and Dakota Ridge comprise the rest of the 5A preseason top-10.
Longmont is No. 1 in the preseason 4A poll. (Kevin Keyser/KeyserImages.com)
In 4A, Longmont received 14 of the 19 first-place votes to lead that classification’s preseason ranking. The Trojans return reigning 4A player of the year Justinian Jessup, a Boise State commit.
Valor Christian, under the guidance of new coach Troy Pachner, is second, and got two first-place votes. Lewis-Palmer also received a first-place vote, and is third. Pueblo Central, and it’s twoDivision I commits, is No. 4. Golden rounds out the top-5.
Defending champion Air Academy received two first-place votes and is No. 7 to begin the year.
Colorado Springs Christian leads the 3A ranking with nine of the 13 first-place votes. Colorado Academy and Harvard commit Justin Bassey, the reigning 3A player of the year, are second with four first-place votes.
In 2A, defending champion Sanford leads the way with nine of the 10 first-place votes. Their roster includes reigning 2A player of the year Miles Caldon. Resurrection Christian, runner-up a season ago, is second, and got the other first-place vote.
The 1A preseason poll is led by Fleming, which received six first-place votes. Defending champion Holly is second, and received two first-place votes.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. During the regular season, they are released each Monday.
Rampart 13, Fossil Ridge 12, Mountain Vista 12, Rock Canyon 12, Arvada West 11, Boulder 8, Doherty 8, Cherry Creek 5, Abraham Lincoln 3, Aurora Central 3, Greeley West 1, FNE Warriors 1.
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
1
Longmont (14)
0-0
185
2
Valor Christian (2)
0-0
135
3
Lewis-Palmer (1)
0-0
128
4
Pueblo Central
0-0
90
5
Golden
0-0
65
6
Sand Creek
0-0
64
7
Air Academy (2)
0-0
58
8
Denver South
0-0
47
9
Pueblo West
0-0
46
10
Pueblo South
0-0
38
Others receiving votes:
Sierra 30, Windsor 30, Thomas Jefferson 27, D’Evelyn 26, Holy Family 19, Mead 17, Vista Ridge 8, Evergreen 7, Vista Peak 7, Cheyenne Mountain 5, Ponderosa 4, Pueblo East 3, Mesa Ridge 2, Mountain View 2, Durango 1, Falcon 1, Green Mountain 1.
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
1
Colorado Springs Christian (9)
0-0
126
2
Colorado Academy (4)
0-0
111
3
Faith Christian
0-0
88
4
Sterling
0-0
49
5
Alamosa
0-0
47
6
Kent Denver
0-0
44
7
Jefferson Academy
0-0
40
8
Lutheran
0-0
38
9
St. Mary’s
0-0
36
10
Brush
0-0
34
Others receiving votes:
Pagosa Springs 15, Bayfield 14, The Pinnacle 12, Bennett 10, Buena Vista 10, Eaton 9, Machebeuf 9, Manitou Springs 8, Grand Valley 5, Manual 5, Moffat County 5.
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
1
Sanford (9)
0-0
99
2
Resurrection Christian (1)
0-0
90
3
Ignacio
0-0
79
4
Rye
0-0
52
5
Holyoke
0-0
44
6
Burlington
0-0
41
7
Meeker
0-0
36
8
Sedgwick County
0-0
31
9
Simla
0-0
22
10
Paonia
0-0
14
Others receiving votes:
Akron 9, Highland 7, Rocky Ford 5, Merino 4, Yuma 4, Center 3, Crowley County 3, Swink 3, Ellicott 2, Mancos 1, Peyton 1.
Class 1A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
1
Fleming (6)
0-0
74
2
Holly (2)
0-0
68
3
Sangre De Cristo
0-0
48
4
Kit Carson
0-0
43
5
South Baca
0-0
42
6
Ouray
0-0
32
7
Arickaree/Woodlin
0-0
24
8
Norwood
0-0
16
9
Heritage Christian
0-0
12
10
Jim Elliot
0-0
11
Others receiving votes:
Denver Waldorf 10, Granada 10, Primero 10, Shining Mountain 8, Wiley 8, Genoa-Hugo/Karval 6, Rocky Mountain Lutheran 6, Sierra Grande 6, Springfield 6, Prairie 4.
ThunderRidge girls basketball opens the 2015-16 season as No. 1 in 5A. (Kai Casey/CHSAANow.com)
Three teams which finished second last season now open this season as No. 1 in their respective classification.
ThunderRidge, Sand Creek, Manitou Springs, Yuma and Idalia are the preseason No. 1 teams in CHSAANow.com’s girls basketball rankings, which were released on Friday. Of those, ThunderRidge, Sand Creek and Yuma finished as runner-up in 2014-15. Idalia is the lone defending champion of the bunch.
ThunderRidge, led by new coach Matt Asik and Wyoming commit Taylor Rusk, received 13 of the 17 first-place votes to lead the Class 5A poll. The Grizzlies return four of their five leading scorers, including Rusk, a first-team all-state pick in 5A last season.
Grandview and super junior Michaela Onyenwere, also a first-team all-state pick, are No. 2 in the preseason. The Wolves received two first-place votes.
Highlands Ranch and its trio of Division Icommits are third, while defending champion Broomfield is fourth. Lakewood rounds out the top-5.
Also ranked in 5A’s preseason top-10 are No. 6 Cherry Creek, No. 7 Ralston Valley, No. 8 Monarch, No. 9 Fossil Ridge and No. 10 Regis Jesuit.
Sand Creek is No. 1 in Class 4A. (Kai Casey/CHSAANow.com)
In 4A, Sand Creek leads the way with 13 of the 19 first-place votes. The Scorpions, who lost to Valor Christian in last season’s 4A title game, return their top five leading scorers. That includes Division I commits Liah Davis and Oliana Squires. Both girls earned all-state recognition last season, with Squires making the first team.
Defending champion Valor Christian is second, with three first-place votes, and D’Evelyn is No. 3. Longmont and Holy Family round out the top-5.
Manitou Springs was a Final 4 team a season ago. On Friday, the Mustangs received five of the 11 first-place votes to lead 3A’s preseason rankings. All nine girls return from last season’s varsity roster, including first-team all-state pick Shelby Megyeri.
Sterling, last season’s 3A runner-up, is second, and defending champion Pagosa Springs is No. 3. Eaton and Lutheran round out the top 5.
Yuma heads the preseason 2A poll with eight of the 10 first-place votes. The team graduated just two seniors and returns more than 80 percent of its offense. Logan Hixon was a first-team all-state pick in 2014-15.
Defending champion Akron is No. 3 to begin the year, just behind No. 2 Paonia.
In 1A, the reigning champ Idalia received nine of 10 first-place votes to lead the preseason ranking. The Wolves are led by returning first-team all-state pick Reagan Shaffer. Their top three scorers are back.
Kit Carson is No. 2, and last season’s runner-up, Sangre de Cristo, is No. 3.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. During the regular season, they are released each Monday.
Horizon 22, Rampart 17, Denver East 15, Pine Creek 15, Mountain Vista 14, Rock Canyon 6, Fairview 4, Fruita Monument 4, Grand Junction 4, Loveland 3, Mullen 2, Rocky Mountain 2, Grand Junction Central 1, Gateway 1.
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
1
Sand Creek (13)
0-0
184
2
Valor Christian (3)
0-0
154
3
D’Evelyn (1)
0-0
113
4
Longmont
0-0
94
5
Holy Family
0-0
88
6
Pueblo East (2)
0-0
85
7
Pueblo West
0-0
64
8
Mesa Ridge
0-0
44
9
Evergreen
0-0
33
10
Montrose
0-0
31
Others receiving votes:
Pueblo South 27, Palisade 19, Air Academy 17, Silver Creek 17, Falcon 15, Green Mountain 13, Golden 10, Canon City 6, Littleton 6, Mullen 6, Thompson Valley 5, Berthoud 4, Windsor 4, Durango 2, Sierra 2, Mead 1, Thomas Jefferson 1.
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
1
Manitou Springs (5)
0-0
98
2
Sterling (3)
0-0
89
3
Pagosa Springs (3)
0-0
84
4
Eaton
0-0
60
5
Lutheran
0-0
59
6
St. Mary’s
0-0
40
7
Centauri
0-0
35
8
Moffat County
0-0
30
9
Liberty Common
0-0
22
10
Faith Christian
0-0
18
Others receiving votes:
Trinidad 16, Kent Denver 11, Colorado Springs Christian 10, Lamar 7, Machebeuf 7, Olathe 6, Platte Valley 6, Strasburg 4, La Junta 2, Sky View Academy 1.
Prairie 15, Springfield 14, La Veta 12, Plateau Valley 10, Heritage Christian 6, Antonito 5, Cheraw 4, Dove Creek 4, Aguilar 3, McClave 3, Otis 3, Kim 2, Hanover 1, Holly 1, Walsh 1.
Cheyenne Mountain is the new No. 1 team in the 4A volleyball poll. (Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)
For the first time in the history of the CHSAANow.com volleyball rankings, Lewis-Palmer does not sit atop the Class 4A rankings.
After beating the Rangers 3-1 last week, Cheyenne Mountain now sits in the No. 1 spot. It was Lewis-Palmer’s first in-state loss since Oct. 26, 2013.
Cheyenne Mountain will host a tournament this weekend, but there will be no rematch with Lewis-Palmer as the Rangers opted to participate in a tournament in Arizona earlier this season.
Valor Christian was the only new team in this week’s 4A rankings as they break back in at No. 10.
In 5A, Cherokee Trail hangs on to the top spot. Legend jumped form No. 9 to No. 6 and defending 5A champion Grandview breaks into the poll, coming in at No. 10.
Eaton remains a unanimous choice as the No. 1 team in 3A, but a big shakeup occurred in the top three. Alamosa jumped from No. 6 to No. 3, pushing Manitou Springs down one spot.
Resurrection Christian is still the No. 1 team in 2A. No new teams were added to this week’s poll, but Union Colony and Ridgeway each jumped two spots coming in at No. 5 and No. 7, respectively.
With a stunning 3-1 upset over Idalia, Otis took the No. 1 spot in 1A away from the Wolves as the two teams head into the playoffs.
Flagler jumped five spots this week to come in at No. 3 and Briggsdale and McClave both joined the 1A rankings this. The Falcons come in at No. 9 and the Cardinals land at No. 10.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. Polls are released each Monday. These will be the final rankings of the regular season.
Voted upon by coaches and media members around the state. New voters can sign up by emailing rcasey@chsaa.org. These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding.
Cherry Creek 17, Brighton 16, Ralston Valley 12, Columbine 8, Lakewood 2, Arapahoe 1, Fairview 1, Legacy 1.
Dropped out
Brighton (5).
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Cheyenne Mountain (11)
16-1
128
2
2-0
2
Lewis-Palmer (2)
19-3
118
1
1-1
3
Ponderosa
11-6
92
3
2-0
4
Montrose
17-2
84
4
3-0
5
Longmont
17-1
77
6
1-0
6
Holy Family
18-3
56
5
1-1
7
Windsor
14-4
55
7
1-1
8
Delta
19-3
25
8
2-0
9
Steamboat Springs
17-3
22
10
2-0
10
Valor Christian
10-6
12
–
2-0
Others receiving votes:
The Classical Academy 10, Elizabeth 8, Evergreen 7, Air Academy 6, Thomas Jefferson 6, Discovery Canyon 3, Pueblo West 3, Berthoud 2, Mullen 1.
Dropped out
The Classical Academy (9).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Eaton (11)
20-0
110
1
2-0
2
University
13-3
85
2
1-1
3
Alamosa
18-2
72
6
1-0
4
Manitou Springs
16-3
71
3
4-0
5
Colorado Springs Christian
15-2
64
5
3-0
6
Platte Valley
16-5
61
4
1-1
7
Lutheran
13-4
47
8
2-0
8
Valley
15-6
39
7
2-0
9
SkyView Academy
15-4
29
10
3-0
10
Middle Park
18-5
9
–
4-0
Others receiving votes:
Pagosa Springs 8, Sterling 4, La Junta 2, Coal Ridge 1, Faith Christian 1, Peak to Peak 1, St. Mary’s 1.
Dropped out
Faith Christian (9).
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Resurrection Christian (8)
18-1
98
1
3-0
2
Yuma (1)
18-1
89
2
3-0
3
Lyons (1)
17-2
70
4
3-0
4
Dayspring Christian
17-2
56
3
1-1
5
Union Colony
17-2
49
7
2-0
6
Paonia
16-3
44
6
3-0
7
Ridgway
18-1
28
9
3-0
8
Ignacio
14-4
23
8
2-0
9
Colorado Springs School
17-2
21
10
2-0
10
Vail Christian
16-3
20
5
1-1
Others receiving votes:
Limon 16, Rye 13, Sargent 8, Cedaredge 7, West Grand 3, Kiowa 1.
Dropped out
None.
Class 1A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Otis (5)
18-1
84
2
2-0
2
Idalia (3)
18-1
83
1
1-1
3
Flagler
16-3
55
8
2-0
4
Weldon Valley
15-4
50
3
2-1
5
Fleming
15-4
49
4
1-0
6
Kit Carson
17-2
48
6
2-0
7
La Veta (1)
18-1
34
7
1-0
8
Sangre de Cristo
18-1
29
5
1-1
9
Briggsdale
13-6
17
–
2-1
10
McClave
16-3
14
–
0-1
Others receiving votes:
Community Christian 6, Genoa-Hugo/Karval 5, Hi-Plains 5, Cornernstone Christian 4, Norwood 4, Elbert 3, Springfield 3, Prairie 2, Heritage Christian 1.
Legend volleyball is back in the top-10 in 5A. (Ray Chen/ArrayPhoto.com)
As the season comes into the home stretch the top teams of the CHSAANow.com volleyball rankings are all holding their positions.
Cherokee Trail, Lewis-Palmer, Eaton, Resurrection Christian and Idalia held on to the No. 1 positions in their respective classes.
The big movement in 5A was the return of Legend to the top 10. The Titans briefly held on to the No. 1 spot in 5A this season and fell out of the poll last week, despite getting a big win over then-No. 4 Rock Canyon.
Legend swept Douglas County on Tuesday, which played a part in their return to the top 10.
The top eight teams in the 4A rankings remained intact this week. The Classical Academy was the lone newcomer as they took over the No. 8 spot.
This week will see plenty of excitement in 4A as No. 1 Lewis-Palmer travels to No. 2 Cheyenne Mountain in a huge league contest. This has also become a big volleyball rivalry in the Pikes Peak Athletic Conference over the last few seasons.
After sweeping No. 2 University last week, Platte Valley is climbing back up the top 10 in 2A. They jumped from No. 6 to No. 4 as result of the win. The loss did not affect University, however, as the Bulldogs remained in the No. 2 spot.
Faith Christian joins the 3A rankings at No. 9. The Eagles fell out of the poll two weeks ago.
Panoia made the biggest jump in 2A this week, going from No. 9 to No. 6. Union Colony and Ignacio are this week’s newcomers, coming in at No. 7 and No. 8, respectively.
The 1A rankings also saw the addition of two new teams as Norwood lands at No. 9 and Walsh comes in right behind them at No. 10.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. Polls are released each Monday.
Voted upon by coaches and media members around the state. New voters can sign up by emailing rcasey@chsaa.org. These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding.
