The Denver School of Science and Tech (Stapleton) is the new top team of the Class 3A CHSAANow.com boys basketball rankings.
The Knights, who sit at 13-1 overall on the season, have rising in the ranks all year and have been knocking at the door of the top spot. A St. Mary’s win over previous No. 1, Colorado Springs Christian, is all they need to finally begin their reign at the top of the 3A poll.
As a result of the loss to St. Mary’s, the Lions dropped one spot to No. 2. A similar situation happened last year when CSCS was toppled by St. Mary’s and fell out of the top spot, but then went undefeated en route to winning the 3A state title.
Grand Valley is the lone newcomer to the poll this week. The Cardinals come in at No. 10 after falling out of the rankings a few weeks ago.
Legend is No. 10 in this week’s boys basketball rankings. (Matt Minton/JacksActionShots.com)
The 5A poll looks very similar to what it did last week. Rangeview escaped a scare from Aurora Central and was able to hang on to the top spot. The only change from a week ago is that the Legend Titans rejoin the rankings, landing at No. 10.
The same consistency applies to this week’s 4A rankings. Since grasping the No. 1 spot, Pueblo South held on to the position, going 2-0 last week.
Windsor was the only team to play their way into the 4A poll as they debut at No. 9.
Undefeated Sanford still sits atop the 2A poll, taking eight of the 10 first-place votes this week. Crowley County joins the 2A top 10 at No. 7.
Fleming remains the team to beat in 1A after winning both of their games last week. Shining Mountain joins the 1A rankings, landing 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.
Greeley West 7, Cherokee Trail 4, Aurora Central 1.
Dropped out
Cherokee Trail (10).
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Pueblo South (17)
13-0
194
1
2-0
2
Lewis-Palmer (1)
14-1
165
2
3-0
3
Longmont (2)
13-1
161
3
2-0
4
Valor Christian
12-1
146
4
2-0
5
Pueblo West
13-2
110
6
1-0
6
Golden
10-4
95
5
2-1
7
Denver South
11-4
64
7
2-0
8
Rifle
12-1
36
10
2-0
9
Windsor
11-4
33
–
4-0
10
Vista Ridge
11-4
25
9
2-0
Others receiving votes:
Holy Family 24, Conifer 14, Evergreen 7, Mead 6, Sierra 6, Skyview 4, Air Academy 3, Pueblo Central 2, Sand Creek 2, Thompson Valley 2, Thomas Jefferson 1.
Dropped out
Holy Family (8).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
DSST-Stapleton (6)
13-1
113
2
2-0
2
Colorado Springs Christian (1)
8-4
107
1
2-1
3
Lutheran (2)
9-2
101
3
1-0
4
Faith Christian (3)
9-4
95
6
2-0
5
DSST-Green Valley Ranch (3)
11-0
83
5
3-0
6
Eaton
11-2
71
4
1-1
7
Sterling
9-3
59
7
1-1
8
Alamosa
9-4
52
9
2-0
9
Manitou Springs
11-1
34
10
3-0
10
Grand Valley
9-2
28
–
2-0
Others receiving votes:
Colorado Academy 23, Pagosa Springs 13, Bennett 11, St. Mary’s 8, Liberty Common 5, The Pinnacle 5, Bayfield 4, Manual 3, The Vanguard 3, Peak to Peak 2, Strasburg 2, Basalt 1, Kent Denver 1, SkyView Academy 1.
Pueblo South is the new No. 1 team in 4A boys basketball. (Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)
The Pueblo South Colts are putting together a nice season. They carry their momentum into this week as they take over the No. 1 spot in the Class 4A CHSAANow.com boys basketball rankings.
Their week was highlighted with a 79-51 win over Pueblo Central on Tuesday. The Colts looked absolutely dominant and are legitimate 4A title contenders.
Former No. 1 Longmont fell to No. 3 after losing to the FNE Warriors on Saturday.
The 4A poll saw two newcomers this week as Holy Family and Rifle come in at No. 8 and No. 10 respectively.
There were very few changes in the 5A poll. Rangeview proved to be the real deal after taking a hold of the No.1 ranking last week. They topped Regis Jesuit 60-52 to prove that they are indeed worthy of the state’s top spot.
The Raiders fell one spot to No. 4 as a result of the loss.
Colorado Springs Christian School hangs on to the top overall spot in the 3A rankings as they prepare for a big Tri-Peaks League showdown with St. Mary’s on Friday. The Pirates handed the Lions their only loss last season and the Lions will be out to even the score.
Faith Christian jumped three spots to No. 6 this week and the 3A poll saw one newcomer as the Manitou Springs Mustangs come in at No. 10.
Sanford is still the No. 1 team in 2A this week after cruising to a 63-35 win over Centauri. The top five seeds from last week all maintained their position.
The bottom five spots saw some shuffling, but overall the 10 ranked teams from last week remained in this week’s poll.
Fleming takes over the top spot in the 1A after defending champion Holly and Wiley handed South Baca its first two losses of the year.
Kit Carson jumps from No. 4 to No. 2 and Holly jumped from No. 6 to No. 3.
No new teams played their way into the 1A rankings this week.
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, FNE Warriors 4, Greeley West 3, Boulder 1.
Dropped out
None.
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Pueblo South (14)
11-0
158
2
2-0
2
Lewis-Palmer (1)
11-1
128
3
3-0
3
Longmont (1)
11-1
127
1
2-1
4
Valor Christian
10-1
109
4
2-0
5
Golden
8-3
97
5
2-0
6
Pueblo West
12-2
87
6
1-0
7
Denver South
9-4
50
7
2-1
8
Holy Family
8-3
23
–
2-0
9
Vista Ridge
9-4
16
10
1-1
10
Rifle
10-1
15
–
2-0
Others receiving votes:
Windsor 13, Conifer 10, Evergreen 9, Mead 9, Sand Creek 8, Wheat Ridge 8, Thomas Jefferson 5, Skyview 3, Thompson Valley 3, Pueblo Central 1, Vista Peak 1.
Dropped out
Mead (8), Evergreen (9).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Colorado Springs Christian (7)
6-3
99
1
2-1
2
DSST-Stapleton (2)
11-1
93
3
2-1
3
Lutheran (1)
8-2
81
4
1-0
4
Eaton (2)
10-1
80
5
3-0
5
DSST-Green Valley Ranch (1)
8-0
71
6
2-0
6
Faith Christian
7-4
59
9
3-0
7
Sterling
8-2
55
7
3-0
8
Colorado Academy
7-5
54
2
0-1
9
Alamosa
7-4
48
8
2-0
10
Manitou Springs
8-1
19
–
1-0
Others receiving votes:
Pagosa Springs 15, Grand Valley 8, Buena Vista 5, Bayfield 4, Basalt 3, Bennett 3, Manual 3, Peak to Peak 3, Strasburg 3, Arrupe Jesuit 2, James Irwin 2, Liberty Common 2, Coal Ridge 1, Kent Denver 1, SkyView Academy 1.
The 2015 football players of the year. From left: Dylan Dixon of Eads; Keegan Wentz of Buena Vista; JoJo Domann of Pine Creek; Dylan McCaffrey of Valor Christian; Daniel Martin of Pueblo East; Kelton McCoy of Bayfield; Trey Walter of Sedgwick County. (Photos: Jack Eberhard/JacksActoinShots.com; Bill Cronin; Matt Daniels/MattDanPhoto.com; Kai Casey/CHSAANow.com; Jeff Tucker; and Sedgwick County HS)
The 2015 all-state football teams are presented by CHSAANow.com, ColoradoPreps.com and MaxPreps.
These teams were created following a lengthy process which included nominations from leagues and then a vote of coaches.
Ralston Valley football beat Arapahoe in the 5A football playoffs on Friday night. More photos. (Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com)
Trailing at halftime, No. 3 seed Ralston Valley scored the game’s final 21 points to knock off previously unbeaten, and No. 2-seeded, Arapahoe in the second round of the Class 5A football playoffs on Friday night.
Ralston Valley’s defense forced two turnovers to lead to their first 14 points in the second half. The unit shut down Arapahoe’s offense the rest of the way as the Mustangs secured the spot in the quarterfinals.
Arapahoe went up 3-0 with a 35-yard field goal late in the first quarter, but neither team scored again before halftime.
Ralston Valley took a 7-3 lead in the third quarter, one they didn’t give up the rest of the way. Kyle Rush added two scores in the fourth quarter for the Mustangs.
Ralston Valley advances to play Valor Christian in the next round.
[divider]
4A: (13) Loveland 30, (4) Vista Ridge 14
Loveland led 10-0 at half, 17-0 after three and 23-0 late in the fourth quarter in a stunning upset of Vista Ridge in the first round of the 4A playoffs.
Quarterback Ayden Eberhardt passed for two touchdowns and rushed for two more in spearheading the upset for Loveland, a No. 13 seed. He also kicked a 29-yard field goal to play a role in all 30 points.
This game was actually close early, but Palmer Ridge, the No. 11 seed, scored 20 unanswered points spanning the first and second quarters to break it open.
Palmer Ridge quarterback Isaiah Sanders had four touchdowns, all in the first half.
Jeremy Lujan had three rushing scores for No. 6 Dakota Ridge in the loss.
Palmer Ridge awaits the winner of Saturday’s game between No. 3 Windsor and No. 14 Pueblo Centennial.
[divider]
5A: (1) Cherry Creek 38, (4) Mullen 6
Cherry Creek quarterback Alex Padilla. More photos. (Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com)
Cherry Creek scored two touchdowns in the game’s first quarter, including a 60-yard passing score from freshman quarterback Alex Padilla, to take a 14-0 lead. The No. 1-seeded and defending 5A champion Bruins never looked back.
It was 21-0 at halftime, and then 31-0 in the third quarter.
Kory Taylor-Keel, Trey Windham and Ashton Riley each had rushing touchdowns for Cherry Creek.
“Everything really came together tonight as far as the offense and defense is concerned, so it was just a great win,” Padilla told the Union Street Journal, Cherry Creek’s student newspaper, after the game.
Cherry Creek will play the winner of Saturday’s game between No. 6 ThunderRidge and No. 7 Fruita Monument in the quarterfinals.
Discovery Canyon got a crucial pick-6 just before halftime to go up 29-7, then held on for a big win over the Bears in the opening round of the 3A playoffs.
Brandon Storch returned the interception with 21.8 seconds before halftime to extend the lead and bring all the momentum into the break.
Rifle responded and would get to within 29-20 with three minutes to play in the third quarter, but Discovery Canyon put together two quick TD drives to put the game out of reach.
Discovery Canyon will face Pueblo East in the quarterfinals.
[divider]
Notables
Pueblo East, the No. 1 seed and defending champion of 3A, rolled to a 49-10 win over No. 16 Lewis-Palmer. It was 49-0 after three quarters. Bryson Torres had four rushing scores for the Eagles.
5A No. 1 seed Columbine moved to 11-0 with a 48-14 win over No. 4 Heritage.
Regis Jesuit, a No. 2 seed in 5A, beat No. 3 Legacy 34-7. It was 21-0 at half. Regis Jesuit will play Columbine in the quarters.
Hayden Blubaugh had four touchdowns as Grandview, another No. 1 seed in 5A, cruised to a 49-20 win over No. 4 Mountain Vista.
Dylan McCaffrey and Blake Stenstrom each threw two touchdowns in No. 1 seed Valor Christian’s 47-3 win over No. 5 Chaparral. McCaffrey threw for 225 yards, and also rushed for a touchdown. Joshia Davis, a freshman, had 120 yards and a score on the ground for Valor.
Pomona, a No. 2 seed in 5A, easily handled No. 7 Horizon 35-14. The Panthers will play Grandview in the quarterfinals.
Pine Creek is the No. 1 seed in the Class 4A football playoffs. (Josh Watt/CHSAANow.com)
AURORA — The state playoff brackets for Class 4A and 3A football were released on Sunday, with Pine Creek and Pueblo East each earning No. 1 overall seeds.
Both teams are defending champions.
Pine Creek, which went 10-0 during the regular season, is a two-time defending champion which enters the postseason on a 35-game winning streak. That mark is tied for the ninth-longest in state history.
The Eagles’ schedule was anything but easy. According to the CHSAA RPI, which will be used for postseason qualification beginning next season, it was the second-toughest schedule in 4A. They have wins over five ranked opponents, including four who were ranked in the top-5 at the time. In those games, Pine Creek’s average margin of victory was 26.8 points.
Pine Creek has been to the 4A title game in three of the past four seasons.
Longmont, the team Pine Creek beat to win 4A last year, is the No. 2 seed. The Trojans also went 10-0 in the regular season.
Those teams sit atop the 16-team field in 4A which is comprised of seven league champions and nine Wild Card spots. As it turned out, the field is comprised entirely of the top 16 teams in the final Wild Card points standings.
Other top seeds who will host first round games include No. 3 Windsor, No. 4 Vista Ridge, No. 5 Durango, No. 6 Dakota Ridge, No. 7 Ponderosa and No. 8 Wheat Ridge.
Pueblo East is the No. 1 seed in 3A football. (Mark Adams)
In 3A, Pueblo East went 9-1, with the lone loss coming in a cross-classification showdown with Longmont in Zero Week. The Eagles won their final nine games by an average of 31.8 points.
Their schedule, too, was a tough one. Five opponents eventually made their postseason field in the class they play in. Pueblo East went 4-1 in those games.
Also seeded highly in 3A are No. 2 Roosevelt, No. 3 Delta, No. 4 Fort Morgan, No. 5 Palisade, No. 6 The Classical Academy, No. 7 Evergreen, No. 8 Discovery Canyon. Rifle, last season’s runner-up, is No. 9.
The 16-team 3A field is made up of six automatic qualifiers via league champions, and then 10 Wild Card teams. Like 4A, the final field turned out to be the top 16 in the Wild Card points standings.
Pine Creek remains No. 1 in 4A football. (Josh Watt/CHSAANow.com)
Pine Creek is still the king of the Class 4A CHSAANow.com football rankings. The Eagles received 14 of 16 first-place votes this week. This is the last set of regular season rankings, which saw the Eagles hold on to the top spot from start to finish.
No new teams were added to this week’s 4A poll, and with the exception of a few teams falling or rising one spot, the overall poll was pretty consistent with last week. Regular season play for 4A ends this week and the playoff bracket will be released on Sunday.
Like Pine Creek, the Pueblo East Eagles also helped on to their place in the 3A rankings. For the first time this season, however, they don’t have Fort Morgan right behind them. Roosevelt climbed to No. 2 and Fort Morgan fell to No. 3, despite a 56-7 win over Elizabeth that kept them undefeated on the year.
The 3A rankings did see the addition of two new teams as D’Evelyn (No. 9) and Discovery Canyon (No. 10) made the cut this week.
Regular season play for 3A also ends this week and the 16-team playoff bracket will be released on Sunday.
The state playoff brackets in 5A, 2A, 1A, 8-man and 6-man were released on Sunday, and as such, they will not have any further rankings this season.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. These will serve as the final polls of the regular season.
No. 3 Valor Christian beat No. 2 Grandview in a big 5A game at Valor on Friday. The Eagles won the Centennial League. (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)
A complete schedule and scoreboard for football’s top-10 teams during Week 9 of the 2015 season.
Bayfield is the No. 1 team in 2A this week. (Pam Wagner/CHSAANow.com)
There’s a new No. 1 in the CHSAANow.com Class 2A football rankings. After a convincing 41-7 win over Alamosa, Bayfield comes in at the top spot of this week’s poll.
The rest of the 2A rankings are relatively unchanged as no teams dropped out this week. Despite a 41-13 win over Brush, Sterling was unable to gain any spots, but look very dangerous as the No. 6 team in 2A.
Columbine held on to the top spot in the 5A rankings with an impressive 31-7 win over Chatfield Friday. The big surprise in 5A comes with Grandview’s jump from No. 4 to No. 2, overtaking Valor Christian, which won a physical 10-0 game against Cherry Creek on Friday night.
The Wolves and Eagles will play this coming Friday with the Centennial League title up for grabs. That game is scheduled for a 8 p.m. kick and Altitude will carry the broadcast.
Fresh off a 41-3 win over Durango, Pine Creek comes in as the unanimous No. 1 team in 4A. The top four teams from last week were able to hold their positions.
Denver South and Wheat Ridge both made their way into this week’s top 10 with the Rebels coming in at No. 9 and the Farmers taking the No. 10 spot. Wheat Ridge topped Aurora Central 37-14 Friday.
There were very few changes to the 3A poll this week. Pueblo East remains in the top spot after a 36-21 win over The Classical Academy.
TCA fell one spot as a result of the loss and Mean moved up to No. 9.
Buena Vista holds on to the No. 1 in 1A this week and the rankings overall went unchanged from a week ago.
In 8-man, Sedgwick County remains at No. 1 after a 44-18 win over No. 5 Dayspring Christian Academy. Vail Christian jumped two spots to No. 7 and Hohne is the lone newcomer to this week’s poll.
Fleming is still the No. 1 team in 6-man. No newcomers were added to this week’s rankings, but Peetz did fall two spots to No. 7 despite a 55-13 win over Weldon Valley.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. Polls are released each Monday.
No. 3 Valor Christian beat No. 2 Cherry Creek in a big 5A game on Friday. Complete recap. (Photos: Ray Chen/ArrayPhoto.com; JackEberhard/JacksActionShots.com)
A complete schedule and scoreboard for football’s top-10 teams during Week 8 in the 2015 season.
