The 2015-16 all-state girls basketball players of the year. (Photos: Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com; Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com; Matt Daniels/MattDanPhoto.com; Jeff Tucker/jefferywtucker.zenfolio.com)
The 2015-16 all-state girls basketball 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 week-long vote of coaches.
A specific player of the year vote was held in each class, as was a vote for coach of the year.
[divider]
Class 5A
Grandview’s Michaela Onyenwere is the 5A girls basketball player of the year. (Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com)
The 2015-16 all-state boys basketball players of the year. (Photos: Ray Chen/ArrayPhoto.com; Jeff Tucker/jefferywtucker.zenfolio.com; Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com)
The 2015-16 all-state boys basketball 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 week-long vote of coaches.
A specific player of the year vote was held in each class, as was a vote for coach of the year.
[divider]
Class 5A
Overland’s De’Ron Davis is the 5A boys basketball player of the year. (Kevin Keyser/KeyserImages.com)
It’s still early in the 2016 baseball season, but there has already been some shakeup in the Class 1A CHSAANow.com baseball rankings.
Eads takes over the top spot in the state after a 1-0 start to their season. Former No. 1 Dove Creek, who has stumbled out of the gate fell to No. 2.
Cotopaxi and Manzanola played their way into the still young rankings, coming in at No. 6 and No. 9 respectively.
Nothing has changed at the top of the 5A rankings as Regis Jesuit and Cherry Creek remain the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in those rankings.
Ralston Valley joined the 5A baseball poll at No. 8 this week. (Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com)
Columbine is one of two newcomers in the poll as they land at No. 8 with Ralston Valley, the other newcomer, joining at No. 9.
The top of the 4A rankings has the same story as the 5A poll. D’Evelyn and Lewis-Palmer remain the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the class, with both teams undefeated on the year.
Though, the 4A rankings did see more turnover this week than any other class as Silver Creek (No. 7), Denver North (No. 8) and Air Academy (No. 9) all broke their way into this week’s poll.
And it was 3A who saw the least turnover of the week. Eaton still holds the No. 1 spot, but nine of last week’s 10 ranked teams all stayed in the poll this week, although a few did jump up or down in ranking.
Buena Vista is the lone newcomer in the poll, coming 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.
ThunderRidge 13, Fort Collins 10, Heritage 10, Prairie View 10, Cherokee Trail 9, Smoky Hill 9, Bear Creek 6, Arapahoe 5, Broomfield 4, Brighton 3, Douglas County 2, Fountain-Fort Carson 2, Lakewood 2, Dakota Ridge 1, Fruita Monument 1, Legend 1, Mullen 1.
Dropped out:
Cherokee Trail (8), Mullen (10).
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
D’Evelyn (7)
1-0
70
1
1-0
2
Lewis-Palmer (1)
1-0
57
2
1-0
3
Wheat Ridge
1-0
49
5
1-0
4
Pueblo West
4-1
46
3
4-1
5
Green Mountain
0-0
42
4
0-0
6
Longmont
1-0
38
7
1-0
7
Silver Creek
1-0
32
–
1-0
8
Denver North
3-0
25
–
3-0
9
Evergreen
2-1
17
9
2-1
10
Air Academy
0-0
14
–
0-0
Others receiving votes:
Elizabeth 11, Windsor 7, Centaurus 6, Montrose 6, Mountain View 6, Palmer Ridge 4, Pueblo South 4, Standley Lake 3, Littleton 2, Erie 1.
Dropped out:
Windsor (6), Canon City (8), Palisade (10).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Eaton (8)
0-0
89
1
0-0
2
University (2)
1-0
84
4
1-0
3
Lamar
3-0
76
5
3-0
4
Brush
1-0
66
3
1-0
5
Bayfield
1-2
55
2
1-2
6
Gunnison
3-0
46
6
3-0
7
La Junta
2-0
39
7
2-0
8
Faith Christian
0-0
32
9
0-0
9
Valley
2-1
16
8
2-1
10
Buena Vista
2-1
11
–
2-1
Others receiving votes:
Kent Denver 7, Lutheran 7, SkyView Academy 5, Jefferson Academy 4, Sheridan 4, Colorado Springs Christian 3, Grand Valley 2, Sterling 2, Denver Science & Tech Stapleton 1, Peak to Peak 1.
Dropped out:
Kent Denver (10).
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Resurrection Christian (6)
0-0
77
1
0-0
2
Sedgwick County (1)
2-0
69
2
2-0
3
Hotchkiss (2)
5-0
68
3
5-0
4
Paonia
2-0
53
5
2-0
5
Rye
0-0
49
6
0-0
6
County Line (McClave/Wiley)
0-0
34
4
0-0
7
Haxtun
2-0
21
7
2-0
8
Burlington
0-0
16
8
0-0
9
Swink
0-0
16
10
0-0
10
Kiowa
1-0
14
–
1-0
Others receiving votes:
Peyton 14, Front Range Christian 11, Crowley County 10, Evangelical Christian 8, Limon 8, Dolores 7, Sanford 7, Fowler 5, Wray 3, Akron 2, Sargent 2, Yuma 1.
Dropped out:
Sanford (9).
Class 1A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Eads (3)
1-0
71
4
1-0
2
Dove Creek (3)
1-3
58
1
1-3
3
Holly (1)
0-0
46
2
0-0
4
Fleming
0-0
40
3
0-0
5
Community Christian
1-0
37
6
1-0
6
Cotopaxi (1)
4-1
35
–
4-1
7
Granada
0-0
29
7
0-0
8
Nucla
1-2
23
5
1-2
9
Manzanola
2-0
21
–
2-0
10
Peetz
0-1
20
8
0-1
Others receiving votes:
Rocky Mountain Lutheran 16, Cheyenne Wells 10, Stratton/Liberty 9, Gilpin County 6, Antonito 4, Springfield 4, Elbert 3, Weldon Valley 3, Cornerstone Christian 1, Genoa-Hugo/Karval 1, South Baca 1.
Lewis-Palmer senior Paul Tillotson wants to help the Rangers win a state baseball championship before he heads to Nebraska. (Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com)
MONUMENT — It’s now or never for Lewis-Palmer senior Paul Tillotson.
The senior has been a staple to the Rangers’ baseball program for three seasons and entering his fourth and final year, he’s hoping that his experience and leadership can help him get his hands on that state championship trophy, even if the makeup of the team doesn’t have the same feel.
“It’s a little bit different,” Tillotson said. “We lost some guys from last year, we got a new coach but we’re looking on the up-and-up right now.”
Having Tillotson on the roster gives the team instant credibility. They came in as the No. 2 team in the Class 4A CHSAANow.com preseason baseball rankings. That’s the kind of reputation a team has when they have a University of Nebraska commit on its roster.
That’s right. Like several other Colorado athletes, Tillotson is bound for Lincoln. That is assuming that the lure of Major League Baseball doesn’t rear its head in June.
Paul Tillotson. (Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com)
But for now, Tillotson’s only focus is on helping the Rangers become a better baseball team and continuing the string of success it has seen in recent seasons.
First-year coach Brett Lester is fortunate enough to join a squad that rosters one of the best players in the state.
“It’s a luxury that not many coaches get the chance to enjoy,” Lester said. “He’s going to be competitive every time out and he’s going to do well on the mound, even at the plate in the games that he’s not pitching, he’s going to have a huge output.”
In 2015, Tillotson was such a devastating weapon for the Rangers. From the offensive side, he batted .446 with six home runs and 32 RBIs. In 95 plate appearances, he struck out only six times.
On the mound, he went 8-1 with a 1.62 ERA. He struck out 145 hitters and walked only 22.
So which skill set are the Huskers hoping to utilize?
“I’m definitely going as a pitcher, but they wanted to know if I still want to hit,” Tillotson said. “They hinting on the subject that I’m going to hit more (than they thought I would).”
And he’s up for it.
He remains in constant communication with the Huskers and they continue to track each other’s progress.
And while it’s easy to track numbers on a boxscore, the one thing that Tillotson is working harder at this year is helping out the younger players. He and teammate Billy Cook are doing everything they can to develop young players and ensure that Lewis-Palmer will be a winning program well beyond this year.
“As returning veterans it’s kind of on us to help those young guys out,” Tillotson said. “Just the little things that go into winning games through the season. It’s our job to help kids out when we see things they need help on.”
And in the process, they’ll be helping themselves out as well. At the end of last season Tillotson and the Rangers were on hand as the state championship trophy was handed to Green Mountain. That feeling, regardless of the changes the team has gone through, made him hungry and determined to bring a state championship back to Lewis-Palmer.
The Rangers have never won a baseball crown.
“I definitely have the hunger,” he said. “I want to push myself and my team to prove that we deserve that No. 2 ranking. I’m always going to be pushing my team to make sure that we’re doing the best that we can.”
Regis Jesuit is the preseason No. 1 team in 5A baseball. (Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com)
The preseason CHSAANow.com baseball rankings show something very different from most other preseason rankings that are released through the year. They don’t have an abundance of defending state champions sitting at the top of the polls.
In Class 5A, the Regis Jesuit Raiders come into the season as the overwhelming No. 1 team in the state. They received eight of 12 first-place votes to earn that ranking.
Though the regular season is slated to start this week, the Raiders won’t play until Mar. 16.
Defending champion Rock Canyon comes in at No. 3 to start the season.
D’Evelyn comes in as the top team in 4A to start the season. The Jaguars fell just short of reaching the state championship series as they fell to eventual state champion Green Mountain in the semifinals.
The Rams lost a significant number of seniors from last year’s team and as a result, will start the season ranked No. 4.
In 3A, Eaton is one of two defending state champions to start the year with a No. 1 ranking. The Red received seven of nine first-place votes.
Eaton topped Brush in the 3A state championship and the Beetdiggers also came in high in the preseason polls at No. 3.
Resurrection Christian went from 2A state runner-up in the spring to preseason No. 1. The Cougars fell to Rye in an offensive battle in last year’s 2A state title game. The Thunderbolts came away with a 12-10 win and will start the season with a No. 6 ranking.
Dove Creek is the other defending champ to earn a No. 1 preseason ranking. The Bulldogs won the 1A title with an 8-5 win over Granada.
The 1A class may prove to be to the most wide-open as Dove Creek took only half of the first-place votes, the fewest of any preseason No. 1 this year.
The regular season for baseball is scheduled to begin Mar. 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.
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.
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).
The 2015 all-state softball players of the year. From left: Mountain Range’s Hunter Huser, Valor Christian’s Alexandria Kilponen, and Strasburg’s Annie Oakley. (Photos: Kevin Keyser/KeyserImages.com; Ray Chen/ArrayPhoto.com; Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com
The 2015 all-state softball teams are presented by CHSAANow.com, ColoradoPreps.com and MaxPreps.
These team were created following a process where the coaches voted upon a list of nominees. Those nominees included every player who was a first-team all-league selection.
Coaches also voted specifically for player and coach of the year.
Scroll down to see the teams, or use the menu below to navigate to the class of your choosing.
Columbine is one of four No. 1 seeds in the Class 5A football playoffs. (Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com)
AURORA — The state playoff brackets for five classifications — 5A, 2A, 1A, 8-man and 6-man — were released on Sunday. Postseason play in each class begins this week.
The 5A bracket, a 32-team field, is the only playoff of the bunch that does not feature a No. 1 overall seed. Instead, it seeds teams Nos. 1-8 into one of four quadrants. The four No. 1 seeds are Columbine (9-0), Valor Christian (7-2), Grandview (7-2) and defending champion Cherry Creek (7-2).
No. 2 seeds, who are also hosting first-round games, include Regis Jesuit (7-2), Arapahoe (9-0), Pomona (6-3), and Westminster (9-0).
There were some questions as to why Arapahoe got a No. 2 seed behind Grandview, who the Warriors beat this season. Asked about that specific situation, the 5A committee said it “was due to the quality of (Grandview’s) wins late, how early Arapahoe and Grandview played, and overall strength of Arapahoe’s schedule.”
Also hosting first round games in 5A are No. 3 seeds — Legacy, Ralston Valley, Horizon, and Fountain-Fort Carson — and No. 4 seeds — Heritage, Fairview, Mountain Vista and Mullen.
The 32-team 5A field is set by the final Wild Card points, which were released on Saturday morning. From there, the committee has a number of criteria it can use to seed the teams, including the use of the CHSAA RPI formula.
The 5A title game will be played on Dec. 5 at Mile High.
Kent Denver is seeded No. 2 in 2A. (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)
In 2A, Bayfield heads the field as the No. 1 overall seed. The Wolverines are 8-0.
Other top seeds in the 2A field who will host games in the first round include No. 2 Kent Denver, No. 3 Platte Valley, No. 4 La Junta, No. 5 Sterling, No. 6 Alameda, No. 7 Bennett and No. 8 Moffat County.
Brush, the defending champion, is seeded No. 9.
The 2A championship game is set for Nov. 28 at a home site.
Leading the 1A field is top overall seed Buena Vista. Also hosting games in the first round are No. 2 Resurrection Christian, No. 3 Paonia, No. 4 Monte Vista, No. 5 Crowley County, No. 6 Burlington, No. 7 Platte Canyon and No. 8 Wiggins.
Paonia is the defending champion.
The 1A title game will be played No. 28, also at a home site.
8-man’s playoff field is led by No. 1 Sedgwick County. Other first-round hosts include No. 2 Norwood, No. 3 Akron, No. 4 Sargent, No. 5 Springfield, No. 6 Dayspring Christian, No. 7 West Grand and No. 8 Hoehne.
Defending champion Caliche did not make the field.
The 8-man title game will be played No. 28 at a home site.
In 6-man, Kit Carson got the top seed. Those teams also hosting first-round games are No. 2 Fleming, No. 3 Eads and No. 4 Arickaree/Woodlin. Arickaree/Woodlin is the defending champion.
The 6-man title tilt will kick off the championship slate with its game scheduled for Nov. 21. It will be played at a home site.
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.
