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.
By the slimmest of margins, Kit Carson is the new No. 1 team in the Class 1A CHSAANow.com girls basketball rankings.
The Wildcats registered 95 points, only one point better than former No. 1 Sangre De Cristo, which falls to No. 2.
Kim jumped from No. 10 to No. 7 this week, but there were no new teams added to the 1A poll.
Highlands Ranch maintains the No. 1 spot in the 5A rankings, taking 13 of 15 first-place votes. In fact, the top seven teams in the 5A poll maintained their position from last week.
Rocky Mountain did join the rankings, landing at No. 10.
The 4A rankings also saw few changes as Sand Creek is still the top team with Mesa Ridge still nipping at the Scorpions’ heels.
Montrose is No. 10 in 4A this week. (Tom Hoganson)
The Western Slope got some love from the votes as Montrose breaks into the 4A poll, coming in at No. 10.
The two remaining unbeaten teams in 3A continue to sit atop their rankings. Pages Springs and Manitou Springs remain entrenched at No. 1 and No. 2 respectively. St. Mary’s moved up to No. 4 and have a looming showdown with Manitou on Tuesday.
Liberty Common joins the 3A poll at No. 10.
No new teams were added to the 2A poll, which still has Yuma as the No. 1 overall team.
Kiowa did make a two-spot jump from last week, coming in at No. 7.
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.
Overland boys basketball is No. 2 in this week’s 5A rankings. (Matt Minton/JacksActionShots.com)
Overland is back in the game.
The Trailblazers now sit at the No. 2 spot in the Class 5A CHSAANow.com boys basketball rankings.
Why the sudden jump?
A 22-point win over Eaglecrest probably had something to do with it. The defending state champions made sure the rest of the class didn’t forget that they are still quite good at basketball.
The 5A rankings also saw a familiar face return as Denver East comes back in at No. 10.
After weeks of receiving votes, Sierra finally made their way into the 4A poll, landing at No. 9.
The Denver School of Science and Tech – Stapleton also hangs on to their No. 1 ranking. They remain at the top of the 3A poll, holding off a Faith Christian team that is actually the lone blemish on the Knights’ 16-1 record.
Colorado Academy has played its way back into the 3A rankings, coming in at No. 10.
Ellicot and Haxtun join the 2A poll this week, coming in at No. 8 and No. 10 respectively. Sanford remains the top team in 2A, taking nine of 10 first-place votes.
Defending 1A champion Holly continues to gain momentum as they tighten their grip on the No. 1 spot.
Sierra Grande made a three-spot move this week, landing at No. 6.
Rocky Mountain Lutheran is the lone newcomer to the 1A rankings, 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.
George Washington 9, Legend 6, FNE Warriors 4, Boulder 3, Fossil Ridge 1.
Dropped out
Legend (9).
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Lewis-Palmer (10)
18-1
161
1
2-0
2
Valor Christian (2)
17-1
141
2
2-0
3
Pueblo South (2)
17-1
135
4
2-0
4
Longmont (3)
17-1
130
3
2-0
5
Pueblo West
16-3
92
5
1-1
6
Golden
14-5
66
6
2-0
7
Windsor
15-4
63
7
2-0
8
Denver South
13-5
50
8
1-0
9
Sierra
14-4
29
–
1-0
10
Vista Ridge
14-5
27
9
1-1
Others receiving votes:
Rifle 24, Durango 7, Vista Peak 4, Holy Family 3, Mead 3.
Dropped out
Rifle (10).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
DSST-Stapleton (7)
16-1
125
1
1-0
2
Faith Christian (4)
12-4
112
2
1-0
3
Colorado Springs Christian (1)
11-4
84
3
2-0
4
DSST-Green Valley Ranch (1)
12-0
73
4
1-0
5
Eaton
14-2
72
5
2-0
6
Lutheran
12-3
67
6
2-0
7
Sterling
12-3
63
8
1-0
8
Manitou Springs
14-1
47
7
1-0
9
Alamosa (1)
12-4
41
9
3-0
10
Colorado Academy
10-6
27
–
2-0
Others receiving votes:
Bennett 21, Grand Valley 14, Pagosa Springs 10, Basalt 6, Bayfield 4, Manual 3, Coal Ridge 2, Peak to Peak 2, Ridgeview Academy 1, St. Mary’s 1, The Pinnacle 1.
Dropped out
Grand Valley (10).
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Sanford (9)
13-0
98
1
0-0
2
Resurrection Christian
15-0
90
2
1-0
3
Sedgwick County (1)
15-0
82
3
2-0
4
Paonia
15-1
60
4
3-0
5
Holyoke
11-3
57
8
1-0
6
Rye
13-2
48
6
1-0
7
Ignacio
13-2
41
5
3-0
8
Ellicott
10-3
22
–
1-0
9
Highland
13-3
19
9
2-0
10
Haxtun
11-4
16
–
2-0
Others receiving votes:
Crowley County 9, Center 8.
Dropped out
Crowley County (7), Center (10).
Class 1A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Holly (5)
15-2
77
1
3-0
2
Fleming (3)
13-2
73
2
2-0
3
Wiley
12-3
63
3
1-1
4
South Baca
13-2
47
4
2-0
5
Kit Carson
13-3
45
6
2-0
6
Sierra Grande
13-2
35
9
2-0
7
Ouray
11-2
33
5
1-1
8
Longmont Christian
9-5
27
8
2-1
9
Shining Mountain
14-2
25
7
3-0
10
Rocky Mountain Lutheran
11-3
6
–
1-0
Others receiving votes:
Walsh 3, Front Range Baptist 3, Cheyenne Wells 2, Peetz 1, Faith Baptist 1.
Although Highlands Ranch, Sand Creek, Pagosa Springs, Yuma and Sangre de Cristo all held on to their respective No. 1 rankings, there was an influx of new teams added to this week’s CHSAANow.com girls basketball polls.
The Falcons continue to have their talons firmly grasped on the No. 1 ranking in Class 5A and with only one more ranked opponent on their schedule, appear to be in control of the top spot for the remainder of the regular season.
Regis Jesuit joined the 5A girls basketball rankings this week. (Dennis Pleuss)
Pine Creek and Regis Jesuit are shaking up the 5A poll by joining its ranks this week.
The Eagles come in at No. 9 while the Raiders take over the No. 10 spot this week.
Sand Creek continues to hold off fellow Colorado Springs-area powerhouse Mesa Ridge for the top 4A spot.
The 4A rankings from top to bottom went unchanged from a week ago.
Pagosa Springs took nine of 13 first-place votes to keep the top 3A spot this week. Manitou Springs sits right behind them at No. 2, with both teams still undefeated on the year.
La Junta is the lone newcomer to the 3A poll as the Tigers come in at No. 10.
The top of the 2A poll also looks familiar with Yuma keeping a firm grasp on the top spot. Haxtun made a significant jump this week, landing at No. 5, three spots better than last week.
Kiowa joins the 2A ranks at No. 9 this week.
Sangre de Cristo still sits atop the 1A poll, claiming 80 percent of the first-place votes. The 1A poll also welcomes two new teams as Briggsdale lands at No. 8 and Norwood comes in at No. 9.
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.
Highlands Ranch cemented itself atop the 5A girls basketball rankings this week. (Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com)
It seemed like Highlands Ranch was poised to get knocked off the top spot of the Class 5A CHSAANow.com girls basketball rankings.
But the Falcons had other ideas.
They trailed at halftime Friday night against ThunderRidge but rallied to take down the Grizzlies, cementing their status as the No. 1 team in state. The ThunderRidge effort only dropped them one spot, setting up a potential high-profile rematch in the state playoffs.
The 5A rankings saw only one new team join this week as Horizon comes in at No. 9.
Sand Creek remained the top team in the 4A poll, a position they have held all year. Evergreen and Windsor each jumped one spot to come in at No. 8 and No. 19 respectively. There were no new teams in the 4A rankings.
Pagosa Springs remains the top team in 3A rankings after winning both their games last week. Manitou Springs jumped one spot to land at No. 2.
Like 4A, there were no newcomers to the 3A poll.
Yuma is still the No. 1 team in 2A, getting 14 of 16 first-place votes. Highland made the biggest jump of the week by landing at No. 7, up three spots from where they were in the previous rankings. No new teams made 2A poll this week.
Although three teams remain undefeated in 1A, Sangre de Cristo is still the team holding the top spot in 1A. McClave is the only newly ranked team this week, 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.
Highlands Ranch maintained its grip on the No. 1 spot in the 5A girls basketball poll. (Kevin Keyser/KeyserImages.com)
Consistency would be the best word to describe the CHSAANow.com girls basketball rankings this week. While some new teams played their way into some of the polls, the overall tops teams continued to do what top teams tend to do: win.
Highlands Ranch fought off a good effort from defending Class 5A champion Broomfield to maintain their spot atop the 5A rankings.
The close game did get the attention of quite a few voters as it helped Broomfield jump two spots to land at No. 4.
No new teams were able to crack their way into this week’s 5A rankings.
For the most part, the 4A poll looks about the same as it did going into the winter break. Sand Creek remains the No. 1 team in the class and Mesa Ridge, Valor Christian, Longmont and Pueblo West all kept their spots at 2-5 respectively.
Holy Family made the biggest jump in 4A, gaining two spots to come in at No. 6.
Pueblo East broke into the 4A rankings at No. 10.
All 10 teams from the previous 3A rankings remained in this week’s poll. Pages Springs holds on to their spot at No. 1 with Sterling keeping a firm grasp on the No. 2 position.
Manitou Springs regained some first-place votes after beating a couple of top-10 teams in Lutheran and Lamar last week.
Moffat County jumped two spots to land at No. 7, the biggest jump for any team in 3A.
The 2A poll saw more changes than any other class this week. Yuma is still firmly in the No. 1 position, but Haxtun jumped two spots to land at No. 5.
There were three new teams to the rankings as Soroco (No. 7), Ignacio (No. 9) and Evangelical Christian (No. 10) all played their way into the top 10.
Despite not playing a game since Dec. 17, Sangre De Cristo maintains the top position in the 1A rankings. Kit Carson, who received a couple of first-place votes remains at No. 2.
Heritage Christian jumped into the 1A poll at No. 8 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.
Rampart 20, Fairview 5, Loveland 5, Dakota Ridge 3, George Washington 2, Pine Creek 2, Fossil Ridge 1, Horizon 1, Mountain Vista 1.
Dropped out
None.
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Sand Creek (12)
7-1
179
1
2-0
2
Mesa Ridge (4)
9-1
157
2
2-0
3
Valor Christian (2)
8-1
149
3
2-0
4
Longmont (1)
9-1
118
4
3-0
5
Pueblo West
10-2
91
5
3-1
6
Holy Family
6-3
63
8
2-0
7
Evergreen
9-1
44
7
3-1
8
Golden
8-2
34
6
1-1
9
Berthoud
10-1
33
10
2-0
10
Pueblo East
7-4
29
–
1-1
Others receiving votes:
Centaurus 27, D’Evelyn 26, Mullen 23, Windsor 22, Durango 17, Green Mountain 16, Pueblo South 8, Thomas Jefferson 4, Montrose 3, Greeley Central 1, Palmer Ridge 1.
Dropped out
Centaurus (9).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Pagosa Springs (6)
7-0
111
1
1-0
2
Sterling (3)
7-0
97
2
2-0
3
Manitou Springs (3)
9-0
94
3
3-0
4
Centauri
8-0
62
4
1-0
5
St. Mary’s
8-1
56
5
2-0
6
Eaton
7-1
49
7
2-0
7
Moffat County
6-1
47
9
2-0
8
Lamar
8-2
42
8
1-1
9
Trinidad
8-2
31
10
2-0
10
Lutheran
6-4
25
6
2-3
Others receiving votes:
Grand Valley 10, Faith Christian 8, Liberty Common 7, Monte Vista 7, Alamosa 5, La Junta 5, Olathe 4.
Dropped out
None.
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Yuma (13)
7-1
173
1
1-0
2
Akron (3)
8-0
157
2
3-0
3
Cedaredge (1)
8-0
136
3
2-0
4
Paonia (1)
7-1
128
4
1-0
5
Haxtun
7-0
78
7
2-0
6
Wray
4-3
61
6
0-1
7
Soroco
7-1
38
–
2-0
8
Simla
3-3
33
5
0-3
9
Ignacio
4-2
27
–
0-0
10
Evangelical Christian
7-1
26
–
2-0
Others receiving votes:
Peyton 21, Highland 19, West Grand 15, Kiowa 13, Union Colony 13, Calhan 11, Sanford 10, Del Norte 8, Ellicott 6, Hoehne 6, Rye 4, Clear Creek 2, Fowler 2, Lyons 1, Sargent 1.
Although the Class 3A CHSAANow.com girls basketball rankings are loaded with talent at the top, breaking into those ranks is not impossible and Centauri is proving just that.
After sitting at No. 8 last week, the undefeated Falcons leapt to No. 4 after a 62-33 win over Buena Vista. They now sit right behind Pagosa Springs, Sterling and Manitou Springs, the three preseason favorites to take the state title. Pagosa Springs held on to the top spot that they grabbed from Manitou only a week ago.
The only new addition to the 3A poll this week is Trinidad who gave Manitou Springs its toughest test of the year Friday night.
In 5A, Highlands Ranch remains the top team, while nine teams from last week’s rankings remained in the top 10 this week.
The only team to break in is Rocky Mountain, who comes in at No. 10.
Sand Creek remains ranked No. 1 in 4A. (Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)
Sand Creek remains  the top-ranked team in 4A and are looking every bit the part. Like 3A, the 4A rankings are top-heavy with talented teams as Mesa Ridge (No. 2), Valor Christian (No. 3) and Longmont (No. 4) all look like contenders early in the season.
Centaurus is the only new team to the 4A poll as they land at No. 9 this week.
Yuma still has a grasp on the No. 1 ranking in the 2A polls, although Akron and Cedaredge are both undefeated and getting first-place recognition.
Hasten makes a splash this week as they land at No. 7 after being unranked only a week ago.
Sangre de Cristo edged out Kit Carson by one point to remain the No. 1 team in 1A this week.
The 1A rankings added the most teams this week as Prairie (No. 7) and Jim Elliot (No. 9) break into the poll.
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.
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.
Pomona’s defense had an outstanding night, limiting Ralston Valley to just two field goals in a 13-6 win on Friday night.
The Panthers, ranked No. 8 in Class 5A, pulled the upset of the No. 5 Mustangs. The win continued a streak of equality in the rivalry: Since 2009, Pomona and Ralston Valley have traded wins every other year.
On Friday, Pomona grabbed a 7-0 lead after the first quarter on a punt return for a score. Ralston Valley got a field goal near the end of halftime, but Pomona answered with a touchdown early in the third quarter.
Ralston Valley did cut it to a one-score game with another field goal, but couldn’t get any closer.
[divider]
3A: (1) Pueblo East 36, (9) The Classical Academy 21
The Classical Academy led 7-0 early, but then Pueblo East took over. The Eagles scored 19 unanswered points to take a 19-7 lead at halftime, thanks to five Titan turnovers.
Austin Burkholder’s rushing score late in the third quarter gave Sterling the lead back and the Tigers never looked back. Freshman Isaac Harris made it 27-13 a short while later, Burkholder added another score — his fourth — and Sterling cruised.
[divider]
8-man: (1) Sedgwick County 44, (5) Dayspring Christian 18
Sedgwick County jumped out to a 30-3 lead at halftime, and kept the pressure on in an important win for the playoff picture.
The loss avenged a 53-21 defeat last season.
[divider]
2A: (10) Bennett 40, Strasburg 39
Bennett stopped a two-point conversion in the final minutes to hold off the upset bid.
“Big play from Jesse Rodriquez, our corner, (who) intercepted their two-point conversion try,” coach Rick Jacoby told the Colorado Preps Scoreboard Show.
Bennett recovered the ensuing onside kick and then ran out the clock.
Bennett had led with three minutes to play, but Strasburg responded with its own touchdown with under two minutes left prior to the two-point attempt.
“We were behind most of the game,” Jacoby said. “We didn’t take the lead until about the seven minute mark of the fourth. We were down, I think, 19 at one point in the third quarter. We ended up being able to dig ourselves out of the hole.”
With the win, Bennett clinched the Frontier League championship.
[divider]
Notables
West Grand beat Rocky Mountain Lutheran 80-28 on Friday, giving coach Chris Brown his 305th career win. He can tie the state record for victories at Vail Christian next week.
2A No. 4 La Junta beat Lamar 35-0 in Colorado’s second-oldest rivalry, a matchup known as the Whistle Game.
5A No. 5 Palisade had 689 total yards in a 62-18 win over Grand Junction Central.
In 8-man, No. 4 Sargent beat No. 6 Dove Creek 30-18. “It was a tough battle,” Sargent coach Trevan Pepper told the Scoreboard Show. “We were a little bit asleep getting off the bus on that first drive, they went down and scored, and then we kind of stepped it up on defense the rest of the first half.”
1A No. 6 Crowley County won a tough game against Limon, 21-14. The Chargers won the South Central League as a result. “We had a big, long drive in the third quarter and were able to put it in on a little option play,” coach Brandon Roe told the Scoreboard Show. “We just played really great team defense after that.”
