THORNTON — Horizon topped Poudre 42-41 in girls basketball on Friday night.
Tag: Poudre
-
Overland’s Thomas picks CSU, Windsor’s Noller to Navy as commits keep rolling in
Windor’s Trenton Noller (76). (Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com) As Signing Day draws increasingly near, seniors continue to make their college decisions.
A host of Colorado kids made their decisions over the weekend, including Overland linebacker Tre Thomas, who committed to Colorado State, and Windsor lineman Trenton Noller, who committed to the Naval Academy.
Thomas is the fifth in-state senior to pick CSU this cycle, following Loveland athlete John Freismuth, Douglas County running back Trey Smith, Pomona lineman Zach Stefo and Valor Christian defensive back Marcus Wilson. He chose the Rams over offers from New Mexico, San Jose State, UTEP, Wyoming and Northern Colorado, according to his Rivals.com profile.
Thomas, 6-foot-3 and 200 pounds, had 219 total tackles last season, a figure that led the state across all classifications. He also had four sacks and 16 hurries, along with two fumble recoveries, a forced fumble, and two blocked kicks.
“It’s a great school, a great community,” Thomas told GreenandGoldNews.com. “The players are good. I like the players, I like the coaches, and it’s in my home state, not too far from my family. So it seemed like the perfect fit for me.”
The 6-foot-4, 300-pound Noller also had offers from Arizona, Army, Georgia Tech, New Mexico State, Wyoming and Northern Colorado, according to Rivals.com. He announced his commitment over Twitter on Sunday morning:
Officially committed to The Naval Academy!
— Trenton (@Trenton_Noller) January 26, 2014
“It’s a huge weight off my shoulders,” Noller told the Fort Collins Coloradoan. “I love it here. They told me straight up that it will be hard, but I can get through it, and it will be more rewarding than if I go anywhere else.”
Additionally, Fairview lineman Connor Spencer announced his commitment to San Diego, an FCS program.
I've committed to play football at University of San Diego. Thanks to everyone that helped make this happen. Couldn't be happier #GoToreros
— Connor Spencer (@connorspencer74) January 27, 2014
With the three new commits, Colorado now has 35 players committed to Division I football programs — 25 to FBS schools and 10 to FCS. The 35 total is the most since the class of 2008, according to a search of the Rivals.com database. That year, the state produced 38 Division I recruits.
The 25 FBS commits are also the most since 2008, when the state had 33.
A few locals also declared their intention to head to Division II programs.
Included are Legend wide receiver/defensive back Elijah Cherrington (CSU-Pueblo), Smoky Hill quarterback Trent Clay (Black Hills State), ThunderRidge wide receiver Mark Hopper (Colorado School of Mines), Poudre quarterback Cody Limmer (Colorado School of Mines), Clear Creek wide receiver/defensive back Tevin Lucas (Sioux Falls), Lakewood quarterback Casey Nicholls (Sioux Falls), Dakota Ridge lineman Brant Seeley (Adams State), and Regis Jesuit linebacker Quinn Vandekoppel (CSU-Pueblo).
A full list of football commits can be found here.
Elsehwere, Monarch’s Parker Sitton committed to Arkansas State for track, and Legend’s Peyton Remy committed to New Mexico for baseball. Remy’s commitment means Colorado now has 29 Division I baseball recruits this class.
-
No. 4 Grandview outlasts No. 7 Poudre girls basketball in double OT
(Jordan Morey/CHSAANow.com) AURORA — It should go without saying, but freshman standout Michaela Onyenwere had never played in a double-overtime game during her short career at Grandview.
“Coach told us all to just calm down,” Onyenwere said. “He said, ‘We still got this, even if there is still one second left and we’re tied.’ That helped me out because I had never played in a game like this.”
Grandview’s Michaela Onyenwere. (Jordan Morey/CHSAANow.com) Onyenwere scored 21 points in No. 4 Grandview’s 65-58 double-overtime win over No. 7 Poudre (3-2) in Friday night’s semifinals of the Grandview High School Invitational. Sophomore Cecelia Berkner led Poudre with 22 points.
Coach Josh Ulitzky, of Grandview (4-0), decided to play two of his freshman during the final moments of the game.
“I thought that our young players, (Onyenwere) and Kennede Brown, did a pretty good job,” Ulitzky said. “I would like to say that there is another way to learn — but that’s it. They need to get out there and play in these tough games.”
Last season, Grandview had the best season in school history, finishing at 24-3 (13-1 league). Their regular season achievements earned them No. 3 seed in the state tournament. Grandview made it all the way to the final four before losing to Resuit Jesuit, the eventual 5A state champion, by three points.
“We needed to be battle-tested a little bit,” Ulitzky said. “We had some nerves in the final minutes. But I think, in the end, senior leadership really did a nice job. Having Jen Jordan, Brittany Bender and Denise Batiste to calm things down, and make shots late and get stops helped us.”
(Jordan Morey/CHSAANow.com) Through four games, Onyenwere leads Grandview at 20.5 points per game, the fourth highest scoring average in 5A girls basketball. The next highest-scoring freshman in 5A is Spencer Lindsey of Pine Creek, at 13.8 points per contest. Grandview has averaged 66.5 points through its first four games.
Grandview will play D’Evelyn (4-2) in the tournament final on Dec 14 at 5 PM. D’Evelyn lost to Poudre in the Battle Of The Rockies tournament semifinals 46-37 on Dec. 6.
In the last matchup between Grandview and D’Evleyn, the semifinals of last year’s tournament at Grandview, Grandview took the win 63-57 behind 18 points from senior Abaeze Obinnah. Obinnah was a key part of Grandview’s run in 2012-13 as the second-leading scorer on the team.
“We’re going to have to cover the three-point line,” Ulitzky said of Saturday’s game. “D’Evelyn loves to run the 3-point line. It will be a challenge for us because they like to run up the floor quickly, give pressure and shoot.”
-
5A girls basketball ranking adds Fossil Ridge, Ralston Valley
Regis Jesuit continues to be atop the 5A girls basketball ranking. (Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com) Fossil Ridge and Ralston Valley have joined this week’s CHSAANow.com 5A girls basketball poll.
Fossil Ridge is off to a 4-0 start, including in-state wins over Chaparral and Fruita Monument, as well as a 2-0 showing in Wyoming. The SaberCats are No. 9 this week.
Ralston Valley is No. 10 in the poll. The Mustangs went 2-1 last week with a loss to Rock Canyon, but beat Cherry Creek and then-No. 3 Arapahoe. Arapahoe dropped out this week.
The No. 1 teams from last week all stayed put. So Regis Jesuit (5A), Broomfield (4A), Holy Family (3A), Yuma (2A) and Caliche (1A) all continue to lead their respective polls.
Complete rankings for all classes are below.
[divider]
CHSAANow.com Girls Basketball Polls
Voted upon by coaches and media members around the state. These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding.
Coaches and media members looking to vote should email rcasey@chsaa.org.
Class 5A RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW 1 Regis Jesuit (22) 2-0 220 1 2-0 2 Highlands Ranch 4-1 181 2 4-1 3 ThunderRidge 3-0 152 8 3-0 4 Grandview 2-0 149 4 2-0 5 Castle View 1-0 87 7 1-0 6 Monarch 0-0 81 6 0-0 7 Poudre 3-0 80 10 3-0 8 Rock Canyon 2-1 78 5 2-1 9 Fossil Ridge 4-0 45 – 4-0 10 Ralston Valley 2-1 34 – 2-1 Others receiving votes: Horizon 28, Lakewood 18, Cherry Creek 15, Arapahoe 14, Rampart 9, Chaparral 6, Bear Creek 4, Pine Creek 4, Denver East 3, Grand Junction 1, Palmer 1. Dropped out Arapahoe (3), Cherry Creek (9). Class 4A RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW 1 Broomfield (10) 2-0 125 1 2-0 2 Pueblo South (3) 1-0 118 2 1-0 3 Mesa Ridge 2-0 106 4 2-0 4 Pueblo West 3-0 63 6 3-0 5 Palmer Ridge 3-0 50 8 3-0 6 Sand Creek 1-1 48 5 1-1 7 Valor Christian 3-0 45 – 3-0 8 D’Evelyn 2-2 44 3 2-2 9 Silver Creek 3-0 41 – 3-0 10 Elizabeth 1-0 36 – 1-0 Others receiving votes: Montrose 21, Conifer 4, Longmont 4, Pueblo County 4, Delta 2, Canon City 1, Mullen 1, Thompson Valley 1, Windsor 1. Dropped out Montrose (7), Canon City (9), Air Academy (10). Class 3A RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW 1 Holy Family (13) 2-0 130 1 2-0 2 Pagosa Springs 1-0 100 2 1-0 3 Centauri 3-0 86 5 3-0 4 Lamar 1-0 74 4 1-0 5 Eaton 3-0 64 7 3-0 6 St. Mary’s 0-0 56 6 0-0 7 Peak to Peak 1-0 35 9 1-0 8 Valley 0-0 34 8 0-0 9 Kent Denver 3-0 33 – 3-0 10 Sterling 2-1 24 10 2-1 Others receiving votes: Bishop Machebeuf 23, Olathe 16, Faith Christian 7, Clear Creek 6, Grand Valley 5, Jefferson Academy 4, Manitou Springs 4, Estes Park 3, Coal Ridge 2, Denver Science & Tech 2, Platte Valley 2, Salida 2, Brush 1, Classical Academy 1, Trinidad 1. Dropped out Denver Science & Tech (3). Class 2A RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW 1 Yuma (7) 2-0 88 1 2-0 2 Akron (1) 1-0 76 2 1-0 3 Peyton 1-0 63 4 1-0 4 Lutheran (1) 1-0 57 3 1-0 5 Holyoke 1-0 45 6 1-0 6 Sangre de Cristo 3-0 37 5 3-0 7 Meeker 1-0 25 10 1-0 8 Paonia 1-1 20 7 1-1 9 Simla 1-0 18 – 1-0 10 Liberty Common 4-0 16 – 4-0 Others receiving votes: The Vanguard 15, Wray 9, Highland 6, Hoehne 5, Del Norte 4, Limon 4, Rye 3, Heritage Christian 2, Kiowa 1, Springfield 1. Dropped out Rye (8), The Vanguard (9). Class 1A RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW 1 Caliche (5) 2-0 67 1 2-0 2 Eads 1-0 57 2 1-0 3 Norwood (2) 2-0 55 5 2-0 4 Idalia 2-0 43 4 2-0 5 Stratton 0-0 41 3 0-0 6 Kit Carson 0-0 34 6 0-0 7 Dove Creek 2-0 23 – 2-0 8 Hi-Plains 0-0 15 7 0-0 9 Belleview Christian 3-0 14 – 3-0 10 Holly 2-0 9 – 2-0 Others receiving votes: Wiley 6, Briggsdale 5, Prairie 5, Walsh 4, McClave 3, Centennial 2, Jim Elliot Christian 1, South Baca 1. Dropped out Kim (8), Pawnee (9), Walsh (10). -
Regis Jesuit on top of 5A girls basketball’s preseason ranking
Regis Jesuit begins 2013-14 atop the 5A girls basketball poll. (Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com) Regis Jesuit is the unanimous No. 1 selection in CHSAANow.com’s preseason girls basketball ranking in 5A.
The poll, released on Monday, featured 18 first-place votes. The Raiders received each one. And it makes sense: Regis Jesuit did not graduate any players from last year’s team which won the title. The squad also has six seniors committed to Division I schools, including Diani Akigbogun (Texas) and Justine Hall (Purdue).
Highlands Ranch, last season’s 5A runner-up, is No. 2 in the preseason ranking. Arapahoe is third, Grandview is fourth and Rock Canyon rounds out the top-5.
Monarch, with coach Gail Hook returning from a one-year hiatus, is sixth. Castle View is seventh, ThunderRidge is eighth, Cherry Creek is ninth and Poudre is tenth.
Holy Family is ranked No. 1 in 3A girls basketball. Broomfield is No. 1 in 4A. (Pam Wagner) In 4A, Broomfield heads the preseason poll. The Eagles reached last year’s semifinals, where they lost to eventual champion Pueblo South by three points. Pueblo South begins the season ranked No. 2.
Holy Family is on top of the 3A ranking. The Tigers won last year’s championship.
The 2A poll is headed by Yuma, even though the Indians received three first-place votes to Akron’s four. Akron beat Yuma in last season’s title game, and is ranked second.
Caliche is the preseason No. 1 team in 1A. The Buffaloes lost in last season’s quarterfinals. Defending champion Wiley is unranked to begin the season.
Complete rankings for all classes are below.
[divider]
CHSAANow.com Girls Basketball Polls
Voted upon by coaches and media members around the state. These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding.
Coaches and media members looking to vote should email rcasey@chsaa.org.
Class 5A RK TEAM W-L PTS 1 Regis Jesuit (18) 0-0 180 2 Highlands Ranch 0-0 145 3 Arapahoe 0-0 115 4 Grandview 0-0 85 5 Rock Canyon 0-0 75 6 Monarch 0-0 69 7 Castle View 0-0 53 8 ThunderRidge 0-0 51 9 Cherry Creek 0-0 41 10 Poudre 0-0 34 Others receiving votes: Horizon 30, Chaparral 22, Denver East 21, Lakewood 18, Ralston Valley 16, Palmer 14, Fossil Ridge 10, Rampart 8, Legacy 2, Heritage 1. Class 4A RK TEAM W-L PTS 1 Broomfield (8) 0-0 137 2 Pueblo South (5) 0-0 123 3 D’Evelyn (2) 0-0 119 4 Mesa Ridge 0-0 109 5 Sand Creek 0-0 74 6 Pueblo West 0-0 44 7 Montrose 0-0 42 8 Palmer Ridge 0-0 28 9 Canon City 0-0 19 10 Air Academy 0-0 17 Others receiving votes: Silver Creek 16, Windsor 15, Mullen 14, Valor Christian 14, Elizabeth 12, Pueblo County 9, Centaurus 8, Golden 5, Rifle 5, Evergreen 4, Greeley Central 4, Glenwood Springs 3, Thompson Valley 2, Berthoud 1, Conifer 1. Class 3A RK TEAM W-L PTS 1 Holy Family (14) 0-0 140 2 Pagosa Springs 0-0 107 3 Denver Science & Tech 0-0 101 4 Lamar 0-0 70 5 Centauri 0-0 68 6 St. Mary’s 0-0 63 7 Eaton 0-0 42 8 Valley 0-0 35 9 Peak to Peak 0-0 30 10 Sterling 0-0 26 Others receiving votes: Bishop Machebeuf 21, Kent Denver 15, Manitou Springs 11, Olathe 8, Coal Ridge 7, Grand Valley 7, Clear Creek 6, Platte Valley 4, Salida 3, Trinidad 3, Moffat County 2, Buena Vista 1. Class 2A RK TEAM W-L PTS 1 Yuma (3) 0-0 82 2 Akron (4) 0-0 74 3 Lutheran (2) 0-0 67 4 Peyton 0-0 66 5 Sangre de Cristo 0-0 33 6 Holyoke 0-0 27 7 Paonia 0-0 26 8 Rye 0-0 18 9 The Vanguard 0-0 17 10 Meeker 0-0 16 Others receiving votes: Ignacio 11, Del Norte 9, Hoehne 9, Simla 8, Las Animas 5, Liberty Common 5, Swink 5, Limon 4, Sanford 4, Burlington 3, Calhan 3, Heritage Christian 2, Springfield 2, Center 1, Highland 1. Class 1A RK TEAM W-L PTS 1 Caliche (4) 0-0 57 2 Eads 0-0 56 3 Stratton 0-0 40 4 Idalia 0-0 39 5 Norwood (2) 0-0 35 6 Kit Carson 0-0 31 7 Hi-Plains 0-0 30 8 Kim 0-0 23 9 Pawnee 0-0 19 10 Walsh (1) 0-0 18 Others receiving votes: Dove Creek 13, Wiley 9, Belleview Christian 4, Prairie 4, Cheraw 3, Otis 3, McClave 2, Jim Elliot Christian 1. -
Photo gallery: No. 10 Mountain Range football ends regular season 8-1
WESTMINSTER — Senior Gabe Gillespie rushed for 311 yards and four touchdowns as Mountain Range topped Poudre 56-22. The Mustangs end the regular season at 8-1.
-
Fossil Ridge notches important win over Poudre in boys soccer
(Jon E. Yunt) FORT COLLINS — All Fossil Ridge boys soccer coach Shannon Clarke could do was shake his head.
His SaberCats have spent the season dominating the run of play, yet had very little to show for it. Their 7-5-1 overall mark and 5-3-1 Front Range League mark entering Wednesday nights season finale against crosstown rival Poudre had them on the outside looking in as far as an automatic bid to the 32 team Class 5A playoff field.
They still might need a few things to go their way, but the SaberCats did themselves a huge favor at J. Ray French Field by dispatching Poudre 1-0. If anything, it’s a win that could impress the selection committee and earn them an at-large bid.
“Like every game this season, I felt like we completely dominated the play and had a gagillion chances to their very few, and finally tonight we get the winning stroke,” Clarke said. “So many times it has gone the other way for us, just like that.”
Fossil Ridge completely dominated the run of play and out-shot the Impalas 12-1, including 10-0 in the second half. Yet, they had nothing to show for it for the first 75 minutes of the game.
Finally, in the 76th minute, the SaberCats lined up for a corner kick and Elliot Weber sent a well-placed ball to the near post and senior midfielder Jarrett Pugh finished with his head past goalie Hector Torales.
“We just had to keep with our system and we had a couple of calls go against us and we were pushing to get that goal the whole game,” said Pugh, who proudly wore the captain’s band. “We just kept working hard, serving in those balls and we were finally able to get one. This was a good team win.”
Torales was brilliant in net for the Impalas, who scored a huge win for the playoffs chances on Tuesday night against Fort Collins. The senior, who had never played soccer before this year, finished with 11 saves — none bigger than midway through the second half on a Gage Clifton shot.
“He’s an athletic kid and he’s got great hands,” said Poudre coach Erik Eckhoff of his goalie. “He’s a humble kid and he likes to work and he’s been huge for us.”
Poudre drops to 10-4 overall and now 5-4 in a very deep league. Eckhoff thinks his team has done enough to warrant a shot at postseason play.
“But a game like that and the game against Collins (Tuesday) night definitely helps us, even though this was a 1-0 loss, it’s still a 1-0 loss to one of the better teams in the state and a team that dominated us for most of the game,” he said. “Based on last night and tonight, people don’t look at 1-0 losses to Fossil and say they are totally out. They are going to say ‘Wow, they busted their butt.’”
Also on the line Wednesday night were Choice City bragging rights. Between the four 5A schools in the city of Fort Collins, it is the SaberCats — who beat Rocky Mountain and Poudre and tied Fort Collins — that will hold the crown for another season.
“City games, you can just throw the records out the window,” Pugh said. “We all play with each other in club and we all know each other really well and we have these rivalries in the fall, so it’s always nice to get a win against a city team.”
The CHSAA will announce all three classifications of state brackets on Sunday afternoon.
-
Photo gallery: Poudre beats Horizon in boys soccer
Dylan Elder and Hector Rodriguez each scored as Poudre beat Horizon 2-1 in boys soccer on Tuesday.
-
5A boys soccer ranking adds three new teams
Three new teams joined this week’s CHSAANow.com Class 5A boys soccer poll.
No. 7 Poudre, No. 9 Pine Creek and No. 10 Montbello all cracked the ranking this week.
Complete polls for all classes are below.
[divider]
CHSAANow.com Boys Soccer Polls
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.
Class 5A RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW 1 Cherry Creek (8) 5-0-1 118 1 1-0-1 2 Rock Canyon (4) 7-0-0 103 3 2-0-0 3 Smoky Hill 7-1-0 85 4 2-0-0 4 Rangeview 6-0-0 70 6 2-0-0 5 Grandview 5-1-0 54 5 2-1-0 6 Standley Lake (1) 7-0-0 48 8 1-0-0 7 Poudre 6-0-0 45 – 2-0-0 8 Arapahoe 4-1-1 41 2 0-1-1 9 Pine Creek 6-1-1 39 – 1-0-1 10 Montbello 6-0-1 37 – 2-0-1 Others receiving votes: Fairview 21, Aurora Central 10, Fossil Ridge 7, Highlands Ranch 7, Ralston Valley 7, Palmer 5, Denver East 4, Boulder 3, Fort Collins 3, Brighton 2, George Washington 2, Rocky Mountain 2, Abraham Lincoln 1, Cherokee Trail 1. Dropped out Ralston Valley (7), Fairview (9), Rocky Mountain (10). Class 4A RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW 1 Battle Mountain (4) 7-0-0 92 1 3-0-0 2 Broomfield (4) 6-1-1 91 2 2-0-0 3 Air Academy (1) 7-0-0 85 3 1-0-0 4 Evergreen 4-1-0 63 5 1-0-0 5 Niwot 3-1-1 55 6 1-0-0 6 Ponderosa (1) 5-2-0 47 7 2-0-0 7 Cheyenne Mountain 4-2-0 31 4 1-1-0 8 Lewis-Palmer 6-1-1 30 9 2-0-0 9 Silver Creek 4-1-1 14 8 1-0-1 10 Golden 4-1-2 12 – 1-0-1 Others receiving votes: Valor Christian 11, Denver North 10, Centaurus 4, Pueblo West 4, Summit 4. Dropped out Denver North (10). Class 3A RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW 1 The Classical Academy (7) 8-0-0 123 1 2-0-0 2 Colorado Academy (5) 8-0-0 120 2 3-0-0 3 Holy Family 6-0-0 90 3 3-0-0 4 Manitou Springs 8-0-0 74 5 2-0-0 5 Coal Ridge (1) 5-1-0 70 4 2-1-0 6 Salida 6-0-0 55 6 1-0-0 7 Kent Denver 4-2-0 44 7 2-0-0 8 Bruce Randolph 5-0-1 34 10 2-0-0 9 Faith Christian 3-4-1 31 8 0-2-0 10 Frontier Academy 5-0-0 29 – 3-0-0 Others receiving votes: Basalt 18, Colorado Rocky Mountain 7, KIPP 6, Denver Christian 4, Crested Butte 3, Roaring Fork 2, Aurora West College Prep 1, C.S. Christian 1, Machebeuf 1, Telluride 1, Vail Mountain 1. Dropped out Basalt (9).