ERIE — Erie sophomore center Cameron McCurry skied toward the rim with four seconds to go in the game and sunk the shot to give his team the lead.
Erie boys basketball stunned Fort Morgan, 68-67, thanks to McCurry’s late heroics and Kyle Leahy’s huge fourth quarter.
Leahy scored 10 points in the fourth quarter to help Erie overcome a 12-point deficit. He finished with 28 points and blocked the final shot attempt from Fort Morgan’s Tate Kembel to seal the win.
McCurry finished with 15 points. Fort Morgan’s TJ Bauer started the game on fire, scoring 13 points in the first quarter, but cooled off and only scored three more points the rest of the game.
The 2014 all-state football players of the year. From left, Josh Odom of Pine Creek (4A), Kyle Leoffler of Arickaree/Woodlin (6-man), Austin Yahn of Caliche (8-man), Taylor Walters of Paonia (1A), Daniel Martin of Pueblo East (3A), Kyle Rosenbrock of Brush (2A) and Milo Hall of Cherry Creek (5A). (Photos: Kai Casey/CHSAANow.com; Tim Visser/TimVisserPhotography.com; Mark Adams; Jeffrey Tucker/MaxPreps; courtesy of Paonia)
The 2014 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.
Pueblo East players celebrate winning in the 3A football semifinals. (Courtesy of @EastBoosterClub on Twitter)
Rifle and Pueblo East will play in the Class 3A football championship next Saturday after both teams won in the Class 3A semifinals on Saturday.
It will be Rifle’s second championship game appearance in three seasons, and seventh overall. The Bears lost to Silver Creek in 3A’s tilt in 2012. They last won a title in 2004.
Pueblo East, a No. 4 seed in the playoffs, has never been in a title game before. Now, the Eagles will get to host one after toppling No. 1-seeded Discovery Canyon 39-21 in the semifinals.
Discovery Canyon had leads of 7-0 and 14-7 but Pueblo East twice rallied to tie things. Then, the Eagles scored on a fake field goal just before the half to take a 19-14 lead. That lead grew to 31-14 before the third quarter ended, and Pueblo East cruised from there.
Daniel Martin had scoring runs of 11 and 30 yards, as well as two touchdown passes, for Pueblo East.
No. 6-seeded Rifle, meanwhile, beat No. 10 Fort Morgan 35-7.
Rifle’s Brock Clark had three touchdowns, and Layton Stutsman threw for one score and rushed for another.
The two teams will play at Dutch Clark Stadium in Pueblo at 1 p.m. next Saturday.
Fort Morgan players celebrate in the end zone after a 48-yard punt return by junior Kyle Daniels in the opening minutes of the Class 3A state quarterfinal football game at Legion Field in Fort Morgan. The home Mustangs defeated Evergreen 13-7. (Dennis Pleuss)
FORT MORGAN — Taking a lead before Fort Morgan’s offense even took the field Saturday afternoon was just what Mustangs’ coach Harrison Chisum ordered up.
After forcing a three-and-out on Evergreen’s first offensive possession at Legion Field, Fort Morgan junior Kyle Daniels returned the ensuing punt 48 yards for a touchdown 99 seconds into the Class 3A state football quarterfinal.
“That was the win,” Chisum said of the special-teams touchdown in the opening minutes. “He (Daniels) did a great job. We work on that a lot.”
Daniels had a number of teammates escort him down the Mustangs’ sideline before reaching the end zone.
Fort Morgan junior Kyle Daniels (11) works on trying to elude a trio of Evergreen players during a punt return Saturday. Daniels’ 48-yard return for a touchdown in the opening minutes helped the Mustangs to a 13-7 victory. (Dennis Pleuss)
“I can’t take credit for that,” Daniels admitted. “That’s all my blockers. They got it done for me. I just followed them and took it where they took me.”
No. 10-seeded Fort Morgan (10-2) never surrendered the lead on the way to a 13-7 victory against No. 2 and previously undefeated Evergreen (11-1). For the second straight week the Mustangs defeated a higher seed.
Fort Morgan will pack its bags for a semifinal road trip and date with Rifle next Saturday. The No. 6 Bears blanked No. 3 Roosevelt on Saturday, scoring 15 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to take a 15-0 victory.
“There is a lot of things we need to get better at, but we have next week to get better,” Chisum said after the victory on the Mustangs’ home field in below zero wind chill conditions along with intermediate snow.
Fort Morgan took a 13-0 halftime lead on the Cougars thanks to a 42-yard run by sophomore Tate Kembel. It was the biggest gain from scrimmage all day for Fort Morgan. Kembel capped off the drive with a 6-yard touchdown run with 8:51 left in the second quarter.
Kembel was the workhorse for the Mustangs. He carried the ball 23 times for 104 yards and the touchdown. Fort Morgan only mustered up 162 yards of total offense against Evergreen’s defense.
“It was a battle between the two best defenses in the (3A) state,” Chisum said. “Evergreen is a great football team with some great athletes. Our guys just found a way to hold on.”
Evergreen’s lone touchdown and only score in the second half by either team was set up by a 42-yard catch by senior Keenan O’Hearn thrown by Cougars’ junior quarterback Dylan Reifeis midway through the third quarter. Reifeis finished off the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run with 4:28 left in the third quarter to make the score 13-7.
Evergreen senior Keenan O’Hearn (3) attempt to stay in bounds after slipping the tackle of Fort Morgan senior Richard Herrera (8) during the first quarter Saturday at Legion Field. O’Hearn had 10 catches for 168 yards in the Class 3A state quarterfinal game. (Dennis Pleuss)
Fort Morgan’s defense forced Evergreen’s multi-dimensional offense to be one-dimensional in the second half. The Cougars’ ground attack was held to three yards on 23 carries. Reifeis ended up throwing the ball 42 times, completing 18 passes for 276 yards. O’Hearn was the main target with 10 catches for 168 yards.
“Fort Morgan’s defense was great,” Reifeis said. “They pressured us like crazy. I had to get the ball out quick. We made some plays. We gave it all we had, but the better team came out on top.”
Evergreen drove into Fort Morgan territory twice in the fourth quarter with a chance to take the lead, but the Cougars couldn’t finish the drives.
“Momentum was changing back and forth,” Fort Morgan junior defensive lineman Toby McBride said of the second half. “Both defensives were just killing it. The offenses couldn’t get anywhere.”
The Cougars had one final shot with 6.6 seconds left from their own 30-yard line. A final deep pass from Reifeis fell incomplete and the Mustangs’ hopes stayed alive to bring the town their first state football title since 1999. Fort Morgan actually defeated Evergreen in the 3A championship at Legion Field 15 years ago.
“I’m proud of Josh (Langford) my defensive coordinator and the kids. They made the plays,” Chisum said. “That was a great football game.”
Fort Morgan senior quarterback Joey Schneider (6) drops back to pass as the snow flies Saturday afternoon at Legion Field. (Dennis Pleuss)Fort Morgan freshman Trey McBride (13) tackles Evergreen senior Robbie Weinel (14) for a loss Saturday at Legion Field. The Mustangs’ defense held the Cougars’ rushing attack to just three yards. (Dennis Pleuss)Evergreen junior quarterback Dylan Reifeis (4) gets ready to go under center Saturday afternoon at Legion Field in Fort Morgan. Reifeis threw for 276 yards and ran for a touchdown, but it wasn’t enough as the Cougars suffered their first lost of the season in the Class 3A state quarterfinal football game. (Dennis Pleuss)Fort Morgan junior Tate Kembel (20) looks for a away around Evergreen defenders Beau Priegnitz (31) and Seth Ausman (28) during the second quarter Saturday at Legion Field. Kembel had over 100 yards on the ground and a touchdown in the Mustangs’ 13-7 victory. (Dennis Pleuss)Evergreen senior Marcus Cassin, front, isn’t able to hang on to a pass as Fort Morgan senior Eric Pflughoeft closes in during the second quarter Saturday at Legion Field. (Dennis Pleuss)
Pine Creek is the No. 1 seed in Class 4A. Falcon also made the field. (Photo: District 49)
AURORA — Pine Creek and Discovery Canyon were selected as the top seeds when the Class 4A and 3A playoff football brackets were announced on Sunday morning.
Both teams went unbeaten at 10-0 during the regular season, and were atop the final Wild Card points standings for their respective classifications.
Pine Creek is the defending 4A champion. The Eagles are riding a 21-game winning streak, the largest of any 11-man team. Their last loss came to 5A Columbine on Sept. 12 of last season. Pine Creek hasn’t lost to a 4A team since dropping a game to Ponderosa in Oct. 2012 — a span of 23 games.
The Eagles went wire-to-wire as the No. 1 team in CHSAANow.com’s rankings during the regular season. They own wins over five teams which made the playoff field.
Other top seeds, and those hosting first-round games, include: No. 2 Fort Collins, No. 3 Montrose, No. 4 Denver South, No. 5 Pueblo South, No. 6 Dakota Ridge, No. 7 Longmont and No. 8 Windsor.
Montrose was the runner-up in last year’s 4A title game. The Indians (9-1) have yet to lose to a 4A team this season, with the lone loss coming to 5A Lakewood.
Discovery Canyon, meanwhile, has been No. 1 in the CHSAANow.com poll and the Wild Card points for a few weeks now. The Thunder have a number of key wins, including on the road at Holy Family and over Pueblo East. They also beat Rampart, a 4A playoff team.
On Friday, Discovery Canyon held off an upset attempt by beating Canon City in overtime.
Other first-round hosts in 3A are No. 2 Evergreen, No. 3 Roosevelt, No. 4 Pueblo East, No. 5 Lutheran, No. 6 Rifle, No. 7 Holy Family and No. 8 Conifer.
One thing’s for sure: There will be a new champion in 3A. Coronado, which won last year’s title, moved up to 4A (and made the playoffs). Likewise, last year’s runner-up Silver Creek also moved up.
