Legend softball is the new No. 1 team in Class 5A. (Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com)
Legend, off to a 7-0-0 start this season, is the new No. 1 team in Class 5A softball.
Already, the Titans own wins over former No. 1 Grandview, then-No. 10 Dakota Ridge and then-No. 6 Douglas County. So it wasn’t shocking to see Legend get nine of the 10 first-place votes to lead CHSAANow.com’s poll this week.
It was only the start of the changes to this week’s rankings, as five new teams joined the 5A poll. Included was a big riser in Mountain Range, which went from unranked to No. 2.
Also new to 5A’s poll this week are No. 4 Ralston Valley — the Mustangs got the other first-place vote — No. 5 ThunderRidge, No. 7 Liberty and No. 8 Rocky Mountain.
Douglas County also made a big jump in going from No. 6 to No. 3. Fossil Ridge (No. 6), Brighton (No. 9) and Grandview (No. 10) are the other teams who remained from the preseason rankings.
4A’s poll got six new members, though Valor Christian remained atop the ranking. No. 4 Vista Ridge, No. 5 Silver Creek, No. 6 Kennedy, No. 7 Berthoud, No. 9 Mountain View and No. 10 Green Mountain all joined this week.
3A also had some changeover, though not as much. Strasburg did retain its top spot, but was joined by three new teams in the ranking: No. 7 Faith Christian, No. 9 Akron and No. 10 Lamar.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. Polls are released each Monday during the regular season.
Voted upon by coaches and select media members around the state. New voters can sign up by emailing rcasey@chsaa.org. These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding.
Wheat Ridge 15, Elizabeth 12, Discovery Canyon 10, Pueblo West 10, Mullen 9, Pueblo East 7, D’Evelyn 6, Windsor 6, Mead 4, Pueblo Centennial 4, The Classical Academy 3, Niwot 2, Pueblo Central 2.
Dropped out
Wheat Ridge (4), Pueblo West (5), Windsor (6), Falcon (7), Mullen (9), Niwot (10).
Rocky Mountain sprints to celebrate with their fans after beating Brighton, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2015, at French Field in Fort Collins, Colo. (Kai Casey/CHSAANow.com) More photos.
FORT COLLINS — It wasn’t a complete game. As their coach pointed out, it was a season-opener. But Rocky Mountain football looks to be much the same team that had so much success last season.
The Lobos (1-0) capitalized on four first-half turnovers to build a lead, then held on to beat Brighton (0-1) 32-15 at French Field on Saturday afternoon.
“This is Game 1. We’ve got a lot of work left to do, which is good,” said Rocky Mountain coach Mark Brook. “But the good thing is the kids played fast all day. And that’s something you can’t fix. The penalties, the procedures, that’s stuff we can fix. And that’s encouraging.”
Rocky Mountain built a 19-0 halftime lead thanks in large part to the turnovers — two interceptions, a fumble recovery, and a recovery of a muffed punt return. Then, on the opening kick of the second half, Rocky Mountain recovered the kickoff at the 4-yard-line after it took an odd bounce and Brighton’s return man wasn’t able to get to the ball.
Rocky Mountain’s Brady Morris (35) dives to recover the ball against Brighton’s Gabe Swisher (21), who muffed the punt. (Kai Casey/CHSAANow.com) More photos.
The Lobos scored on the next play to make it 26-0.
“I think any opportunity we get to hop on something — no matter how little it is — anything that will create momentum, we’re going to jump on that and hop on it,” said Rocky Mountain’s Brady Morris, who had one of the interceptions and also recovered the muffed punt.
The result was that Rocky Mountain had eight drives that started on Brighton’s side of the field, including three inside the 10.
“The defense gave us some great field position with some interceptions, and even special teams with the kick cover,” said Rocky Mountain running back Cade Hairgrove, who had two touchdowns. “We capitalized on a lot of those, but still, we had a few that we should’ve capitalized on that we didn’t.”
Hairgrove finished with more than 100 yards rushing, and quarterback Tyler Hyland had a nice day with a touchdown on 5-of-12 passing.
Rocky Mountain’s lead looked to be comfortable in the third quarter, but the Brighton offense, led by running back Julian Mijares and quarterback Brady Jacovetta — both seniors — kept the Bulldogs in the game.
Jacovetta had a 17-yard scoring run with five minutes to go in the third, and then he threw a touchdown pass with 3:46 left in the game to cut it to 26-15 following a two-point conversion.
The Bulldogs, however, couldn’t recover the onside kick and then Rocky Mountain’s Ivan Blount ended any hopes of a comeback on the next drive with a 44-yard touchdown run.
Brighton’s Angel Zamarron (13) tries to gain possession over Rocky Mountain’s Sean Miller (11) in the end zone. (Kai Casey/CHSAANow.com) More photos.
Mijares finished with 104 yards on the ground, and was a workhorse all afternoon. Jacovetta had 98 yards passing, and another 85 rushing.
Rocky Mountain, meanwhile, is aiming to build on last season’s 9-2 finish. It was the most wins the program has had since going 11-1 in 2008.
“I think we’re looking to build on a tradition here,” Morris said. “After the success last year, we’re looking to have more success this year and for years to come.”
Added Hairgrove: “I believe if we can fix the little things and we can play hard every play, I feel like it’ll be a ‘Next Step’ year for sure.”
But Brook wasn’t ready to look that far ahead.
“I’ve been around this for a while, and so has our staff,” he said. “It’s just one of those things where our next step is this Friday. It has to be. To even start considering (beyond) that, we’re crazy. Because so much can happen in high school football.
“But I’m happy with the way our kids came out and started,” Brook continued. “If we can have a good week in practice, and build on this, we’ll put the foot in the right direction.”
Brighton’s Blas Espinoza (15) brings down Rocky Mountain’s Cade Hairgrove (27) during a 5A football game, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2015, at French Field in Fort Collins, Colo. (Kai Casey/CHSAANow.com) More photos.
Castle View is aiming to build on last season’s success. (Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com)
[dropcap]M[/dropcap]emories haven’t faded for the Castle View softball team. The Sabercats made school history a year ago, reaching the Class 5A state semifinals for the first time before losing to Fossil Ridge 2-1.
This season Castle View will try to build on that success with a new coach Cory Williams and without graduated first-team all-state pitcher Savannah Heebner, who is now playing for the University of Houston.
“I’m hoping we can keep the (winning) tradition going,” said Williams, about the Sabercats who played in the state tourney the past two years. “We need to certainly find some adequate pitching and we have a pretty good nucleus of girls coming back from last year and we should be able to compete.”
Williams spent the last two seasons as an assistant coach for Castle View for his niece Caley Mitchell. Mitchell is now the head coach at Cherokee Trail.
Williams is unsure who is his primary pitcher will be, but he does have a candidate list of Kayla Gau, Anna Vairma, and Ashley Maroney.
“This is probably the one sport where pitching can win you games hands down,” Williams said. “We are excited about the season and the players we have and I’m looking forward to see what we can do.”
Castle View opens the season Sept. 3 at Cherry Creek.
Grandview, the defending state champion, was ranked No. 1 in the first preseason poll, followed by Fossil Ridge and Broomfield at No. 2 and No. 3. Williams also mentioned Brighton, preseason No. 5, as a darkhorse state title contender.
In Class 4A, Valor Christian was ranked No. 1 in the poll and returns sophomore pitcher Alexandria Kilponen, the reigning player of the year. Kilponen powered Valor to the state title a year ago, beating Frederick 7-4 in the finals. Frederick is ranked No. 2, followed by perennial power Erie.
The 3A poll is led by Strasburg in the preseason. Sterling is No. 2, while defending champion La Junta is No. 3.
Returning all-state players: Alicia Hernandez, Jr., Frederick (1st); Alexandria Kilponen, So., Valor Christian (1st, Player of the Year); Bailey Kleespies, Sr., Niwot (1st); Gabby Loya, Jr., Wheat Ridge (1st); Rio Sanchez, Jr., Erie (1st); Ann Marie Torres, Sr., Wheat Ridge (1st); Taylor Armitage, Sr., Berthoud (2nd); Brooklynn Delozier, Sr., Niwot (1st); Chayanna Gallardo, Jr., Pueblo East (2nd); Hailey Hinson, Sr., Windsor (2nd); Allie Mason, Sr., Thompson Valley (2nd); Mae Mitchell, Sr., Frederick (2nd); Megan Moss, Sr., Pueblo West (2nd); Ashley Thomas, Sr., Pueblo West (2nd); Paris Woods, Jr., Frederick (2nd)
Strasburg is the No. 1 team in the preseason 3A softball ranking. (Kelly Thornburg/MVPSportsPics.com)
Grandview, Valor Christian and Strasburg are the No. 1 teams in the preseason CHSAANow.com Softball Polls, which were released on Monday.
Both Grandview (Class 5A) and Valor (4A) are defending champions, while Strasburg was runner-up in 3A last season.
Grandview is atop the 5A ranking with six of the 10 first-place votes, and 84 total points. Fossil Ridge, last season’s runner-up, is No. 2 with one first-place vote and 79 total points.
Broomfield is third in 5A, Eaglecrest is No. 4 and Brighton rounds out the top five.
In 4A, Valor Christian got seven of the nine first-place votes. The Eagles edged Frederick, the team it beat to win 4A last season.
Also in 4A’s top five are No. 3 Erie, No. 4 Wheat Ridge and No. 5 Pueblo West.
Strasburg was a unanimous No. 1 selection in 3A, getting all seven first-place votes. Sterling is No. 2, and defending champion La Junta is No. 3.
Brush is fourth in 3A, while Skyline is No. 5.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. Polls are released each Monday during the regular season.
Voted upon by coaches and select media members around the state. New voters can sign up by emailing rcasey@chsaa.org. These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding.
Chaparral 19, Mountain Range 13, Arvada West 10, Columbine 8, Horizon 8, Cherokee Trail 6, Ralston Valley 6, Chatfield 5, Rock Canyon 3, Regis Jesuit 2, Fort Collins 1, Smoky Hill 1.
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
1
Valor Christian (7)
0-0-0
88
2
Frederick (2)
0-0-0
76
3
Erie
0-0-0
62
4
Wheat Ridge
0-0-0
59
5
Pueblo West
0-0-0
35
6
Windsor
0-0-0
34
7
Falcon
0-0-0
26
8
Air Academy
0-0-0
25
9
Mullen
0-0-0
25
10
Niwot
0-0-0
19
Others receiving votes:
Discovery Canyon 16, Berthoud 6, Silver Creek 6, D’Evelyn 4, Ponderosa 4, Vista Ridge 4, Delta 1, Mountain View 1.
The 2015 baseball players of the year. From left: Jordan Ernst, Dove Creek (1A); Trent Hughes, Rye (2A); Ryan Madden, Fairview (5A); Cole Shetterly, Green Mountain (4A); Lane Greiman, Eaton (3A). (Photos: Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com; Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com; Kai Casey/CHSAANow.com; Pam Wagner/CHSAANow.com)
The 2015 all-state baseball teams honor the best players in the sport as judged by the leagues and coaches. They are presented by CHSAANow.com, ColoradoPreps.com and MaxPreps.
These teams were created following a lengthy process which included nominations from leagues and coaches, and then a vote of coaches. Players had to be first-team all-league in order to be on the all-state ballot.
Players and coaches of the year were also selected by a vote of the coaches.
HIGHLANDS RANCH — The Mountain Vista baseball team put itself in the position it wanted.
“Now we’ll see where the chips fall,” Golden Eagles coach Ron Quintana said after his team advanced to Saturday’s Class 5A Final 8 with a 4-2 victory over Fairview in the District 6 championship game.
Mountain Vista earned its district title game berth with a 6-0 victory over Brighton.
Each team managed only three hits, but the Golden Eagles rode the arm of pitcher Mark Mumper, who struck out seven while issuing just one walk in going the distance.
Fairview beat Montbello 10-0 on a walkoff grand slam home run by DH Ryan Madden. Johnny Feauto struck out eight in holding the Warriors to two hits to record the shutout victorty.
It was just Montbello’s third appearance in the district playoffs in 38 years.
Fairview jumped out to a 2-0 lead against Mountain Vista in the top of the second, but the Golden Eagles answered with three runs in the bottom of the inning on four consecutive singles.
The game was marred by an injury in the bottom of the fifth when Madden, the Knights’ starting pitcher in the second game who had given up three runs on five hits to that point, was struck in the face by a line-drive batted ball.
Madden was eventually helped to his feet to the relief of the stunned crowd. Mountain Vista added another run on an RBI single by Will Dixon. After the game, Fairview tweeted that Madden was “doing well.”
It was Dixon’s performance on the mound that was the difference. Other than the four-run second, he gave up just two other hits in earning the victory.
With windy conditions, “My curve wasn’t working so I moved to a cutter halfway through the game,” he said. “I hadn’t thrown it all year.”
It worked as he kept the Knights off balance through most of the game.
“He’s been our horse for two years,” Quintana said of Dixon.
The Golden Eagles get a break before the tournament resumes Saturday, giving both Mumper and Dixon four days rest.
The 5A bracket will release after all of the districts complete play on Wednesday.
LAFAYETTE — Pomona won the annual Top of the Rockies wrestling tournament on Saturday, edging second-place Arvada West by one total point. Thompson Valley placed third.
Top-10 team results:
1. Pomona (163.5)
2. Arvada West (162.5)
3. Thompson Valley (138)
4. Rio Rancho, N.M. (128.5)
5. Rocky Mountain (123)
6. Omaha North, Neb. (108)
7. Ponderosa (100)
8. Grand Island, Neb. (92)
9. Legacy (90)
10. Brush (89)
From left to right, the players of the year: Murphy McRoberts, Fossil Ridge (5A); Alexandria Kilponen, Valor Christian (4A); Bridgette Hutton, Valley (3A). (Photos: Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com; Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com; Kelly Thornburg/MVPSportsPics.com)
The 2014 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.
