Rock Canyon and Windsor were the lone newcomers to the boys lacrosse rankings this week.
The Jaguars (5-2) joined the Class 5A poll from CHSAANow.com at No. 9 this week. Cherry Creek continued to lead 5A, getting seven of the 13 first-place votes.
Regis Jesuit is second, Arapahoe is third, Mountain Vista is fourth and Kent Denver rounds out the top five.
Windsor, meanwhile, joined the 4A poll at No. 7. The Wizards are 5-2.
Valor Christian remained atop that ranking. The rest of the top five are No. 2 Aspen, No. 3 Cheyenne Mountain, No. 4 Ponderosa and No. 5 Air Academy.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association.
LOVELAND — Andrew Firestone, living up to his name, replaced his lacrosse stick with a flamethrower Friday.
The Steamboat Springs senior, who had all of six goals last year, scored three in the first quarter and five in the game during a 13-11 road victory for the No. 8-ranked team in Class 4A at Thompson Valley.
TV is ranked No. 9, but have dropped to 3-4 with three of their losses to ranked teams Ponderosa, Cheyenne Mountain, and now Steamboat.
Despite a 200-mile drive from the mountains to Loveland, the game was played in the Sailors’ comfort zone in front of a substantial fan section.
An internationally known winter ski resort, Steamboat, with its stunning natural beauty, is located just west of the Continental Divide. They have endless amounts of trails, popular hot springs pools, restaurants, and numerous other tourist attractions. Oh, and they have lacrosse.
“Steamboat is a special spot,” coach Jay Lattimore said. “With 75 kids in the program and all the fans that travel four-and-a-half hours to come watch us, it means a lot for us to work hard for everybody that comes to support.”
Despite a smallish enrollment of only 645 students, numbers are up and wins have been flowing with back-to-back 4A semifinal appearances entering this season.
“It’s the most popular sport in town,” Lattimore added.
Andrew Firestone of Steamboat Springs. (Brock Laue/CHSAANow.com)
On Friday, the Sailors boarded ship early with a 2-0 lead on goals by attackers Firestone and William Gunn, a second team all-state honoree last season.
Thompson Valley answered early and throughout, but was never able to take the lead despite a fantastic individual effort from Johnny Parsons, a senior with six goals.
Steamboat, seeming to feed off their large crowd, had a small step up on the Eagles as Firestone scored four goals in the first half and five of the Sailor’s first eight as Steamboat led 7-4 at halftime and had an 8-5 lead with 8:09 remaining in the third quarter.
The teams traded scores the rest of the way as Thompson Valley got within two, 12-10 with 4:35 left in the fourth and 13-11 with 1:49 on the clock, but couldn’t overcome a seasoned group.
Steamboat was able to grind out a road victory, one they viewed as critical after losing to Valor Christian, the No. 1 ranked team in 4A, on March 17. They also struggled a bit in an 11-8 victory over Douglas County last Saturday.
“We had a close game against Douglas and we didn’t come out very strong, but we had a good week of practice and we just came out and came together today,” Firestone said. “I think it was just team play. We all passed it once we got pressure on us and none of us were afraid to shoot.”
Of course, it was Firestone who did a good amount of not just the shooting, but finding the net.
“I have to give it up to my teammates,” the senior said humbly. “I had a couple goals on the crease that were just great passes.”
“Andrew continues to do the right things and putting the ball in the cage is what we ask of him,” Lattimore added. “It definitely speaks high volumes for all our seniors right now. They’re all really feeding off him and hustling hard.”
Of course, Firestone wasn’t the only player who served as a weapon against the Eagles as six others scored goals. Gunn and Drew Williamson had two each in the win.
“Our depth is really strong and besides Andrew leading the way today, we really do a good job spreading the goals and assists around,” said Lattimore, in his second season as the head man. “Our goalie, Peter Wharton, is playing really good right now too. We just need to keep supporting him and making sure the defense is protecting him.”
If there’s one thing to know about Steamboat lacrosse, it’s that Wharton will have the backing of his teammates and community.
“We’re a really tight knit group of guys,” Firestone said. “It’s a small town and we all know each other really well and we just love each other. We’re a family out there.”
Steamboat continues their road trip at Windsor (2-2), a team that beat Thompson Valley 12-9 this week. The Wizards host the Sailors at noon on Saturday.
Cherry Creek has taken over atop this week’s Class 5A boys lacrosse rankings.
The Bruins are 2-0 to start this season, including a win over then-No. 6 Columbine. They got 10 of the 13 first-place votes from CHSAANow.com’s panel this week.
Former No. 1 Regis Jesuit fell to No. 4 after dropping a game to Arapahoe last week. Arapahoe is now No. 2, moving up two spots, and got two first-place votes
Mountain Vista got the other first-place vote, and is ranked third. Kent Denver rounds out 5A’s top five.
Monarch (No. 6) and Grandview (No. 10) are newcomers to this week’s 5A poll.
In 4A, Pondersa held on top the top spot, but a total of six team received first-place votes, including No. 2 Valor Christian, No. 3 Aspen, No. 4 Cheyenne Mountain, No. 5 Steamboat Springs and No. 6 Battle Mountain.
Air Academy is the 4A poll’s lone newcomer, joining at No. 7.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association.
Regis Jesuit begins the year as the No. 1 team in 5A. (Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com)
Regis Jesuit and Ponderosa, both defending champions, are on top of CHSAANow.com’s preseason boys lacrosse rankings this season.
The Raiders are a unanimous pick in Class 5A, getting all 11 first-place votes. Cherry Creek, last season’s runner-up is No. 2.
Mountain Vista begins the year at No. 3, Arapahoe is No. 4 and Kent Denver rounds out the top five teams.
Columbine is sixth and is followed by No. 7 Mullen, No. 8 Colorado Academy and No. 9 Rock Canyon. Wheat Ridge, last year’s runner-up in 4A, is No. 10 after moving up to 5A this season.
In 4A’s preseason poll, Ponderosa got seven of the 10 first-place votes. No. 2 Aspen and No. 3 Valor Christian both received at least one first-place vote.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association.
Ralston Valley players celebrate a goal by Alex Meisner (11) in the first period Friday night against Steamboat Springs. Seven different Mustangs scored goals in the 7-0 win. (Dennis Pleuss)
ARVADA — It’s been awhile since Ralston Valley hockey has suffered a slipup on the ice.
The two-time defending state champions haven’t suffered a blemish since a 4-4 tie against Resurrection Christian back on Feb. 11, 2013. The Mustangs most recent loss is even further in a rearview mirror. Chatfield beat Ralston Valley 2-1 on Jan. 30, 2013.
“If no one would have told me I probably wouldn’t realize it,” Ralston Valley coach Matt Schoepflin said of the Mustangs’ winning streak after a 7-0 victory Friday night against Steamboat Springs. “It’s not something I think about or the guys (players) think about. It’s a new team every year. As of right now we are 2-0.”
Steamboat Springs forward Scott Brown (11) attempt to knock down a puck behind the net as Ralston Valley defenseman Tucker Moros (17) and goalie Scott Albertoni hold their ground on the ice. Albertoni made 11 saves for the shutout in net. (Dennis Pleuss)
Ralston Valley, the two-time defending champion which is ranked No. 1 in the CHSAANow.com preseason hockey poll, improved its winning streak to 31 games and unbeaten streak to 35 games with the Foothills Conference win Friday night at the Apex Ice Center in Arvada.
“We can’t focus on last year’s team,” Ralston Valley forward Kyle Valdez said of the Mustangs’ undefeated 23-0 record to a second straight state championship last season. “We lost 17 seniors. It’s a completely different team. We just go out there and focus on getting the ‘W’.”
Valdez perhaps had the best looking goal on the night. His shot at the 9:01 mark in the first period zipped just under the crossbar to give Ralston Valley a 2-0 lead. Forward Alex Meisner opened the scoring at the 7:45 mark with a hardworking goal down low.
Ralston Valley took a 2-0 lead after the first period outshooting Steamboat Springs 18 to 4. Steamboat Springs junior goalie Jackson Draper was busy all game in making 40 saves.
“We want to outshoot every team we play,” Schoepflin of his squad, which finished with a 47-11 edge in shots. “We kind of preach that there is no such thing as a bad shot.”
The Mustangs had remarkable scoring balance with seven different players scoring the seven goals. A total of 13 players found their way on the score sheet for Ralston Valley.
“Coach Schoepflin looks for all lines to produce,” said Valdez, who had a two goals and an assist in the Mustangs’ 6-1 victory over Lewis-Palmer in their opener Tuesday.
Forward Jeff Moffat and defenseman Colton Hellman led Ralston Valley with multi-point nights. Moffat picked up a second-period goal and assist. Hellman contributed three assists.
Ralston Valley forward Tony Salazar (18) takes a spill on the ice as Steamboat Springs junior Kearn Gerber (3) skates by during the third period Friday night at the Apex Ice Center in Arvada. (Dennis Pleuss)
“People like playing for Ralston Valley,” Moffat said. “It’s a great team, great coaches. It’s a lot of fun.”
Ralston Valley dominated puck possession against the Sailors, allowing just the 11 shots on goal while killing off three 2-minute minor penalties. Steamboat Springs had its best scoring opportunity with a 2-man advantage for more than a minute in the second period, but Ralston Valley goalie Scott Albertoni was solid in net in recording the shutout.
“We really stress defense first,” Schoepflin said. “When it comes to playoff time and big games you need strong defensemen. You need to be strong in your defensive end and have good goaltending.”
Ralston Valley is back on the ice for its first road game of the season on Saturday. The Mustangs face Mullen at The Edge in Littleton with an 8:30 p.m. puck drop.
Steamboat Springs (0-2) stays in the metro area to face Denver East at 4 p.m. Saturday at Big Bear Ice Arena in Denver.
Ralston Valley forward Alex Meisner (11) slips the puck past Steamboat Springs goalie Jackson Draper for the first goal of the night Friday at Apex Ice Center. Ralston Valley took a 7-0 victory in its lead opener. (Dennis Pleuss)
