Pueblo South’s golf team, including individual champion Taylor Rodriguez. More photos. (Bert Borgmann/CHSAANow.com)
PUEBLO — There was no mystery to which team was going to win the Class 4A state boys golf championship.
Valor Christian was dominant in the first round and then cruised to the title by 23 strokes Tuesday at Walking Stick Golf Course.
Pueblo South finished as the state runner-up — and it was the Colts’ Taylor Rodriguez who provided the drama in the final round.
The senior overcame a two-stroke deficit to win the individual gold medal by two strokes over Valor’s Jake Staiano. Rodriguez was a measure of consistency carding back-to-back rounds of 69.
“The key (Tuesday) was just mentally staying in the right frame of mind,” Rodriguez said. “I was just taking it one shot at a time and I was just staying hungry out there and wanting to win.”
Rodriguez’s three under par final round was highlighted by five birdies. In the process, Rodriguez became the first boys state golf champion in the school’s history. South opened in 1959.
“It feels great,” Rodriguez said about making school history. “I’m really happy.”
Veteran South coach D.J. Johnson praised Rodriguez.
“It was a real exciting round,” Johnson said. “Taylor is a very hard worker and he’s just a really steady player and he’s mentally and emotionally strong, and that helped (Tuesday), especially since there was a 15- to 20-mph wind blowing all day long. His mental toughness really helped in this final round.”
Most of the round Tuesday, Rodriguez was blistering and he led by as much as four strokes with two holes to play.
“In 17, I hit in the left bunker and I just wanted to give myself a chance at par,” Rodriguez said. “I was nervous at 18, but I was able to get the job done. This feels great (to be a state champion). I’m happy I could represent Pueblo and my family and my high school so well.”
The 5-foot-5, 150-pound admitted having the state tourney at Walking Stick definitely benefited him.
“I play Walking Stick a lot more than I play Elmwood (Golf Course in Pueblo),” Rodriguez said. “I’m really comfortable out there. I’ve been playing Walking Stick ever since I was little. That really helped me a lot because I knew the course so well. The guys from Valor are all very good players, but fortunately I was able to fend them off and get the win.”
Rodriguez is a four-time state qualifier, finishing ninth as a sophomore, and 11th last season. His sophomore year he also was a key member of the Colts’ state-championship winning team.
“This season the biggest difference was I got a lot stronger in the offseason by going to the gym and getting more athletic and I hit the ball a lot further off the tee,” Rodriguez said.
Valor Christian won the 4A boys golf title. More photos. (Bert Borgmann/CHSAANow.com)
Rain pours down on Walking Stick Golf Course in Pueblo, site of the 4A. More photos. (Bert Borgmann/CHSAANow.com)
The class 5A and 4A boys golf state tournaments each battled two weather delays on Monday, slowing the first day of the championships.
Lightning and rain halted the 4A tournament in Pueblo for nearly an hour at 1:48 p.m., and again a 4:03 p.m. The second delay lasted 45 minutes.
Meanwhile, rain and hail struck the Colorado Springs area and delayed the 5A event for an hour and 15 minutes at 2:17 p.m. Lightning caused another delay at 4:14 p.m., this one spanning 35 minutes.
Eventually, both tournaments were able to complete the first day of play.
Fort Collins’ Hunter Paugh led all 5A golfers with a 2-under 69 on the first day in Colorado Springs. Arapahoe’s David Packer is just one stroke back with a 1-under 70, while Grand Junction’s Trevor Olkowski is third at 2-over.
Isaac Petersilie of Coronado, the defending 4A champion who is now in the 5A tournament after his team moved up a class, is among of group of seven golfers who are tied for fourth at 3-over.
Coronado leads the team race at 13-over. Highlands Ranch (17-over) is second, and Boulder (23-over) is third.
The first day of the 4A tournament belonged to Valor Christian, the defending champion. As a team, the Eagles, who finished at 10-under, hold a 14-stroke lead on second-place Pueblo South (4-over). Cheyenne Mountain (13-over) is third.
Individually, Valor Christian teammates Jake Staiano and Coby Welch are tied for the lead at 5-under. Pueblo South’s Taylor Rodriguez is third at 3-under, while Mesa Ridge Braden Bently and Steamboat Springs’ Britt Walton are tied for fourth at 1-under.
The 3A tournament did not have trouble with weather, and completed its round around 3:15 p.m.
Sterling’s Trey Lambrecht led the field after shooting a 4-under 68, while Peak to Peak’s Sam Taylor and Colorado Academy’s Max Messner are tied for second with a 1-under 71.
Sterling led the 3A team race at 6-over, ahead of defending champion Dawson School (12-over) and Kent Denver (16-over).
Discovery Canyon has taken over the top spot in the 3A football rankings. (Pam Wagner)
Discovery Canyon has perhaps the best combinations of wins to date in Class 3A football this season. As a result, the Thunder now own the No. 1 spot in CHSAANow.com’s ranking.
Voting in 3A remained split again this week, continuing a season-long trend, but the Thunder received seven of the 13 first-place votes, and had 122 total points. Lutheran, No. 1 since the preseason, dropped to No. 2 with six first-place votes and 114 points.
Elsewhere in the classificatoin, Rifle moved up to No. 3, while Holy Family is now No. 4. The 3A poll added Conifer (No. 10) this week.
Ralston Valley moved up to No. 3 in the 5A poll this week. (Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com)
Cherry Creek is up to No. 6 after shutting out then-No. 9 Cherokee Trail. Regis Jesuit is No. 7, Overland No. 8 and Rocky Mountain is No. 9. Doherty rejoins the poll this week at No. 10.
In 4A, Pine Creek extended its stay at No. 1. The Eagles beat then-No. 5 Vista Ridge last week. That ranking didn’t add any teams this week, though Fort Collins moved up to No. 2 from No. 4.
Brush (2A), Paonia (1A), Dayspring Christian (8-man) and Arickaree/Woodlin (6-man) each stayed atop their respective polls this week.
Newcomers included Gunnision (No. 9) and Bayfield (No. 10) in 2A; Rye (No. 10) in 1A; Sangre de Cristo (No. 10) in 8-man; and Pawnee (No. 7) in 6-man.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. Polls are released each Monday.
Voted upon by coaches and select media members around the state. These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding, except in 5A where they are used as part of the seeding criteria.
Ranked football teams had an outstanding weekend last week, and as a result, there wasn’t a whole lot of movement in the latest CHSAANow.com rankings on Monday.
Top-10 teams went a combined 54-11 last week, and only two of those losses came to unranked foes.
So it follows that all seven No. 1 teams remained the same this week. Leading their respective rankings are Valor Christian (Class 5A), Pine Creek (4A), Lutheran (3A), Brush (2A), Paonia (1A), Dayspring Christian (8-man) and Arickaree/Woodlin (6-man).
There wasn’t a whole lot of change elsewhere.
In 5A, the teams ranked Nos. 1-6 — Valor, Pomona, Grandview, Ralston Valley, Fairview and Regis Jesuit — didn’t budge.
The classification did add at Rocky Mountain at No. 10, and Overland jumped Cherry Creek for the No. 7 spot, but it was a quiet week otherwise. Regis Jesuit remains No. 9.
Pomona remained ranked No. 2 in 5A this week. (Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com)
The 4A poll added Greeley West at No. 8. The biggest mover there was Fort Collins bumping up to No. 4 this week.
Palisade rejoined the 3A poll at No. 10, while 2A added No. 10 Montezuma-Cortez. Platte Canyon (also No. 10) was 1A’s newcomer, and Flagler (another No. 10) joined the 6-man ranks.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. Polls are released each Monday.
Voted upon by coaches and select media members around the state. These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding, except in 5A where they are used as part of the seeding criteria.
The scoreboard late in Friday’s game between Sand Creek and Air Academy. (Via @AAHSAthletics on Twitter)
The two teams combined for 130 points. Sand Creek running back Daniel Quin rushed for nine touchdowns. But ultimately, it was a defensive stop on fourth-and-2 that sealed the win for Sand Creek.
Sand Creek stopped a screen pass on fourth down with less than a minute to play to seal a 68-62 win over Air Academy on Friday night.
When the dust settled on Friday night, the spotlight shone brightest on Quin, who rushed his way into CHSAA’s record book. He finished with 553 yards and the nine touchdowns on 64 carries.
“It was crazy,” Sand Creek coach Rod Baker told CHSAANow late Friday night.
The 64 carries are the most in a single game in state history, while the 553 yards are No. 3 all-time. In fact, it was just the fifth time in state history a back had gained more than 500 yards. (Colorado’s rushing record belongs to Montbello’s Leonard Jones, who went for 584 in 1999.)
Finally, Quin’s nine rushing touchdowns are now tied for the second-best performance in state history with Colorado Deaf & Blind’s Sam Harris. Harris rushed for his nine in 2004. The record, set in 1930, belongs to Hugo’s Ken Pearson, who had 12 rushing scores.
Oh, and Quin also had three two-point conversions.
“We ran the ball, and they threw it. And that’s the story,” Baker said. “Their quarterback threw it well, and we missed some open-field tackling opportunities. They executed really well with their passing game, and protected well, and we just ran. We had one pass, when we got ’em on a formation, but other than that it was a run against pass.”
The game’s 130 combined points fell just five points shy of cracking the top-10 in all-time combined points. Still, that scoring record is dotted with 8-man and 6-man point totals — which is apples and oranges when it comes to 11-man football.
Air Academy Mike Roof takes a break from all the scoring during his team’s game with Sand Creek on Friday night. (Courtesy @AAHSAthletics on Twitter)
As such, the 130 points are believed to be the third-highest total for an 11-man game in state history. The two teams combined to score 49 points in the fourth quarter alone.
“At the end of the game, the kids were so tired, they could barely shake hands,” Baker said. “It was like a brotherhood between them, what they’d been through. It was an amazing event. The high school spirit was amazing tonight for both teams. And they just battled.”
Air Academy scored with less than four minutes to play to take a 62-60 lead, but Sand Creek — well, Quin — quickly responded with a touchdown of their own. One minute and thirty seconds remained.
“We scored too fast,” Baker said. “Daniel was so wide open, and I just thought about, ‘Just fall down at the 1 so we can run some time off the clock.’”
Air Academy made two first downs, and drove down to about Sand Creek’s 40-yard-line before attempting a screen pass to their tailback.
“We tackled them for about a 5-yard loss, and that was the game,” Baker said. “It was a defensive stop that decided the game. That’s kind of ironic, isn’t it?”
Sand Creek improved to 2-2 this season with the win. Air Academy fell to 2-2.
Baker said he was planning on compiling full stats on Saturday morning.
“I may need an abacus, though,” he said.
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4A: (2) Pueblo South 24, Falcon 21
Falcon dug its way out of a 13-0 hole to lead 14-13 at halftime, but second-ranked Pueblo South got a 23-yard field goal from Nathan Spinuzzi to seal the win with 13 seconds to play.
Falcon had taken a 21-13 lead in the third, and that lead held until Spinuzzi, also South’s quarterback, hit Dennis Ramos on a 55-yard score with 8:37 to play. After a two-point conversion, the game was tied.
Falcon turned around and drove down to Pueblo South’s 11-yard-line, but fumbled. That set up the Colts’ final drive, and the game-winning field goal.
Matt Bastian had 147 yards rushing and a score in the loss for Falcon.
1A: (8) Burlington 20, (3) Limon 19
Burlington stopped a late two-point conversion attempt to seal the win. Limon had scored with 20 seconds remaining to cut the lead to one point.
“We were sure they were going to go for two and try to get that win on the road,” Burlington coach Glynn Higgs told Colorado Preps’ Scoreboard Show. “We got some penetration and got to their sweep and shut it down, and that was the difference in the game, that one play.
“This is a real big win for us,” he added. “Really felt good about the way the kid’s played and the effort they game.”
3A: Mead 10, Erie 7 (OT)
Tyler Levine hit the game-winning field goal in overtime as the Mavericks improved to 2-2 this season.
“That feels great,” Levine told BoCoPreps afterward. “As soon as I kicked it, I knew it was going to go in.”
4A: (1) Pine Creek 21, Pueblo West 14
For the second time this season, the Eagles survived a nail-biter from an unranked foe.
Pine Creek never actually trailed this time around — in fact, it led 18-0 in the third quarter — but Pueblo West rallied late to make things close.
Pueblo West had one final chance to tie the game with three minutes to play, but turned the ball over on downs on its final drive.
4A: Durango 29, Farmington (NM) 22
Justin Marcum hauled in a 61-yard touchdown pass from Terrence Trujillo with 28 seconds remaining to lift the Demons in an out-of-state contest.
They had trailed much of the game, but then tied it with 3:31 to go on a two-yard rushing score from Lawrence Mayberry.
After a punt, Durango got the ball back with 1:53 to play at its own 23-yard-line. That drive led to the winning score.
5A: Rocky Mountain 31, Fossil Ridge 6
Rocky Mountain is 4-0 for the first time since 2008, when the Lobos finished 11-1 and made a deep playoff run.
“We have a great group of character young men, and they’ve busted their tails for us all summer,” coach Mark Brook told the Scoreboard Show after the game. “We had a lot of kids coming back from last year. … It’s good. For me, I’m proud to see them translate all their work and effort into wins.”
4A: Coronado 43, Widefield 0
Coronado, the defending 3A champion, is now 4-1 in its move up to 4A this season.
“We had a lot of excitement going into this season,” coach Bobby Lizarraga told the Scoreboard Show. “Unfortunately for us, we had a lot of youth also. And it’s paid its dividends at this point, but we had a lot coaching to do, where our coaches stepped up and got our young folks up to par to make an impact for us. Right now, we’re seeing some of those assets.”
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Notables
8-man’s top-ranked Dayspring Christian ran its state-best winning streak to 17 game. The Eagles, now 4-0 this season, have yet to give up a point in 2014. They’ve outscored their opponents 206-0, including a 46-0 win over Las Animas on Friday night.
Adams City is now 3-1 following a 19-8 win over Lincoln on Friday. Those three wins match the program’s combined win total over the previous seven seasons.
Gunnison is unranked in Class 2A, but for how long? Since a 39-12 loss to Kent Denver to open the season, the Cowboys have outscored opponents 145-14, including consecutive shutouts. Gunnison beat Roaring Fork 48-0 this week.
Cherry Creek rebounded from its tough loss to Jordan (Utah) with a 41-0 shutout of Grand Terrace (Calif.). Photos from the game are here.
Holy Family quarterback Chris Helbig threw for another 286 yards and three touchdowns in his team’s 50-7 win over Frederick. He now has 1,450 yards through four games, and is on pace for more than 3,600 yards and nearly 38 touchdowns. The yardage would be top-5 all-time.
Broomfield beat Loveland in overtime, 20-17.
St. Mary’s topped University 27-7. It was University’s first-ever night home game.
Mullen trailed Arvada West 28-23, but 15 unanswered points amounted to a 38-28 win.
Chaparral beat Rock Canyon 36-26 for its first win this season.
In 8-man Hoehne beat Cripple Creek 60-0 tonight, but the game actually had to be halted in the second quarter as Cripple Creek was down to just seven players after injuries.
Don’t think there’s much doubt that Paonia is the No. 1 team in 1A at the moment. The Eagles, now 4-0, handled highly-ranked Centauri last week and topped 2A No. 10 Bayfield this week, 55-44.
Rifle had a good win over an unbeaten Eagle Valley squad, 35-12. 3A’s fourth-ranked Bears are now 4-0.
Another eye-popping point total: Roosevelt 62, Northridge 50 in 3A.
