Click on a game number to see details, including time and site. ^- Indicates extra innings.
The winners/losers of game 11 were switched to ensure that each team is not playing a team it had played earlier in the tournament.
Bracket notes:
The site director will flip a coin for home team in all games.
The loser of Game 11 (L11) and winner of Game 11 (W11) may change places so that previous opponents are not matched. CHSAA will make determination.
If three teams remain after Game 13, the winner of Game 11 (W11) draws a bye to Game 15. If W11 loses Game 12, there will be three teams left and W11 earns the bye. W12 then plays W13 to reach finals. This spot is marked by a percentage sign (%) on the bracket.
Heading into the game, we knew it essentially would be the difference between hosting a 5A district this Saturday because of the way the Wild Card point standings were set up. But we thought the loser would end up as No. 9, or thereabout.
Instead, ThunderRidge dropped all the way to No. 12 the night of the game, and wound up as the No. 11 seed in the 5A tournament. That’s because, in the end, teams Nos. 9-12 were separated be a mere 0.158 points in the final Wild Card standings. So the Lobos will play at home as the No. 7 seed, while ThunderRidge must travel to No. 6 Arvada West — a tougher road for the defending champions.
That district — it’s District 8 — could be among the most entertaining in 5A. The potential title game matchup between T-Ridge and Arvada West is an interesting storyline.
On one hand, you have Arvada West, winner of eight games in a row. I saw the Wildcats in early April during a 9-1 loss to Fairview, and they didn’t look like a team that would host a district. Needless to say, A-West has come a long way since then and is at this point a different team.
On the other, there’s ThunderRidge, the early favorite and a mainstay at No. 1 in CHSAANow.com’s poll for much of the early part of the year. But the Grizzlies had a rough week — three losses in four days — in late April which changed the complexion of their season. So this district is really their chance at redemption, of sorts.
Other interesting storylines in baseballs districts, which are this Saturday:
How will Chatfield respond to the criticism thrown its way about to the Chargers getting 5A’s No. 1 overall seed? Seems like a good source of motivation. Chatfield, for what it’s worth, has never won a baseball title, though it has appeared in two championship games.
What will Montrose do? The Indians are 4A’s No. 1 seed — but the program hasn’t reached a title game since 1959, and its last championship was 1952.
Either Eaton or Holy Family have played in 3A’s title game for each of the past seven seasons. Will that trend continue? Fittingly, Eaton is 3A’s No. 1 seed; Holy Family is No. 2.
Which of the non-hosts can emerge from a district? Will there be a, say, No. 23 seed making the Final 8 in any of the classifications? That was Cheyenne Mountain in 4A during the 2011 postseason — those Indians went on to win a title. Last year, Mountain View won 4A as the No. 27.
Spring weather bothers soccer, but no issue for tennis
The NAAC saw its share of weather on Wednesday night. (Dennis Pleuss)
Much of 4A girls soccer’s postseason was interrupted by a major storm moving through parts of the state Wednesday night.
At the NAAC, Wheat Ridge and Discovery Canyon had to suspend the start of overtime roughly an hour and a half because of lightning and golf-ball sized hail. That pushed the start of Green Mountain-Longmont to close to 9 p.m.
Up north, Windsor and Palisade actually had to suspend their game with 32 minutes left in the second half to 11:30 a.m. Thursday. There were reports of softball-sized hail in that area.
All that had our office worried about Thursday’s start to the 5A girls tennis state tournament. Rain was in the forecast, and the area was soaked with an overnight drizzle. It was 45 degrees when players began to arrive.
But the tournament kicked off on time Thursday morning — after workers squeegeed any remaining water off the courts. By 11 a.m., the sun was out and the jackets were off. Such is life in this state.
Update:Alas, the rain did not hold off forever for 5A girls tennis. Some first-round matches were delayed to Friday. 4A was also affected by rain.
St. Clair moves to Rampart
J’on St. Clair has resigned as Cheyenne Mountain’s boys basketball coach, according to the Colorado Springs Gazette. He was 57-20 in three seasons, and led the Indians to the 4A final four this past season.
Update: Later Thursday afternoon, Rampart announced it had re-hired St. Clair. The veteran coach headed that program from 2004-10 before leaving to take the Doherty girls job for one season and then eventually landing at Cheyenne Mountain.
In St. Clair’s final season at Rampart (2009-10), the Rams went 23-3 and advanced to the 5A Great 8.
Short stuff
Girls golf’s regionals started on Monday, and it meant the return of live scoring via a partnership with iWanamaker. Live scores, a hit during the boys postseason in the fall, will also be back for the state meet.
2A’s Sedgwick County baseball came up to Greenwood Village to scrimmage 5A’s Cherry Creek last Friday as both teams prepared for the postseason. It’s something Cherry Creek has done in recent years — the Bruins scrimmaged 2A’s Rye last season.
Denver Public Schools has been planning to field a hockey team next season. Now, that district program has a home: Denver East. The Angels will play in the Peak Conference, essentially replacing Bishop Machebeuf, which dropped its program.
Grandview’s boys basketball job, briefly accepted by Arapahoe’s Dan Snyder before he stepped away from coaching, has been reposted. Candidates should apply through the Cherry Creek School District website.
A rule change for boys and girls basketball, beginning next season: During free-throw attempts, players in marked lane spaces can move into the lane once the shooter releases the ball. Previously, players couldn’t move into the lane until the ball hit the backboard or the rim.
Erie hired Bill Giampietro as its girls basketball coach, replacing Noel Potter, who resigned. Giampietro is an alum, and has been an assistant there. The school had 16 applicants for the job. “He is dedicated to our school and basketball program,” athletic director Richie Wildenhaus said. “Those are just some of the factors that set him apart from the rest of the field. Bill is a great motivator of young people, and his high energy and positive approach will be a great fit for our program.”
Dayspring Christian Academy is looking for a boys basketball coach, as well as a girls basketball assistant. Info is available via athletic director Harley Lowe: hlowe@dayspringeagles.org.
Former Rampart football coach JJ Owens has landed a job at Dallas’ Woodrow Wilson High School. Owens, who resigned in November, will teach and be an assistant for the Wildcats, who are coming off a 10-2 year in which they won Texas’ 4A Region II District 12. The team returns eight players on both offense and defense. Sounds like a great situation for one of the better guys in the coaching ranks.
Longmont’s (from left to right) Katie Waugaman, Mattie Horn, Liz Cameron and Meg Tulenko form a wall in front of Trojan goalie Maria Romo as Green Mountain senior Christina Makatura takes a free kick Wednesday night. The Rams took a 2-0 victory in the first round of the state tournament (Dennis Pleuss)
ARVADA — Will Green Mountain ever allow a goal on the soccer pitch?
It’s a valid question after the Rams recorded their eighth straight shutout Wednesday night with a 2-0 victory against Longmont in the opening round of the Class 4A girls’ soccer state tournament.
“That back four is good. They have been doing a great job and of course you have Lindsey (Hendon) back there,” Green Mountain coach Ken Fehr said of his back four defenders of Kelli Van Tassel, Danielle Lord, MacKenzie Schaller and Cassie Allen, along with senior goalie Lindsey Hendon.
The last goal No. 12-seeded Green Mountain (13-2-1) surrendered came back on April 2 in a 1-0 loss to eventual 4A Jeffco League champion Wheat Ridge. Hendon extended her Colorado state record of career shutouts to 41 on Wednesday in making three saves against the Trojans.
Green Mountain junior Daisy McCall (29) and Longmont junior Laura McConahy (16) battle for a ball during the first half Wednesday. (Dennis Pleuss)
“It means a lot,” Hendon said of her shutouts. “I’ve had my teammates in front of me the whole time. It’s a team effort.”
Offensively, Green Mountain broke a scoreless tie late in the first half at the North Area Athletic Complex on Wednesday night. Junior Mia Dobbin was able to knock in the first goal in the 35th minute off a corner kick from senior Christina Makatura.
“At first I thought it was going to be a header, but it ended up being kind of a thigh/knee sort of a thing,” Dobbin said of her goal. “It went it. It was good effort from all of us.”
The Rams outshot No. 21-seeded Longmont 15 to 3 in the first-round game. However, Green Mountain wasn’t able to get its second goal until junior Jenn Brunsdon beat Longmont senior goalie Maria Romo with a hard shot in the 78th minute.
“A lot of opportunities means you are going to get a goal sooner or later,” Dobbin said. “I’m just glad we got those shots off.”
Fehr had the same theory that the Rams would eventually get a little breathing room against the Trojans.
“The pressure was good. We were pressuring them really hard,” Fehr said. “I knew something would eventually come. We had some good opportunities.”
Longmont closes it season with a 9-6-1 record. All six of the Trojans’ loss and their lone tie all came in games that Longmont’s offense was shut out.
“Green Mountain has an outstanding team,” Longmont coach Mike DiGiallonardo said. “Defense and offense wise they are very disciplined.”
The Rams move into the second round where it will travel to No. 5-seeded Niwot on Saturday. The Cougars (13-3) handled Pueblo South in their postseason opener with a 5-0 victory Wednesday.
Green Mountain is hoping it can ride its strong defense make a return to the 4A championship game. The Rams lost the title game in 2012 to Air Academy.
“We aren’t going to give up a cheap goal,” Fehr said. “Teams are going to have to earn it.”
Green Mountain junior Mia Dobbin (5) runs down a ball during the first half Wednesday night at the North Area Athletic Complex in Arvada. Dobbin scored in the 35th minute on the way to a Rams’ 2-0 victory against Longmont in the opening round of the Class 4A girls soccer state tournament. (Dennis Pleuss)
Green Mountain’s Lindsey Hendon set the state record with her 40th career shutout on Tuesday. (Carl Auer, MaxPreps)
Green Mountain goalkeeper Lindsey Hendon has made 221 saves in her career. She carries a 0.631 goals-against average, and has 55 wins for the Rams. But most impressive is what happened Tuesday.
Hendon.
Hendon, a senior, set the Colorado record with her 40th career shutout during a 10-0 win over Colorado Springs Christian on Tuesday.
CHSAA does not maintain soccer records, but the National Soccer Coaches Association of America has extensive data. According to that record book, Hendon broke the mark of 39 career shutouts set by Overland’s Lisa Griffin after the 1988-89 season.
Ten of Hendon’s 40 shutouts have come this season. She notched 11 as a junior, 10 as a sophomore and nine as a freshman.
Hendon, an Iowa State recruit, is now 55-6-6 in net.
Green Mountain is 12-1-1 this season in Class 4A.
Cherry Creek boys lacrosse in driver’s seat
Cherry Creek boys lacrosse had probably its biggest win of the season on Tuesday night — and what a time to have it.
The second-ranked Bruins beat No. 1 Regis Jesuit 10-7 and are now 10-0 against in-state competition.
Cherry Creek has finished runner-up each of the last two seasons. Should they beat Kent Denver in the Friday’s season finale, it seems very likely that the Bruins end up as the No. 1 seed of the Class 5A field. In that scenario, I think Regis — 12-1 against in-state teams — would still wind up as the No. 2 seed.
Other high seeds should include Mountain Vista, Kent Denver and Colorado Academy.
Boykins talks new Douglas County job
New Douglas County boys basketball coach Earl Boykins, the former Denver Nugget, is a weekly guest on 104.3 The Fan. Tuesday, he talked about his new job.
“I’ve always wanted to teach young people basketball,” he said. “That’s always been a desire of mine and something I wanted to do. That’s why I started Boykins Basketball Academy. While doing the Academy, I decided I should take it to the next level, and the next level would be high school.
“It’s been a process that I’m enjoying and I look forward to the next basketball season.”
Douglas County went 3-20 last season, and actually hasn’t had a winning season since 2007-08. That’s also the last time the Huskies made the state tournament. Over the past six seasons, the Huskies are 29-110.
“I believe in Earl, I’ve seen him coach in person,” said Alfred Williams, co-host on 104.3. “I believe the guy’s going to be a great coach. Can’t wait to see it all come together.”
Arapahoe girls soccer turns it around
(Ray Chen/ArrayPhoto.com)
Arapahoe’s girls soccer team finished the regular season 11-3-1 and won the Centennial League by virtue of a win over Cherry Creek on April 15.
It was quite a one-season turnaround for the Warriors, who went 3-11-0 a year ago and lost seven of their final eight games.
Though, these guys didn’t exactly come out of nowhere. Arapahoe was 14-3-0 in 2012, and made the 5A title game in 2010.
Short stuff
In an abrupt change, Dan Snyder will not become Grandview’s new boys basketball coach. The longtime Arapahoe coach decided instead “to step away from high school coaching for awhile,” according to the Aurora Sentinel.
Prairie View baseball senior Caleb Dameron now has 22 steals this season with three games yet to play. That is believed to be a big-school state record.
Sedgwick County’s Chase Dunker threw his third no-hitter of the season on Saturday. This time, he struck out 16. Earlier this season, Dunker struck out 19 of the 21 batters he faced while tossing a perfect game.
County Line remained unranked in the final 2A baseball poll of the regular season, but the Rivals — it’s a co-op between Wiley and McClave — are now 13-3, including a double-header sweep of then-No. 1 Swink on Saturday.
Grand Junction boys basketball coach Dutch Johnson resigned to become an assistant at Colorado Mesa next season, according to this tweet.
Longmont volleyball coach Holli Stetson has resigned, according to BoCoPreps.com, following a difficult season during which she endured the death of her father and had a variety of health issues.
Spring championship season around the corner, and most of the events will be carried on the NFHS Network. The Network recently released an official app — download it here.
Ponderosa’s booster club tweeted out new jerseys the team will wear next season under first-year coach Jaron Cohen. Here’s away, and home.
Brandon Bailey, a 2013 graduate of Broomfield, was named the West Coast Conference’s baseball player of the week on Monday. He pitched a complete-game win over Saint Mary’s last Saturday, allowing just one earned run on eight hits. He also struck out a career-high seven batters. Bailey, who didn’t pitch his senior season because of an arm injury, is now 4-5 with a 3.24 ERA for the Bulldogs as a freshman.
Greeley West is looking for boys and girls basketball coaches. Apply here.
Regis Jesuit is No. 1 in this week’s 5A baseball ranking. (Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com)
For the second consecutive week, there’s a new team atop CHSAANow.com’s Class 5A baseball ranking. This time, Regis Jesuit has ascended to the top.
The Raiders, now 14-3, went 3-0 last week — including a 7-5 win over then-No. 6 ThunderRidge. They are now 9-0 in the always tough Continental League, and are riding an 11-game winning streak.
Fairview actually received the same amount of first-place votes (six) that Regis Jesuit did, but remained at No. 2 with 125 overall points to the Raiders’ 137. The Knights are now 16-1 — 13-0 against in-state teams.
Arvada West jumped into the rankings at No. 6, just behind No. 5 Chatfield and No. 4 Mountain Vista.
ThunderRidge dropped to No. 7, Rocky Mountain is No. 8 and Chaparral is No. 9. Cherry Creek rejoined the poll at No. 10.
There are also new teams atop the 3A and 2A polls. In 3A, Eaton received nine of the 10 first-place votes to overtake Holy Family, which dropped to No. 2. In 2A, Resurrection Christian got five of the seven first-place votes and took over for Swink, which also fell to No. 2.
Windsor retained its spot atop the 4A ranking, and Stratton held firm atop 1A.
The 4A poll added Pueblo East at No. 9, and also saw Lewis-Palmer move from No. 5 to No. 3, and Evergreen go from No. 7 to No. 4.
3A added Bayfield (No. 8), while 2A added Limon (No. 9) and Lyons (No. 10).
With the regular season ending Tuesday, these rankings will serve as the final poll of the regular season.
Chatfield is the No. 1 team in this week’s 5A baseball poll. (Pam Wagner)
Chatfield, 13-0 to start the 2014 season, has taken over atop this week’s Class 5A baseball poll from CHSAANow.com.
The Chargers moved up from No. 3 and received seven of the 15 first-place votes. They had 131 total points to top the ranking.
A total of six teams got first-place votes, including former No. 1 ThunderRidge, which dropped to No. 6 following its loss to Mountain Vista last week.
Fairview got two of those first-place votes and is No. 2 this week. Columbine, which plays Chatfield on Wednesday, is third, and Regis Jesuit is fourth. Mountain Vista rounds out the top five.
After ThunderRidge, Arapahoe is seventh and Ralston Valley is eighth. Chaparral is No. 9 this week, and Rocky Mountain is No. 10.
The 4A ranking also got a new No. 1 team this week when Windsor overtook Montrose. The Wizards received six of the 13 first-place votes, and had 115 overall points.
Montrose dropped to second this week, and is followed by No. 3 Niwot. Wheat Ridge bumped up one place to No. 4, while Lewis-Palmer is No. 5 after 3-0 week which included a win over then-No. 10 Palmer Ridge on Saturday.
Longmont is the lone newcomer to the 4A poll, joining at No. 10.
The other No. 1 teams held firm atop their respective rankings. Holy Family continued to lead 3A, Swink remain atop of 2A and Stratton continued to lead 1A.
Wild Card points help determine the postseason fields in 3A, 4A and 5A, with 4A and 5A also using them for seeding. Find a more detailed breakdown here.
Baseball’s Wild Card point standings for April 17 are below.
Wild Card points help determine the postseason fields in 3A, 4A and 5A, with 4A and 5A also using them for seeding. Find a more detailed breakdown here.
Baseball’s Wild Card point standings for April 9 are below.
Chatfield is No. 3 in this week’s 5A baseball poll. (Pam Wagner)
Chatfield’s off to an unbeaten start in 2014. And its charge up the rankings continued on Monday.
The Chargers, now 9-0, moved up to No. 3 in CHSAANow.com’s Class 5A baseball poll this week. They only joined the poll a week ago.
ThunderRidge remained on top of the 5A ranking, a spot it has occupied since the preseason. The Grizzlies got seven of the 11 first-place vote.
Regis Jesuit moved up to No. 2 from No. 4. Ralston Valley is fourth this week, and Rocky Mountain rounds out the top five.
Columbine bumped up one place from No. 7 to No. 6, Fairview went from No. 10 to No. 7 and Arapahoe held firm at No. 8.
5A’s two newcomers this week are No. 9 Mountain Vista and No. 10 Dakota Ridge.
In 4A, Montrose remained at No. 1, and continued to be followed by No. 2 Windsor and No. 3 Valor Christian. Niwot made a big jump from No. 8 to No. 4, and Delta went from No. 7 to No. 5.
New to the 4A poll this week are No. 9 Lewis-Palmer and No. 10 Evergreen.
Holy Family continued to lead the 3A ranking, which added No. 6 Cedaredge, No. 7 Gunnison and No. 10 Bayfield.
The 2A poll added Sedgwick County at No. 8. Resurrection Christian stayed at No. 1.
In 1A, Stratton remained on top. That poll added No. 8 Peetz.
Cherry Creek 10, Grand Junction 8, Chaparral 6, Fruita Monument 6, Central (G.J.) 5, Grandview 4, Northglenn 2, Brighton 1.
Dropped out
Grandview (5), Cherry Creek (9).
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Montrose (7)
8-1
96
1
3-1
2
Windsor (1)
9-1
82
2
4-1
3
Valor Christian
7-3
74
3
4-2
4
Niwot (2)
7-1
69
8
2-0
5
Delta (2)
11-0
59
7
5-0
6
Longmont
6-2
44
4
3-1
7
Palmer Ridge
5-2
30
9
3-2
8
Falcon
4-3
26
5
0-3
9
Lewis-Palmer
5-3
24
–
3-3
10
Evergreen
4-2
21
–
2-2
Others receiving votes:
Air Academy 20, Elizabeth 20, Pueblo Centennial 20, Wheat Ridge 15, Ponderosa 14, Mountain View 10, Skyline 8, Mesa Ridge 7, Green Mountain 6, Pueblo East 5, Pueblo West 5, Canon City 3, Broomfield 2, D’Evelyn 2, Steamboat Springs 1.
Dropped out
Air Academy (6), Mountain View (10).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Holy Family (6)
8-0
77
1
5-0
2
Eaton (2)
7-0
74
2
5-0
3
Faith Christian
5-1
60
4
3-0
4
Lamar
7-1
51
3
4-1
5
Valley
8-0
42
5
2-0
6
Cedaredge
9-0
36
–
6-0
7
Gunnison
7-0
32
–
4-0
8
The Classical Academy
4-1
20
8
2-1
9
University
6-1
15
7
4-1
10
Bayfield
7-3
13
–
2-1
Others receiving votes:
Brush 11, Kent Denver 3, Platte Canyon 2, Arrupe Jesuit 1, La Junta 1, St. Mary’s 1.
Dropped out
Brush (6), Kent Denver (9), Basalt (10).
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Resurrection Christian (5)
6-1
55
1
5-1
2
Swink
5-0
45
4
3-0
3
Denver Christian
2-2
42
3
1-1
4
Rye (1)
6-1
39
7
4-1
5
Lutheran
3-3
36
2
1-1
6
Peyton
7-0
30
8
4-0
7
Hotchkiss
9-2
24
9
4-0
8
Sedgwick County
5-1
13
–
5-1
9
Ignacio
3-2
12
10
1-1
10
Limon
5-2
11
5
3-2
Others receiving votes:
Kiowa 7, Rocky Ford 7, Front Range Christian 5, Yuma 4.
Dropped out
Holyoke (6).
Class 1A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Stratton (4)
4-0
49
1
3-0
2
Elbert
4-1
41
2
1-1
3
Granada
3-1
33
6
3-1
4
Caliche
3-6
24
3
3-6
5
Holly (1)
2-3
22
4
2-3
6
Community Christian
3-5
20
7
1-2
7
Eads
2-6
19
10
2-3
8
Peetz
1-1
14
–
1-0
9
Dove Creek
2-6
12
8
0-2
10
Fleming
3-3
11
5
3-3
Others receiving votes:
Briggsdale 9, Cotopaxi 8, Cornerstone Christian 7, Weldon Valley 3, Walsh 2, Manzanola 1.
