This week’s softball rankings added three newcomers: Horizon (5A), Pueblo South (4A) and Fort Lupton (3A).
The polls, voted upon by head coaches around the state, will serve as part of the seeding criteria in softball this season. Polls are released each Monday during the regular season.
Cherokee Trail 35, Columbine 25, Douglas County 21, Rocky Mountain 16, Ralston Valley 11, Dakota Ridge 9, Castle View 8, Regis Jesuit 8, Brighton 6, Grand Junction 6, Fountain-Fort Carson 5, Pomona 4, Rampart 3, Chaparral 2, Eaglecrest 2, Fort Collins 2, Prairie View 2, Arvada West 1, ThunderRidge 1.
Dropped out
Cherokee Trail (8).
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Wheat Ridge (9)
13-1-0
148
1
3-0-0
2
Mead (6)
14-0-0
146
2
2-0-0
3
D’Evelyn
14-1-0
113
3
2-1-0
4
Holy Family
11-2-0
102
4
3-0-0
5
Riverdale Ridge
13-1-0
64
7
2-0-0
6
Conifer
12-2-0
62
6
2-1-0
7
Silver Creek
9-4-0
50
5
2-0-0
8
Roosevelt
12-2-0
36
10
2-0-0
9
Frederick
9-5-0
32
9
0-2-0
10
Pueblo South (1)
10-3-0
28
–
2-0-0
Others receiving votes:
Erie 21, Pueblo West 9, Northfield 9, Air Academy 8, Elizabeth 8, Bear Creek 7, Mesa Ridge 7, Mullen 7, Northridge 5, Pueblo Centennial 5, Palisade 4, Windsor 4, Discovery Canyon 3, Coronado 1, Pueblo County 1.
Dropped out
Erie (8).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Eaton (8)
11-2-0
122
1
1-1-0
2
University (1)
11-2-0
107
2
3-0-0
3
Rocky Ford
13-1-0
78
3
4-1-0
4
Lyons (1)
8-3-0
68
4
2-1-0
5
Lutheran (2)
12-1-0
66
5
3-0-0
6
Limon
11-3-0
53
6
3-1-0
7
Fort Lupton
12-1-0
40
–
4-0-0
8
Burlington
7-3-0
38
9
2-0-0
9
Strasburg
7-6-0
34
7
2-1-0
10
Sterling
7-6-0
22
8
1-2-0
Others receiving votes:
La Junta 21, Brush 17, Delta 17, Basalt 9, Montezuma-Cortez 6, Cedaredge 5, Lamar 4, The Academy 4, Weld Central 4.
Wheat Ridge has moved up to No. 1 in this week’s Class 4A softball rankings.
The polls, voted upon by head coaches around the state, will serve as part of the seeding criteria in softball this season. Polls are released each Monday during the regular season.
Douglas County 29, Castle View 22, Rocky Mountain 22, Columbine 13, Ralston Valley 10, Valor Christian 8, Horizon 7, Brighton 6, Hinkley 6, ThunderRidge 5, Fountain-Fort Carson 4, Rampart 4, Denver East 3, Fort Collins 3, Pomona 3, Arapahoe 2, Arvada West 2, Chaparral 2, Eaglecrest 2, Cherry Creek 1, Prairie View 1.
Dropped out
None.
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
1
Wheat Ridge (7)
10-1-0
145
2
2
Mead (7)
12-0-0
144
1
3
D’Evelyn (3)
12-0-0
123
4
4
Holy Family
8-2-0
113
3
5
Silver Creek
7-4-0
64
5
6
Conifer
10-1-0
54
8
7
Riverdale Ridge
11-1-0
52
7
8
Erie
8-3-0
44
6
9
Frederick
9-3-0
42
9
10
Roosevelt
10-2-0
27
–
Others receiving votes:
Pueblo South 21, Pueblo West 21, Pueblo Central 14, Windsor 11, Bear Creek 10, Mullen 8, Air Academy 6, Coronado 6, Falcon 5, Discovery Canyon 4, Pueblo Centennial 4, Northfield 4, Golden 3, Mesa Ridge 3, Palisade 2, Ponderosa 2, Durango 1, Niwot 1, Pueblo County 1.
Dropped out
Ponderosa (10).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
1
Eaton (7)
10-1-0
129
1
2
University (5)
8-2-0
114
2
3
Rocky Ford
9-0-0
92
3
4
Lyons
6-2-0
75
4
5
Lutheran (1)
9-1-0
73
7
6
Limon
8-2-0
44
6
7
Strasburg
5-5-0
41
5
8
Sterling
6-4-0
35
10
9
Burlington
5-3-0
31
–
10
La Junta
6-4-0
29
8
Others receiving votes:
Fort Lupton 27, Brush 26, Basalt 15, Montezuma-Cortez 15, Delta 10, The Academy 4, Cedaredge 3, Weld Central 3, Holyoke 2, Gunnison 1, Lamar 1.
Eaton’s softball team, now 7-1-0, has moved up to the No. 1 spot in this week’s Class 3A rankings.
The polls, voted upon by head coaches around the state, will serve as part of the seeding criteria in softball this season. Polls are released each Monday during the regular season.
Columbine 29, Castle View 23, Rocky Mountain 19, Arvada West 16, Douglas County 16, Horizon 15, Hinkley 10, Fruita Monument 8, Highlands Ranch 7, Brighton 6, Ralston Valley 6, Cherry Creek 5, Fort Collins 5, ThunderRidge 5, Valor Christian 5, Denver East 3, Fountain-Fort Carson 3, Mountain Range 3, Rampart 3, Eaglecrest 2, Arapahoe 1, Pomona 1, Regis Jesuit 1.
Dropped out
None.
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Mead (7)
8-0-0
129
1
1-0-0
2
Wheat Ridge (6)
7-0-0
122
2
2-0-0
3
Holy Family
6-2-0
96
3
3-0-0
4
D’Evelyn (1)
8-0-0
67
–
5-0-0
5
Silver Creek
5-4-0
55
7
3-0-0
6
Erie
5-3-0
46
4
1-1-0
7
Riverdale Ridge
9-1-0
38
5
4-0-0
8
Conifer
6-1-0
37
–
3-0-0
9
Frederick
8-2-0
28
6
3-1-0
10
Ponderosa
5-2-0
18
9
3-2-0
Others receiving votes:
Pueblo Central 17, Mesa Ridge 15, Pueblo West 14, Windsor 14, Roosevelt 12, Pueblo South 9, Northfield 9, Mullen 8, Pueblo Centennial 8, Bear Creek 6, Air Academy 5, Discovery Canyon 5, Falcon 5, Golden 3, Palisade 2, Niwot 1, Pueblo County 1.
Dropped out
Air Academy (8), Mesa Ridge (10).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Eaton (6)
7-1-0
101
2
2-0-0
2
University (5)
6-2-0
98
1
1-1-0
3
Rocky Ford
6-0-0
74
3
1-0-0
4
Lyons
5-2-0
66
5
2-0-0
5
Strasburg
4-3-0
59
8
0-0-0
6
Limon
6-2-0
55
4
1-1-0
7
Lutheran (1)
6-1-0
43
9
1-0-0
8
La Junta
4-3-0
40
10
2-2-0
9
Brush
4-4-0
35
7
1-1-0
10
Sterling
5-3-0
29
6
1-1-0
Others receiving votes:
Fort Lupton 15, Delta 10, Alamosa 9, Basalt 8, Denver West 8, The Academy 8, Aspen 7, Burlington 7, Montezuma-Cortez 7, Weld Central 7, Faith Christian 6, Holyoke 6, Lamar 6, Yuma 4, Jefferson 3, Sheridan 2, Cedaredge 1, Harrison 1.
Five new teams hopped into the softball rankings this week: Grand Junction Central, Cherokee Trail, Ponderosa, Mesa Ridge, and La Junta.
The polls, voted upon by head coaches around the state, will serve as part of the seeding criteria in softball this season. Polls are released each Monday during the regular season.
Castle View 23, Columbine 23, Rocky Mountain 21, Cherry Creek 18, Brighton 13, Douglas County 10, Hinkley 10, Arvada West 7, Highlands Ranch 7, Horizon 6, Fountain-Fort Carson 5, Mountain Range 5, Chaparral 4, Eaglecrest 3, Fort Collins 3, Rampart 2, Arapahoe 1, Ralston Valley 1, ThunderRidge 1, Valor Christian 1.
Dropped out
Columbine (8), Cherry Creek (9).
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
1
Mead (12)
7-0-0
164
1
2
Wheat Ridge (5)
5-0-0
150
2
3
Holy Family (1)
3-2-0
112
3
4
Erie
4-2-0
79
4
5
Riverdale Ridge
5-1-0
56
10
6
Frederick
5-1-0
52
5
7
Silver Creek
2-4-0
35
6
8
Air Academy
4-1-0
33
7
9
Ponderosa
2-0-0
29
–
10
Mesa Ridge
5-0-0
23
–
Others receiving votes:
Pueblo South 21, Pueblo West 21, Windsor 20, Conifer 17, Pueblo Central 16, Northfield 16, Pueblo Centennial 12, Discovery Canyon 11, Roosevelt 11, Mountain View 9, Mullen 8, Berthoud 7, Coronado 5, Bear Creek 4, Pueblo County 4, Golden 3, Severance 3, Durango 1, Elizabeth 1, Evergreen 1, Niwot 1, Palisade 1, Standley Lake 1.
Dropped out
Pueblo South (8), Windsor (9).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
1
University (8)
5-1-0
106
1
2
Eaton (1)
5-1-0
90
2
3
Rocky Ford (1)
5-0-0
80
3
4
Limon
5-1-0
54
4
5
Lyons
3-2-0
46
7
6
Sterling
4-2-0
45
10
7
Brush
3-3-0
42
6
8
Strasburg
4-3-0
40
5
9
Lutheran (1)
5-1-0
35
9
10
La Junta
2-1-0
20
–
Others receiving votes:
Lamar 16, Peak to Peak 11, Basalt 8, Cedaredge 5, Fort Lupton 3, Montezuma-Cortez 3, Weld Central 1.
Mead softball, off to a 6-0 start, is now the No. 1 team in Class 4A after moving up from No. 9 last week.
The polls, voted upon by head coaches around the state, will serve as part of the seeding criteria in softball this season. Polls are released each Monday during the regular season.
Rock Canyon has moved up to the No. 1 spot in this week’s Class 5A softball rankings
Each poll was released on Monday.
The polls, voted upon by head coaches around the state, will serve as part of the seeding criteria in softball this season. Polls are released each Monday during the regular season.
Arvada West 21, Ralston Valley 19, Cherokee Trail 15, Mountain Vista 13, Grand Junction Central 12, Valor Christian 12, Cherry Creek 11, Eaglecrest 11, Brighton 10, Hinkley 10, Castle View 9, Fort Collins 8, Pomona 8, Vista Ridge 6, Fairview 5, Arapahoe 3, Douglas County 1, Fruita Monument 1, ThunderRidge 1.
Dropped out
Ralston Valley (10).
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Holy Family (10)
2-0-0
106
1
2-0-0
2
Erie
0-1-0
69
2
0-1-0
3
Wheat Ridge
2-0-0
65
5
2-0-0
4
Silver Creek
0-1-0
58
3
0-1-0
5
Pueblo South
1-1-0
47
4
1-1-0
6
Riverdale Ridge
2-0-0
36
–
2-0-0
7
Pueblo West
1-0-0
30
–
1-0-0
8
Frederick
3-0-0
24
–
3-0-0
9
Mead
2-0-0
23
6
2-0-0
10
Air Academy
1-0-0
19
–
1-0-0
Others receiving votes:
Mullen 16, Pueblo County 15, Pueblo Central 10, Pueblo East 10, Roosevelt 10, Discovery Canyon 8, Bear Creek 7, Conifer 7, Elizabeth 7, Mountain View 7, Windsor 7, Golden 5, Mesa Ridge 4, Pueblo Centennial 4, Berthoud 3, Longmont 3, D’Evelyn 2, Evergreen 2, Rifle 1.
Dropped out
Mountain View (7), Golden (8), Pueblo County (9), Mullen (10).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
University (10)
1-0-0
124
1
1-0-0
2
Eaton (1)
2-0-0
106
2
2-0-0
3
Strasburg (1)
1-1-0
76
3
1-1-0
4
Sterling
2-0-0
67
6
2-0-0
5
Rocky Ford
1-0-0
62
7
1-0-0
6
Brush
1-1-0
45
4
1-1-0
7
Limon
1-0-0
40
5
1-0-0
8
Lutheran (1)
4-0-0
38
–
4-0-0
9
Lamar
1-0-0
28
–
1-0-0
10
La Junta
0-1-0
23
10
0-1-0
Others receiving votes:
Montezuma-Cortez 19, Basalt 17, Lyons 15, Fort Lupton 12, Peak to Peak 11, Resurrection Christian 7, The Academy 7, Weld Central 6, Alamosa 4, Faith Christian 4, Burlington 2, Cedaredge 1, The Classical Academy 1.
When Smoky Hill was eliminated in the first round of the Class 5A state softball tournament, an easy reason to pinpoint is the overall lack of experience for the team.
That won’t be the case in 2020.
The Buffaloes are poised to make program history thanks to a talented junior class that returns to the field. An acceptable goal alone would be to get past the first round, but coach BJ Kingsbaker thinks this team is capable of so much more.
“Our motto this year is ‘Go Finish,’” Kingsbaker said. “I think this group can play with any team in the state.”
He’s probably not wrong. He returns a lineup that doesn’t have a lot of holes on the offensive side. Juniors Izzy Giroux and Amarjie Bass blasted eight and seven home runs respectively and Grioux led the team in both batting average (.512) and doubles (13).
“I”m excited,” Giroux said. “We’re pretty stacked. We didn’t lose and we’ve only added good players so we’re one of the most feared teams in our league this year.”
Checking in at No. 6 in the preseason softball rankings, the Buffs are heading into the season with a bit of added fuel. In their first-round loss at state, a mishap occurred at the start of the game that greatly changed momentum early. In all the hustle and craziness surrounding the state tournament, Kingsbaker accidentally mixed up Grioux’s spot on the lineup card with Bass. When the girls batted out of order it killed a potentially big first inning. Smoky Hill went on to lose the game.
“What would’ve been a four-run first inning turned into a zero-run first inning all because of my mistake,” he said. “We spent that entire game trying to battle back and even had a one-run lead heading into the seventh inning and just ran out of gas.”
That inning and that overall result has this team running on a full tank of gas for the 2020 year.
“There’s a lot of (motivation),” senior Jahlisa Klear said. “I can tell a lot of girls are ready to show up this year and get that (state) championship for Smoky Hill.”
The Buffs are certainly capable of bringing home a title, and if they do it would be the first in program history. From the top of the lineup down, the lineup looks stacked. But it’s complemented with a pitching staff that Kingsbaker would put up against anyone in the state. Juniors Delaney Farnsworth and Kenedy Sandoval went a combined 15-2 last season. Farnsworth finished the year with an ERA of 1.86 and Sandoval proved to be an effective lefty to mix things up when needed.
Adding to the mix is fellow junior Paris Elsberry, who missed most of last season due to an injury.
“She throws every curveball and screwball imaginable,” Kingsbaker said. “She throws the kitchen sink at you.”
That’s going to give the Buffs a lot of different looks in the circle which only makes them more dangerous.
And considering the way last year ended, a deep and dangerous Smoky Hill team could go on an historical run in 2020.
“I felt like we deserved to go further,” Grioux said. “I feel like that gives us a little more drive this season. We have a lot of good players and we all want it. We want to go out and win that state championship.”
The preseason girls softball rankings were released on Monday morning, and Columbine (5A), Holy Family (4A) and University (3A) lead the polls in their respective classifications.
The polls, voted upon by head coaches around the state, will serve as part of the seeding criteria in softball this season. Polls are released each Monday during the regular season.
Arapahoe 37, Cherokee Trail 29, Grand Junction Central 24, Lakewood 21, Arvada West 17, Brighton 17, Hinkley 10, Valor Christian 10, Castle View 9, Loveland 9, Eaglecrest 8, Fountain-Fort Carson 8, Douglas County 7, Prairie View 7, Rampart 7, Vista Ridge 7, Grandview 5, Pomona 5, Mountain Range 4, Mountain Vista 3, Rangeview 3, Regis Jesuit 2, Cherry Creek 1, ThunderRidge 1.
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
1
Holy Family (5)
0-0-0
98
2
Erie (4)
0-0-0
87
3
Silver Creek (1)
0-0-0
85
4
Pueblo South (2)
0-0-0
70
5
Wheat Ridge
0-0-0
48
6
Mead
0-0-0
33
7
Mountain View
0-0-0
29
8
Golden
0-0-0
24
9
Pueblo County
0-0-0
23
10
Mullen
0-0-0
16
Others receiving votes:
Air Academy 12, Elizabeth 12, Pueblo West 11, Pueblo Central 10, Riverdale Ridge 10, Conifer 9, Ponderosa 9, Pueblo East 9, Evergreen 8, Pueblo Centennial 8, Mesa Ridge 7, Roosevelt 7, Windsor 7, Bear Creek 6, Coronado 6, D’Evelyn 5, Niwot 3, Rifle 3, Montrose 2, Northridge 2, Frederick 1.
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
1
University (8)
0-0-0
80
2
Eaton
0-0-0
68
3
Strasburg (1)
0-0-0
65
4
Brush
0-0-0
57
5
Limon
0-0-0
40
6
Sterling
0-0-0
39
7
Rocky Ford
0-0-0
33
8
Basalt
0-0-0
27
9
The Academy
0-0-0
24
10
La Junta
0-0-0
16
Others receiving votes:
Lamar 14, Lyons 9, Resurrection Christian 7, Fort Lupton 6, Lutheran 5, Montezuma-Cortez 2, Valley 2, Peak to Peak 1.
