Five teams joined this week’s boys soccer rankings: Hinkley (5A); Durango, Kennedy and Pueblo West (4A); and The Academy (3A).
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.
Class 5A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Broomfield (4)
1-0-0
72
1
1-0-0
2
Boulder (2)
2-0-0
70
4
2-0-0
3
Denver East
0-0-0
58
3
0-0-0
4
Fort Collins
1-0-0
45
2
1-0-0
5
Grandview (1)
2-0-0
43
5
2-0-0
6
Fairview
2-0-0
28
6
2-0-0
7
Arapahoe (1)
1-0-0
27
7
1-0-0
8
Cherry Creek
0-1-0
17
8
0-1-0
9
Far Northeast
0-1-0
15
9
0-1-0
10
Hinkley
0-0-0
11
–
0-0-0
Others receiving votes:
Legacy 10, Legend 8, Doherty 5, Overland 5, Rampart 5, Adams City 4, Westminster 4, Cherokee Trail 3, Grand Junction 3, Ralston Valley 3, Pine Creek 2, Liberty 1, Rangeview 1.
Dropped out
Grand Junction (10).
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Air Academy (6)
1-1-0
76
1
1-1-0
2
Centaurus (1)
0-0-0
61
2
0-0-0
3
Niwot
1-0-0
54
3
1-0-0
4
The Classical Academy
0-0-0
46
4
0-0-0
5
Durango (1)
2-0-0
40
–
2-0-0
6
Denver North
0-0-0
29
5
0-0-0
7
Kennedy
1-0-0
21
–
1-0-0
8
Skyline
0-1-0
19
6
0-1-0
9
Littleton
1-0-0
17
8
1-0-0
10
Pueblo West
3-0-0
14
–
3-0-0
Others receiving votes:
Battle Mountain 10, Green Mountain 8, Montrose 7, Palmer Ridge 7, Sand Creek 7, Cheyenne Mountain 5, Silver Creek 5, Mullen 3, Thomas Jefferson 3, Discovery Canyon 2, Lewis-Palmer 2, Coronado 1, Northfield 1, Pueblo Centennial 1, Steamboat Springs 1.
Broomfield (5A), Air Academy (4A), Liberty Common (3A) and Dawson School (2A) are on top of the preseason rankings in boys soccer this season.
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.
Class 5A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
1
Broomfield (7)
0-0-0
95
2
Fort Collins
0-0-0
74
3
Denver East (2)
0-0-0
67
4
Boulder
0-0-0
58
5
Grandview (1)
0-0-0
57
6
Fairview
0-0-0
49
7
Arapahoe
0-0-0
46
8
Cherry Creek
0-0-0
33
9
Far Northeast
0-0-0
23
10
Grand Junction
0-0-0
18
Others receiving votes:
Legacy 9, Rangeview 6, Fossil Ridge 3, Regis Jesuit 3, Mountain Vista 2, Ralston Valley 2, Rock Canyon 2, Aurora Central 1, Hinkley 1, Legend 1.
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
1
Air Academy (6)
0-0-0
78
2
Centaurus (2)
0-0-0
74
3
Niwot
0-0-0
58
4
The Classical Academy
0-0-0
45
5
Denver North
0-0-0
41
6
Skyline
0-0-0
37
7
Montrose
0-0-0
30
8
Littleton
0-0-0
18
9
Battle Mountain
0-0-0
13
10
Steamboat Springs
0-0-0
10
Others receiving votes:
Durango 8, Cheyenne Mountain 6, Kennedy 6, Standley Lake 6, Silver Creek 4, Sand Creek 3, Pueblo Centennial 2, Thomas Jefferson 1.
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
1
Liberty Common (8)
0-0-0
94
2
Kent Denver
0-0-0
83
3
Colorado Springs Christian (1)
0-0-0
76
4
Colorado Academy
0-0-0
75
5
Jefferson Academy (1)
0-0-0
51
6
Peak to Peak
0-0-0
28
7
KIPP Denver
0-0-0
20
8
Salida
0-0-0
16
9
Arrupe Jesuit
0-0-0
15
10
Roaring Fork
0-0-0
13
Others receiving votes:
Coal Ridge 11, Delta 10, St. Mary’s 10, Vail Mountain 10, DSST: Stapleton 9, The Academy 9, Atlas Prep 6, Manitou Springs 4, Lutheran 3, The Pinnacle 3, Faith Christian 2, SkyView Academy 2.
The 2018 all-state girls soccer 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 then a vote of head coaches.
Player and coach of the year was also selected by a vote of the coaches.
Growing up in Telluride, one of the most scenic parts of the state, Soleil Gaylord knows quite a lot about the beauty that surrounds her. When Soleil remarked that winning the 2018 Freddie Steinmark Award was a beautiful way to end her high school career, she was not exaggerating.
“Oh my gosh, this is absolutely amazing. What a beautiful way to end my high school career. I graduate next week, this is huge!” said Soleil.
Another thing that is huge is the list of accomplishments and community activities put together in the mountains around Telluride. Her running talent has taken Soleil far from her hometown, as she has competed in world championships in Spain. But, the training she has completed on the worn track at Wheat Ridge High School means as much to her as any track and gives her a unique connection to the Freddie Steinmark story.
Soleil’s mother, Ramona, graduated from Wheat Ridge High School and was familiar with the legacy of Freddie Steinmark. When the Gaylord family visited Soleil’s grandmother in Wheat Ridge, Soleil would jog down to the Wheat Ridge High School track and complete her workout for the day.
In her nomination letter Soleil wrote, “I imagine Freddie Steinmark must have spent hundreds of hours practicing and playing games on that field. Through the proximity to his high school, I feel a kinship with the young Freddie when I stride along the track. I am inspired by the legend of Mr. Steinmark, and I ponder what being nominated for this prestigious Colorado award means to me.”
Now Soleil will have to consider what the impact will be on being the 46th recipient of the Steinmark Award.
The Steinmark Award was established in 1972 and honors Freddie Steinmark, who excelled in football, basketball, and baseball while attending Wheat Ridge High School in the 1960s. He was also an outstanding student and was active in several school and community-oriented endeavors before attending the University of Texas, where he helped the Longhorns to the national football title in 1969. He died from cancer in 1971 at the age of 22.
Soleil has been a standout on the Colorado cross country and track scene for her four years of high school. In cross country, she placed in the top 7 all four years — with a runner-up medal in 2017 — and was a member of the 2A state championship cross country team in 2015 and 2016. In 2014, the Telluride Miners were runner-up in the team race.
On the track, Soleil was atop the 2A girls podium for three straight years in the 1600m and 3200m races. In 2018, she finished 5th in the 800m, and in 2017 was a member of the state champion 4x800m relay.
Pretty good performances for a school without a track! An understandable fact given the massive amounts of snow that Telluride is famous for. This minor setback gave rise to other outlets for Soleil’s tremendous passion for running, a passion she credits to her father, Kent Gaylord.
Soleil began training in the winter by snowshoe running and in the summer was training in the spectacular mountains above the Valley Floor area. Before long she was competing at mountain running and snowshoe running…competing and winning state, national, and international titles.
(Courtesy of Wendy’s HS Heisman)
Soleil has traveled the world as a member of the silver medal team at the 2017 World Mountain Running Championships in Italy and as a two-time world champion at the World Snowshoe Federation World Championships in New York (2017) and Spain (2018). For these accomplishments, Soleil was named the 2017 Outstanding Snowshoe and Overall Outstanding Athlete by the Sportswomen of Colorado.
As if this was not impressive enough, Soleil was named the 2017 Wendy’s High School Heisman National Winner. She was recognized for her courage and dedication in overcoming a mountain-sized obstacle of her own.
Early in life Soleil was diagnosed with selective mutism, an anxiety disorder that made it difficult for her to communicate in social settings. Instead of running away from her problem, she sprinted at it full speed. Soleil says she knew “being able to communicate was vital to bringing change to her community.”
After years of tackling the condition head on, Soleil became the Student Body President, host of her own radio show, and started her school’s greenhouse.
A special tone seeps into Soleil’s voice when she talks about her work in the school and community of Telluride. Her radio show, “Valley Floor-a and Fauna” shares information about the environmental aspects of the valley floor and the wildlife that can be found on her training runs.
Soleil was joined by other schoolmates in refurbishing the school’s greenhouse and started a program to teach elementary school students about healthy eating habits. The vegetables grown in the school greenhouse are harvested and shared with the school food program to make a local food source the students can enjoy year- round.
For these and many other activities, Soleil was awarded The Congressional Award Bronze Medal for her goal- setting and community service.
Soleil will continue her community-service activities, athletic career, and academic pursuits next year at Dartmouth College. She noted that she took her college visit to the Hanover, New Hampshire school in the height of the fall colors and instantly fell in love with the area, the college, and the distance coach and team.
Soleil Gaylord is the 46th winner of the girls Steinmark Award since it was first presented to girls in 1974. The first girl to win the Steinmark Award was Anne Vento of Pueblo Centennial in 1974. There were two winners of the award in 1984. Soleil will be honored as part of the CHSCA All-State Games on June 8, 2018, at Adams State University in Alamosa, CO. Soleil will be honored along with Pomona’s Ryan Marquez, who will receive the boys 2018 Steinmark Award.
Last year, Jordan Acosta of Douglas County was the recipient of the girls Steinmark and Brandon Micale of Pomona the boys Steinmark.
Finalists for the 2018 Steinmark Award: Rylee Anderson, Silver Creek; Addi Iken, Littleton; Micayla Isenbart, Kit Carson; Skylar Lodice, Dakota Ridge; Gabriella McDonald, Rocky Mountain.
Rock Canyon’s Emily Sloan. (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)
LAKEWOOD — Emily Sloan knows Class 4A’s top hurdler well.
Nearly a decade ago, Sloan and Anna Hall were already teammates in a club track program. They have been great friends ever since.
Now donning the black and gold of Rock Canyon and the blue and white of Valor Christian, the tandem has flourished into Colorado’s premier hurdlers.
During the state track preliminary rounds of the 300 hurdles at Jeffco Stadium, Sloan saw her friend break her Colorado record with a time of 40.76 seconds, bettering the Jaguar’s time of 40.77 last week at the Continental League Championships. Then, Sloan managed to flip the script on Hall and take her record back in her 5A prelim with a new all-classification best of 40.60.
In a terrific display of sportsmanship and a sign of the friends’ bond, Hall cheered loudly on the infield during Sloan’s attempt at the feat.
“I definitely had extra motivation going into that race, because Anna’s my best friend,” Sloan, a senior, said. “I’m happy she got it, but I definitely wanted to take it back from her. She’s a great competitor though. We’ll push each other throughout the years.
“We’re sisters almost.”
Sloan and Hall, still only a junior, tallied the second and third best times in the nation for the 2018 season. As impressive as Friday’s hurdle races happened to be, the prep stars have a laundry list of other accomplishments.
Sloan chose to sign with the University of Oregon, having already claimed four state titles (three in a row in 100 hurdles) going into her final season for the Jaguars.
“It’s been a dream school of mine since I was little,” she said. “I knew that would be the best place to give me a shot at my goals.”
She has ambitions of winning an individual and team national championship at Oregon, but before she embarks on even greater goals she’ll be putting the final touches on an illustrious prep career on Saturday in the 100 hurdles (No. 1 seed), 300 hurdles, and 200 (No. 2 seed at 23.93 seconds).
Valor Christian’s Anna Hall. (Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)
As for Hall, the junior has been a national champion indoors in the high jump and pentathlon, along with being tabbed the defending state champion in both hurdles in 4A.
On top of that, she claimed her first long jump state crown on Friday with a mark of 18 feet, 9.75 inches. Valor Christian’s latest elite female in track could have a flurry of accomplishments coming her way at the prep level and beyond.
As usual, the 4A and 5A competitions delivered plenty of eye-opening performances. Denver East girls continued their domination in sprints with a time of 46.51 seconds in the 400-meter relay in prelims, tying the state record held by George Washington from 2007. Later on in the meet, despite not running Arria Minor in the final, the Angels won the 800 relay (1:40.25).
Denver East and Grandview both shattered the all-classification state records (previously held by George Washington) in the 800 meter sprint medley relay with marks of 1:42.62 and 1:42.89. Freshman Kyairra Reigh ran the 400 anchor leg for East.
The beauty of track and field is that times and marks never lie though. With competitors from all five classifications testing themselves against the state’s finest athletes at Jeffco Stadium, small school competitors sometimes prove themselves as the best in Colorado.
Soroco’s Ben Kelley.
Soroco senior Ben Kelley shattered the 2A state record in the 800 three consecutive seasons at Jeffco Stadium (1:55.61 in 2016, 1:54.75 in 2017, 1:52.77 in 2018). He also broke the classification record in the 1,600 with a time of 4:17.23 at the St. Vrain Invite last week, a best time held by Paul Roberts of Lyons in 2016 (4:17.35).
Kelley also claimed state crowns in cross country as a senior, the 1,600 as a junior, and the 3,200 as a junior. He has chosen to pursue collegiate running at Columbia University in the Ivy League.
Oh, and the sensational Soroco harrier even ran the fastest 800 time in all classifications on Friday. Kelley feels inspired by the town he lives in.
“I come from a super small community,” he said. “We have less than 90 kids in our school, so we’re practically 1A. We’re like a family. We get a lot of support from the community. Even the teachers, people who aren’t necessarily associated with athletics, they always keep up with it.”
The state track and field meet will resume at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday.
[divider]
Class 5A notes:
Fairview junior Marlena Preigh (2:09.19) fended off Broomfield senior Madison Mooney (2:10.19) and Highlands Ranch sophomore Bryce Johansen (2:10.55) in the 800-meter run.
Grandview senior Kylee Harr (5-10) won high jump with an impressive mark.
Landon Rast, a senior for the Legend Titans, won the 800 in 1:53.03.
Fountain-Fort Carson boys (1:26.53) beat a game Cherry Creek (1:26.65) contingent in the 800 relay. Fountain also finished first in prelims of the 1,600 relay (3:17.85).
Class 4A notes:
Valor Christian girls won the 800 relay (1:41.89). They might also claim the team title on Saturday.
Discovery Canyon junior Liberty Ricca (10:57) and Valor Christian sophomore Cole Sprout (9:22) topped all competitors in the 3,200 races.
Mead girls (1:45.17) continued their high-level relay performances with a sprint medley championship.
Niwot freshman Taylor James (2:13.55) strided away from everyone in the two-lap 800 final. Former Niwot great Elise Cranny holds the classification state meet record with a time of 2:08.
Vista Ridge senior Raymon Harper has been terrific in all three jumps, finishing first in long jump (23-3) and second in high jump (6-9). He was also the winner of the triple jump on Thursday.
Garrett Martin, a Standley Lake veteran, cleared 6 feet, 10 inches to conquer high jump.
Pine Creek boys were victorious in the 800 relay (1:28.07).
Silver Creek superstar James Lee (1:54.25) is a back-to-back 800 state champion.
Class 3A notes:
TCA senior Erika Willis, the sister of Colorado record holder Andrea, broke her own 3A state meet record in pole vault. Last season she cleared 12-5, but this year 12-9 won it over Platte Canyon’s Hayley Rayburn (12-6).
The Classical Academy also won the girls 800 relay (1:43.91).
Sierra senior Alexandria Burns brought a triple jump title back to Colorado Springs with a mark of 36-5.
Maggi Congdon of Steamboat Springs (2:14) and Rasce Englehardt (1:56.41) claimed the 800 crowns. Denver West sophomore Yasin Sado (1:56.45) was barely second in the two-lapper.
Pagosa Springs senior Keena Murphy (127-10) topped the field in girls discus.
Faith Christian senior Reece Davidson finished first in another throwing event (53-4.50 in shot put).
Lutheran boys broke a 16-year record held by Yuma in the 800 relay with a blistering 1:28.01. The previous 3A record was 1:28.31. Lutheran girls won the sprint medley relay as well (1:49.43).
Bayfield senior Carl Heide (38.36) shattered the 3A state meet record in the 300 hurdles. The record was from 1995 and held by Ben Myers of Colorado Springs Christian (38.39).
Class 2A notes:
Telluride senior Soleil Gaylord (11:16) won her third consecutive title in the 3,200 with a 37-second winning margin.
Monika Williams anchored Denver Christian to a victorious sprint medley relay (1:51.67).
Peyton junior Kaylee Kearse (2:18) pulled away from the field in the 800. Peyton also won the 800 relay in 1:48.93.
Logan Kuskie of Lyons continued a family tradition of success in pole vault with a gold medal (11-2).
Holyoke sophomore Taeryn Trumper (18-1.75) was the long jump champion.
Burlington senior Alex Bauer won girls shot put (39-2.25).
Cedaredge (1:32.02) claimed the boys 800 relay.
Rocky Ford senior Cody Danley (9:42) put his foot on the gas in the final 1,600 as Lyons sophomore Isaac Roberts (9:55) and Custer County freshman Micah Zeller (10:04) showed plenty of distance promise for future years while rounding out the top three in the 3,200.
Brady Lenz of Sanford outperformed everyone in triple jump (43-2.5).
Crowley County junior Lane Walter (160-1) was terrific in boys discus.
Jake Chrisman of Yuma won pole vault (13-4).
Class 1A notes:
Springfield nipped the 1A state record in the girls sprint medley relay with a time of 1:53.88. JT Borunda also won boys discus (136-6) for Springfield. They were also champions in the girls 800 relay (1:50.89).
Heritage Christian once again dominated distance events as Leeann Wagner (2:25) and Levi Kilian (1:59.13) crushed the 800 races. Isaiah Bowsher finished runner-up in the 800 as well.
43-1.5 won boys triple jump (Jade Cass of Pawnee).
Genoa-Hugo swept gold and silver in girls shot put as Heather Graham (39-5.5) and Ryely Smartt (36-8) were first and second.
Matalynn Dawson (Miami-Yoder) was impressive in triple jump with a mark of 34-6.
Jerraldawn Rector of Simla (5-1) beat Dawson in a jump-off in the girls high jump discipline as both cleared 5-1.
Plateau Valley (10:28.66) shattered the 1A girls state record in the 3,200 relay. Heritage Christian boys did the same (8:23.44).
Haxtun boys (1:32.93) broke the classification record in the 800 relay.
LAKEWOOD — Soleil Gaylord is no stranger to piling up accolades. This last winter, she claimed the Wendy’s High School Heisman in recognition of all that she had accomplished at that point in her academic and athletic career.
Friday, she got back to work doing the things that got her national recognition.
She claimed the Class 2A 3,200-meter run state championship with a time of 11 minutes, 16.52 seconds. It’s the third win of her career in the event.
Gaylor followed up her win in the 3,200 with a fifth-place finish in the 800 at 2:22.97. She is set to run in the 1,600 finals on Saturday. She is the two-time defending champion in that event as well.
These feats were not lost on her or the crowd at Jefferson County Stadium as they were read off as she continued her pursuit of more gold medals.
“I love this meet and I love this venue,” she said. “I think Colorado state has a magic to it and it brings out the best in people. It’s cool to see all the inspirational stories and be amongst all these great athletes in Colorado.”
On top of being a standout runner, she has given back to her community and serves as Telluride’s student body president. It was her contributions on these fields that led to her selection as the High School Heisman winner.
The award itself is no stranger to Colorado athletes as Wiggins’ Kyle Pollock won it back in 2009.
All around, Gaylord has become one of the most notable competitors to represent Colorado at the state meet and hopes to transition her feats when she attends college at Dartmouth
“It will all translate nicely,” she said. “Dartmouth is pretty similar to home in terms of atmosphere. And it will be nice to have girls to run with. I’ve never really had a team and when I have, it’s been really small. I’m excited to have girls to run with, I think that will push me.”
Looking back at her time at the state track meet, it’s been a tough week to reflect on her success while still going trying to add gold medals to her stack at home.
(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)
Overall, Gaylord has six wins and a second-place finish at state. She finished second in the state cross country meet in November. But any time she thinks about her high school career, she’ll always look fondly at the state track meet as the true breeding ground of her accomplishments.
“It all comes down to what you can do at state,” she said. “It’s a long season and it’s hard to keep yourself healthy. Everything comes down to a state race and that’s what so cool about track.”
Her athletic career will continue at Dartmouth, but given her body of work, athletically or otherwise, it’s been her time in Colorado that has made her a special athlete and one that will be talked about at future state meets.
