Evergreen celebrates its team championship in 4A girls swimming. (Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com)
FORT COLLINS — Evergreen has been a power the last three seasons in Class 4A girls swimming and diving. The only thing missing was a title.
Not anymore.
The Cougars had placed second as a team in 2012 and third in 2013, but had never tasted a state title in the sport in school history. That changed Saturday afternoon at the Edora Pool Ice Center as Evergreen ran away and hid from the 4A field with 332.5 points, nearly 90 points ahead of their nearest competitor, Thompson Valley, which finished with 244.
“The past couple of years we’ve been on the cusp of having the potential to win and we just came into this meet knowing that it was going to be a race,” Evergreen star Lindsay Morrow said. “We all performed really well.
“This is the first time Evergreen’s ever won state in swimming, so that’s huge for us in making history. It was really fun that we were able to be a part of that and be a good showing for Evergreen.”
Morrow, a state champion in the 200-yard individual medley as a freshman, claimed her second state title in the event Saturday with a time of 2:05.29 and her first state title in the 100-yard backstroke. Her backstroke time of 55.69 was merely .06 seconds off her own 4A state record, set during prelims on Friday.
“It wasn’t a best time for me, but I’m really happy I got the record (Friday), which was kind of my goal going into it,” Morrow said.
Morrow also swam the first leg of the champion 200-yard medley relay that just held off Manitou Springs 1:48.28 to 1:48.88.
Evergreen coach Jeanne Godaire had high praise for her star junior.
“She’s the most determined swimmer I think I’ve ever met,” Godaire said. “She’s such a firecracker in the water and comes off the blocks and off the turns and is just such a persevering swimmer.”
Thompson Valley entered the weekend as the four time defending state champions, but Evergreen, which was expected to contend last season, too, had its 200-yard medley relay disqualified in that meet and had to settle for third as a team.
“It was the first event,” Godaire said. “It was tough on them knowing that we weren’t in contention for first after losing all those points. The girls really rallied, they showed a lot of character for our team, but this year we were definitely rooting for everyone to just get through the relays and place as high as they could.”
This season Evergreen, had enough firepower and depth to claim the title.
“It’s kind of hard to believe,” Godaire said. “It’s a victory so sweet for us. We were hoping for it, but we were waiting until the end to make sure that we had it.
“It’s so exciting for our team,” Godaire added. “I can’t express how excited the whole community is going to be in Evergreen for our victory.”
Evergreen won the state title in the 200-yard medley relay, placed third in the 400-yard freestyle relay, and fouth in the 200-yard freestyle relay. The win was a complete effort by the Cougars as they scored big points in everything from the 1-meter diving competition to the 100-yard freestyle to the 500-yard freestyle.
Evergreen unseating Thompson Valley for the 4A crown wasn’t the only highlight of the afternoon in Fort Collins, though.
Alexa Beckwith, a senior at St. Mary’s Academy and a University of Missouri recruit, won her fourth state title in diving with a score of 479.75 points, more than 15 points ahead of Mullen’s Katie Russ. Beckwith is one of the top prep divers in the nation.
Valor Christian’s Brooke Stenstrom, a sophomore, won the 50-yard freestyle in 23.66 and the 100-yard freestyle by nearly a full second over the field in 51.70. The state championships were the first individual titles of Stenstrom’s career.
Cheyenne Mountain’s senior Sydney Buckley won her third consecutive 100-yard butterfly title in a near 4A record time of 55.85. The mark was only .21 seconds off the record held by Mackenzie Stein of Green Mountain in 2011. Stein now swims at Stanford.
Windsor’s superstar freshman, Morgan Friesen, set the 4A record in the 100-yard breaststroke during prelims on Friday with a time of 1:03.28. Saturday, Friesen blew that time out of the water and became the first 4A swimmer to ever go sub 1:03 in the event with a sizzling 1:02.73. The time was just a little short of the all-classification record of 1:02.47.
All of these performances were quite impressive, but Thompson Valley’s Eryn Eddy shined as bright as any star on Saturday. The junior, who came into the weekend with two individual state titles to her name, added to her already illustrious career with two more individual titles in the 200 and 500-yard freestyle races.
Eddy won the 200-yard freestyle by over five seconds over D’Evelyn’s Colleen Olson. Her time of 1:48.89 was just off her own 4A record of 1:48.34, set last season at state, and she repeated as the 200 freestyle champion.
She also tried the 500 freestyle for the first time at state and came close to the classification record in that event, as well, with a 4:56.03, 15 seconds clear of the field and only a second and a half off the record.
Eddy said she enjoyed both races on Saturday.
“200’s my baby and I love it, but I also really like the 500,” Eddy said. “I knew that I had to really focus on my tempo. I knew that I was going to have to race girls from a different perspective. Again, like the 200, I had to get into a different mental mode of how I was going to get out there and race, so I just really got out there and tried my best.”
The Thompson Valley junior anchored the winning 200 and 400-yard freestyle relays. The Eagles won their fifth consecutive 200 freestyle relay in a mark of 1:37.01, but the 400 freestyle relay was perhaps the most exciting race of the day.
D’Evelyn held the lead the first three legs of the event and still held a comfortable gap when Eryn Eddy dove in. Eddy made up a few-yards, then a few more-yards, then a few more-yards, before finally catching D’Evelyn’s Jacinda Whittenburg with 25 meters to go. Eddy closed hard the last 25 to lead Thompson Valley to the win 3:32.07 to 3:32.66.
“I asked to go last, because I love playing catch up,” Eddy said after the race. “I really just put it out for my girls today. We had a large amount of our team come back and cheer for us, so I just put it out there for my Lady Eagles.”
Fantastic individuals starred on Saturday in Fort Collins, but nothing could completely steal the spotlight from Evergreen’s team title. The scary part for the rest of the state is that the Cougars had zero seniors in the state finals.
“I think we’re going to come back with a strong team and I’m sure the other teams will get some new and great swimmers too, but we’re just really enjoying the moment right now,” Godaire said.
“All were doing is gaining next year,” added Morrow, “which is fun and everybody’s going to get a lot better, so I’m really excited for next year, as well.”
FORT COLLINS — Niwot’s Hannah Driscoll set a new Class 4A state record on Friday.
Driscoll went a blazing 23.60 in the 50-yard freestyle during the 4A state meet at the Edora Pool Ice Center (EPIC).
“I wasn’t as much looking at the time, I was just going out and having a solid swim tonight,” she said. “I didn’t really think during, I just wanted to hit the wall and have a solid swim.”
Driscoll, who appeared more focused on how Niwot performed as a team rather than individual pursuits, said her goal for Saturday’s finals competition is to enjoy it.
“I’ll be 100 percent honest: we’re going to have a ton of fun and we’re just going to go out and do our best,” she said.
In a 4A state meet where teams are trying to unseat the four-time defending state champion Thompson Valley Eagles, individuals stole the show during Friday’s prelims.
Driscoll bettered the previous 4A state record in the 50-yard free, set by Evergreen’s Lexie Malazdrewicz last season, by .03 seconds and also placed second in the 100-yard breaststroke prelims (1:04.36). She swam the anchor leg of the fourth-place 400-yard freestyle relay (3:42.52) and the lead leg of the 200-yard freestyle relay (1:40.7).
(Brock Laue)
Windsor’s star freshman Morgan Friesen set a new 4A record of her own with a 1:03.28 100-yard breaststroke, a race she was the top seed in entering the state meet. She also placed second in the 200-yard individual medley at 2:08.42.
Several of 4A’s other premier swimmers displayed their talent Friday night, as well, with Thompson Valley’s Eryn Eddy, a sophomore, swimming sizzling times of 1:52.59 in the 200-yard freestyle and 5:00.08 in the 500-yard freestyle, both top times in prelims. She also anchored the 200 (1:37.74) and 400 (3:35.27) freestyle relays to victories in prelims.
Eddy will look to repeat as the 200-yard freestyle champion and perhaps break her own 4A record, set last year, of 1:48.34 in finals Saturday. The Eagles will be swimming for their fifth consecutive 200 freestyle relay title, a race they hold the classification record in, and their second straight 400 freestyle relay title.
Evergreen, the favorites to claim the 4A crown this season, was led by junior Lindsay Morrow on Friday. Morrow won the 200 IM prelim by over three seconds with a 2:05.1 and the 100 yard backstroke by over two seconds with a speedy 55.63, as Thompson Valley’s Kelly Sheldon came in second at 57.80. Morrow also swam on the Cougars’ third-place 400 freestyle relay and fourth place 200 freestyle relay and will play a prominent role in Evergreen’s quest for the team title.
Cheyenne Mountain’s Sydney Buckley held off Brenna Bushley of D’Evelyn to win the 100-yard butterfly prelims 56.55 to 56.66. Buckley is the defending champion in the event.
Valor Christian’s Brooke Stenstrom claimed the win in the 100-yard freestyle prelims and was third in the 50-yard freestyle.
As for teams, the favorites, Evergreen, Cheyenne Mountain, and Thompson Valley, all had strong days and positioned themselves for a battle tomorrow.
First year Thompson Valley coach Dale Leonhart, the longtime coach at Grand Junction, was pleased with his squad’s performance Friday.
“We had a pretty good prelim meet,” he said. “Everybody that was top 8, stayed top 8. Our medley relay was a pleasant surprise, because we loaded the two freestyle relays and we placed 6th (in the medley relay).
“We swam very well. We had some good splits in the relays and there’s more there, so I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”
Leonhart laid out some of the goals for his team on Saturday.
“We would like Eryn (Eddy) to win both her individuals, Kelly (Sheldon) has her eye on an individual, and we would like to knock both freestyle relays out with automatic-all Americans,” he said.
Saturday promises to be an interesting fight for the team crown, but Friday had plenty of intrigue from great swims by a talented field of individuals.
Regis Jesuit moved up one place to No. 4 this week. (Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com)
Grandview, Monarch and Cherry Creek all joined this week’s CHSAANow.com boys basketball rankings in 5A.
Combined, the three teams went 9-0 last week. Grandview, which went 4-0 at the Mission Prep Christmas Classic in California last week, joined at No. 8. Monarch is No. 9 and Cherry Creek is No. 10.
There was nearly a massive shakeup of the 5A poll this week. Fossil Ridge — which already owns impressive wins over Eaglecrest, Grandview, ThunderRidge, Highlands Ranch and Thompson Valley — received eight first-place votes, and was close to overtaking No. 1 Denver East for the top spot. But the Angels got 11 first-place votes in staying atop the ranking.
So Fossil Ridge remained at No. 2 spot. Overland stayed at No. 3, while No. 4 Regis Jesuit and No. 5 Mountain Vista switched places.
Eaglecrest is sixth and Arapahoe moved up to ninth this week.
The biggest mover in the 4A ranking was Air Academy, which went from No. 10 last week to No. 6 this week. Valor Christian stayed atop that poll, and continued to be followed by No. 2 Thompson Valley and No. 3 Thomas Jefferson. No. 4 Pueblo East and No. 5 Sand Creek each moved up one spot.
3A’s Holy Family, 2A’s Sanford and 1A’s Caliche all remained atop their respective rankings this week. That means the No. 1 teams in each classification have not changed since the preseason.
These polls will serve as the rankings over the winter break, and through the first part of January. The next poll will not come out until Jan. 13.
Thomas Jefferson remained in the No. 3 spot in the 4A poll. (Pam Wagner)
Unbeatens Arapahoe and Grand Junction have joined this week’s CHSAANow.com boys basketball rankings in 5A.
The Warriors (3-0) are No. 9, while Grand Junction (5-0) is No. 10. Highlands Ranch, last week’s No. 5, and Chaparral, last week’s No. 10, both dropped out this week.
Elsewhere, Denver East maintained its grip on the top spot, and Fossil Ridge continued its climb up the poll. The SaberCats are No. 2 this week, moving up two spots from No. 4. Fossil Ridge went 3-0 last week, including a 66-48 win over Highlands Ranch.
Overland fell one spot to No. 3, and is followed by No. 4 Mountain Vista and No. 5 Regis Jesuit. Mountain Vista moved up from eighth; Regis up from No 6.
Eaglecrest is sixth in this week’s 5A poll, Legend is seventh and Rangeview fell five spots to eighth.
In addition to Denver East, the other four No. 1 teams remained the same this week: Valor Christian (4A), Holy Family (3A), Sanford (2A) and Caliche (1A).
The 4A poll added Air Academy at No. 10 this week. That ranking also saw Thompson Valley jump from fifth to second following wins over three 5A teams. Thomas Jefferson is third.
Falcon 35, Greeley Central 11, Lewis-Palmer 8, Mountain View 7, Frederick 6, Mesa Ridge 2, Palmer Ridge 2, Glenwood Springs 1, Ponderosa 1, Pueblo South 1.
Dropped out
Denver South (8).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Holy Family (8)
5-0
98
1
2-0
2
Colorado Academy (1)
4-0
81
3
2-0
3
Brush (1)
2-0
77
2
1-0
4
Jefferson Academy
4-0
69
9
4-0
5
Bishop Machebeuf
4-0
67
6
3-0
6
Faith Christian
4-3
36
4
3-1
7
Moffat County
3-1
29
7
3-1
8
The Pinnacle
3-1
22
–
1-0
9
Kent Denver
3-1
20
10
2-0
10
Colorado Springs Christian
1-2
19
5
1-2
Others receiving votes:
Denver Science & Tech 10, St. Mary’s 6, Valley 6, Aspen 4, Monte Vista 4, Cedaredge 2, Sterling 1.
Dropped out
Aspen (8).
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Sanford (12)
4-0
155
1
4-0
2
Yuma (3)
3-0
125
2
2-0
3
Akron
2-0
110
4
1-0
4
Lutheran
2-1
106
3
1-0
5
Ignacio (1)
5-0
101
5
2-0
6
Resurrection Christian
4-2
75
6
3-0
7
Limon
3-1
39
9
2-0
8
Simla
3-1
31
10
2-0
9
Rye
4-1
30
–
1-1
10
Denver Christian
1-3
24
7
1-1
Others receiving votes:
Swink 23, Peyton 22, Haxtun 13, Alexander Dawson 11, Sedgwick County 6, Crowley County 3, Front Range Christian 3, Custer County 1, Paonia 1, Rangely 1, Sierra Grande 1.
Fossil Ridge, meanwhile, went from sixth to fourth after going 3-0 last week. The standout win was a 58-51 win over then-No. 3 Eaglecrest.
The 5A ranking continued to be led by Denver East, which has also started 3-0 at the Great Western Shootout in Utah. Overland remained in the No. 2 spot despite going 1-2 at the same tournament.
Highlands Ranch rounds out the 5A top 5.
The other No. 1 teams also stayed the same this week: Valor Christian (4A), Holy Family (3A), Sanford (2A) and Caliche (1A).
Ralston Valley players gather on the ice after a 10-1 victory over Cheyenne Mountain in the Mustangs’ season opener Monday night at Apex Ice Arena in Arvada. (Dennis Pleuss)
ARVADA — Ralston Valley hockey started its 2013-14 campaign right were it left off last season.
The Mustangs won its season opener Monday night at the Apex Ice Arena with a dominating performance against Cheyenne Mountain. Ralston Valley skated to a 10-1 victory against the Indians to begin the defense of the state championship it claimed last year.
Ralston Valley outscored its four playoff opponents last year 20-2 on the road to winning the school’s first state hockey championship.
“That is definitely the goal,” Ralston Valley senior Greg Dyba said of attempting to repeat. “The speech earlier in the locker room was about when we have something we are going to defend it with all we have and get that back. We are going to grind and do whatever it takes.”
Ralston Valley senior Greg Dyba celebrates his second of three goals Monday against Cheyenne Mountain. (Dennis Pleuss)
Ralston Valley’s top offensive line of Dyba, Victor Lombardi and Austin Resseguie put on an offensive show. The all-senior line produced five goals. Dyba had a hat-trick midway through the second quarter. Lombardi had a goal in each the first and third periods.
The Mustangs put nearly 60 shots on goal and held the Indians to just over 10 shots on goal.
“Those are three big contributors for us,” Ralston Valley coach Matt Schoepflin said of his top line. “They are leaders on and off the ice. I expect a lot out of them.”
Ralston Valley’s second offensive line of Cody Noel, Lincoln Smith and Colton Hellman wasn’t shabby in the opener. Noel scored a pair of goal grinding out in front the of net and Hellman added a goal in the third period.
Noel, a sophomore who transferred from D’Evelyn to Ralston Valley this school year, is playing his first season of high school hockey.
“I was really excited to play with some of my friends on the team,” Noel said. “I want to work hard and try to win another state title.”
Cheyenne Mountain has the most decorated hockey program in the state. The Indians have 14 state hockey titles. Cheyenne Mountain’s last state championship came in 2004.
Ralston Valley forward Lincoln Smith (9) closes in on Cheyenne Mountain junior Tanner Taylor during the first period Monday night. (Dennis Pleuss)
Junior Ryan Case scored the Indians’ lone goal Monday night. Seniors Gret Liquori and Keaton Allison assisted on the power-play goal in the second period. Case’s goal cut Ralston Valley’s lead to 3-1, but the Mustangs quickly answered with back-to-back goals from Dyba before the end of the second period.
The Mustangs showed their depth in the third period getting five goals from five different players. Ralston Valley goalie Zack LaRocque picked up the win in net, while Cheyenne Mountain freshman Fyan McCann picked up the loss.
Ralston Valley came so close to winning its first state hockey championship a handful of times before finally hoisting the trophy last winter. Since the Arvada-area school started its hockey program seven years ago, the Mustangs have been in the mix for the state championship almost every single season.
“While winning a state title was great and great experience for our returning players, this is a brand new team,” said Schoepflin, who is in his third year as head coach for Ralston Valley. “It’s different than last year. We want to improve constantly. That is our big goal. We want to peak at the right time like we did last season.”
The Mustangs’ next home game at Apex will come at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 17. Ralston Valley will hang its state banner on that night when the Mustangs face their Jeffco rival Standley Lake. Schoepflin said he hopes to have a lot of graduated seniors back in town during winter break from last year’s state championship squad attend the game.
Ralston Valley senior Greg Dyba fires a wrist shot during the second period Monday in the Mustangs’ 10-1 victory against Cheyenne Mountain. (Dennis Pleuss)Cheyenne Mountain freshman goalie Fyan McCann is able to make a pad save on a shot by Ralston Valley senior forward Victor Lombardi during the first period Monday night at the Apex Ice Arena in Arvada. (Dennis Pleuss)Ralston Valley forward Evan Lukens, right, puts a hit on Cheyenne Mountain junior Casey Kosley during the second period Monday night at the Apex Ice Arena. (Dennis Pleuss)
Denver East begins the season ranked atop the 5A poll. (Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com)
Denver East, Valor Christian, Holy Family, Sanford and Caliche are the preseason boys basketball favorites in their respective classifications.
Those teams were the No. 1 picks in the 5A through 1A CHSAANow.com rankings released Monday morning.
Denver East received 19 of 20 first-place votes in the 5A poll. The Angels return their top five scorers from last season’s runner-up squad, including University of Colorado commit Dominique Collier and his 20.1 points per game.
Overland is No. 2 in the 5A ranking, and is following by defending champion Eaglecrest at No. 3. Highlands Ranch is fourth, and Rangeview rounds out the top 5.
Fossil Ridge is sixth in the 5A poll, Regis Jesuit is seventh, Mountain Vista is eighth, Chaparral is ninth and Legend is tenth. Monarch narrowly missed the top-10.
A total of 23 teams appeared on preseason ballots in the 5A ranking.
Valor Christian is 4A’s preseason No. 1 team. (Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com)
Another runner-up from a season ago, Valor Christian, heads the 4A preseason ranking. The Eagles return their top eight scorers from last season. That includes Chase Foster, who averaged 20.0 points per game last season.
Pueblo East is second in the 4A ranking, and is followed by No. 3 Cheyenne Mountain, No. 4 Denver South and No. 5 Thomas Jefferson. Two-time defending champion Lewis-Palmer is ranked 10th to begin the 2013-14 season.
Holy Family heads the 3A poll, though No. 2 Brush received an equal amount of first-place votes (five). The Tigers reached the Great 8 last season.
Defending 3A champion Pagosa Springs is unranked to begin the year.
In 2A, Sanford is the No. 1 pick. The Indians reached the Final 4 last season. Denver Christian, last season’s champion, is ranked third.
Caliche heads the preseason 1A poll. The Buffaloes were in last season’s semifinals. Defending champion McClave is ranked fifth.
Monarch 41, Chatfield 22, Fort Collins 19, Cherokee Trail 17, ThunderRidge 11, Montbello 10, Abraham Lincoln 9, Grandview 9, Fairview 7, Cherry Creek 6, Dakota Ridge 5, Grand Junction 5, Arapahoe 1.
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
1
Valor Christian (12)
0-0
151
2
Pueblo East
0-0
101
3
Cheyenne Mountain (2)
0-0
100
4
Denver South (1)
0-0
87
5
Thomas Jefferson
0-0
84
6
D’Evelyn
0-0
63
7
Longmont
0-0
59
8
Thompson Valley
0-0
58
9
Sand Creek (1)
0-0
48
10
Lewis-Palmer
0-0
32
Others receiving votes:
Broomfield 25, Falcon 13, Ponderosa 9, Windsor 9, Mesa Ridge 8, Elizabeth 6, Sierra 5, Durango 4, Frederick 4, Pueblo West 4, Greeley Central 3, Pueblo South 3, Green Mountain 1, Kennedy 1, Palisade 1, Widefield 1.
Peyton 18, Paonia 9, Crowley County 6, Rocky Ford 6, Meeker 5, Rye 5, Byers 4, Hayden 4, Sierra Grande 4, Haxtun 3, Heritage Christian 3, Sangre de Cristo 1.
Class 1A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
1
Caliche (3)
0-0
48
2
Hi-Plains (1)
0-0
39
3
Norwood
0-0
34
4
Shining Mountain
0-0
30
5
McClave (2)
0-0
26
6
Holly
0-0
25
7
Fleming
0-0
23
8
Vail Christian
0-0
22
9
Otis
0-0
19
10
Granada
0-0
18
Others receiving votes:
Prairie 8, Denver Jewish Day 6, Pawnee 6, Elbert 5, Primero 5, Jim Elliot Christian 4, La Veta 4, Bethune 3, Stratton 3, Deer Trail 2.
COMMERCE CITY — Forward Christian Nehme knew his team would win the state title after he blasted in a goal from eight yards with 3:59 remaining.
“As soon as the ball went back into the net,” Nehme said, “I realized we were going to win.”
Nehme and Cheyenne Mountain were crowned Class 4A boys soccer state champions after beating Pikes Peak league rival Air Academy 2-1 at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park on Saturday.
“We knew we could hang with them,” Cheyenne Mountain coach Tomas Martinez said. “ We just needed to weather their storms.”
Cheyenne Mountain and Air Academy each played tough defense throughout the first 38 minutes. After 25 minutes, Air Academy led Cheyenne Mountain with three in shots on goal to one. But the offensive pressure shifted in Cheyenne Mountain’s favor with around 20 minutes left when John Herd got his legs taken out from underneath him, and was fouled. Herd took the shot from the top of the 18, but it sailed over the top right corner with 12 minutes left in the half.
Herd made sure his very next shot found the back of the net. With 2:18 left in the first half, he scored on a left-footed strike at the back-right corner past Air Academy goalkeeper Matthew Pipan from 15 yards. Herd’s goal put Cheyenne Mountain up 1-0 before the whistle for halftime.
The goal was Herd’s second goal of the tournament, and 13th of the season — tying midfielder David McDermed for the team-high. Coming into Saturday’s game, Pippan had allowed just one goal in the state tournament.
Air Academy applied a ton of offensive pressure in the second half. Their pesky offense frustrated Cheyenne Mountain’s defense. Defender Doug Quirk got a yellow card with 17 minutes after arguing a call with an official that an Air Academy’s forward pushed Cheyenne Mountain’s goalie.
Alex Granados ended Air Academy’s drought by placing a penalty shot in the bottom-right corner past Cheyenne Academy goalkeeper Erich Frey with 6:09 remaining.
After that, Nehme said, “We just told our back line, and our team, that we’re not losing our heads. ‘In the next six minutes we’re going to get one — it’s ours.’ We did just that.”
Nehme responded with a goal of his own, and Cheyenne Mountain ran out the clock to earn their first 4A state title since 1995.
“I didn’t even think about anything, I told myself to just go to goal,” Nehme said. “I went behind two defenders and put it on frame. I don’t even know how I did it, I’m just so thankful.”
On Oct. 9, Air Academy won an overtime thriller at Cheyenne Mountain 4-3. Herd and Nehme each scored a goal in that contest as well.
“I told the guys we only need to be better than them today, and that’s all that matter,” Martinez said. “They can say they dominated possession, or everybody outplayed us, but it doesn’t matter. We got the better score today, and we have a great group of kids.”
AURORA — Alex Cullen sent Pine Creek to its first boys soccer state championship game in school history with a golden goal 7:29 into overtime.
The senior corralled a loose ball after a Pine Creek free kick attempt and fired a shot from 20 yards out. It was deflected multiple times on the way to the net, and when it hit the twine, it meant No. 4 Pine Creek had knocked out No. 9 Boulder, the defending Class 5A champion, with a 1-0 victory.
It was Cullen’s sixth goal this season, and the first goal Boulder had surrendered in 11 games. The last also came in overtime, in a 1-0 loss to Fairview on Sept. 26.
Pine Creek (16-1-2) spent a good portion of the game on the shoulders of keeper David Meyer, who made five saves, a number of them brilliant. Included was an early one-on-one stop against Boulder star Mason Douillard, and an acrobatic, diving defense of the net later off a corner kick.
The Jaguars, making their third appearance in a state title game in school history, got a goal from Andrew Greiner with 30:44 remaining in the game. Greiner made a great transfer on a free kick attempt and beat the keeper to his left.
Rock Canyon also advanced to the championship games in 2009 (a loss in 4A) and 2008 (winning 4A).
[divider]
Class 4A
(Bud Ozzello/CHSAANow.com)
Top-seeded Air Academy held a slim 1-0 lead at halftime before exploding for three goals in the second frame to claim a 4-0 win over No. 5 Ponderosa in the first 4A semifinal.
Air Academy got two goals from Gabriel Stuger, Alex Granados and Austin Dewing.
The win means the Kadets will play in a championship game for the sixth time in school history. Air Academy won championships in 2010 (4A) and 1990 (5A).
Air Academy will face third-seeded Cheyenne Mountain, a Pikes Peak league rival, following the Indians’ 1-0 win over No. 7 Evergreen. (See the full 4A bracket.)
Cheyenne Mountain scored with nine minutes to play and will play in the title game for the third time in school history. The Indians won championship in 1995 (3A) and 1994 (4A/1A).
Air Academy beat Cheyenne Mountain 4-3 in overtime on Oct. 1.
[divider]
Class 3A
(Jenn Roberts-Uhlig/CHSAANow.com)
No. 1 Colorado Academy scored late in the second half to beat No. 5 Kent Denver and move on in the 3A semifinal with a 1-0 win.
The Mustangs will make their fifth appearance in a title game. They won championships in 2012, 1999 and 1998.
On the opposing side will be No. 3 The Classical Academy. The Titans beat No. 2 Salida 1-0 after a first-half goal held up. (See the full 3A bracket.)
