ThunderRidge has moved up to the No. 1 spot in Class 5A in this week’s boys basketball rankings.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. During the regular season, they are released each Monday.
With the regular season set to end on Saturday, these will serve as the final rankings of the regular season.
Chaparral (in 5A) and Peetz (in 1A) have taken over the top sports in their respective boys basketball rankings this week.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. During the regular season, they are released each Monday.
MONUMENT — Just north of Colorado Springs, the Lewis-Palmer boys basketball team is proving that it is still a team to watch out for.
Friday night’s 82-67 win over No. 8 Falcon was the fourth straight victory for the Class 4A No. 2 Rangers after dropping games last week to Liberty and Palmer Ridge. Lewis-Palmer wasn’t thrown off though and has been playing stellar basketball since.
In the first quarter, Lewis-Palmer (17-2 overall, 9-1 Class 4A PPAC) started the game off with a smooth three pointer from Joel Scott which Falcon’s Noah Martinez quickly match to tie up the game. The Rangers then kicked it into game mode and went on a 8-0 run that gave them the lead that lasted the rest of the night.
“Games like these give us the confidence to play in any game,” LP coach Bill Benton said. “Our guys have been able to attack on the offensive end and be able to step up and knock down key shots.”
Lewis-Palmer’s Matthew Ragsdale had an exceptional night with 26 points and three three-pointers.
“I was getting shots in the offense and I was making them, so I had the confidence to just keep shooting,” said Matthew Ragsdale. “All of the guys played their role tonight and helped us get the win.”
Joel Scott and Carter Kreischer also had a great night, each scoring 18 points to help Lewis-Palmer come away with a league win.
(Kelsey Lowry/CHSAANow.com)
The fourth quarter started with a dunk from Scott, but the Falcons (14-5, 7-3) never gave up and continued to fight. Reece Warren would put up an impressive 26 points and Noah Martinez added 24.
Despite the Falcons coming into this game with a nine-game winning streak, a few missed passes and not connecting with shots proved to be too much to overcome.
“This was a team that was really hard to guard with some good guys and I knew we would have to play well,” Benton said. “We try to hold teams to 50 points a game and obviously we didn’t get that done, but the guys played a good physical game and I’m proud of them.”
With only four games left in the regular season, playoffs are in the back of minds for the Lewis-Palmer players.
“We still have a lot to get better on, but I’m looking forward to keep on improving,” Ragsdale said. “I’m excited and ready for March to come.”
FALCON — Don’t look now, but noteworthy basketball is being played just east of Colorado Springs.
Not since the 2014-15 season have the Falcon Falcons won more times than they’ve lost. They’ve been tied up in the shuffle of the extremely competitive Pikes Peak Athletic Conference. They’ve had to deal with Air Academy, a state champion in 2015. They’ve had to deal with Lewis-Palmer, a state runner-up in 2017.
Vista Ridge came at the Falcons with Hunter Maldonado. Sand Creek came at them with D’Shawn Schwartz.
The Falcons have just kind of been there through it all. Last season, they returned to the playoffs after a one-year absence. In 2015, they were taken down by Sierra, one of three Colorado Springs-area teams to advance to that year’s Final 4.
“How far we’ve come,” coach Mark Watley said.
The Falcons are no longer just there. They’ve gotten better. They’ve gotten so much better that they aren’t thinking about what they can do from a league standpoint, but from a state-wide standpoint.
Wednesday’s 61-51 win over Palmer Ridge was the ninth-straight victory for the Class 4A No. 8 Falcons. They’ll face a big challenge on Friday when they head to Monument where No. 2 Lewis-Palmer awaits. Falcon isn’t scared. Quite the opposite. With each win during this streak, they gain more and more confidence and are anxious for any challenge that stands in front of them.
“We’re playing for each other,” Watley said. “We’ve started to share the ball. It’s become a team thing rather than worrying about individual stats. They don’t even ask for them.”
(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)
If there’s one thing that stands out when watching them, it’s that the team as a whole has the ability to score and in a variety of ways.
Noah Martinez quietly scored 14 points in the win over the Bears. He did it with fast break layups in the first half and a couple of dagger 3-pointers in the second.
“We’re not selfish with the ball and we don’t care about stats,” Martinez said. “If we see the open man, we’re going to hit him.”
Perception is that the open man will often be Reece Warren. The senior guard has the ability to create space and knock down his jump shots.
When Martinez is also getting looks and big man Brendan Larose is dominating the paint, it makes Falcon a nightmare for opposing defenses.
“It helps our team to just have a flow,” Warren said. “We all just have to step up and play our game.”
Their game is being explosive on offense and having pride in their defense. At first glance, the Falcons appear to be a shoot first and ask question later type of team, but the overall success this year didn’t start until an emphasis was placed on the defensive side of the ball.
“We let defense take the lead,” Watley said. “That’s the biggest thing.”
They’ll need every bit of that defense on Friday in their showdown with LP. The Falcons have two league losses on their hands, dropping an overtime heartbreaker to Vista Ridge and then getting beat by the same Rangers team they face in less than 48 hours.
But LP has shown this year that they are beatable after dropping one last week to the Bears. And after Wednesday night’s game, coach Nick Mayer will be the first to say that Falcon shouldn’t be taken lightly.
“They’re very good,” Mayer said. “They’re very disciplined and they have scorers all over.”
Friday will be a big one as far as control of the PPAC goes. This isn’t the same team that the Rangers handled three weeks ago.
The Falcons are going to give it everything they have come Friday. When asked about it, a big smile came across Warren’s face. He’s excited. He’s going to have some fun.
Pueblo South (4A) and Holly (1A) took over the top spots in their respective basketball rankings this week.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. During the regular season, they are released each Monday.
The first boys basketball rankings after the break brought a host of changes, including a new No. 1 team — Creede — in Class 1A.
Joining the polls this week:
Highlands Ranch, No. 10, in 5A.
Ponderosa, No. 8, and Valor Christian, No. 9, in 4A.
Manual, No. 9, in 3A.
Limon, No. 6, and Vail Christian, No. 8, in 2A.
Sangre de Cristo, No. 8, and De Beque, No. 10, in 1A.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. During the regular season, they are released each Monday.
Voted upon by coaches and media members around the state. These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding.
First-place votes are in parentheses.
Coaches and media members looking to vote should email rcasey@chsaa.org.
Class 5A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Rock Canyon (8)
11-0
105
1
2-0
2
Grandview (3)
10-1
98
6
6-1
3
ThunderRidge
12-1
82
5
3-0
4
Chaparral
10-2
67
3
4-2
5
Denver East
9-2
62
4
3-2
6
Regis Jesuit
10-1
52
8
4-0
7
Doherty
9-2
33
10
4-0
8
Smoky Hill
7-4
32
2
3-2
9
George Washington
7-5
24
7
2-3
10
Highlands Ranch
8-2
20
–
2-0
Others receiving votes:
Rampart 8, Liberty 5, Broomfield 4, Mountain Vista 4, Castle View 2, Cherokee Trail 2, Overland 2, Cherry Creek 1, Eaglecrest 1, Rangeview 1.
Dropped out
Eaglecrest (9).
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Lewis-Palmer (14)
8-0
157
1
2-0
2
Silver Creek (1)
8-0
125
4
4-0
3
Pueblo South
9-2
124
3
2-0
4
Golden
9-2
107
2
2-0
5
Pueblo West (1)
9-2
100
9
6-0
6
Longmont
5-1
61
6
1-0
7
Holy Family
6-4
31
5
2-2
8
Ponderosa
10-1
25
–
3-0
9
Valor Christian
5-6
24
–
4-3
10
Falcon
5-3
21
10
1-1
Others receiving votes:
Evergreen 19, Widefield 18, Elizabeth 15, Windsor 15, Roosevelt 12, Air Academy 5, Mountain View 5, Palmer Ridge 4, D’Evelyn 3, Mesa Ridge 2, Steamboat Springs 2, Thomas Jefferson 2, Montrose 1, Pueblo East 1, Thompson Valley 1.
Dropped out
Windsor (7), Widefield (8).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Sterling (15)
7-0
159
1
0-0
2
Alamosa (1)
6-1
117
4
1-0
3
Faith Christian
6-2
113
3
1-0
4
Kent Denver
7-2
89
2
1-1
5
Grand Valley
6-0
76
6
0-0
6
DSST-Stapleton
4-4
62
7
0-1
7
Platte Valley
7-1
55
5
2-0
8
La Junta
7-2
34
8
0-2
9
Manual
4-3
32
–
0-0
10
The Vanguard
5-1
29
9
0-0
Others receiving votes:
Arrupe Jesuit 15, Resurrection Christian 14, Colorado Springs Christian 12, Strasburg 12, Colorado Academy 11, Bayfield 9, Centauri 9, Coal Ridge 9, Lutheran 8, Roaring Fork 5, Pagosa Springs 3, Delta 2, Jefferson 2, The Pinnacle 2, Manitou Springs 1.
Dropped out
Resurrection Christian (10).
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Sedgwick County (5)
7-0
105
1
2-0
2
Crowley County (4)
8-0
98
2
1-0
3
Del Norte
6-2
74
4
0-0
4
Yuma (1)
5-2
65
3
0-0
5
Meeker
4-2
48
8
1-1
6
Limon (1)
6-1
45
–
2-0
7
Simla
6-0
38
7
1-0
8
Vail Christian (1)
6-1
36
–
2-0
9
Ignacio
4-3
31
5
1-2
10
Sanford
3-3
30
6
0-1
Others receiving votes:
Byers 16, Hoehne 14, Custer County 9, Twin Peaks 9, Highland 8, Merino 5, Plateau Valley 5, Clear Creek 4, Evangelical Christian 4, Dolores Huerta 3, Haxtun 3, Hotchkiss 2, Paonia 2, Sargent 2, Calhan 1, Dawson 1, Fowler 1, Front Range Christian 1.
Dropped out
Byers (9), Hoehne (10).
Class 1A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Creede (5)
8-0
91
3
1-0
2
Holly (4)
8-0
81
1
0-0
3
Peetz (1)
8-0
74
2
2-0
4
Heritage Christian
5-1
44
9
0-0
5
South Baca
4-2
42
4
1-1
6
Longmont Christian
6-1
39
5
1-0
7
Cheyenne Wells
5-1
32
6
1-0
8
Sangre de Cristo
6-1
24
–
2-0
9
Primero
5-1
23
10
1-0
10
De Beque
7-0
21
–
1-0
Others receiving votes:
Front Range Baptist 19, Kit Carson 14, Moffat 9, Aguilar 7, Rocky Mountain Lutheran 5, Sierra Grande 5, Mile High Academy 3, Caliche 1, Shining Mountain 1.
A host of new teams joined this week’s boys basketball rankings.
Included: Eaglecrest and Doherty in 5A, Widefield in 4A, Byers and Hoehne in 2A, and Creede and Primero in 1A.
With a relatively light schedule this week, these will be the final rankings prior to the winter break.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. During the regular season, they are released each Monday.
Voted upon by coaches and media members around the state. These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding.
First-place votes are in parentheses.
Coaches and media members looking to vote should email rcasey@chsaa.org.
Class 5A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Rock Canyon (12)
9-0
129
1
4-0
2
Smoky Hill (1)
4-2
95
3
1-0
3
Chaparral
6-0
85
6
2-0
4
Denver East
6-0
84
2
0-0
5
ThunderRidge
9-1
75
5
3-0
6
Grandview
4-0
65
7
1-0
7
George Washington
5-2
55
4
1-1
8
Regis Jesuit
6-1
53
8
2-0
9
Eaglecrest
5-3
32
–
2-1
10
Doherty
5-2
8
–
2-1
Others receiving votes:
Cherokee Trail 7, Rampart 7, Liberty 6, Rangeview 6, Highlands Ranch 3, Castle View 2, Overland 2, Mountain Vista 1.
Dropped out
Rangeview (9), Overland (10).
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Lewis-Palmer (13)
6-0
130
1
2-0
2
Golden
7-2
107
2
2-1
3
Pueblo South
7-2
103
3
2-1
4
Silver Creek
4-0
80
4
3-0
5
Holy Family
4-2
56
5
1-1
6
Longmont
4-1
40
9
2-0
7
Windsor
5-1
37
7
2-1
8
Widefield
4-1
29
–
2-0
9
Pueblo West
3-2
28
6
1-1
10
Falcon
4-2
25
10
0-1
Others receiving votes:
Ponderosa 17, Thomas Jefferson 13, Valor Christian 11, Roosevelt 10, Mountain View 6, Evergreen 5, Glenwood Springs 3, Mesa Ridge 3, Pueblo East 3, Elizabeth 2, Littleton 2, Air Academy 1, Cheyenne Mountain 1, Mead 1, Sierra 1, Thompson Valley 1.
Dropped out
Valor Christian (8).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Sterling (15)
7-0
150
1
1-0
2
Kent Denver
6-1
95
2
1-1
3
Faith Christian
5-2
89
5
3-0
4
Alamosa
5-1
74
4
0-0
5
Platte Valley
5-1
69
3
1-1
6
Grand Valley
6-0
62
7
2-0
7
DSST-Stapleton
4-3
56
6
1-1
8
La Junta
7-0
23
10
1-0
9
The Vanguard
5-1
21
9
1-1
10
Resurrection Christian
4-3
20
8
1-1
Others receiving votes:
Colorado Academy 19, Colorado Springs Christian 19, Manual 19, Coal Ridge 16, Lutheran 15, Bayfield 12, Brush 12, Arrupe Jesuit 11, Strasburg 11, Roaring Fork 7, Fort Lupton 5, Delta 4, Frontier Academy 4, Jefferson 4, The Pinnacle 3, Pagosa Springs 2, Ridge View Academy 2, DSST-Green Valley Ranch 1.
Dropped out
None.
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Sedgwick County (6)
5-0
100
1
2-0
2
Crowley County (3)
7-0
92
2
2-0
3
Yuma (1)
5-2
59
3
1-1
4
Del Norte
6-2
56
4
2-0
5
Ignacio (1)
3-1
42
6
2-1
6
Sanford
3-2
40
5
0-1
7
Simla
5-0
38
9
3-0
8
Meeker
3-1
31
7
0-1
9
Byers
6-1
27
–
3-0
10
Hoehne
6-1
22
–
2-0
Others receiving votes:
Limon 21, Cripple Creek-Victor 20, Plateau Valley 19, Highland 12, Vail Christian 9, Mancos 8, Hotchkiss 3, Fowler 2, Paonia 2, Dawson 1, Twin Peaks 1.
Dropped out
Highland (8), Cripple Creek-Victor (10).
Class 1A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Holly (5)
8-0
76
1
3-0
2
Peetz (2)
6-0
66
3
2-0
3
Creede (2)
7-0
57
–
2-0
4
South Baca
3-1
51
7
2-0
5
Longmont Christian
5-1
37
6
2-0
6
Cheyenne Wells
4-1
32
2
1-1
7
Front Range Baptist
5-1
30
8
2-0
8
Kit Carson
4-1
26
5
2-1
9
Heritage Christian
5-1
25
10
2-0
10
Primero
4-1
23
–
1-0
Others receiving votes:
Sierra Grande 21, DeBeque 18, Sangre de Cristo 12, Cotopaxi 8, Cheraw 6, Fleming 6, Rocky Mountain Lutheran 1.
The 2017 all-state football teams 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 across the state.
Players were placed onto the first-team, second-team and honorable mention based upon the number of votes they received. In 5A-1A, spots were reserved for linemen and one kicker/punter, while 8-man reserved spots for linemen.
CHSAA does not determine who makes or doesn’t make the team; they are created entirely from the results of the coaches’ vote.
There were plenty of changes as the first boys basketball rankings of the regular season were released. Included: Lewis-Palmer is now the new No. 1 team in Class 4A.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. During the regular season, they are released each Monday.
Voted upon by coaches and media members around the state. These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding.
First-place votes are in parentheses.
Coaches and media members looking to vote should email rcasey@chsaa.org.
Class 5A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Rock Canyon (9)
5-0
108
1
5-0
2
Denver East (1)
6-0
74
6
6-0
3
Smoky Hill
3-2
73
2
3-2
4
George Washington
4-1
72
3
4-1
5
ThunderRidge (1)
6-1
58
5
6-1
6
Chaparral
4-0
54
8
4-0
7
Grandview
3-0
44
10
3-0
8
Regis Jesuit
4-1
42
7
4-1
9
Rangeview
4-1
18
–
4-1
10
Overland
0-3
15
4
0-3
Others receiving votes:
Rampart 13, Doherty 10, Eaglecrest 7, Cherokee Trail 4, Arvada West 3, Douglas County 3, Broomfield 2, Fruita Monument 2, Cherry Creek 1, Horizon 1, Legacy 1.
Dropped out
Eaglecrest (9).
Class 4A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Lewis-Palmer (14)
4-0
157
4
4-0
2
Golden (1)
5-1
128
1
5-1
3
Pueblo South
5-1
107
2
5-1
4
Silver Creek
1-0
84
6
1-0
5
Holy Family
3-1
73
5
3-1
6
Pueblo West
2-1
71
3
2-1
7
Windsor
3-0
50
–
3-0
8
Valor Christian
1-2
38
8
1-2
9
Longmont
2-1
30
9
2-1
10
Falcon
4-1
28
10
4-1
Others receiving votes:
Evergreen 24, Widefield 23, Thompson Valley 19, Mead 11, Cheyenne Mountain 9, Ponderosa 7, Littleton 6, Summit 5, Mesa Ridge 3, Pueblo East 2, Roosevelt 2, Thomas Jefferson 2, Glenwood Springs 1.
Dropped out
Widefield (7).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Sterling (15)
6-0
159
1
6-0
2
Kent Denver (1)
5-0
110
3
5-0
3
Platte Valley
4-0
86
–
4-0
4
Alamosa
5-1
72
7
5-1
5
Faith Christian
2-2
54
2
2-2
6
DSST-Stapleton
3-2
51
5
3-2
7
Grand Valley
4-0
41
–
4-0
8
Resurrection Christian
3-2
38
4
3-2
9
The Vanguard
4-0
36
–
4-0
10
La Junta
6-0
34
–
6-0
Others receiving votes:
Colorado Springs Christian 26, Lutheran 24, Coal Ridge 21, Frontier Academy 20, Centauri 17, Strasburg 15, Fort Lupton 12, Bayfield 10, Roaring Fork 10, Manitou Springs 8, The Pinnacle 8, Buena Vista 7, Arrupe Jesuit 6, Pagosa Springs 5, Peak to Peak 4, Brush 3, DSST-Green Valley Ranch 3, Colorado Academy 2, Jefferson Academy 2, Ridge View Academy 2, The Academy 1, Eaton 1, Jefferson 1, Manual 1.
Dropped out
Colorado Springs Christian (6), Lutheran (8), Bayfield (9), Strasburg (10).
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Sedgwick County (7)
3-0
83
1
3-0
2
Crowley County (1)
5-0
80
9
5-0
3
Yuma (2)
4-1
72
–
4-1
4
Del Norte
4-2
60
3
4-2
5
Sanford
3-1
51
7
3-1
6
Ignacio (1)
1-0
33
10
1-0
7
Meeker
3-0
30
–
3-0
8
Highland
2-2
26
4
2-2
9
Simla
2-0
24
–
2-0
10
Cripple Creek-Victor
5-1
19
–
5-1
Others receiving votes:
Hoehne 16, Hotchkiss 12, Limon 12, Sargent 11, Fowler 10, Plateau Valley 10, Byers 9, Haxtun 9, Vail Christian 9, Twin Peaks 6, Dawson 5, Mancos 5, Merino 2, Paonia 2, Dolores Huerta 1, Evangelical Christian 1.
Dropped out
Holyoke (2), Paonia (5), Fowler (6), Akron (8).
Class 1A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Holly (4)
5-0
68
1
5-0
2
Cheyenne Wells (1)
3-0
59
2
3-0
3
Peetz (2)
4-0
51
6
4-0
4
Cotopaxi
2-1
49
–
2-1
5
Kit Carson
2-0
37
7
2-0
6
Longmont Christian
3-1
32
8
3-1
7
South Baca
1-1
25
10
1-1
8
Front Range Baptist
3-1
22
5
3-1
9
Sierra Grande
3-2
20
9
3-2
10
Heritage Christian
3-1
18
–
3-1
Others receiving votes:
Primero 15, Cheraw 9, DeBeque 9, Fleming 9, Creede 8, Sangre de Cristo 3, Shining Mountain 3, Arickaree/Woodlin 1, North Park 1, Rocky Mountain Lutheran 1.
