Rye has moved up to the No. 1 spot in this week’s Class 2A baseball rankings.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association.
With 1A baseball seeding its bracket on Tuesday, that classification does not have a ranking this week. These will serve as the final rankings of the season in all other classes.
Seven new teams hopped into this week’s baseball rankings: Pine Creek (5A), Wheat Ridge (4A), Golden (4A), Colorado Academy (3A), Holyoke (2A) and Prairie (1A).
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association.
During the regular season, new polls are released each Monday.
David Barkley is checking himself back into the volleyball coaching ranks. The longtime coach at Cheyenne Mountain has been hired as the new coach at St. Mary’s.
The school confirmed the news to CHSAANow.com on Tuesday.
Barkley spent 15 years as the coach at Cheyenne Mountain, compiling a 350-58 record. He led the team to six state championships.
He stepped down as the coach of Cheyenne Mountain in January of 2018, but was often seen around Cheyenne Mountain helping with athletic events. Barkley will also join the school as a teacher in the English department.
“He’s a teacher first and coach always,” St. Mary’s athletic director Vincent Nigro said. “We like in-building coaches. It allows us to get to know them and them to know get to know us. Having him in the building will be a tremendous asset to us.”
St. Mary’s went 15-10 in 2018 under Delia Febres-Butler and fell to Bishop Machebeuf in regionals to end the season. A win over the Buffaloes would have sent the Pirates to the Class 3A state tournament at the Denver Coliseum.
The only way to describe Tuesday’s edition of the annual rivalry game between St. Mary’s and Manitou Springs girls soccer is an emotional roller coaster.
The ride ended when Katie Fowler’s shot beat the buzzer by less than a second to give the Pirates a 2-1 overtime win on Tuesday.
Sophomore Julia Creech got the Pirates on the board in the first as Manitou looked tentative in the first 40 minutes. A different team emerged in the second half and the Mustangs were able to get plenty of chances to pull even.
They finally did so when Olivia McKenna perfectly fed Sophie McKewon in front of the net. McKewon’s shot got over the head of St. Mary’s keeper Becca Dunbaugh with just 37 seconds remaining in regulation.
Manitou rode the momentum early in the first overtime period and went on the attack. But the Pirates were able to settle down. With less than a minute left, St. Mary’s took control of the ball at midfield with enough time for one last attempt.
Fowler’s shot got by the outstretched arms of Manitou keeper Caroline Maestas. As the net cradled the ball, the horn sounded to give St. Mary’s a buzzer-beating win.
DENVER — St. Mary’s repeated as the Class 3A girls basketball state champion, topping Colorado Springs Christian for the second year in a row.
The Pirates won, 56-34.
St. Mary’s held the dynamic duo of CSCS seniors Megan Engesser and Rachel Ingram in check. Each scored 10 points. The Pirates did their work in a different way offensively, using continued ball movement and team-work as they ran away in the second half.
“They’re two players we have schemed against for four years so now maybe we can rest, but there is always somebody on the horizon,” said St. Mary’s coach Mike Burkett.
While lone senior Mackenzie Pepper leaving the proud St. Mary’s program, the rest of the talented squad will be back for the Pirates next season. Pepper left her imprint on the program by doing a lot of the dirty work, and her guidance and effort has left her mark on her younger teammates.
“In 2013 we got second in the state championship, and she (Pepper) told her mom and dad (when she was 12), ‘I want to play basketball for St. Mary’s.’ So sure enough, here she is winning two state championships,” Burkett said. “She has been important not only as a captain but helping guide the team. She just plays solid, plays consistent and that’s what we love about her.”
The Pirates took control of the contest on defense. They held an explosive 3-point group to six percent shooting from long-range and 38 percent overall. St. Mary’s used these missed shots into offensive opportunities to get out and run.
However, when the game was slowed down in the half-court set, St. Mary’s shot well, at 45 percent over and 54 percent from 3-point. They also hit on 89 percent from the free-throw line.
St. Mary’s junior Catherine Cummings recorded nine points and nine rebounds. With four of the team’s five starters returning, Cummings is excited for now, but also what could be coming.
“They (2018 and 2019 teams) were both really hard for different reasons,” Cummings said postgame about repeating as champions. “I think because we are a different team, similar, but in different ways. This year was a different motivation. We have a lot of experience, a lot of juniors on this team and a lot of people coming up, so I think we are already working for our next one.”
Junior Seneca Hackley (18 points) led St. Mary’s in scoring. That was followed by freshman Ellie Hartman, who shot 6-for-8 from the field and tallied 16 points (11 in the first half).
“She’s very important, really has been all year,” Burkett said of Hartman. “She’s been one of those kinds of kids who’s a gym-rat. We were happy to have her, especially after losing some players last year.”
