Colorado Preps Weekly

 


All of Season C is officially in the books, as the final state championships were awarded last weekend. Focus can now fully shift to the Season D sports already being contested, with postseason play beginning in a matter of weeks.

Before we turn our attention completely to the final season of the 2020-21 school year, one last look at volleyball and spring football is needed. A total of ten championships were earned last week, with five in each sport.

Merino moved within three volleyball titles of tying Platte Valley (14) for the most in State history. The Rams had to overcome an 0-2 deficit to defending champ Fleming in the Class 1A final last Thursday and they did so behind Taysa Conger, who unofficially recorded 40 kills in the match. Merino earned its 11th championship and first since 2001, in five sets (15-25, 16-25, 25-11, 25-18, 15-9).

Wiggins made school history by earning its first crown in the sport. The top-seed in the Class 2A field, Wiggins swept its way through Yuma and Fowler, before facing off with fellow LPAA foe Sedgwick County in the finals. The Tigers kept the brooms handy, as they took care of the Cougars 25-17, 25-17 and 25-21. Lexi McCullough led the way with eight blocks and seven kills in the championship contest.

Much of the drama in Class 3A took place off the court. Lamar, who had gone 16-0 without dropping a set, was initially shut down by the CDPHE because of a COVID exposure. The school and community went to bat for the program and was able to get their local board of county commissioners and health department to end their quarantine. The Savages were subjected to another round of testing after arriving at the Broadmoor World Arena and were only allowed to disembark the bus after all had passed. They dropped the first two sets with University in their quarterfinal match and eventually fell in four sets.

The championship match pitted two Patriot League foes against each other, as top-seeded Eaton met the defending champs from Sterling. Early in the season, the two sides squared off in a thrilling five-setter, won by the Reds. They would only need four sets to dethrone the champs, 25-14, 23-25, 25-20, 25-22. The title was the 10th in program history, giving the Reds sole possession of fourth place all-time.

Thursday night also saw the champion crowned in spring 8-man football, as Hoehne and John Mall met up at the Thunderbowl at CSU-Pueblo. Hoehne had won the regular season meeting 66-34, and the Farmers would have similar success the second time around. After John Mall returned the opening kick for a touchdown, the Farmers settled in and scored 36 of the final 42 points before half. They would get the mercy clock rolling late in the third quarter and went on to claim the fourth championship in program history 64-40. It was their first since 2012.

Springfield had to wait until last Friday to finally take the diamond in Season D and the Longhorns made the most of their first outing, blasting Manzanola 26-0 in three innings. They scored eight in the top of the first and put the game out of reach with 14 in the third. Kyler Crane had a pair of hits, including a home run, while Hayden Lasley and Kegan McEndree each had a triple. Leyton Jones struck out eight and allowed one hit in his three innings of work.

After a tough 10-0 loss to Burlington last Thursday, Stratton/Liberty got back in the win column by handing Otis its first loss (18-10) on Friday. The Knighted Eagles walked nine Bulldogs in the contest, one day after issuing 13 free passes to the Cougars.

Limon improved to 5-0 on the season in Class 2A, picking up wins over Fowler (11-4) and Centauri (8-1) last Friday, and also grabbing a 3-2 victory over Holly on Saturday. Kory Tacha went the distance against Holly, allowing two runs on two hits and two walks, while striking out nine.

Wray and Sedgwick County joined the Badgers in beginning this week undefeated, while Swink and Burlington are part of a group that has one loss as the week began. Wiggins, Yuma, Fowler, County Line, and Akron all had two losses to begin play this week.

Sterling (4-1) and Lamar (3-1) were in the upper portion of the Class 3A standing through two weeks of play. Both dropped their opener. Sterling picked up two wins last week over Strasburg, 6-2 on Thursday and 11-6 on Friday. The Savages won a doubleheader on the road Friday at St. Mary's, taking the first 16-4, and the nightcap 3-0. Carson Carere drove in all three runs in the second game, while also recording seven strikeouts in three innings on the hill.

Fort Morgan evened its record at 2-2 with wins over Frederick (3-1) and Riverdale Ridge (6-0) last week. The Mustangs scored a run in the top of the sixth to tie things with Frederick, and then pushed to across the dish in the seventh to make a winner of Jessie Campa, who went the distance. Briggs Wheatley got credit for the win against Riverdale Ridge, working seven shutout innings.

In Class 2A girls soccer, Rye broke through big time to pick up its first win last Saturday. The Thunderbolts scored nine first half goals on their way to defeating Dolores Huerta Prep 12-2. Sydney Adamson recorded four goals and an assist, while Sophie Adamson added a hat trick and a helper. Chloe Richardson chipped in a goal and three assists, and Brianna Prichard tallied two goals and an assist. Stephanie Bak made eight saves to earn the victory in net.

Behind Kinzie Ensor, Swink's girls golf team continues to enjoy success this season. Ensor finished second last Thursday at a tournament in Alamosa and the team also took home second place as well. Emma Hanagan, Teagan Summers and Jade Hunter helped the Lions in the team chase.

 

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