CLASS 1A GIRLS BASKETBALL DISTRICT PREVIEW – SATURDAY
BY: KERRY SHERMAN
One team has already punched its ticket to hosting regional round, and by the end of the day, all eight district champions will be crowned. A couple districts will also have a third place game today.
DISTRICT 1 (GRAND VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL)
Top-seeded Dove Creek jumped all over #4 North Park in Friday’s semifinal, building a 24-5 first quarter lead on the way to a 68-24 victory. Meanwhile, #3 Nucla slowly pulled away from #2 De Beque in the other quarterfinal, using an 18-5 second half to grab the 46-29 win.
With those victories, the teams set up a fourth meeting of the season. Dove Creek won all three previous contests. The Lady Bulldogs got a 43-25 win in late December behind a double-double (11 points, 10 rebounds) from Rylee Hickman. She torched the Lady Mustangs for 18 points in a 62-31 win a month later. Candis Staats led Nucla with 17 points in that meeting. The teams met last Friday, with Dove Creek claiming a 60-41 win, putting four players in double figures.
Dove Creek began the day 7th in the Seeding Index, giving them a home regional with a tournament title. Nucla started 19th, but an upset could catapult the Lady Mustangs into the top-16, also giving them a home regional. De Beque (26th) and North Park (29th) are both in position for a wild card entry.
DISTRICT 2 (LAMAR COMMUNITY BUILDING)
McClave pushed its way past #5 Eads 46-16 in the semifinals on Thursday, with the #1 Lady Cards taking a 16-4 lead at the end of the first eight minutes. Three freshmen starred for McClave, with Zoe Martinez (12), Ashlynn Steinbrunn (11), and Abrielle Gomez (9) combining for 32 of the 46 points. Kit Carson avenged an earlier 50-41 loss at the hands of #2 Granada, with the #3 Lady Wildcats using a 16-7 fourth quarter to claim a 49-46 win. Tess Johnson led the way with 20 points and a dozen boards.
The Lady Cards own a pair of close wins over Kit Carson this season, 43-34 in the Lamar Holiday Tournament, and 53-48 just over two weeks ago. Gomez had 16 points in the first win and 13 in the latter. Johnson had 17 for the Lady Wildcats earlier this month.
The winner will host a region, with McClave starting the day #1 in the Seeding Index and Kit Carson fifth. The loser could potentially host as well, if the champion of another district is outside of the top-16. Granada (4th) is also in the mix for a host site as a wild card. Cheraw (12th), Eads (14th), and Cheyenne Wells (18th) will all make the regional field, while Wiley (30th) currently owns one of the final wild cards.
Eads and Granada will play for third place. Granada took a 54-34 victory over the Lady Eagles last Friday. Marissa Valenzuela erupted for a career-high 30 points in that victory.
DISTRICT 3 (LA JUNTA HIGH SCHOOL)
Springfield (10th) locked up the district title on Friday, as the Lady Longhorns exploded for 26 second quarter points to beat #3 La Veta 65-33. Springfield will host a region, while the Lady Redhawks (22nd) will also make the field. They will be joined by Kim/Branson (16th), and potentially South Baca (32nd), but the wait for the Lady Patriots looks to be very suspenseful.
DISTRICT 4 (NORTHEASTERN JUNIOR COLLEGE)
To no one’s surprise, the top two seeds reached the final in this bracket. The #1 seed, Briggsdale (3rd) walloped Weldon Valley 88-8 in the semifinals on Friday. Fleming (6th) had a tougher go against #3 Prairie, but the Lady Wildcats still earned a 55-37 victory.
Briggsdale went nuts in the third quarter of the regular season meeting with the Lady Wildcats, outscoring them 31-7 in the frame. The Lady Falcons ran away with a 64-30 win in that contest behind 26 points and nine assists from Jenna Krise. Kally Kirkwood led Fleming with six points, seven rebounds, and five assists.
Prairie (27th) looks to have done enough work to snag a wild card spot in the regional field, giving the district three squads in the final 32.
DISTRICT 5 (BRUSH HIGH SCHOOL)
From the time the brackets were released, it looked like we’d see a rematch between #1 Stratton (9th) and #2 Idalia (11th). Idalia did its part in the semifinals, as the Lady Wolves blew open a close game in the second half to take a 61-37 win over Arickaree (20th). Stratton followed suit with a 59-35 victory over #5 Otis (21st).
The Lady Eagles took a 60-49 win at Idalia last Saturday, with Sedonia Isenbart hitting five three-pointers and scoring a game-high 24 points. She also drew four charges. Krista Wieser was the lone Idalia player in double figures, scoring 16.
The district looks to get six teams into the regional field, with all four semifinalists being joined by Hi-Plains (15th) and Flagler (24th).
DISTRICT 6 (DEL NORTE HIGH SCHOOL)
The championship clash in this district will feature the top two seeds, with #1 Sangre de Cristo (13th) facing #2 Sierra Grande (23rd). The Lady Thunderbirds had no trouble handling Creede in the semifinals, racing to a 75-20 victory. Things weren’t much more interesting for the Lady Panthers, who defeated #3 Centennial 54-34. In a duel of two of the more unknown talents in the classification, Mariana Loya scored 22 points for Sierra Grande, while Xiomara Maestas finished with 11 for the Lady Rams.
Sangre de Cristo beat the Lady Panthers 56-43 just over two weeks back, with Jaydra Cordova (12) and Idahlia Garcia (11) combining for 23 points. Loya had 13 for Sierra Grande, and Jaylyn Quezada led everyone with 14.
Should Sierra Grande win the title, it looks like they will remain outside of the top-16, opening a path for a wild card team to host a region. Win or lose, they are in the field. Centennial (34th) isn’t too far out, but the Lady Rams need a lot of help on Saturday to snag a wild card spot.
DISTRICT 7 (LIMON HIGH SCHOOL)
Kiowa (8th) had no problem moving past #5 Pikes Peak Christian in the semifinals, as the top-seeded Lady Indians posted a 25-0 first quarter and ran away with the 69-18 victory. The bracket’s second seed, Genoa-Hugo (24th) controlled its contest with #3 Hanover (33rd), 50-21, to set the stage for a top-two showdown. The two finalists met in late-January, with Kiowa claiming a 56-33 victory. Jordan Perreault (23) and Kendra Byrd (20) teamed up to score 43 points for the Lady Indians. Hailey Ewing had nine for the Lady Pirates.
Pikes Peak Christian and Hanover will play for third place and even a win might not be enough to get Hanover into the regional field. The Lady Hornets, who beat PPC 51-41 last Thursday, find themselves in a similar position as Centennial, where they will need some help across the landscape on Saturday.
DISTRICT 8 (ENGLEWOOD HIGH SCHOOL)
The championship match-up has been set since Tuesday, when #1 Flatirons Academy (2nd) and #2 Belleview Christian (17th) both picked up semifinal wins. The top-seeded Lady Bison posted a 23-0 first quarter in its 60-8 victory over Front Range Baptist, with Emma Cox scoring 21 in the game. The Lady Bruins won a low-scoring affair with #3 Rocky Mountain Lutheran, 33-24, behind 18 points and 14 rebounds from Bethany Long. Flatirons Academy won the regular season contest with Belleview Christian, 66-16. Emily Dehaan led everyone with 22 points, while Long was limited to eight for the Lady Bruins.
Front Range Baptist (31st) and Rocky Mountain Lutheran (28th) will meet for third place. Both began the day just inside the regional field, and a win would help the chances of either team. RML won a 36-24 decision over the Lady Falcons on the 14th of the month.
CLASS 1A BOYS BASKETBALL DISTRICT PREVIEW – SATURDAY
BY: KERRY SHERMAN
District 3 has already crowned its champion, and the seven remaining tournaments will wrap-up today. Several brackets will play a third place game, as well.
DISTRICT 1 (GRAND VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL)
Dove Creek (10th) goes into the championship clash knowing that a win will result in a home regional. The Bulldogs nearly doubled up Ouray (30th) in the semis on Friday, taking a 60-32 victory. De Beque (25th) earned its way into the title game by outscoring #2 Nucla (24th) 15-10 in the final frame of their 51-46 win. The Dragons can throw a big wrench into the regional seeding process by upsetting Dove Creek in the finals, as they would not be in position to host since they are well outside the top-16. The two teams have not faced off this year.
Nucla looks to be safely in the regional field, along with the two finalists, but Ouray may need some help on Saturday to maintain its position as one of the final wild cards.
DISTRICT 2 (LAMAR COMMUNITY BUILDING)
Two of the hottest teams will meet in the finals in Lamar, with #2 Cheyenne Wells (6th) facing #4 Granada (13th). The Tigers got 24 points (seven threes) from Blake Gilmore in a 48-39 semifinal victory over #3 Cheraw on Thursday, while the Bobcats upset #1 McClave 51-44. That was the seventh straight win for the Bobcats since losing a 59-48 decision to Cheyenne Wells three weeks ago. The Tigers are also on a seven-game winning streak.
McClave (2nd) and Cheraw (9th) will play in the third place game. Cheraw eked out a 37-35 victory over the Cards last weekend and if the Wolverines can duplicate that feat, it might be enough to prevent the Cards from hosting a regional as a wild card, should a spot open up.
The four semifinalists will be joined in the regional bracket by Eads (16th) and Wiley (18th). Kit Carson is 34th, and could possibly make the field, but the Wildcats will need a lot of help on Saturday.
DISTRICT 3 (LA JUNTA HIGH SCHOOL)
Springfield (21st) got a bucket from Reece Porter at the buzzer to give the Longhorns a 50-48 victory over La Veta (19th) on Friday. It sealed the district title for the Longhorns, but due to their positioning in the Seeding Index on Saturday morning, it looks unlikely that they will host a regional.
The two finalists will be the only representatives from the district in the regional field, as everyone else is outside of the top-40.
DISTRICT 4 (NORTHEASTERN JUNIOR COLLEGE)
Peetz (28th) pulled off a big upset in the semifinals on Friday, as the Bulldogs bounced the top seed, Briggsdale (11th) 62-56. The Falcons had edged Peetz 61-60 earlier in the year, but the hot shooting of Rhyder Bayne (22 points) and Chance Segelke (13 points) was too much to overcome. Both of those Bulldogs hit four three-pointers in the win.
The Bulldogs will face #2 Fleming (8th) in the finals, after the Wildcats took care of #3 Prairie (29th) 58-43 in their semifinal contest. Fleming led by eight at the half and just slowly added to the margin after the intermission. The Wildcats handled Peetz 61-37 back in January. A win by the Bulldogs in the finals would create another spot for a wild card to host a regional.
The four semifinalists all should be in the regional field, but it could be a long wait for Prairie on Sunday while the process plays out. Longmont Christian (33rd) could sneak in as a final wild card if the Warriors can get enough help on Saturday.
DISTRICT 5 (BRUSH HIGH SCHOOL)
Top-seeded Stratton (4th) has had no bumps in the road during districts, taking a 75-23 win in the quarterfinals and backing that up with a 74-45 win over #4 Idalia (22nd) in the semis on Friday. After leading 16-13 at the end of the first quarter, the Eagles outscored Idalia 58-32 the rest of the way. The Eagles will face #2 Otis (5th) in the finals after the Bulldogs outscored #6 Lone Star 42-24 in the second half of a 70-44 semifinal victory. Stratton is the last team to beat Otis, as the Eagles handed the Bulldogs consecutive defeats in December and early-January. The Bulldogs have won 16 straight since those losses. Jack Willeke enters the game needing 10 points to reach 1000 in his Otis career.
Lone Star (35th) is the lone semifinalist currently on the outside, looking in. The Longhorns are three spots out of the final wild card. Arickaree (23rd) is a lock for regionals, and Hi-Plains (31st) currently holds one of the final wild card spots.
DISTRICT 6 (DEL NORTE HIGH SCHOOL)
More havoc could be created if #3 Sangre de Cristo (26th) can add a second upset to its war chest on Saturday. The T-Birds bumped #2 Centennial (20th) 45-35 in the semifinals, behind 15 points from Deagon Rogers and 14 from Andreas Olivas. They will now meet #1 Sierra Grande (17th) in the finals, after the Panthers eked out a 48-44 win over #4 Moffat (38th) in the semis. Sierra Grande beat Sangre 60-41 two weeks back.
While the Panthers began the day just outside of the top-16, a win most likely moves them up just enough to host a regional. A Thunderbird victory opens a spot for a wild card to host. It looks like only the two finalists and Centennial will advance.
DISTRICT 7 (LIMON HIGH SCHOOL)
The top two teams easily advanced to the finals, with #1 Genoa-Hugo (12th) taking a 58-38 win over Miami-Yoder, and #2 Pikes Peak Christian (14th) handling #3 Hanover 63-38. The finalists did not meet during the regular season.
Hanover and Miami-Yoder will play a third place game, but both are too far outside of the top-32 to reach regionals, even with a victory.
DISTRICT 8 (ENGLEWOOD HIGH SCHOOL)
After spending most of the season inside the top three of the Seeding Index, #1 Belleview Christian (1st) will meet #2 Denver Jewish Day (3rd) in the finals. The Bruins, who turned a 32-20 halftime lead over Front Range Baptist (15th) into a 60-46 semifinal victory, beat DJD 58-50 just over 10 days ago. The Tigers turned up the pressure in the second half of their semifinal game against Flatirons Academy (7th), outscoring the Bison 33-24 to pull away for a 58-46 win.
Front Range Baptist and Flatirons Academy will play for third, with the Falcons looking to avenge a 52-51 loss earlier in the year. Denver Academy of Torah (27th) and Denver Waldorf (32nd) began the day looking to join the four semifinalists in the regional field.
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