VOLLEYBALL - NEW RANKINGS ANNOUNCED
Doherty, Eaglecrest and Valley Collect Tournament Titles
Because of tournaments at Cherry Creek, Eaglecrest and Windsor, many of the top teams from several divisions faced off last week and all the mixed results created quite a bit of movement in our newest volleyball polls. The teams in every poll are almost identical to the previous poll but very few are in the same place this time around. Eight new teams can also be found this week with the most coming in Class 1A as three teams join the rankings for the first time.
CLASS 5A
#1 Doherty (9-0)
#2 Cherry Creek (7-1)
#3 Chaparral (8-1)
#4 Eaglecrest (6-1)
#5 Cherokee Trail (10-1)
#6 Highlands Ranch (7-2)
#7 Fort Collins (8-1)
#8 Grandview (4-4)
#9 Mountain Vista (4-2)
#10 Pine Creek (6-3)
NEW: Mountain Vista
DROPPED OUT: Lakewood (4-5)
TEAMS TO WATCH: Heritage (7-2), Bear Creek (8-1), Rangeview (6-2), Castle View (6-2), Douglas County (8-3), Boulder (6-3), Arapahoe (5-3), Chatfield (5-3), Rampart (5-3)
NOTES: With tournament events hosted by Eaglecrest and Cherry Creek, many of the division’s heavyweights were able to step on the same court again this week. Doherty captured the championship at the Cherry Creek tournament beating the host team in the finals so the Spartans replace the Bruins as the number one team in the state. The Bruins slide just one spot to second. Last week’s number two tumbled three spots as Cherokee Trail lost to Eaglecrest. The Raptors used that win to capture their own tournament crown and vaulted up four spots to fourth this week. Chaparral jumped back to third this week and ahead of a team they lost to earlier in the season (Highlands Ranch). As top teams continue to face off with one another, it’s difficult to keep using head-to-head as the sole different in the polls so we go with what teams did over the past seven days. Chaparral beat both Grandview and Rock Canyon while Highlands Ranch suffered a four set loss to Mountain Vista. The Golden Eagles are the lone newcomer to the rankings as they beat both Highlands Ranch and Pine Creek during the week. They replace Lakewood which dropped out after a 2-3 peformance at the Cherry Creek Tournament. Losses came against Doherty, Heritage and Cherry Creek.
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CLASS 4A
#1 Cheyenne Mountain (8-1)
#2 Longmont (8-0)
#3 Windsor (8-1)
#4 Lewis Palmer (8-2)
#5 Coronado (6-2)
#6 Valor Christian (4-0)
#7 Ponderosa (4-4)
#8 Durango (4-4)
#9 Thompson Valley (6-3)
#10 Elizabeth (6-1)
NEW: Thompson Valley, Elizabeth
DROPPED OUT: Green Mountain (6-2), Air Academy (6-2)
TEAMS TO WATCH: Falcon (5-0), Pueblo County (8-2), Mesa Ridge (7-2), Mead (6-2), Thomas Jefferson (6-2), Montezuma Cortez (6-3), Pueblo West (6-3), Mullen (4-3)
NOTES: Cheyenne Mountain remains solid as the number one choice in the division. The four-time defending state champs beat Legend and Rampart last week stretching their win streak to eight since an opening loss to 5A power Chaparral. Longmont keeps winning and now finds themselves in the second spot after scoring league wins over Niwot and Centaurus. Windsor dropped a two set match to 3A #1 Valley in the Northern Colorado Classic last Saturday and lost a spot to third. We kept them ahead of red-hot Lewis Palmer who had a great week with wins over Pine Creek, Coronado and Liberty because the Rangers have one more loss and also suffered a two set tournament loss to Valley as well. Valor Christian has played just four matches but they’ve won all four including a three set win over Mullen last week. They’re up two spots to sixth this week and their schedule will be much busier in late October when they compete in the Nike Tournament of Champions in Arizona. Ponderosa and Durango both had difficult weeks against predominate 5A schedules but both stay in the rankings because of their competition. Ponderosa went 4-3 on the week but did pick up a direct win over the Demons. Durango also lost to Heritage and Fairview but also have wins against Roosevelt and Mullen on their resume. Thompson Valley and Elizabeth are in the rankings for the first time this season. Thompson Valley scored wins over Centaurus and Silver Creek last week and their schedule has also been difficult with losses to Lewis Palmer and Valley. They’re the only team that has taken a game from the top team in 3A as they lost to Valley 2-1 in tournament play earlier this month. Elizabeth might be considered a surprise but it seems they’ve beaten other teams we considered for the tenth spot. Thomas Jefferson and Pueblo County were the first choices to grab that opening but the Cardinals have already beaten both the Spartans and Hornets so they earn the nod.
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CLASS 3A
#1 Valley (11-0)
#2 St Mary’s (9-1)
#3 Bayfield (7-1)
#4 Colorado Springs Christian (6-3)
#5 Eaton (9-3)
#6 Roaring Fork (8-1)
#7 Machebeuf (7-1)
#8 University (5-4)
#9 Gunnison (9-3)
#10 Lamar (5-2)
NEW: Gunnison
DROPPED OUT: Holy Family (2-7), Platte Valley (4-3)
TEAMS TO WATCH: Manitou Springs (5-3), Peak to Peak (8-1), Middle Park (5-1), Coal Ridge (6-2), Jefferson Academy (6-2), Lamar (5-2), Brush (8-4), Sterling (6-3), Olathe (6-3), Faith Christian (5-4)
NOTES: Let’s hand out some credit for teams in 3A this week as many of them ventured to either the Cherry Creek or Eaglecrest tournament to face high level competition. Eaton, University, Colorado Springs Christian and Platte Valley either played at the Eaglecrest or Cherry Creek events. Eaton went 2-3 at Eaglecrest including a loss to Colorado Springs Christian; University also went 2-3 and finished 13th, Colorado Springs Christian ended up seventh with losses to Pine Creek and Eaglecrest while Platte Valley went 2-2 at the same event. Those matches caused major changes in the rankings as Eaton and University both dropped three spots while Colorado Springs Christian moved up three. Platte Valley fell from the rankings and was replaced by surprising Gunnison. The Cowgirls are off to a 9-3 start with quality wins over Montrose, Conifer and Broomfield. They also visit Roaring Fork this Saturday in what turns out to be a key match on the Western Slope. Lamar is a second newcomer. The Savages lost a four setter to St Mary’s last week but recovered to beat Burlington. Their schedule gave them the edge in the rankings despite Peak to Peak (8-1) and Middle Park (5-1) having better overall records. They replace Holy Family which continues to struggle a bit as they went 1-3 at the Northern Colorado Classic in Windsor.
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CLASS 2A
#1 Akron (6-0)
#2 Lutheran (8-0)
#3 Simla (5-0)
#4 Byers (9-1)
#5 Rye (7-0)
#6 Sanford (6-0)
#7 Swink (3-1)
#8 Paonia (9-0)
#9 Springfield (3-0)
#10 Resurrection Christian (4-4)
NEW: Resurrection Christian
DROPPED OUT: Fowler (3-2)
TEAMS TO WATCH: Del Norte (6-0), Colorado Springs (8-1), Sangre De Cristo (8-1), Telluride (2-0), Denver Christian (7-1), Peyton (6-1), Rangely (6-1), Sierra Grande (7-2), Dayspring Christian (6-2), Holyoke (5-3)
NOTES: For the second straight week, the top three teams remain in the same order as Akron, Lutheran and Simla all survived without a loss. The 2nd ranked Lights had the best week going 3-0 overall including wins over Platte Valley (3A) and Resurrection Christian. Their win over Resurrection came in five hard sets and that loss actually moved the Cougars into the top ten despite their .500 record. Resurrection also worked five sets in losses to Akron and University earlier this season and that tough schedule gets them in the poll ahead of several other teams with better records. Rye is another team on the move. The Thunderbolts scored a win over Fowler in the previous and then out Swink last week to take control in the rugged Santa Fe conference. They must play both teams again in the round-robin league schedule. Paonia bumped two spots to 8th as they stayed perfect with wins over Norwood, Vail Mountain, Meeker and West Grand. The Eagles get a solid test at 3A Olathe on Tuesday. Sanford’s perfect mark stayed intact with victories against Custer County and Center. A stronger opponent is coming up on Saturday as the Indians face fellow unbeaten Del Norte. Sangre De Cristo has a fine record (8-1) as well despite not being ranked but those three teams among others should make for a very exciting Southern Peaks chase.
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CLASS 1A
#1 Weldon Valley (9-0)
#2 Hi Plains (4-1)
#3 Fleming (4-3)
#4 Kit Carson (5-2)
#5 Caliche (5-3)
#6 Otis (5-2)
#7 Wiley (2-1)
#8 Stratton (4-1)
#9 Idalia (6-1)
#10 Pawnee (6-2)
NEW: Idalia, Stratton, Pawnee
DROPPED OUT: Eads (3-3), Cheyenne Wells (3-3), Norwood (1-2)
TEAMS TO WATCH: Dove Creek (8-0), Flagler (3-2), Jim Elliot (6-2)
NOTES: Results from this past week and unknown results from the previous week have caused some changes in the small school rankings this week. One spot that remains the same however is at the top where Weldon Valley clipped Briggsdale in three sets to stay unbeaten. The Warriors have a very difficult week in store as they face both Akron and Fleming in a three day stretch and both those matches will be available on www.coloradopreps.tv. Hi Plains did not play last week but still bumped to second based on their tournament title in Bethune the week before. They edged Kit Carson in that event in results we didn’t have before last week’s poll was published. Kit Carson slid to fourth with that loss and also because they were knocked off by Idalia during the past week. Fleming moves up to third thanks to a quality win over Caliche. The Buffs remained in fifth despite that loss because they’ve beaten 6th ranked Otis head-to-head and the fact that three of four teams ranked below also lost during the past seven days. Newcomers are Idalia, Stratton and Pawnee. Idalia and Stratton face off Tuesday night so we’ll see if we have them in the proper order ahead of that match. Idalia beat Haxtun and Kit Carson last week in two five setters while Stratton collected three set wins over Deer Trail and Eads. Pawnee’s two losses are against Merino and Fleming but they avenged the first loss by beating the Rams later in the season. Those three edge past unbeaten Dove Creek for the open spots in the rankings. Dove Creek has not played an overly strong schedule but that fact changes this week with matches against Dolores, Telluride and Norwood.