In the span of just four days, Windsor’s girls basketball flipped the script in the Class 4A Tri-Valley League.
The Wizards dominated a Holy Family team that hadn’t lost a game since Dec. 22, starting strong and closing with a flourish for a 71-44 victory last Tuesday. Holy Family shot just 27 percent from the field, and the Windsor trio of Michaela Moran, Chaynee Kingsbury and Madi Denzel combined to score 40 points.
Windsor followed that up with a 61-28 rout of third-place Mead on Friday night, with junior Hollie Hoffman going for 18 points and 10 steals.
That forges a tie for first place in the Tri-Valley between Windsor (17-4, 11-1) and Holy Family (18-3, 11-1) going into the final week of the regular season. The Wizards, who have won 10 in a row, close out at home with Berthoud and Erie, while Holy Family needs to top Mead and Roosevelt.
While some leagues are still undecided, a handful of others crowned champions last week. Despite having its 16-game winning streak snapped on Saturday with a non-league loss to 5A Lakewood, Mesa Ridge wrapped up the Colorado Springs Metro with victories over Woodland Park and Mitchell. The Grizzlies (18-3, 14-0) have a two-game lead on Widefield with two games remaining, and swept the season series from the Gladiators.
Chloe Welch had a big week for Mesa Ridge, including a 23-point, 16-rebound, six-steal effort against Woodland Park. The senior recorded 20 points and 13 rebounds in a 56-54 loss to Lakewood.
Air Academy officially closed the door on the Pikes Peak League, running its winning streak to 17 games in the process. The Kadets (20-1, 12-0) downed Vista Ridge and Falcon, allowing a season-low 16 points to the Falcons on Friday. Mary Parchinski scored 12 points against Vista Ridge.
Pueblo West secured the South Central League crown thanks to a 59-45 victory over Pueblo South, the team’s second victory over the Colts in a little more than two weeks. Pueblo West (20-1, 8-0) received a big 23-point effort from Hannah Simental, who was 10-for-10 from the free-throw line.
Rifle, winners of 16 consecutive games, can close out the Western Slope League this week. The Bears (19-1, 10-0) host Steamboat Springs on Tuesday before a big clash at Glenwood Springs (14-8, 9-2) on Thursday. The Bears swept Eagle Valley, Summit and Battle Mountain last week, with senior Elly Walters scoring 24 points against Eagle Valley and a season-high 31 points (on 12-of-16 shooting) against Summit.
Centaurus upped its winning streak to eight games with victories over Northridge and Mountain View. The Warriors (18-3, 11-1 in the Northern League) scored a season-high 83 points against the Mountain Lions, aided by a 41-point first quarter. Morgan Negrey scored 17 points and Helen Gover and Riley Negrey added 16 each.
Centaurus has a half-game lead on Greeley Central (18-4, 11-2) headed into the final week.
D’Evelyn made the Jeffco League a bit more interesting with a 53-49 victory over Valor Christian last Wednesday. The Jaguars (15-6, 8-4) swept the Eagles in the process, getting 10 points each from Angi Reed and Kylee Fridgen, and are just a game back of Valor and Golden for second place in the league.
With only one week remaining before the postseason gets underway, the last of the league titles will be determined over the next few days. Here is a look at the top games heading into this week:
The aforementioned Jeffco League is coming down to the wire, with two of the biggest games yet to be played. Evergreen (19-2, 11-1) holds a two-game lead over Valor Christian and Golden, and faces both of those teams this week.
The Cougars host Valor on Tuesday evening. A victory over the Eagles (16-5, 9-3) would lock up the league title for the defending state champions, while a loss would make Thursday night’s game against Golden (18-3, 9-3) that much more important.
Evergreen defeated both teams in back-to-back games last month. A five-point loss to Littleton on Feb. 3 tightened things up a bit, but the Cougars are still sitting in the driver’s seat.
With D’Evelyn sitting a game back of Valor and Golden, the top four spots in the league standings have yet to be determined. That makes Jeffco the must-watch league in 4A this week.
Holy Family’s loss at Windsor may have created a tie for the Tri-Valley’s top spot, but there are still two more games remaining. The Tigers travel to Mead on Tuesday to face a 15-win Maverick team that is third in the league standings.
Mead had won five in a row before last Friday’s loss to Windsor. The Mavericks lost their first meeting with Holy Family 43-36. Anna Maher is averaging 13.3 points.
Berthoud (16-5, 7-5) can still play the role of spoiler and help its own case as well. The Spartans face Windsor on Tuesday and host Mead on Friday. Berthoud, which has dropped its last three league games by a combined four points, can still climb into the third-place spot in league. Sophomore Emily Cavey is averaging 19.8 points for Berthoud.
Skyview still has a chance to make up some ground in the 4A/3A Colorado 7 with two games remaining.
The Wolverines (14-7, 3-2) have lost two in a row, including a setback to league-leading Fort Morgan last Friday. Skyview has a big game Tuesday night at Weld Central (13-4, 5-1), which needs a victory to hold onto second place.
Senior Karizma Garcia (11.1 points a game) and junior Sophia Trujillo (10 points) have paced Skyview this winter.
The Denver Prep League has a big 4A showdown Friday night with Denver South visiting Thomas Jefferson. Both teams are sitting at 5-1 in the league standings, and both squads’ only league loss came to first-place Denver East.
Thomas Jefferson (19-2) has won six in a row since an eight-point loss to the Angels on Jan. 20. The Spartans have three players scoring in doubles figures, with junior Kharial Clark (14.4 points, 8.2 rebounds) and senior Zoya Robbins (14.1 points, 8.9 rebounds) shouldering much of the load.
South (12-9) is coming off a 76-55 loss to Denver East. The Rebels dropped a 63-60 non-league loss to Thomas Jefferson earlier this season. Freshman Timiya Guevara leads the team with 15.4 points a game and senior Centoria Roberts adds 14.9.
