No team in Class 5A has had a better week than Castle View.  The Sabercats knocked off #4 Chatfield on Tuesday and followed up with another victory over #2 Rock Canyon on Thursday.  There’s plenty of schedule left within the Continental conference but Thursday’s win will give the Sabercats a leg up on many other clubs in that race for that coveted crown.
Genna Ryan-Piasecki and Kate Menz paced the Jaguars with 11 kills apiece and Lauren Lowry directed the attack with 42 assists.  Leanne Lowry also registered 28 digs.  The Sabercats are off the rest of the week and likely will be the number two in the next set of rankings released on Monday.  The next night they face another strong league test against Mountain Vista.
For Rock Canyon, the match marked their first loss to an in-state club this season.  The Jags were limited to just 21 kills with 13 coming from Keeley Davis.  Abi Leitner finished with 20 assists.  They return to the court next week against Legend and Douglas County in league play.
Top ranked Fossil Ridge is 2-0 on the week heading into the Eaglecrest Tournament this weekend.  The defending state champions are the number one overall seed in the nine-team event and could face four-time reigning 3A champion Eaton at some point Saturday.  We lay out the bracket and schedule in a separate story.
The Sabercats chalked up league victories over Monarch and Loveland earlier this week.  Both finished in three games.  Mataya Megson led the Cats against Monarch with nine kills and Catie Semadeni had six.  Courtney Dix added 19 assists and Charlie Durbin 21 digs.    Against Loveland, Megson again topped the hitting stats with seven kills and Riley Zuhn chipped in seven.  Fossil Ridge also served up a dozen aces led by Dix with five and Semadeni with four.
#5 Mountain Vista is another top 10 club that will be at the Eaglecrest Tournament this weekend.  The Golden Eagles drew the #2 seed and will head up Pool B there.  Coach Doug Schaefer’s club improved to 5-0 with wins over Ralston Valley (3-1) and Regis (3-0) this week.
Chatfield’s loss to Castle View was their only action of the week.  The Chargers return to the court on the 18th at home against ThunderRidge.  The defending Jeffco champions don’t begin league play until the 27th against Arvada West.
#6 Cherry Creek has won four in a row since an opening loss to Mountain Vista.  Two of those victories have come this week against Regis and Ralston Valley in three game sweeps.  Junior Katie Sherman rocked 11 kills in the three-set win over Regis and added the same total against Ralston Valley.  She now has 71 for the season and has reached double figures in all five matches including a season best 21 against Valor Christian.
The Bruins are not done with activity this week as they host their own invitational on Saturday with a first match against Doherty at eight o’clock.   The third team in the poll is Heritage.  Nine other teams are on hand including Rocky Mountain, Bear Creek, Durango, Boulder, Arvada West, Douglas County, Lakewood and Horizon.
#7 Fort Collins ended an eight-day layoff by beating Boulder back on Tuesday.  It was their first match since September 5th.  It was their fourth consecutive victory.  Kaina Roehrkasse and Ella Steemsa each ended with eight kills.  Taylor Rohr added six.  Next up is an in-city match with Rocky Mountain next Tuesday.
Chaparral, ranked 8th, stretched their winning streak to five by beating Douglas County on Thursday.   The Wolverines continue their early run through the Continental against Regis and Heritage next week.  Their recent hot stretch has included wins over perennial powers Cherokee Trail, Arapahoe, Grandview, and Cheyenne Mountain.
9th ranked Highlands Ranch suffered their first loss on Tuesday to Valor Christian (3-1) but bounced back with a three-game sweep of Legend on Thursday.  The loss to Valor was very tight as the final two sets were decided by two points and both went into extra points.
Cassie Davis collected a game best 15 kills in the loss.  Kelsie Milkowski chipped in 12 and Jill Borgerding 10 as the Falcons hit 42 percent for the night.  Valor also placed three in double figures with Lily Thomason topping the list with a dozen.
#10 Fruita Monument continues to roll.  Thursday’s sweep of Lakewood was their sixth straight win and pushed their overall mark to 8-1.  During the streak, the Wildcats have beaten Arapahoe, Thomas Jefferson, Air Academy, and Valor Christian who all are either in or have spent time in either the 5A or 4A rankings this season.