For the first time, CHSAA will crown multiple classifications of boys volleyball champions with the Class 5A and 4A state tournaments beginning this week.

This is the first year that the sport was split into two classifications after going unclassified for its first three years of sanctioning. As a result of needed floor space, the tournament has moved from its previous location of Overland High School to Trojan Arena at Fountain-Fort Carson High School, located south of Colorado Springs.

Below is quick information about Trojan Arena and a brief tournament preview as games begin Thursday at 12 p.m.

Trojan Arena

Address:
10665 Jimmy Camp Rd
Fountain, CO 80817

Parking available on site.

Insider tip: Get off I-25 at Exit 128 and take Santa Fe Ave toward Fountain (make a left at the exit if coming from the north, make a right if coming from the south).

Take a right on Indiana Ave. (Illinois is closed) and then take a right on Main St. Follow Main St. (it turns into Old Pueblo Rd.) and take a left on Link. Follow Link until you turn left on Jimmy Camp Road. Go past the main parking lot for the high school and then make a right to get to the arena parking lot.

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Class 5A

The only two teams to win official state titles in boys volleyball history are seeded in the 5A tournament. Defending champion Mountain Vista is the No. 2 seed and will start its playoff run against Valor Christian. Luke Colquette leads the Golden Eagles with 228 kills. Mountain Vista doesn’t have the highest quantity of kills, but it does have efficient hitters as Dax Robinson (.449) and Colquette (.416) have two of the top three hitting percentages in the classification.

Valor Christian will counter with Reed Fisk, who was one of just two 5A players (Vista PEAK’s Tristan Rowley being the other) to total over 300 kills this season.

Littleton Public Schools is the top seed on the bracket after ending the regular season and regionals with a 24-1 record. The lone loss was a regular season tournament loss to Mountain Vista. Brady Wiggers leads LPS with 260 kills. His 52 blocks are second to only Sam Abeyta’s 54.

Discovery Canyon won the sport’s first two state championships and battled through regionals to get the No. 6 seed at state. The Thunder open the tournament against No. 3 Eaglecrest. They’ll have the advantage of playing close to home, but the Thunder are 0-2 against other teams in the bracket (Grandview and Valor Christian).

Legacy is the No. 4 seed and takes on No. 5 Grandview in the first round. The Lightning have won four straight matches, all by a sweep. The Wolves have wins over Valor Christian, Discovery Canyon and Mountain Vista this season.

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Class 4A

Regis Groff enters the tournament as the top overall seed. Two of the Fusion’s three losses came against Cherry Creek District schools in Cherokee Trail and Eaglecrest. Marco Hicks, Eamon McKim and Ronin Murray-Kuo all come into the tournament with over 100 kills, giving the Fusion a diverse hitting attack. They start the tournament against No. 8 Lutheran, who struggled at the end of the regular season before sweeping Vanguard and Colorado Springs Christian to advance to state.

No. 2 D’Evelyn comes into the tournament with seven straight wins to its name, dropping just two total sets in that timeframe. Tarin Cavanaugh is second in 4A with service aces, connecting on 73 this season. The Jags take on Stargate in the first round. It’s a rematch from the first match of the season where D”Evelyn won 3-1.

The Dunlap brothers of Brody and Brady have been instrumental in leading the Colts to the No. 3 seed. They’ve combined for over 380 kills, with Brody totaling a team-high 221. Denver Waldorf got through a tough stretch where it suffered losses to Thomas Jefferson and D’Evelyn before beating Kennedy in five sets and then sweeping Hinkley and Mountain View in regionals.

No. 4 DSST: College View did a great job stacking its schedule with competitive teams. The Wolves faced. Stargae, Mountain Vista, Pueblo South and Regis Groff throughout the season. They’ll be battle tested as they face No. 5 Severance. Diego Moreno leads the team with 215 kills. Severance last lost on March 12 against, when it got swept by Chaparral in a regular season tournament. Gabe Schneekloth is the state’s leader in aces with 86.