Fall is right around the corner and the regular seasons across the board are nearing the midpoint. Volleyball and softball tournaments have been the norm, and football is beginning to see more league match-ups. Cross country and golf have been almost as hot as the late summer temperatures.
Our report each week is presented by Pro Ag Solutions. PHOTO PROVIDED BY AUSTIN ADAMSON.
Stratton’s girls had a strong showing at the Fort Morgan Invite last Friday, with Keirstyn Louthan turning in a 17th place finish and Whitney Cure coming in 31st. Claudia Sanza checked in at 40th place, and Trudy Goodnow claimed 51st. There were 80 runners in the field, and the race was pushed back to late afternoon/early evening due to temperatures near 100 degrees.
Lamar’s cross country teams were in Colorado Springs last Friday, competing in the Harrison Panthers Invitational. Branden Davis once again led the boys, claiming third place overall. Cole Krug narrowly missed a top-10 finish, crossing the line in 12th place. As a team, the Savages were sixth. On the girls’ side of the event, Karina Gomez was the best finisher for Lamar, finishing in 18th position. Koraima Gomez was 26th, helping the team to a sixth place standing.
Boys golf will see a number of league tournaments this week, including the Northeastern League on Tuesday. Stratton’s Braden Wedel will be one of the favorites, along with several Sterling golfers. Regional tournaments are on tap for next week.
Lamar softball spent last weekend in Pueblo, participating in the Pueblo County Invitational. It was a good weekend for the Savages, as they posted a 3-1 mark in the event. They dropped their opener to Cheyenne Mountain, 11-10, but bounced back to blank Woodland Park 14-0 to close out Friday’s action. On Saturday, the Savages claimed wins over Classical Academy (16-6) and Palmer Ridge (11-2). Lamar brought a 9-4 record into this week, with games against Rocky Ford and Alamosa on the schedule.
Burlington had all of its athletic programs shutdown last week due to a COVID outbreak. That removed them from a softball tournament in Brush over the weekend, and also put their volleyball and football teams on ice. The Cougar gridiron gang had been scheduled to host Goodland (KS), in which they would have been looking for a second straight win. This was their scheduled bye week.
Four of the other Class 1A North Central squads were in action last week, and all came away with wins. Limon downed Strasburg 20-0, while Wiggins moved past Olathe 53-6, and Holyoke defeated Bridgeport (NE) on the road 27-20. Those were all played on Friday. Wray improved to 2-1 with a 55-6 win over Estes Park on Saturday. Yuma had the week off.
In other 1A action, Trinidad fell at home to Ignacio, 40-6. The Miners are 0-2 on the season.
The featured eight-man match-up in the region had Akron hosting Fowler on Saturday night. Both teams entered the contest unbeaten. The game did not live up to the hype, as the hosts blanked the Grizzlies 41-0. After a scoreless first quarter, the Rams started to pull away with 14 points in each of the next two frames. Fowler (1-1) turned the ball over four times in the loss.
Haxtun also stayed unbeaten, as the Bulldogs visited Fleming on Saturday and handed the Wildcats a 46-0 defeat. The game was a last minute addition, as both squads lost opponents during the week. Haxtun had been slated to host Wiley on Friday, but that was changed after the tragic accident that claimed the lives of four Wiley students on Wednesday night. Fleming, the two-time defending six-man champ, saw its game with Flagler scrapped due to the Panthers not having enough healthy players. The neighboring schools came together to make sure both could play a full schedule.
In six-man, top-ranked Granada flexed its muscles in a 62-14 win over previously fifth-ranked Idalia on Friday. Dominic Coleman and his younger brother, Maddox, had a field day. Dominic completed 15 of 19 passes for 399 yards and seven touchdowns, while Maddox caught 10 passes for 271 yards and seven scores. In two games, the duo have hooked up 14 times, with 10 going for touchdowns. The Bobcats are right back on the road in another high profile contest this week, as they visit #2 Cheyenne Wells on Saturday. The Tigers raced past rival Kit Carson, 69-6 last week. They led 48-0 after one quarter.
Eight of the top ten teams in the classification won last week, including Branson/Kim, who defeated Deer Trail 72-14 in the first game played on the new artificial turf “Field of Dreams” in Branson. The Bearcats are 3-0 heading into this week’s game at Cotopaxi.
Moving on to volleyball, there are just three unbeaten teams left in 1A, with two being separated by just a few miles. Wiley and McClave both come into the week without a blemish and they won’t meet until the regular season finale. However, Wiley has a tough match-up with Stratton on Saturday. Stratton beat Otis 3-0 last Saturday, giving the Eagles five straight wins, including a 3-0 sweep of Genoa-Hugo earlier in the week.
Merino is the other unbeaten in the class and the defending champs are well rested coming into this week. The Rams handed Holyoke a 3-0 loss last Tuesday, and have been off since. They returned to action on Tuesday against Otis, and have a huge clash with Sedgwick County on Friday.
Fowler heads into the week as one of five undefeated teams in Class 2A, at 5-0 on the young season. Hoehne (6-1) is part of the pack with just a single loss. Those two are slated to meet in Fowler on Tuesday. They will hook up again on October 21st, in Hoehne.
After ascending to the top of the 3A rankings last week, Lamar went out and looked the part. Last Thursday, the Savages headed east down Highway 50 to take on Garden City, a 6A program in Kansas. Lamar took the first two sets by scores of 25-12 and 25-13, before dropping the third, 21-25. The fourth set looked more like the first two, with Lamar winning 25-12. Sydney Dunning pounded out 20 kills in the match. Saturday’s trip to Buena Vista resulted in a sweep, with the Savages winning 25-15, 25-13, 25-19. Dunning recorded 21 kills.
