A good share of the focus on the Saturday girls’ basketball slate may be on Class 3A where highly anticipated battles between Centauri-Pagosa Springs and Platte Valley-University are scheduled. Top ranked Lutheran also has a huge challenge against Chaparral, a top 10 club from Class 5A.
CLASS 1A
#2 Kit Carson vs #7 Fleming (Postponed)
FINAL: #4 Simla beat Stratton/Liberty 57-42
FINAL: #5 Flatirons Academy beat Evangelical Christian 62-21
#6 McClave vs Hi Plains (Postponed to Feb 23rd)
FINAL: #8 Kim/Branson beat Primero 62-6
FINAL: #10 Cotopaxi beat Centennial 49-17
FINAL: Idalia beat Arickaree/Woodlin 38-25
Vail Christian at North Park
NOTES: In a normal season, the clash between Kit Carson and Fleming would be among the biggest draws across the state. The two sets of Wildcats have played some big games in the recent past including a few meetings at the state tournament. Kit Carson though is favored to get the win at their new home this afternoon. Now only are the Wildcats playing at a high level but Fleming is missing two of their key players. Jenna Vandenbark has been out with injury since day one and Kally Kirkwood joined her on the injury list earlier this year. Without those two, the Wildcats have lost two of three including a tough 59-46 loss to Merino on Tuesday. Merino led 16-4 after one and 30-12 at intermission. Kit Carson will look for a similar start today as the program (7-0) seems to be back in state championship form. They’ve been remarkably consistent on offense. Other than a 73 point outburst against Wiley, they’ve scored between 52-60 points in every other game. And with seven players averaging between five and 10 points, they also share the ball very well. Tess Johnson (9.5) and Sedonia Isenbart (9.2) lead that list. Otherwise, there are mostly non-league games across the board with the exception of Arickaree/Woodlin-Idalia in the YWKC and Vail Christian-North Park on the Western Slope. Lone Star and Arickaree/Woodlin share the early YWKC race (1-0) but the Longhorns have the advantage since they’ve already beaten Idalia. The Indian-Mustangs can make it a two-team race if they also score the win over the Wolves today. Both teams have faced top ranked Briggsdale this year. Arickaree/Woodlin came up short 51-18 last night and Idalia fell 72-44 at the end of week one. Vail Christian (2-1) and North Park (3-2) are both above five hundred on the season and today’s winner could become a top challenger to Soroco in the WSL North. The Rams are 5-0 overall and favored. Vail Christian hasn’t played since the 5th when they beat Hayden 47-34. North Park is coming off a 64-51 loss to Rangely last night.
CLASS 2A
FINAL: #2 Sanford beat Fowler 44-42 (Fowler Tournament)
#3 Holyoke vs Wiggins (PPD TO MONDAY)
FINAL: Paonia beat #5 Cedaredge 29-27
FINAL: #6 Rocky Ford beat Hoehne 48-24
FINAL: #9 Soroco beat Meeker 61-45
FINAL: Sedgwick County beat Dayspring Christian 49-29
NOTES: Holyoke and Wiggins have been pushed back to Monday and with snow and cold temperatures across much of the state, don’t be surprised if more of these games get postponed or cancelled all together. The most important one was slated to be Cedaredge and Paonia but that contest lost some luster with Paonia’s 39-36 loss at Plateau Valley last night. Had the Eagles gained that victory, today’s showdown with Cedaredge would have been for the outright lead in the WSL Southern division. Instead, the 5th ranked Bruins can gain a two game edge on Paonia and all other teams with a win. They’re favored to do that as Kammie Henderson enters the game averaging a double-double of 17.5 points and 11 rebounds. Elizabeth Gilmore is her running mate and brings with her 10 points and nearly eight rebounds a contest. The rest of the top 10 games may be decided by more than 10 points as Rye, Rocky Ford and Soroco are favored against teams with records below 500. All are conference games so the Lions, Meloneers and Rams look to keep a share of first place. Dayspring Christian looks to end a recent by Sedgwick County as the Cougars have beaten Wray and Burlington on the road the last two nights. Dayspring blitzed 1A Flatirons Academy (52-10) on Thursday and has held three of their last four opponents to 14 points or less. Offensively, the Eagles are paced by Corrin Sides (15.6) and Aliya McClanahan (11.6). Sanford and Fowler compete for the Fowler tournament title this afternoon. Both were easy winners over Holly and Peyton respectively on day one yesterday.
CLASS 3A
FINAL: #8 Chaparral (5A) beat #1 Lutheran 56-50
FINAL: #2 Vanguard beat Buena Vista 72-17
FINAL: #4 Centauri beat #6 Pagosa Springs 53-48
#5 Academy vs KIPP Collegiate
FINAL: #7 St Mary’s beat Colorado Springs Christian 64-55
FINAL: #8 Platte Valley beat University 40-36
FINAL: #9 Delta beat Roaring Fork 65-19
FINAL: #10 Brush beat Strasburg 54-18
FINAL: Moffat County beat Grand Junction 38-32
NOTES: Through four games in the Metro, Lutheran shares the lead with Kent Denver and Peak to Peak but today the Lions take a break from that slate for a major step up in competition. They look to take down a neighboring top 10 club from Class 5A in Chaparral. The Wolverines are 5-1 with a lone loss against 3rd ranked Highlands Ranch 59-35 on February 4th. Since they’ve beaten ThunderRidge and Rock Canyon by a combined 42 points. Lutheran has quality wins over 4A Holy Family and 3A preseason number one University but hasn’t been pushed in league play; topping four Metro opponents by 137 points overall. Raelyn Kelly (14.2) and Stephanie Schultz (14.0) are basically co-leaders on the score sheet as they’re separated by just one point on the season. Absolutely no surprise that the Centauri-Pagosa Springs contest is important to the IML chase. That’s been the case down there for over a decade. This year, the teams are a combined 5-0 in league play and each has already built a two game edge on the three other clubs. It’s also the first of two meetings so the race won’t be decided today. Pagosa Springs played last night; rolling Montezuma Cortez 73-20. Adelyn Dozier hit six three-pointers on her way to a game high 24 points. Molly Graham added 19 points and eight rebounds. Centauri also played and beat Cortez (88-23) in their last outing. It was nice and easy follow-up to last Saturday’s exciting win over 2A #1 Rye (59-57). Against Cortez, Brenna McDaniel dropped in 30 points with many coming off her eight steals. She also had eight assists. Courtney Hamilton provided 23 points and 12 rebounds as well. Following a loss to Lamar on Thursday, St Mary’s finds themselves part of a five-way tie for third in the Tri Peaks with all teams trailing Vanguard (4-0) and Ellicott (3-0) by one game. Lamar had two players go for double-doubles as Sydney Dunning had 13 points and 12 rebounds with Abby Robbins collecting 11 points and 13 boards. CSCS is coming off a tough 62-24 loss to Vanguard on Thursday. By comparison, Buena Vista fell to the Lions 45-31 so even though they trail the Coursers by just one game in the league standings, they enter as heavy underdogs. The Demons responded to the loss with three straight wins including Thursday’s 48-12 demolition of Banning Lewis. Platte Valley and University shapes up to be a good one as both clubs need a win to stay in position for the Patriot crown. Platte Valley (2-0) shares the lead with Eaton (5-0) and University is a game back and tied for third with Brush with one loss apiece. The Bulldogs lost their head-to-head with the Beetdiggers so they’re officially in fourth. University seems to have righted the ship. They lost three straight tight games to Lutheran, Brush and Weld Central but have captured their last three; beating Sterling, Valley and Resurrection Christian. Kylie Kravig is the team leader in points (17.2), assists (3.8) and steals (4.0) and sits second in rebounds (5.0). Platte Valley has cruised by Brush (58-33) and Sterling (63-47) in conference play. Brooke Bunting (16), Cora Schissler (13) and Bree Bunting (12) all reached double figures against Brush. Schissler (18), Bree Bunting (14) and Cassie Ridings (11) combined for 43 vs Sterling. Brush should be able to stay in contention against winless Strasburg. Delta looks to avoid a letdown following a confidence boosting 56-37 win over 5A Fruita Monument. The Panthers gained control with a sparkling 16-3 run in the third quarter. Despite missing all 10 three-point attempts, Delta still shot 52 percent overall from the field (23-44) with Erika Kuta getting 18 points, Jessica Dexter 13 and Alexa Huff 12. Academy got pushed in league play for the first time in two years but managed to fight past Bennett 55-44 on Thursday. A much easier win should be obtained this afternoon.
CLASS 4A
FINAL: #4 George Washington beat Denver East 62-55
FINAL: Montrose beat #9 Grand Junction Central 56-50
FINAL: Thomas Jefferson beat Denver West 54-30
NOTES: DPL standings entering the day have George Washington (3-0) and Denver South (4-0) tied for the top spot with Denver East (3-1) and Denver West (2-1) both sitting one game back. As a result, both games on the list will have a major impact on the championship race. GW has allowed just 63 points in three conference wins, which is far and away the best number among league members. They average nearly 21 steals per game with EmmaJo Locks and Jaida Redwine both averaging around six. East’s league loss came to Denver South so another to GW today knocks them out of the title picture. The Angels have won two straight since including a 71-46 decision over Thomas Jefferson Tuesday night. They forced 21 turnovers. TJ lost to GW in their next game (63-23) so they enter today’s battle with West on a two-game losing streak. Brooke Murrell (20.6) is their best option offensively. Denver West’s perfect season came to an end on Thursday with a 64-59 loss to Kennedy. Despite the setback, Chloe Lovato (25) and Mia Trevino (21) still combined for 46 points. Grand Junction Central looks to bounce back from a loss to Fruita Monument this week. It was their league opener and first loss of the season. They sit one game back of both Fruita and Grand Junction who each won their first two conference games. Montrose is 1-4 this year.
CLASS 5A
#9 Rangeview vs Hinkley
NOTES: Rangeview (5-0) and Hinkley (3-2) could be a good battle as the Raiders look to stay atop the East Metro standings. The Raiders have outscored their first two league opponents 151-34 and need a test in league play. Their best win overall came against Broomfield 57-45 just before league play opened as Nyera West dumped in 19 points and both Amari Bullock and Genesis Sweetwine added a dozen. Hinkley has split two league games; falling to Northglenn (44-30) before beating Prairie View (40-38) earlier this week. Emma Josephson (13.0) is their top scorer. Another important game within the conference between #10 Vista Peak and Northglenn was originally scheduled for today but it has been postponed. Vista Peak was upset by Westminster on Tuesday and could not play as scheduled against Regis last night.
