A few league championship games can be found on the Friday girls’ basketball schedule. Some of those matchups include Sangre De Cristo-Sierra Grande (1A), Kim/Branson-South Baca (1A), Delta-Grand Valley (3A) and Green Mountain-D’Evelyn (4A).
In Class 1A, Sangre De Cristo and Sierra Grande are both unbeaten in the Southern Peaks with Sierra Grande also meeting third place Centennial on Saturday. The Panthers win the title with two wins, but Sangre De Cristo is favored to grab the win this evening. Neither South Baca or Kim/Branson is ranked this week but they’ve combined for 27 wins against just four losses on the season. The winner nabs the Ark Valley crown.
A couple of other 1A games of note. The Rocky Mountain Lutheran-Front Range Baptist winner could end up second to Flatirons Academy in the 5280. Evangelical Christian challenges 9th ranked Kiowa inside the Black Forest. ECA is tied with Simla for the conference lead with Kiowa alone in third one game back. The Indians have already lost to Simla so a loss to ECA tonight eliminates them from the league championship discussion. A win by ECA leaves Simla alone in first.
In Class 3A, Delta enters the weekend with a one game edge on both Moffat County and Grand Valley. The Panthers have already beaten Moffat County so a win over Grand Valley puts them in great shape inside the Western Slope chase. The two clubs are ranked 8-9 this week.
Also out west is a key matchup between Pagosa Springs and Centauri. The Intermountain race is very tight with Centauri and Alamosa sharing the league lead and Pagosa Springs one game back. The Pirates have two losses to Alamosa but beat Centauri in their first meeting. A loss leaves them probably with third as their best finish. A win keeps them in line for a share of the championship. Should Centauri win, then their game with Alamosa next week will determine first and second.
In Class 4A, Green Mountain beat D’Evelyn in their first meeting so a second win gives the Rams another league championship. That first result is the only game separating the two atop the league standings. The 4A Northern/Longs Peak crossover tournament continues tonight as with a good matchup between #4 Mead and #7 Thompson Valley. The Mavericks are 17-3 and finished third behind Windsor and Holy Family in the Northern. Thompson Valley has won 18 of 20 games and ended up second to Roosevelt in the Longs Peak.
Durango is third in the Southwestern chase but they meet second place Grand Junction Central tonight and league leading Fruita Monument tomorrow. A pair of wins by the Demons will keep them in the chase as they start the weekend two games out of first. Fruita is unbeaten with Central a game back.
Pueblo West can clinch the South Central championship by beating Pueblo South tonight. The Cyclones are 7-0 in league play with South in second at 5-2. West won the first meeting 58-39.
A couple of important games in the 2A Western Slope tonight as Soroco meets Hayden and Cedaredge takes on Meeker. Should Meeker spring the upset, then Soroco clinches the league championship by beating Hayden. The Rams start the day one game up on Cedaredge with a win over the Bruins already earned.
The 5A focus is on the Jeffco slate. Valor Christian (5-0) leads the division by one game over Ralston Valley, A-West and Columbine. Valor has beaten Ralston Valley and is favored to land the championship with the Mustangs the pick for second. That means the Columbine-A-West winner could end up third.
Below is the entire schedule for top 10 teams. We’ll update scores throughout the night and then below the rankings, update some games that impact league championship races. Final scores can be sent to Colorado Preps by text to 970.380.7737.
CLASS 1A
FINAL: #1 Briggsdale beat Arickaree/Woodlin 71-18
#4 McClave vs Walsh
FINAL: #5 Merino beat Haxtun 40-31
FINAL: #8 Sangre De Cristo beat Sierra Grande 60-21
#9 Kiowa at Evangelical Christian
CLASS 2A
FINAL: #1 Holyoke beat #9 Akron 52-32
FINAL: #2 Sanford beat Ignacio 71-26
FINAL: #4 Limon beat Byers 63-36
FINAL: Burlington beat #5 Sedgwick County 58-53
FINAL: #6 Soroco beat Hayden 60-33
FINAL: #7 Cedaredge beat Meeker 46-32
CLASS 3A
FINAL: #1 Platte Valley beat Strasburg 59-19
FINAL: #4 University beat Liberty Common 56-19
FINAL: #8 Delta beat #9 Grand Valley 65-33
CLASS 4A
FINAL: #1 Windsor beat Centaurus 62-33
FINAL: D’Evelyn beat #3 Green Mountain 56-53
FINAL: #4 Mead beat #8 Thompson Valley 64-60
FINAL: #5 Holy Family beat Northridge 55-20
FINAL: #6 Roosevelt beat Erie 91-47
FINAL: #10 Grand Junction Central beat Durango 45-38
CLASS 5A
FINAL: #1 Valor Christian beat Dakota Ridge 75-16
FINAL: #3 Highlands Ranch beat Douglas County 56-27
FINAL: #5 Monarch over Northglenn (Forfeit)
FINAL: #8 Regis beat Legend 57-36
FINAL: Chatfield beat #9 Ralston Valley 59-47
FINAL: #10 Columbine beat Arvada West 59-51
OTHER GAMES OF NOTE
1A: FINAL: South Baca beat Kim/Branson 37-28
1A: FINAL: Simla beat Hanover 59-8
1A: Front Range Baptist at Rocky Mountain Lutheran (5280)
3A: FINAL: Centauri beat Pagosa Springs 36-32
4A: FINAL: Pueblo West beat Pueblo South 46-40
