Holy Family softball can go into the postseason hotter than anybody with a win over 5A No. 1 Broomfield on Saturday morning.
The 4A No. 3 Tigers beat No. 1 Windsor 4-0 on Thursday behind a complete-game, 17-strikeout shutout from Stanford commit Emmaline Humphreys.
The win redeemed a 10-1 loss to the Wizards (21-2) from earlier in the season and handed 4A’s top seed its first in-state loss of the season.
The Tigers (19-3) would go into next week’s regional tournaments on the back of a 12-game winning streak if they can snap Broomfield’s 41-game regular season win streak against teams from Colorado.
In Holy Family and Broomfield’s first meeting of the season, Lilly Smith and Ireland Heer each had two hits and two RBIs in an 8-3 win for the Eagles (19-2), who beat Horizon 14-2 on Thursday for their 12th straight win of the season.
Softball’s regular season ends on Saturday and the 32-team regional brackets for each of the three classifications will be released Monday.
Here are a few games that remain with big implications.
5A No. 1 Broomfield at 4A No. 3 Holy Family; Saturday at 11 a.m.
What’s at stake: Eagles can clinch the No. 1 seed, while Holy Family could possibly move up with its second win over a top-ranked team in three days.
Who to know: Holy Family’s Humphreys may have catapulted herself into the ‘4A player of the year’ driver’s seat with her 17-K shutout over Windsor on Thursday. After missing all of last season with an ACL injury, the senior is 13-3 with a 0.94 ERA and 203 strikeouts.
Humphreys’ two worst outings of the season came to Windsor and Broomfield last month. She just got her revenge on the Wizards. Can she do the same against the Eagles?
4A No. 2 Palmer Ridge at No. 4 Lutheran; Friday at 4 p.m.
What’s at stake: The Bears (19-3, 9-0) can win the 4A Pikes Peak League title outright with a victory over Lutheran (18-4, 8-1). The Lions, who lost to Palmer Ridge in their first meeting of the season, can tie the Bears atop the final league standings with a win.
Who to know: Corinna Arellano had two home runs in Palmer Ridge’s comeback win over Lutheran on Sept. 10. In three games in October, she’s hit two more, giving her 11 on the season.
4A No. 12 D’Evelyn at No. 16 Golden; Friday at 4 p.m.
What’s at stake: D’Evelyn (19-3, 11-0) can win the 4A Jeffco League outright with its second victory of the season against Golden (17-5, 10-1). The Demons would tie the Cougars atop the standings with a win.
Who to know: Golden’s Adrianna Riddle hit her 10th home run of the season and earned her 17th win in the circle in a 12-0 win over Pomona on Wednesday. At the plate, she’s on an 11-game hitting streak. In the circle, she’s earned a win in her last seven outings.
4A No. 24 Durango at 5A No. 31 Grand Junction Central; Saturday at 10 a.m. and 12 p.m.
What’s at stake: The Warriors would feel a lot better about their chances at making 5A’s 32-team regional field if they can at least split with 4A Durango on Saturday. As of Thursday night, they were just slightly ahead of No. 32 Liberty and No. 33 Rocky Mountain in CHSAA’s playoff rankings.
Who to know: Durango’s Avery Clair hit three home runs in a doubleheader against Delta on Monday. She’s gone deep eight times this season.
3A No. 32 Basalt at No. 21 Gunnison; Saturday at 12 p.m. and 2 p.m.
What’s at stake: The Longhorns (5-16) are hoping to fend off No. 33 Limon (4-17) for the last postseason spot in 3A. The Badgers end their regular season with a road doubleheader against No. 47 Holyoke on Saturday.
Who to know: Basalt’s Hadley Ivy is top 10 in 3A in slugging percentage at 1.190. She’s hitting .597 with 32 RBIs and 22 extra-base hits for the Longhorns.
