Not only might the Class 4A/3A South Central League be decided by Tuesday’s game between Pueblo County and Pueblo Central. It could be the difference between a trip to the postseason or not.
Despite being just outside the current playoff picture, the 4A No. 33 Hornets (7-4, 5-0) can take a stranglehold of the league’s automatic bid and a spot in the upcoming 32-team playoff field with a second win over their intown rival on Tuesday.
A win for the 3A No. 32 Wildcats (6-4-2, 4-1), meanwhile, would keep them very alive in the league race while giving them a much-needed boost in their own postseason hunt.
In this week’s look-in on boys’ soccer, we’ll look at a couple postseason-bubble teams from each classification. The regular season ends on Oct. 26.
Class 5A
No. 32 Westminster: The Wolves (6-2-2) will likely need a solid record through their final five games of the regular season if they hope to make the postseason for the first time in nearly a decade.
Jorge Robles Guzman has given them a chance this season thanks to his 15 goals and 33 points.
Four of the Wolves’ last five games are against teams currently not in the playoff picture. The other is against 5A No. 1 Boulder on Oct. 22.
No. 27 Erie: The Tigers (6-3-1) have gotten 12 goals from junior Nathan Bigard, which is third-most in the classification.
He scored twice in a 9-1 win over Prairie View a week ago.
Among Erie’s final five games, four of them are against teams currently in 5A’s top 20.
Class 4A
No. 31 Mead: The Mavericks (4-2-3) have a better postseason outlook after their draw against No. 6 Silver Creek last week.
Among their final six games, four are against teams in the current playoff picture.
No. 28 Summit: The Tigers (4-5-1), a 2022 semifinalist, are hoping to get back into the postseason after missing it last year.
Seth Montgomery has four goals and four assists, leading a team with just 18 goals in 10 games this season.
Four of Summit’s last five games are against teams currently in the playoff picture.
Class 4A/3A
4A No. 33 Pueblo County and 3A No. 32 Pueblo Central: In County’s 5-0 win over Central last month, Kade Fisher scored two of his team-leading 14 goals this season.
Owen Bensko has 12 goals and seven assists to lead the Wildcats.
The teams will face each other Tuesday at 7 p.m.
Class 3A
No. 25 Prospect Ridge Academy: Since winning four straight games in shutout fashion last month, the Miners (5-6) have gone just 1-4 since and are near the edge of playoff contention.
Freshman Austin Huffman still leads the team with seven goals and 16 points. Through, he’s had just one point over PRA’s last five games.
Class 2A (postseason field is just 16 teams)
No. 12 Telluride: The Skiers (5-3-3) may not care what seed they are after getting all the way to the semifinals as the eighth seed a year ago.
But first, they have to get in.
Three of their final four games are against teams currently in the postseason picture. They are at 3A No. 17 Delta on Saturday.
No. 17 Thomas MacLaren School: The Highlanders (5-4-3) are currently on the outside looking into the playoffs.
This is after being the No. 2 seed in 2023 and the 3-seed in both 2022 and 2021.
On Saturday, they ended a three-game losing streak in a scoreless draw to No. 4 Salida.
They have three regular-season games remaining, starting with No. 23 Colorado Springs Christian School on Tuesday.