HIGHLANDS RANCH – The stage is set.

No. 1 Regis Jesuit and No. 2 Valor Christian have been on a crash course to meet in the Class 5A hockey championship, and it will culminate in Tuesday night’s state title game at the University of Denver.

The Raiders punched their ticket to Magness Arena with a 5-2 win over No. 4 Monarch in Saturday’s first Frozen Four game at South Suburban Sports Complex. The Eagles then held off No. 3 Cherry Creek in a 4-1 victory to close out the night.

Regis Jesuit 5, Monarch 2

Regis Jesuit will play for a championship for the first time since 2019, looking for its seventh title in program history.

The Raiders were powered by a three-point performance (2 goals, 1 assist) from junior forward Nolan Williams. Senior forward Ian Beck and junior forward Parker Brinner both recorded a goal and assist each, while junior forward Harry Sorensen contributed one goal.

Freshman goaltender Easton Sparks saved 33 of the 35 shots he faced.

“I think championship playoffs is about building momentum, and as a team we just have to keep building up to our final goal here.” Williams said. “This is the most of a team I’ve felt in years for Regis… It’s a really good feeling. There’s nothing more to say than that.”

Regis Jesuit built its largest lead of the game (3-0) midway through the second period before Monarch was able to respond with its first goal 34 seconds later.

Ryan Beals and Ben Rosenburg scored for the Coyotes, who end their season with a 10-5-6 overall record.

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Valor Christian 4, Cherry Creek 1

(Quentin Sickafoose)

Defending champion Valor Christian will aim to retain the 5A hockey crown after reaching the championship game for the fifth straight year.

The Eagles and Bruins battled through a scoreless first period before Valor Christian broke through on a goal from sophomore forward Maddux Charles in the second.

He also scored on an empty-net goal to finish with a pair of goals – which adds to the hat trick he recorded in Valor’s previous game in the quarterfinals.

Junior forward Andrew Jenkins scored two goals of his own, which allowed the Eagles to take two-goal leads twice to secure their win.