5A Boys State Tennis: Cherry Creek wins four state titles
It was a familiar scene during the 5A Boys State Individual Tennis Championships last Saturday at the Denver Tennis Park. Players from Cherry Creek and rival Regis Jesuit were going head-to-head in five of the seven events on the day. The Bruins went 4-1 in those matches.
“Everybody played well,” Bruins Head Coach Art Quinn said. “Creek just got a couple of more bounces here and there, and I’m proud of everyone. It was a great three-day tourney for all participants; coaches, players, parents, grandparents alike. It was wonderful to watch and be a part of,” he added.
Bruins junior Jack Loehr was the State Champion in No. 2 singles with a (6-4) (6-3) straight sets victory over Regis freshman Blake Wright.
In No. 3 Singles, Bruins sophomore Aidan Washer took the title with the 3-set (6-1) (1-6) (6-3) win over Raiders freshman (and Blake’s twin brother) Sebastian Wright.
“I feel great,” Washer said. “Pulling the match out in the third set, that was really clutch. All the rest of the team did really well too. This final was definitely a tough match.”
The Bruins had finalists in all four doubles events.
In No. 1 Doubles, Creek seniors Trevor Robinson and Luke Nordford fell in straight sets (3-6) (4-6) to Valor Christian seniors Ryan Mandes and Ryan Greenfield.
No. 2 Doubles saw Cherry Creek senior Wills Possehl and junior Tyson Hardy get a 3-set (7-6) (3-6) (6-1) win over Regis senior KC Eckenhausen and junior Adam Rydel.
In No. 3 Doubles, the Creek sophomore tandem of Sam Migliaccio and Devan Shah outlasted Raiders senior Carl Siegel and sophomore Edward Samuelson in three sets (3-6) (6-3) (6-4).
Finally, in No. 4 Doubles, Cherry Creek seniors Mitch Kelly and Truman Wooden fell to Regis seniors Aiden Prananta and Spencer Buege in straight sets (6-7) (4-6).
Grandview twin freshmen Kaahan and Krish Wani took both 3rd place consolation matches in No. 2 and No. 3 singles respectively. Kaahan won (6-2) (6-4) over Pine Creek junior Gurman Goraya, and Krish won in straight sets (6-3) (6-4) over Arapahoe senior Carson David.
The siblings also took home the Vickie Matarazzo Sportsmanship Award.
“I feel pretty good,” said elder twin Kaahan. “I feel like I performed the way I wanted to in this tournament.”
Krish Wani said he had to make adjustments to his competition during the match.
“My opponent had a big serve, and he was really consistent,” he said. “I knew I had to be consistent, because he would have taken control waiting for errors. I had to adapt to his game.”
See the complete 5A bracket and more here.
Congratulations to all CCSD boys tennis players!
5A Softball: State Tournament is set
Regional tournaments in 5A girls softball took place this past weekend and Cherokee Trail and Grandview have advanced to the 2024 State Championships, starting Oct. 25.
No. 1 Cherokee Trail won the Region 1 tourney with convincing victories over No. 32 Pine Creek (10-0) and No. 16 Chaparral (10-2) on Oct. 18 at the Aurora Sports Complex. The Cougars (21-4) will take on No. 16 Vista Ridge (14-12) on Friday, Oct. 25 at Aurora Sports Park.
No. 9 Grandview went on the road to the western slope and Canyon View Park in Grand Junction last Saturday to play in Region 8. The Wolves (19-7) went 2-1, defeating No. 24 Heritage 7-0, falling to No. 8 Fruita Monument in a close contest 2-1, and then defeating Heritage again 4-3 in 8 innings to make the state tournament.
No. 15 Eaglecrest was at Broomfield High School on Friday for Region 2 play. The Raptors defeated No. 18 Fossil Ridge 7-6 in the first game. EHS was then shutout by No. 2 Broomfield 7-0, and lost a heartbreaker to No. 31 Vista Ridge in the 2nd round consolation. The final score was Wolves 16, Raptors 15. Eaglecrest finishes the season at 15-11.
No. 23 Cherry Creek also ended its season last Friday in Region 7 play. The Bruins lost their first game to No. 10 Grand Junction Central 4-2 at Dakota Ridge High School. Then Creek was eliminated by No. 26 ThunderRidge in the 1st Round consolation, 11-7. The Bruins end the 2024 season at 11-13.
See all the regional brackets here.
See the State Tourney qualifiers and bracket here.
Good luck to the Cougars and Wolves!
5A Football: District clubs go 3-3 for the week
The regular season is winding down for district football teams.
No. 1 Cherry Creek (7-1 overall, 3-0 in the Centennial League) continued its winning ways with a 44-0 shutout of Eaglecrest last Friday evening at a rainy Legacy Stadium. Bruins junior quarterback Brady Vodicka passed for two touchdowns and ran for another in the win. The stout Bruins defense held the Raptors (5-3, 1-2) scoreless on the night. Next, Creek hosts Smoky Hill on Oct. 24 at the Stutler Bowl. Eaglecrest will take on Grandview at Legacy Stadium on Oct. 25.
Grandview pulled to .500 on the season with a close 14-13 win over Cherokee Trail at Legacy Stadium last Thursday. The Wolves got rushing touchdowns from junior Chris Blanks and junior quarterback Blitz McCarty in the win. Cougars senior Brian Tucker tallied both touchdowns for CT, and a failed extra point try was the difference. Up next, the Wolves (4-4, 2-1) will host Eaglecrest at Legacy on Oct. 25. CT (3-5, 1-2) is on the road to play Arapahoe next Friday at Littleton Public Schools Stadium.
Smoky Hill (0-8, 0-3) lost to Arapahoe 55-10 on Friday. The Buffs will take on Cherry Creek on Thursday at the Stutler Bowl.
Finally, in the 5A Metro League, Overland got a 50-19 win over visiting Lakewood at the Stutler Bowl on Oct. 17. The Blazers got out to a 30-0 halftime lead. OHS was led by freshman quarterback Angel Chavez who threw for one touchdown and ran for another, and freshman Dejay Davenport who caught two touchdown passes in the win. Next, the Blazers (4-4, 3-0 in the 5A Metro North) will host Boulder on Oct. 25 at the Stutler Bowl.
Overland High School football photo courtesy Courtney Oakes, Sentinel Colorado.
Posted 10/21/2024.
