The end of February and all of March, often considered the heart of the basketball season, is no different in high school.
With state tournaments starting last week, Colorado’s more prominent high schools were the focus as they continue their quest to claim a state title. Often unnoticed, but not less noteworthy, were the smaller high schools fighting it out in district tournaments in hopes of carving out a place in their respective state brackets.
In Class 3A, the Prospect Ridge Miners made the brackets in both boys and girls, and the girls’ bracket will also include the Lyons Lions.
As for Monarch hockey, a 12-0 win against Lewis-Palmer put the Coyotes in the right mindset for the tougher competition coming up. Tuesday’s quarterfinals at South Suburban Ice Arena will feature MoHi against Regis Jesuit at 8 p.m. — a familiar playoff matchup over the years.
A look at this week for those teams:
Basketball
Class 3A Boys
Prospect Ridge (No. 14 seed)
How they got here: The Miners, hoping to gain a high seed in the 3A state tournament, went 1-2 in their district last week. They opened up against the Lotus School for Excellence and dominated to the tune of an 80-22 victory. Their second matchup was against Yuma, where the Miners fell 69-58. The Miners faced off against the Manual Thunderbolts in their final district matchup, losing 73-59. Prospect Ridge’s Max Vacco scored 19 and 24 points in the Miners’ first two games against Lotus and Yuma, respectively.
What’s next: Heading into the 3A state tournament, Vacco and the Miners will face the Banning Lewis Academy Stallions in their first-round matchup. Vacco’s scoring production will again be crucial for the Miners. Another key is how the game starts. The Stallions have only averaged 9.6 points in the first quarter compared to the Miners’ 16.6. If that statistic holds, it will be a good indication of Prospect Ridge’s chances to advance.
Class 3A Girls
Prospect Ridge (No. 32 seed)
How they got here: The Prospect Ridge girls had the same fate as their boys team in their district tournament. The Miners’ girls opened with a big win over Manual, 61-37, before losing their next two games, 47-21 against Yuma, and then dropping a close affair against Faith Christian, 40-37.
What’s next: Being the final seed in a bracket is never an easy task, but it also comes with a nothing to lose mentality that can be a recipe for an upset. The Miners will try and do just that when they take on the top-seed and undefeated Peyton Panthers (21-0). Prospect Ridge must try to contain junior guard AJ Mannering, who scored 22 points in her last game and averages 7.2 steals per game.
Lyons Lions (No. 29 seed)
How they got here: Winning two of their three district games got the Lions the 29th seed in the 3A bracket. Lyons beat Clear Creek, 68-11, before dropping the middle game against Windsor Charter Academy, 47-37, and then wrapping up their district tournament with a win against Dawson, 30-24. Senior Brooklyn Enny led the Lions in scoring in all three games, scoring 19, 19, and 12 points respectively.
What’s next: Fourth-seeded Yuma will be the Lions’ opening-round matchup on Friday when the state tournament commences. They are pretty evenly matched teams on paper, but if you were to pick an area where the game could be decided, it is the rebounding department. Lyons average 36 rebounds per game versus Yuma’s 32, so any extra possessions for either team could determine the outcome.
Ice hockey
Class 5A
Monarch Coyotes (No. 5 seed)
How they got here: After losing out on a bye to their eventual opponent Regis Jesuit, the fifth-seeded Monarch Coyotes took care of business in their opening-round game against Lewis Palmer. The 12-seeded Rangers were no match for the Coyotes, who took the game 12-0. Seven minutes into the game, it was already 3-0, and that lead doubled by the end of the first period. The Coyotes finished the game with four players with two goals.
What’s next: The ever-so-tight 4-5 matchup with the Regis Jesuit Raiders is on deck for the Coyotes. With Regis coming off the bye, Monarch hopes to catch the Raiders a little less prepared than themselves. This state tournament matchup comes under the backdrop of their game in late January when Monarch defeated Regis, 3-1. The rematch should be another tight affair with perhaps just a few shots on goal, proving the difference.
![Colorado hasn’t wasted any time in rebuilding its running back room. On Friday, the Buffaloes and head coach Deion Sanders got a verbal commitment from Miami-Ohio transfer Rashad Amos, according to On3Sports. A 1,000-yard rusher for the RedHawks last year, Amos had originally committed to Mississippi State about two weeks ago. He decommitted on Thursday, however, and is visiting Boulder this weekend. CU, which will conclude spring football with Saturday’s spring game, went into the offseason with four scholarship running backs. In the past eight days, however, three of them left the team to put their names into the transfer […]](https://www.timescall.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/BUF-L-CUFB-RASHADAMOS-03.jpg?w=525 "Colorado hasn’t wasted any time in rebuilding its running back room. On Friday, the Buffaloes and head coach Deion Sanders got a verbal commitment from Miami-Ohio transfer Rashad Amos, according to On3Sports. A 1,000-yard rusher for the RedHawks last year, Amos had originally committed to Mississippi State about two weeks ago. He decommitted on Thursday, however, and is visiting Boulder this weekend. CU, which will conclude spring football with Saturday’s spring game, went into the offseason with four scholarship running backs. In the past eight days, however, three of them left the team to put their names into the transfer […]")
![Former Colorado women’s basketball player Shelomi Sanders has found a new home. On Thursday night, Sanders announced that she is transferring to Alabama A&M. A walk-on with the Buffaloes the past year and a half, and the daughter of CU head football coach Deion Sanders, Shelomi put her name in the transfer portal earlier this month. For Shelomi, it will be a return to the Southwestern Athletic Conference. She began her career as a walk-on at perennial SWAC power Jackson State – where her father was the head football coach – in the fall of 2022. When her father was […]](https://www.timescall.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/BUF-L-CUWTa153.jpg?w=504 "Former Colorado women’s basketball player Shelomi Sanders has found a new home. On Thursday night, Sanders announced that she is transferring to Alabama A&M. A walk-on with the Buffaloes the past year and a half, and the daughter of CU head football coach Deion Sanders, Shelomi put her name in the transfer portal earlier this month. For Shelomi, it will be a return to the Southwestern Athletic Conference. She began her career as a walk-on at perennial SWAC power Jackson State – where her father was the head football coach – in the fall of 2022. When her father was […]")
