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Preps: Aspen boys basketball continues to roll; AHS hockey gets in win column

Aspen High School boys basketball coach Cory Parker looks over his bench on Friday, Jan. 10, 2025, against Rifle inside the AHS gymnasium.
Austin Colbert/The Aspen Times

The win streak is now seven for the Aspen High School boys basketball team, which continues to prove it should be treated as a real contender in Class 4A come the postseason.

The Skiers are 13-3 overall and a perfect 6-0 in Western Slope League play. Most recently, AHS won at Delta, 50-43 on Jan. 25 and, before that, took down rival Basalt, 56-41 on Jan. 24. A significant non-league win came on Jan. 21, a 70-55 victory at Eagle Valley.

As of Wednesday, the Skiers were ranked No. 5 in 4A per the CHSAANow.com seeding index, which largely determines postseason seeding. Basalt was No. 19.



Aspen will again step out of league play this coming Friday with a trip to Roaring Fork (7 p.m. tip). The Rams are 10-3 overall and 5-0 in 3A WSL play and will enter Friday’s game on their own five-game win streak, dating to a Jan. 4 loss at Basalt, 65-43. RFHS was ranked No. 19 in 3A in the seeding index as of Wednesday.

The Longhorns are 6-7 and 2-2 in 4A WSL play. They haven’t played since losing at Aspen on Jan. 24. Prior to that, Basalt won at Delta, 65-54, on Jan. 21. BHS next hosts Rifle (3-13) on Friday night (7 p.m. tip).




Girls basketball

In girls basketball, Roaring Fork bounced back from its lone loss on Jan. 17 — falling 78-40 to still undefeated Cedaredge — with three straight wins over Olathe (71-19), Aspen (61-23), and Meeker (72-44). Now 13-1 overall (5-1 league), the Rams host Aspen on Friday night (5:30 p.m. tip) in a league game.

The Skiers are now 2-9 overall following Tuesday’s 27-26 win over visiting Basalt. The other win came on Jan. 18 over Grand Valley, 36-33.

The Basalt girls are 2-12 overall following the loss to the Skiers. They will also host Rifle (1-14) on Friday (5:30 p.m. tip).

Roaring Fork sits at No. 10 as of Wednesday in the 3A seeding index, while both Aspen and Basalt have work to do to get into the postseason in their respective classifications.

Hockey

Aspen hockey found its way into the win column on back-to-back nights recently, winning 4-3 over Mullen and 7-0 over Woodland Park last Friday and Saturday. A third straight win was not in the cards after a 7-1 loss to Battle Mountain on Tuesday.

Now 2-9 overall in their first varsity season following a two-year hiatus, the Skiers next play at Caprock Academy (0-13) on Friday (6:40 p.m. puck drop) before hosting Summit (10-5) at 5 p.m., Saturday.

Glenwood Springs continues to cruise through the regular season. The Demons are 12-0-1 overall following Saturday’s 6-1 win over Battle Mountain. Glenwood next hosts Summit on Friday (7:30 p.m.).

As for the 4A seeding index on Wednesday, Glenwood is ranked No. 1 and Aspen No. 16 in the 20-team classification. Only 10 teams will make the state tournament.

Skiing

The Aspen Alpine ski team competed Friday at a slalom in Winter Park, winning both the boys and girls team titles.

Led by sophomore Joshua Stephen, who won the race in 1:32, the AHS boys scored 176 points to hold off Middle Park’s 167 for the win. Aspen senior Viggo Morgan was second (1:32.92), and sophomore Matt McDermott was fourth (1:33.55).

The Aspen girls scored 171 points to win by five points over Battle Mountain. BMHS freshman Eden DeMino won the girls race in 1:33.03, while Aspen senior Darienne Kenny was second in 1:34.02. AHS senior Eden Bohart was fourth (1:34.43).

There is a slalom in Beaver Creek on Friday and a GS at Ski Cooper next week.

The Nordic team competed last Friday at Snow Mountain Ranch, with the AHS boys finishing 12th and the girls eighth. Summit won both team titles.

Girls swimming

The regular season has effectively come to a close for the Aspen girls swim team. Next, the Skiers will compete at the WSL Southwest Conference Championships beginning Friday in Grand Junction. The Class 3A state championships are Feb. 10-11 in Thornton.

Wrestling

The regular season is also fast approaching an end for Basalt wrestling. The Longhorns are scheduled to host Rifle on Thursday before going to Meeker on Saturday. Then, BHS will have a week off before heading to regionals on Feb. 7-8 at Grand Valley. State wrestling is Feb. 13-15 in Denver.

Football

Basalt senior William Daniel recently announced his commitment to continue his football career at NCAA Division III Bethel University, located in St. Paul, Minnesota. Daniel was a star linebacker and running back for the Longhorns this past season, rushing for a team-high 1,390 yards and 17 touchdowns, per MaxPreps. Basalt went 11-1, advancing to the state semifinals.

acolbert@aspentimes.com