Preps: Final week of regular season arrives for many as playoffs loom
Katie Waldeck/Courtesy photo
The end is near for the spring sports teams, with the regular season wrapping up this week for most. Here’s how things stand as postseason realities begin to take root.
Boys lacrosse
Aspen boys lacrosse enters the final week of the regular season with a perfect 12-0 record. The Skiers last played on Thursday, winning 10-6 at Grand Junction. They play the No. 9 Tigers (9-2) again on Monday for senior night, with a 6 p.m. start on the AHS turf. Aspen’s final game will be on Thursday at No. 8 Steamboat Springs (8-5).
AHS is holding steady at No. 3 in Class 4A in the CHSAA seeding index, behind No. 1 Dakota Ridge (12-2) and No. 2 Evergreen (10-2). This means a home playoff game is all but assured for the Skiers, barring any dramatic fall this week.
Glenwood (6-5) is No. 19 entering the week. The Demons host No. 18 Vail Mountain (5-7) on Tuesday.
Girls lacrosse
Aspen girls lacrosse won arguably its biggest game of the season on Thursday, topping rival Roaring Fork, 13-11, on the AHS turf. Haley Schmela had five goals, Darienne Kenny had three goals, and Lindsay Waldeck had two goals. AHS honored its seniors during the game.
The Skiers are 8-4 entering the final week. Their final regular-season home game is on Tuesday against Grand Junction before road games on Thursday at Battle Mountain and Saturday at Montrose.
Roaring Fork is 9-3 following the loss to Aspen; the Rams beat AHS in their other meeting on April 19, winning 12-11 in Carbondale. They host Battle Mountain on Monday and Summit on Tuesday.
Entering the week, the CHSAA seeding index has RFHS at No. 7 and Aspen No. 8 in 4A. Evergreen is No. 1, followed by No. 2 Battle Mountain (9-3) and No. 3 Steamboat Springs (9-3).
Girls soccer
Aspen girls soccer lost for the first time since April 2 on Thursday with a 3-0 loss at Roaring Fork. Now 6-4-1 overall, the Skiers play on Tuesday at Delta, Thursday at home against Vail Mountain, and Saturday at Glenwood Springs in the regular-season finale.
Basalt girls soccer played on Saturday against Middle Park, losing 3-0. BHS Is now 2-7-3 overall with three games to play, next being a trip to Steamboat Springs on Tuesday.
The Rams are 6-4-3 overall. Following last week’s win over Aspen, Roaring Fork played again Friday against Mead, losing 4-0. Their regular season wraps up this week with a game on Tuesday at Vail Mountain and a home game on Thursday against Rifle.
As of Sunday afternoon, the CHSAA seeding index had Aspen at No. 34 and Basalt at No. 44 in 3A, putting them both on the outside of the playoff bubble. Roaring Fork was No. 19, putting them safely in the postseason field at the moment.
Baseball
Basalt baseball played Saturday at Coal Ridge, losing 10-2. It was the second straight loss to the Titans for BHS, who also fell 14-2 three days prior. The Longhorns play at powerhouse Colorado Academy on Monday before hosting Rifle on Tuesday.
Aspen has now won four straight games. After sweeping Meeker in Tuesday’s doubleheader — scores were 10-0 and 9-5 — AHS swept Moffat County on Friday, winning 14-0 and 23-6 in Craig. The Skiers next play on Tuesday at Eagle Valley.
Roaring Fork played on Saturday against Gunnison, losing 12-4 and 12-6. The Rams play at Rifle on Wednesday.
As of Sunday, Basalt (8-6) was No. 23 in 3A per the seeding index. The Rams (4-13) were No. 31 and Aspen (6-9) was No. 32. Coal Ridge (15-2-1) was No. 3, behind only No. 1 University and No. 2 Colorado Academy.
Girls golf
The Aspen girls golf season is down to its final two weeks before the regional tournament on May 12 in Windsor. Select golfers will compete on Monday at Rifle, with star senior Lenna Persson set to compete at the Showcase Invitational at Cherry Creek Country Club that same day. The Skiers did not compete in a tournament this past week.
Girls tennis
The girls tennis season has reached the postseason with regional play getting underway this week across the state. Both Aspen and Basalt will compete in Class 3A, Region 8, to be played on Thursday and Friday at Canyon View Park in Delta.
Other teams in that region include Cedaredge, Delta, Glenwood Springs, North Fork, Steamboat Springs, and Vail Christian. The top two finishers per flight will advance to the 3A state tournament, scheduled for May 8-10 at Memorial Park in Colorado Springs.
Track and field
Area track and field teams are stepping into the postseason mindset this week with the 3A and 4A WSL and SWL league championships scheduled for May 2-3 in Grand Junction. The state championships are May 15-17 in Denver.
Of note, Basalt’s Towler Scott is one of the higher-ranked track athletes in the valley this spring. Per MaxPreps, he has the fourth-fastest time in the 3A boys 3,200-meter run (or 2-mile) in 9 minutes, 51.62 seconds. He has the sixth-fastest 3A time in the 1,600-meter run in 4:34.58. A junior, Scott was 20th at state cross country in the fall.
Also, Basalt’s Jared Tennenbaum has the fourth-best 3A time in the boys 110-meter hurdles (15.30) and has the sixth-fastest time in the 300-meter hurdles (40.77).
PHOTOS: Trout Unlimited, Roaring Fork Conservancy lead trout release with third graders
Over this past school year, third graders from Two Rivers Community School in Glenwood Springs have watched as their little rainbow trout went from eggs to fingerlings — essentially baby trout — inside a tank in their classroom.
Injured skier has ‘incredible’ self-rescue below Castle Peak
There wasn’t much Marieta Bialek and Austin Zedak were concerned about.
