Horizon and standout Alyssa Jimenez are aiming to end a streak of three consecutive Great 8 finishes in Class 5A. The Hawks are primed for a run at a state title with a deep roster.
File photo by Derek Regensburger
Coming off of its first loss of the season last Saturday,
Horizon (Thornton) girls basketball coach Dan Doehler saw reason for optimism.
The Hawks dropped a 67-48 decision to two-time defending Class 5A state champion
Grandview (Aurora), but Doehler pointed to a strong showing in the second and fourth quarters – including a fourth-quarter stretch where the Wolves went scoreless for six minutes – to indicate that Horizon was able to compete with the state's best.
"It gives us a benchmark on where we have to go," he said. "They are obviously the two-time defending champion for a reason. We're trying to strive to be where they are."
Even for a program with a strong tradition in girls basketball, getting to the level of the Wolves is still a work in progress. Horizon has won a combined 65 games over the previous three seasons, but each time the Hawks' season ended with a loss in the Great 8.
Horizon hasn't made the Final 4 since 2009, and the program has not made an appearance in the 5A championship game since back-to-back trips in 2005-06. Doehler is working to change that by emphasizing each day where the team wants to be.
"Our goal this year is to get to the Final 4. There is so much tradition at Horizon, and I'm just doing my best to continue that tradition and build the program the best we know how," he said. "The next step for this program is to get the Final 4 and hopefully play for a state championship."
Last winter the team finished the regular season with only two losses – one of which came to Grandview – and was the No. 3 seed in the 5A state playoffs. A rough third quarter in the quarterfinals against
Regis Jesuit (Aurora) proved costly in a 57-43 loss, the second year in a row the Raiders ended Horizon's season.
The Hawks graduated standout Izzy Allen from that 23-win team, but returned the bulk of its core. Senior point guard
Alyssa Jimenez, who averaged nearly 16 points as a junior to go with 4.3 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 3.5 steals, is the catalyst behind Horizon's offense and defense.
The University of Nevada-commit is averaging more than 14 points through the team's first four games and has put up back-to-back five-assist efforts in her previous two games.
"She's done nothing but be amazing for us. She can post up, she can handle the basketball for us, she's at the front of our defense and at the front of our press – she just really wants what's best for our basketball team," Doehler said. "She's going to see a lot more double-teams this year. I think she went under the radar a little bit last year, and I think the secret is out."
Horizon has typically been strong in the paint as well, and senior
Samantha Deem is continuing that tradition. Deem is averaging 15.5 points and 8.3 rebounds thus far, and is coming off a double-double of 12 points and 12 rebounds against Grandview. Doehler added that Deem pulled down her 500th career rebound against the Wolves.
While programs like Grandview, Regis Jesuit and
Highlands Ranch are certainly expected to be among the favorites come March, Doehler believes Horizon can be in that conversation too – especially with eight seniors.
"We have the roster, we have the athletes and we have the experience, which I think is very important in getting down to the Coliseum," he said. "We emphasize it every day. Our No. 1 goal is to get there and advance past the (quarterfinals). Once we're down there I feel like we can compete with anyone."
Here is a quick look at the 2018-19 girls basketball season for each of the state's five classifications:
Class 5A
Defending state champion: Grandview
Overview: Grandview, coming off a second consecutive state title, has already defeated three ranked teams in
Alisha Davis, Grandview
File photo by Carl Auer
,
Valor Christian (Highlands Ranch) and Horizon. Even with losing all-state talent Leilah Vigil, the Wolves have two of their top three scorers back in
Alisha Davis and
Allyah Marlett. Six-foot-seven freshman
Lauren Betts is averaging 10.3 points, nine rebounds and four blocks through four games. … Regis Jesuit graduated only three seniors, and returns leading scorers
Francesca Belibi and
Avery Vansickle. Belibi is averaging 21.3 points and 15 rebounds in the team's four victories and Vansickle is averaging nearly 17 points a game. …
Cherry Creek (Greenwood Village) got even deeper with the addition of former Lamar standout
Cali Clark. The 6-foot-3 junior, who helped lead the Savages to the 3A title as a freshman, joins all-state junior
Jana Van gytenbeek (16.4 points, 7.8 assists as a sophomore) on a young Bruins squad. … Highlands Ranch, which lost to Grandview by one point in the Great 8, graduated all-state point guard Tommi Olson. But the Falcons have leading scorer
Autumn Watts back, as well as
Kasey Neubert. Senior
Jamie Bain is averaging 16.3 points thus far. …
Fossil Ridge (Fort Collins), a final four team as a No. 8 seed last winter, is 4-0 as well behind senior
Ashley Steffeck.
Class 4A
Defending state champion: EvergreenOverview: Even though the 4A title game last year between Evergreen and
Pueblo South was a rematch of the 2017 championship game, the bracket was still full of upsets. None of the top five seeds made it to the semifinals. The Cougars brought home the crown again, and although the team has a new coach in Maddy Hornecker, reigning Player of the Year
Claudia Dillon is back for her senior season. … All-state post
Gabi Lucero is back for Pueblo South, which is 4-0. Lucero is averaging nearly 24 points to go with 14 rebounds in the early going. Senior
Drea Nelson is at 17.8 points, 7.8 rebounds and five assists. …
Pueblo West was the top seed a year ago before falling to
Mesa Ridge (Colorado Springs) in the quarterfinals. The Cyclones have handled their first four opponents with ease, and returning all-state guard
Hannah Simental is averaging nearly 29 points in that span. …
Air Academy is coming off an impressive victory over
Holy Family (Broomfield). The Kadets won 24 games a year ago and were young behind a balanced offense. … Among some of the early surprises are
Mullen (Denver) (3-1) and
Montrose (6-0), which won a combined 19 games last winter.
Class 3A
Defending state champion: St. Mary's (Colorado Springs)Overview: St. Mary's worked its way through a tough field last winter to capture the state title. Player of the Year
Josephine Howery, St. Mary's.
File photo by Ray Chen
Makenna Bodette graduated, but all-state guard/wing
Josephine Howery is back and is averaging nearly 16 points and eight rebounds in the first four games. The Pirates have only two seniors on the roster. … Is this the year
Colorado Springs Christian breaks through? The Lions have played for a state title two years in a row, but come up short both times. With two returning all-state players in senior
Megan Engesser and
Rachel Ingram though, CSCS is loaded once again. Engesser is averaging 27.5 points and 12 rebounds in the first two games. …
Centauri (La Jara) is off to a 5-1 start, and senior
Melissa Wilson has been a force early for the Falcons. …
Shaya Chenoweth of
Grand Valley (Parachute) (14.6 points, 5.2 steals) has helped the Cardinals get off to a 5-0 start. …
Eaton and
Roaring Fork (Carbondale) are also off to 5-0 starts.
Class 2A
Defending state champion: YumaOverview: Yuma brings back two first-team all-state seniors in Player of the Year
Cody Robinson and
Chasey Blach, but the Indians have gotten off to a 2-2 start. One of those losses came to
Wray in the season opener. … Speaking of the Eagles, they have gone 4-0 with three players scoring in double figures. Senior
Morgan Smith is averaging 13.3 points and 11 rebounds after leading the team in scoring as a junior. …
Del Norte, which won 20 games last winter before getting upended in regional play, has opened with five consecutive victories. All-state junior
Kendra Parra is averaging 26.2 points and 5.8 steals through those five games. The Tigers knocked off a pair of 3A teams in
Lamar and Centauri in the La Junta Holiday Shootout. …
Holyoke graduated all-state post Grace Dille, who averaged a double-double last season. But leading scorer
Taeryn Trumper is back. …
Simla, which was upset in the quarterfinals as the No. 2 seed a year ago, is 4-0. Sophomore
Kaitlyn Rector and senior
Kegan Hamacher are both scoring and hauling in rebounds in bunches.
Class 1A
Defending state champion: Kit CarsonOverview: Kit Carson may have graduted Player of the Year Micayla Isenbart, but the Wildcats return first-team all-state forward
Tess Hornung, and center
Olivia Isenbart made the second team. Kit Carson was undefeated in 2016-17. …
Kim/Branson, which made the title game, graduated its top two scorers. The Mustangs have only one senior this winter. …
Sangre de Cristo (Mosca) won 20 games before falling to Kim/Branson in regional play. The Thunderbirds are off to a 4-0 start, and sophomore
Kylee Christensen is averaging 13.3 points and 5.3 steals. …
Briggsdale, which made the semifinals, graduated seven of its nine players. But the Falcons have won their first five games this season and have five freshmen on varsity. …
Haxtun's Dawson Knode has averaged a double-double through three games at 12 points and 12.3 rebounds. …
Genoa-Hugo/Karval is 4-0, and junior
Ryely Smartt is also going for a double-double at 12.5 points and 11.8 rebounds.
