VIDEO: Remarkable softball catch makes top plays.
For the past seven years, the
Strasburg softball team has made the friendly confines of Aurora Sports Park its home away from home.
The Indians have walked from the final day of the softball season with the Class 3A state championship trophy firmly in their grasp on five occasions since 2012. The two times that Strasburg didn't win the trophy, the team still played for the championship.
Seven title-game appearances, five titles: That is the streak that is on the line when the 2019 version of the 3A state tournament begins Friday morning at Aurora Sports Park. The 16-team field will be whittled down to two after Saturday morning's semifinals, with the championship set for 1:15 p.m. The Class 5A and 4A tournaments also begin at ASP on Friday,
weather permitting.
Strasburg (15-8) enters state as the No. 4 overall seed and is one of six teams from the Patriot League in the 3A bracket.
University (Greeley) (22-2) is the No. 1 seed, with No. 3
Brush, No. 6
Eaton, No. 7
Sterling and No. 9
Lyons also representing District 3.
Kyra McFarland, University
File photo by Geoffrey Sager
Strasburg is the two-time defending state champion, and the team finished tied for second in the Patriot League this fall with the Beetdiggers. The offense has been clicking all season, with the team hitting better than .400 as a group, led by seniors
Ashlyn Richardson (.507 average and a team-high 38 RBI) and
Ashland Baca (.456, 39 runs, eight home runs).
The Indians graduated 3A Player of the Year Alexis Rayburn, though, who was the team's ace. Four pitchers shared the load this season, with freshman
Heidi Price (6-2, 4.20 ERA) leading a rotation that struggled at times.
That opens the door for a team like University, whose only two losses this season came to Brush. Four players hit above .500 for the Bulldogs this fall, with senior
Kyra McFarland hitting .603 with 47 hits, 59 runs scored and eight home runs. Junior
Delaney Wieneke belted 10 home runs and drove in 42. Sophomore
Kayla Kingsley was 13-0 on the mound with a 2.93 ERA.
Could a team like
Basalt be the one to take the glory away from the Patriot League, like Rocky Ford did in 2016 and La Junta in 2014? The Longhorns (22-1) won a combined 20 games the previous two seasons, but rode a dominant season from senior
Zoe Vozick (.680, 56 RBI, 54 runs scored, 26 extra-base hits) and a young pitching staff to the No. 2 seed in the tournament.
Then there is
Riverdale Ridge (Thornton) (21-3), which is in only its second year of competition. The Ravens' three losses came to 4A squads, with two of those setbacks coming by only one run. Riverdale Ridge junior
Makenna Meyer is 11-2 with a 2.06 ERA and 127 strikeouts this fall.
Friday's opening round gets rolling at 10 a.m. with four games, followed by four more games at 12:30 p.m. The quarterfinals are expected to start at around 2:30 p.m.
Quick Hits: Each of Strasburg's five state titles have come over a league opponent in the championship game. … Eaton's
Remington Ross continues to put up astounding offensive numbers in her career. The senior hit .737 with 56 hits this fall, finishing tied for fourth with 50 runs scored and stealing 42 bases. … Lyons senior
Hannah Paton finished with 64 steals. … Sterling's
Rylyn Nelson tied Wienecke for the 3A lead with 10 home runs, and is third in the classification with a .690 average. … Eaton's
Jennifer Jarnagin and
Yaritza Puente combined to drive in 93 runs this season. …
Haylee Bowen of
The Academy (Westminster) leads 3A with 187 strikeouts, and had a 2.26 ERA to go with it.
1st RoundNo. 1 University (22-2) vs. No. 16
Lamar (14-11), 10 a.m.
No. 8
Limon (18-4) vs. No. 9 Lyons (14-11), 10 a.m.
No. 4 Strasburg (15-8) vs. No. 13
Fort Lupton (17-8), 10 a.m.
No. 5 Riverdale Ridge (21-3) vs. No. 12 The Academy (17-8), 10 a.m.
No. 3 Brush (19-5) vs. No. 14
Cedaredge (15-9), 12:15 p.m.
No. 6 Eaton (16-8) vs. No. 11
Rocky Ford (15-9), 12:15 p.m.
No. 2 Basalt (22-1) vs. No. 13
La Junta (14-11), 12:15 p.m.
No. 7 Sterling (17-7) vs. No. 10
Montezuma-Cortez (17-6), 12:15 p.m.
Class 5A // BracketA late rally in the bottom of the seventh inning of the state quarterfinals by
Loveland ended the title hopes of
Rock Canyon (Highlands Ranch) last October, but the Jaguars regrouped and came back even better than before.
Katie Dack, Rock Canyon
File photo by Derek Regensburger
Top-seeded Rock Canyon enters the 5A state tournament on a 22-game winning streak, and has allowed three combined runs over its previous five games. The team has one of the state's most feared hitters in
Katie Dack, who has hit .603 with 11 home runs and 40 RBI. Rock Canyon hit 33 home runs overall, and
Audrey Burt (12-0, 1.16 ERA, 96 strikeouts) and
Anna Reimers (8-1, 1.29 ERA, 88 strikeouts) are a tremendous 1-2 punch.
Rock Canyon could run into Loveland again in the quarterfinals this weekend, should the Jags take care of
Ralston Valley (Arvada) and the Indians get past
Brighton. Loveland's
Laurin Krings was her usual dominant self again this fall, belting 11 home runs at the plate and going 23-3 with a 0.41 ERA and 315 strikeouts.
On the other side of the bracket, second-seeded
Columbine (Littleton) (23-2) regrouped after back-to-back losses midway through the season. The Rebels are riding a nine-game winning streak, and defeated last year's 5A finalists
Legend (Parker) and Cherokee Trail (Aurora) to win a regional crown.
Korbe Otis was second in 5A with a .694 average this fall and led the classification in runs with 48. She also pitches a little, too – Otis sports a 20-2 record with a 0.78 ERA and 280 strikeouts, all of which trail only Krings in 5A. Should the Rebels get past
Valor Christian (Highlands Ranch), they would face either
Legacy (Broomfield) or Jeffco rival
Chatfield (Littleton).
Rocky Mountain (Fort Collins),
Broomfield and
Fossil Ridge (Fort Collins) of the Front Range League own seeds 3-5. While Loveland won the FRL, a loss in regionals to Legacy pushed the team back in seeding. Fossil Ridge and Rocky Mountain tied for second, with the SaberCats squeaking out an eight-inning victory over the Lobos during the regular season. Broomfield is the fourth seed and drew two-time defending state champion Legend in the first round.
Quick Hits: Top-seeded Rock Canyon has never won a state title. The Jaguars reached their only title game in 2010. … No. 2 Columbine has also never won a state championship. … The No. 1 seed in 5A hasn't won a state title since Legacy did it in 2010. … Krings pitched all but two innings this fall for Loveland. …
Arapahoe (Centennial) senior
Kayleigh Krueger joins an elite group of 5A pitchers. Krueger is 20-3 with a 1.72 ERA and 171 strikeouts. The Warriors can also hit, having belted 31 home runs this season. … Arapahoe's first-round opponent,
Smoky Hill (Aurora), split its two games during the regular season with the Warriors. Smoky Hill also hit 31 home runs, with senior
Yasmine Ybarra and sophomore
Izzy Giroux each going for eight. …
Lakewood's Destiny Martinez (226 strikeouts) and Fossil Ridge's
Nikki McGaffin (208) joined Krings and Otis in topping 200 Ks this fall. Rocky Mountain's
Kylie Harpman (195) and Chatfield's
Isabelle DiNapoli (184) didn't miss by much.
Class 5A
1st RoundNo. 1 Rock Canyon (24-1) vs. No. 16 Ralston Valley (10-16), 10 a.m.
No. 8 Brighton (19-5-1) vs. No. 9 Loveland (23-3), 10 a.m.
No. 4 Broomfield (21-4) vs. No. 13 Legend (15-11), 10 a.m.
No. 5 Fossil Ridge (20-5) vs. No. 12 Lakewood (19-7), 10 a.m.
No. 3 Rocky Mountain (22-3) vs. No. 14
Arvada West (13-13), 12:15 p.m.
No. 6 Arapahoe (22-3) vs. No. 11 Smoky Hill (22-4), 12:15 p.m.
No. 2 Columbine (23-2) vs. No. 13 Valor Christian (13-12), 12:15 p.m.
No. 7 Legacy (17-8) vs. No. 10 Chatfield (21-5), 12:15 p.m.
Class 4A // BracketThere are few teams in the state that present a more formidable hitting duo than
Golden's
Makenzie Middleton and
Makayla Middleton.
Makayla Middleton, Golden
File photo by Lance Wendt
The seniors led the state in hits this fall, with Makayla's 68 hits and .723 average topping Makenzie's 63 hits and .670 average. They also led the state in home runs, combining for 29 between them, and Makenzie led the state with 60 RBI.
Senior
Emma Graham was no slouch for the top-seeded Demons either, pitching all but five innings and going 23-2 with a 2.61 ERA and 146 strikeouts.
But Golden's road is far from easy. The team's first-round opponent,
Evergreen, handed Golden one of its two losses this fall. A potential semifinal matchup could be with either No. 4
Wheat Ridge or No. 5
Silver Creek (Longmont), both teams that played the Demons tough in the regular season.
Defending state champion
Holy Family (Broomfield) (23-1) is on the other side of the bracket as the No. 2 seed. The Tigers' only setback came to 5A's Columbine in mid-September. The Tigers hit .421 as a team, with sophomore
Abby Edwards' 38 hits and 37 RBI leading the offense. Junior
Cassidy Chvatal is 13-1 with a 1.96 ERA and 99 strikeouts.
Pueblo South and
Pueblo County split the South Central League crown, but the Colts have the No. 3 seed. Freshman
Emily Abraham pitched every inning for the team, winning 23 games with an ERA at a remarkable 0.73 and striking out 158 hitters. Abraham's first-round draw is a challenge, though, as
Erie's
Kat Sackett and
Madysun Vaughan combined for 24 home runs this fall with 87 RBI. Erie hit 39 home runs overall.
Another great first-round matchup pits offensive talents from Wheat Ridge and
Rifle. The Farmers'
Aliyah Rothstein and Rifle's
Delaney Phillips are each close to a .700 average, with 118 hits between them. Phillips tied with Makayla Middleton to lead 4A with 63 runs scored and led the state with 66 stolen bases.
Quick Hits: Jeffco and the Tri-Valley League lead the state bracket with four qualifiers each. … There is plenty of title-winning experience in the field. Erie has won a state-best 11 titles, with Wheat Ridge tied for second at six. … The Middleton sisters aren't the only ones who can hit for Golden. Junior
Marla Goodspeed is tied for sixth in 4A with 43 RBI. …
Katrina Robertson of
Mesa Ridge (Colorado Springs) is second in 4A with 53 RBI. The senior has hit .682 on the season. Teammate
Kylee Bunnell has scored 50 runs. … It's not all about hitting in 4A, though. First-round opponents Silver Creek and
Coronado (Colorado Springs) have pitchers who can blow the ball past hitters – Coronado's
Jenna Ruggaber leads 4A with 236 strikeouts, and Silver Creek's
Maddie Kuehl has 199. Kuehl's ERA is 1.27. … Pueblo County's
Jacelynn Trujillo is 14-2 with a 2.00 ERA and 138 strikeouts.
Class 4A
1st RoundNo. 1 Golden (23-2) vs. No. 16 Evergreen (13-12-1), 10 a.m.
No. 8
Roosevelt (Johnstown) (14-11) vs. No. 9 Pueblo County (21-6), 10 a.m.
No. 4 Wheat Ridge (20-5) vs. No. 13 Rifle (20-6), 10 a.m.
No. 5 Silver Creek (20-5) vs. No. 12 Coronado (21-4), 10 a.m.
No. 3 Pueblo South (23-2) vs. No. 14 Erie (18-8), 12:15 p.m.
No. 6
Mead (Longmont) (18-7) vs. No. 11
D'Evelyn (Denver) (16-10), 12:15 p.m.
No. 2 Holy Family (23-1) vs. No. 13 Mesa Ridge (19-7), 12:15 p.m.
No. 7
Elizabeth (18-8) vs. No. 10
Pueblo Central (17-9), 12:15 p.m.
