The march to the University of Denver is on as the boys lacrosse state tournaments get underway today (May 10).
For the next two weeks, teams will battle it out hoping to advance to the state championship games on May 23 at DU. Both the Class 5A and 4A brackets are made up of 24 teams.
For both state brackets here is a look at some teams that can be considered favorites to walk away as state champions as well as some under the radar teams that have a chance to do something special for their schools.
For
Regis Jesuit (Aurora), 2018 seems like forever ago. That was the last time that the Raiders claimed the 5A state title and they've been itching to raise that trophy ever since. This could be their year as they come into the tournament as the No. 1 seed despite a loss to
Arapahoe (Centennial) toward the end of the regular season.
Logan White has been nearly impossible to slow down as he leads the team in both goals (57) and assists (24). If opponents are able to limit what he can do on the field, the Raiders certainly have scoring options elsewhere in
Fletcher Sullivan (23 goals) and
Ethan Hughes (19 goals).
Cherry Creek (Greenwood Village) suffered notable losses to
Valor Christian (Highlands Ranch) and Regis Jesuit, but had a solid regular season otherwise and comes into the state tournament as the No. 2 seed. The Bruins have gotten a big boost up front from attacker
Thomas Power who has scored 42 goals and handed out 23 assists, both of which are team bests. Both
Peyton Burney and
Will Stewart have seen considerable time in front of the net and have combined for 108 saves. Their save percentages both hover around .540. Cherry Creek will get the winner of
Grandview (Aurora) and
Columbine (Littleton) in the second round. The Bruins beat both teams in the regular season.
After claiming last year's state title,
Mountain Vista (Highlands Ranch) enters the 2022 tournament as the No. 5 seed. It's not an unfamiliar position as the Golden Eagles were the No. 4 seed a year ago. Juniors
Joel Palasz and
Ethan Pearson have put up very similar offensive numbers. Palasz has scored 35 goals to go with 19 assists, while Pearson has notched 33 goals and 20 assists.
Dawson Long,
Ryan Pless and
Jake Stopkoski have each acorded at least 23 goals each. If the Golden Eagles get solid production throughout the lineup, they certainly have the capability to make another championship run.
As far as underdogs go, Arapahoe is certainly an intriguing team to look at. Four losses in six games through February are certainly reason for cause, but a quick glimpse at what the Warriors have done lately, and it appears they might be playing their best lacrosse at the right time. Wins over Regis Jesuit and Mountain Vista to close out the regular season is a momentum boost heading into the postseason.
Mikey Moynihan played well in those two games, scoring three goals against Regis Jesuit and four goals against Mountain Vista. He leads the team in both goals (26) and assists (22).
Fred Fulkerson has scored 25 goals and if he and Moynihan can get the offense rolling, the Warriors should be fun to watch each round.
Other teams to watch: Fruita Monument (Fruita) could surprise some people considering it has one of the top offensive players in the state.
Tony Farber is fifth in 5A with 50 goals. If they can get a win over
Dakota Ridge (Littleton) and then take down Mountain Vista in the second round, they could be tough to slow down.
Rock Canyon (Highlands Ranch) is another team that has shown it can hang with the top teams in the class. The Jaguars beat No. 2 Valor Christian 11-9 back on April 26 which certainly raised some eyebrows across the state.
Ethan Meyer leads the Jags with 37 goals and 17 assists and
Mason Hibbett adds to a good complimentary attack with 21 goals.
Class 4A // BracketsSince opening the season with an 8-7 loss to
Kent Denver (Englewood), the
Denver South Ravens have looked like the team to beat in 4A. They rattled off 14 straight wins and knocked off some top-level opponents such as Cheyenne Mountain and Erie.
Wyatt Hurd leads the Ravens with 49 goals.
Luke Mahoney is keeping pace with 48. Overall, Denver South has four players on the roster that have scored at least 21 goals. It also has three players with at least 22 assists, led by
Gavin Schaffer who has a team-high 30. The Ravens will see the winner of
Steamboat Springs and
Evergreen. They already have a win over the Cougars this year, beating them 17-2 on April 22.
The only 4A team that
Erie lost to during the regular season was top-seeded Denver South. Losses to
Cherokee Trail (Aurora) and
Colorado Academy (Denver) weren't ideal but the Tigers have looked solid in 2022. What's even better from their perspective is that they built a 12-3 record that was spearheaded by a young team. Sophomore
Charlie O'Brien leads the scoring effort with 47 goals and his classmate,
Liam Connors, has added 41. Connors also has a team-high 26 assists. Junior goalie
Colin Selters will pretty much ensure the Tigers will be competitive in every game as he saved 157 shots and owns a save percentage of .643. Erie enters the tournament as the No. 2 seed. The Tigers were also the No. 2 seed in 2019 when they were stunned by eventual champion
Golden in the quarterfinals.
Defending champion
Cheyenne Mountain (Colorado Springs) is going into the tournament as a bit of an underdog as the No. 3 seed. The Red-Tailed Hawks lost a pair of games early in the season, falling to Cherry Creek and Denver South before rattling off eight straight wins. They faced Erie for the Northern League title and fell 11-9. The Hawks have the firepower necessary to battle their way through the bracket as
Wyatt Furda has scored 43 goals, which is tops on the roster. There are five players for Cheyenne Mountain that have scored 20 goals and another five that have at least 10 assists.
Stefan Dingbaum is tops in that category with 24. The path to the championship game could give the Hawks a rematch against Erie and a chance to even the score for the year.
Green Mountain (Lakewood) hit a bit of a roadblock in late April when it lost to Denver South and Air Academy in a span of three days. Despite finishing third in the Foothills league, the Rams are very much a threat to make a run at a state championship.
Beau Stratman has established himself as one of the best scorers in the state by netting 64 goals. He's unselfish to boot, adding in 15 assists.
Joe Berridge leads the Rams in assists with 31.
Connor Watts has been solid in front of the net all season as he has turned away 210 shots for a save percentage of .716 on the year. He held opponents to five goals or fewer in 10 games this season.
Other teams to watch:Air Academy (US Air Force Academy) is a team that shouldn't be counted out in any game.
Grant Rodny's 63 goals are a big reason that the Kadets enter the bracket as the No. 4 seed. He could easily power them into the state semifinals.
It's hard to look at a team like
Vail Mountain (Vail) as an easy out over the next couple of weeks. The Gore Rangers were one goal shy of finishing an undefeated run through the Western League and might have the best scoring balance out of any team in the tournament.
Connor Provencher leads the team with 37 goals, but there are seven players for Vail Mountain that scored at least 13 times this year.
