Gazette Preps rewind: Pikes Peak region athletes find their groove as postseason looms
The final stretch of high school spring competition has arrived as postseason action begins in coming weeks.
Cheyenne Mountain and Air Academy girls’ tennis have already showcased their talents as both advanced to the girls’ tennis dual tournament semifinals.
The Red-Tailed Hawks will host the Kadets on May 5 and the winner advances to the finals in Denver on May 12.
While those teams vie for playoff success, below are highlights from athletes and competition from the past week.
14ners
Owen Twesme, sr., Palmer Ridge, track and field – Those at the Stutler Twilight marveled at the strength of this Bear in Greenwood Village.
Twesme left the Stutler Bowl in awe and with the meet record in the shot put at 60 feet, eight inches. He’s the only Colorado thrower to surpass 60 feet in the shot put this season and ranks 72nd in the nation.
In six Colorado meets this year, Twesme collected first place at each event. At the Arcadia Invitational in Arcadia, Calif., Twesme placed eighth and threw his shot 57-6½.
Jake Cody, sr., Discovery Canyon, baseball – Cody had a career day in the Thunder’s matchup with Lewis-Palmer.
In the first of two games between Pikes Peak Athletic Conference foes, Cody dinged the Rangers for two homers and four RBIs, both season highs, and was a perfect 3-of-3 hitting.
Cody had two hits in four of the Thunder’s previous five games and reached three for the first time since April 7.
Liam Gordon, sr., Widefield, baseball – The excellence of the Gladiators’ ace continues as Gordon burned Coronado on the mound.
Gordon struck out a season-high 12 batters in Widefield’s 11-2 victory and allowed seven hits and two earned runs in 61/3 innings.
Through 381/3 innings, Gordon has a 2.92 ERA, collected his fifth win and has allowed more than two runs just once this season.
Tristan Mullis, jr., Pine Creek, baseball – Mullis’ career day on the diamond helped the Eagles earn their ninth consecutive victory.
The Eagles beat Fountain-Fort Carson 18-0 on April 23 and the junior finished with a career-high four hits and added a pair of doubles.
Mullis has been excellent in the batter’s box all season and has a 17-game hitting streak. Counting his sophomore year, that streak extends to 19. Mullis finished last season with hits in the Eagles’ final two contests.
Chase Vadala, jr., Thomas MacLaren, boys volleyball – Vadala’s first double-digit kill game in five contests helped the Highlanders sweep James Irwin last week.
The Highlanders defeated the Jaguars 3-0 and Vadala finished with a game-high 18 kills, six fewer than the entire Jaguars team.
Vadala also had a team-high 10 digs, a solo block and an ace.
Abigail O’Rourke, jr., Widefield, girls soccer – The Gladiators went 1-0-1 last week and O’Rourke ensured the Gladiators didn’t lose.
O’Rourke had 42 saves in two games for the Gladiators including a career-best 27 in a 1-1 tie against Coronado when the junior keeper earned the assist on Widefield’s second-half goal.
Against Harrison, where the Gladiators won 3-1, O’Rourke thwarted 15 Panthers shots.
Clare Jones, sr., Cheyenne Mountain, girls soccer – One match after losing her 10-game goal streak, Jones worked her magic against Lewis-Palmer.
Jones earned her first hat trick in nearly a month in a 5-0 win against the Rangers on Thursday for her 18th goal this year.
The Red-Tailed Hawks’ senior has more than doubled her goal total from her junior year where she had eight in 11 matches.
Xzavier Campos, sr., Coronado, track and field – His second 800-meter run of the outdoor season gave Campos his fastest time and a win.
At the Liberty Bell Invite, Campos clocked in at 1 minute, 52.69 seconds in the 800 to beat 64 competitors.
Campos finished the race nearly three seconds ahead of Pine Creek’s Rylan Hallam, who placed second at 1:55.02.
Kobe Dooley, sr., Mesa Ridge, track and field – Dooley moved into the top 10 for the 4A boys 100 dash rankings after his sprint at Saturday’s District 2 Invitational at Harrison.
The Grizzlies senior placed first in 10.84 to win and finished 0.09 seconds faster than Harrison’s Thiago Roberts, who earned second at 10.93.
Dooley’s time marked his best this year and was his second time this season running a sub-11-second 100. Dooley also won the 200 at 22.47.
London Pate, jr., Pine Creek, track and field – The 300 hurdles field at the Liberty Bell Invite began with 37, was trimmed to eight and Pate stood atop the bunch after finals.
Pate finished first in the girls’ 300 hurdles in 44.63 to earn her top time this season and to move into eighth in the state.
Prior to Saturday’s race, Pate had run 45 seconds or higher in five 300 hurdle events.
Emma Schultz, fr., Cheyenne Mountain, track and field – The Red-Tailed Hawks’ girls distance runners dominated at the District 2 Invitational at Harrison and Schultz embodied that effort.
Schultz finished first in the 3,200 with a 12:52.45 and finished more than 60 seconds faster than second.
This was the freshman’s first two-mile race and first victory of her prep career.
Rowan Wolthuis, jr., Vista Ridge, girls soccer – In four matches this season, Wolthuis has left the pitch with a hat trick.
That includes last week in a 5-0 victory against Fountain-Fort Carson as Wolthuis scored four of the Wolves’ five goals.
Wolthuis moved into third in 5A with 16 goals and ranks 47th in Colorado in the category.
Addison Dorsey, jr., Manitou Springs, girls golf – Dorsey remains on the tail of 2A’s top golfer and continues to inch closer as the state tournament looms.
At The Showcase Invitational at the Fox Hill Club, Dorsey finished tied for third at 1-over-par 73 as one of two 2A golfers at the event.
Dorsey finished with pars on her final five holes and was tied with Colorado Academy’s Sophia Lee, the event’s other 2A competitor. Lee earned a birdie to place second.
Scarlett Ford, jr., Rampart, girls golf – Ford collected her first victory of the season in the Rams’ trip to Valley Hi Golf Course.
Ford carded a 13-over 85 to outpace the field of 74 competitors and was one of three golfers to shoot in the 80s.
The Rams junior earned two birdies and three pars to fend off second-place Brooklyn Kinder, the Falcon junior who finished at 87.
Close contests
Baseball
The Classical Academy 6, Falcon 5
Falcon has just three losses through 18 games and TCA accounts for two of those.
The Titans earned a 6-4 victory against the Falcons on April 21 and earned a one-run victory Thursday after holding off a Falcons comeback.
TCA scored its six runs in the opening three innings and Zach Mediavilla led the team with three of the Titans’ six hits.
As the Falcons found momentum in the fifth inning and posted two runs, Mason Parker found his touch on the mound. Parker collected two of his three strikeouts in the seventh inning and halted the Falcons’ rally with his final pitch for the Titans’ win.
Boys volleyball
Fountain-Fort Carson 3, Sand Creek 2
All but one of the Trojans’ and Scorpions’ all-time matches have gone the distance and this was the first time this season Fountain-Fort Carson won against Sand Creek.
The Trojans earned a 25-23, 25-22, 23-25, 20-25, 17-15 victory and only the fourth set was decided more than three points.
While Alex Gio Nicandro led the Trojans with 16 kills to tie a season high, Alfonso Ngaluafe performed at an elite level. Ngaluafe finished with a career-high 50 assists and had just one ball handling error in 70 attempts.
Girls soccer
Manitou Springs 2, Woodland Park 2
In seven previous meetings, Manitou Springs earned seven victories against Woodland Park and outscored the Panthers 46-1.
That changed last week despite a 2-1 halftime advantage with goals by Natalie Gore and Story Aldridge for the Mustangs.
The Panthers knotted the contest with a strike in the second half to salvage a tie for the first time against the Mustangs.
Haddy Wiley and Ruby Kelm each scored for the Panthers. Wiley’s goal gave her 20 for the year and Kelm’s was her second of the season.