Upsets aplenty at Colorado State Volleyball Tournament
AURORA - There were big upsets in all but one of the brackets, as each of the top-four seeds only advanced in the Class 1A bracket, at the Colorado High School Activities Association's Girls Volleyball State Championships.
In Class 2A, No. 11 seed Burlington upset two-time defending state champions, and the tournament's No. 3 seed, Sedgwick County in five sets (26-24, 25-17, 21-25, 18-25, 15-8). In 3A, No. 7 Resurrection Christian swept No. 2 Jefferson Academy (25-8, 25-11, 25-19). In 4A, Cheyenne Mountain upset the tournament's top seed, Lewis-Palmer, in four sets (25-23, 19-25, 25-21, 26-24), and in 5A, No. 5 Mountain Vista beat No. 4 Legend in four sets (25-22, 25-19, 22-25, 25-18), No. 6 Pine Creek swept No. 3 Rock Canyon (25-11, 25-23, 26-24) and No. 7 Fossil Ridge got past No. 2 Chaparral in four sets (25-15, 22-25, 25-18, 25-17). With the wins, each of those teams advance to the third round of the Winners bracket, while the others will look to make their way back to the semifinals through the Contenders bracket.
Four of the five No. 1 seeds in the Girls Volleyball State Championships secured spots in the semifinals following Day 2 of competition, as Merino (1A), Platte Valley (3A), Valor Christian (5A) and Wiggins (2A) all advanced.
Saturday’s competition will begin with the two third-round consolation games at 8 and 9:30 a.m., with the winners advancing to the semifinals at noon and 2 p.m. The championship game for all five classifications is scheduled for 6 p.m.
Class 5A
No. 7 Fossil Ridge will join No. 1 Valor Christian in the semifinals of the 5A tournament, as Fossil Ridge got past No. 6 Pine Creek in five sets (23-25, 29-27, 25-27, 25-18, 15-7) today. Fossil Ridge will face the winner of the consolation match between No. 2 Chaparral vs. No. 5 Mountain Vista tomorrow, while Valor Christian will take the winner of No. 4 Legend vs. No. 6 Pine Creek contest.
Valor Christian advanced to the semifinals after sweeping Mountain Vista (25-20, 25-15, 27-25). Meanwhile, Legend eliminated No. 10 Castle View, 3-0 (25-21, 26-24, 25-16) and No. 11 Ralston Valley, 3-0 (25-19, 25-10, 26-24), and Chaparral knocked out No. 3 Rock Canyon, 3-0 (25-18, 25-17, 25-16) and No. 12 Cherry Creek, 3-2 (25-20, 20-25, 25-21, 20-25, 15-8.
Saturday Schedule
8 am - #4 Legend vs. #6 Pine Creek
9:30 am – #2 Chaparral vs. #5 Mountain Vista
Noon - #1 Valor Christian vs. #4 Legend/#6 Pine Creek
2 pm - #7 Fossil Ridge vs. #2 Chaparral/#5 Mountain Vista
6 pm – Championship Game
Class 4A
Lewis-Palmer, the No. 1 seed in the 4A tournament, will look to secure a spot in the semifinals through the consolation bracket, as it will open play at 8 a.m. tomorrow against No. 2 Windsor. The winner of that game will advance to the semifinals to face No. 3 Palmer Ridge.
Palmer Ridged secured a semifinal spot after sweeping Windsor (25-16, 25-14, 25-16), while Lewis-Palmer eliminated No. 5 Lutheran, 3-1 (26-24, 18-25, 25-13, 25-14) and No. 7 Eagle Valley, 3-0 (25-23, 25-11, 25-20) in the consolation bracket.
In the other semifinal, No. 4 Thompson Valley will await the winner of No. 9 Cheyenne Mountain vs. No. 10 The Classical Academy. Thompson Valley swept Cheyenne Mountain today (25-19, 29-27, 26-24), while The Classical Academy eliminated No. 8 Holy Family, 3-2 (24-26, 20-25, 25-22, 25-18, 19-17) before knocking off No. 12 Montrose, 3-0 (25-11, 25-18, 25-13).
Saturday Schedule
8 am - #1 Lewis-Palmer vs. #2 Windsor
9:30 am - #9 Cheyenne Mountain vs. #10 The Classical Academy
Noon - #4 Thompson Valley vs. #1 Lewis-Palmer/#2 Windsor
2 pm - #3 Palmer Ridge vs. #9 Cheyenne Mountain/#10 The Classical Academy
6 pm – Championship Game
Class 3A
Top-seeded Platte Valley and No. 3-seed Eaton continued to advance in the Winners bracket, and secured their place in tomorrow’s semifinals with wins today. Platte Valley swept No. 4 Delta (25-20, 25-16, 25-18), while Eaton knocked No. 7 Resurrection Christian into the consolation bracket with a 3-1 win (27-25, 15-25, 25-18, 25-20).
Resurrection Christian will open play tomorrow against No. 6 Liberty Common, with the winner advancing to the semifinals to face Platte Valley. Liberty Common advanced through the consolation bracket with wins over No. 8 Centauri, 3-2 (20-25, 30-28, 25-19, 21-25, 15-9) and No. 12 Valley, 3-1 (23-25, 25-20, 25-21, 25-19).
No. 3 Eaton will await the winner of No. 4 Delta vs. No. 11 University. University made it to the third round of the consolation bracket by upsetting No. 9 Lamar, XX, and No. 5 Timnath, 3-1 (25-27, 25-19, 25-14, 25-19).
Saturday Schedule
8 am - #6 Liberty Common vs. #7 Resurrection Christian
9:30 am - #4 Delta vs. #11 University
Noon - #1 Platte Valley vs. #6 Liberty Common/#7 Resurrection Christian
2 pm - #3 Eaton vs. #4 Delta/#11 University
6 pm – Championship Game
Class 2A
No. 1 Wiggins and No. 10 Limon clinched semifinal spots with wins over No. 5 Plateau Valley and No. 11 Burlington, respectively, today. Wiggins swept Plateau Valley (25-18, 25-13, 25-12), while Limon took four sets to defeat Burlington (17-25, 25-18, 25-12, 25-8).
Wiggins will now await the winner of the No. 6 Strasburg vs. No. 11 Burlington consolation game, while Limon will face the winner of the No. 3 Sedgwick County vs. No. 5 Plateau Valley consolation match-up. Sedgwick County advanced in the consolation bracket by knocking out No. 2 Rye, 3-0 (25-8, 25-16, 25-23), and No. 12 St. Mary’s, 3-1 (25-27, 25-12, 25-8, 25-14), while Strasburg eliminated No. 8 Ignacio, 3-0 (25-16, 25-19, 27-25), and No. 4 Mancos, 3-0 (25-20, 25-16, 25-17).
Saturday Schedule
8 am - #6 Strasburg vs. #11 Burlington
9:30 am - #3 Sedgwick County vs. #5 Plateau Valley
Noon - #1 Wiggins vs. #6 Strasburg/#11 Burlington
2 pm - #10 Limon vs. #3 Sedgwick County/#5 Plateau Valley
Class 1A
Upsets were hard to come by in the 1A bracket, as the top-four seeds met in the third round, with an automatic trip to the semifinals on the line. No. 1 Merino and No. 2 Stratton prevailed as Merino swept No. 4 Simla (25-13, 26-24, 25-8) and Stratton swept No. 3 McClave (25-14, 25-21, 25-20).
Merino will now await the winner of the McClave vs. No. 8 Dove Creek consolation match, and Stratton will take on the winner of Simla vs. No. 9 Haxtun. Dove Creek eliminated No. 5 Otis, 3-1 (21-25, 25-18, 25-20, 25-20), and No. 10 Cheraw, 3-0 (25-20, 25-222, 25-18) in today’s action, while Haxtun knocked out No. 11 Weldon Valley, 3-0 (25-20, 25-20, 25-21) and No. 7 Briggsdale, 3-2 (25-18, 16-25, 25-23, 24-26, 15-9).
Saturday Schedule
8 am – #3 McClave vs. #8 Dove Creek
9:30 am - #4 Simla vs. #9 Haxtun
Noon - #1 Merino vs. #3 McClave/#8 Dove Creek
2 pm - #2 Stratton vs. #4 Simla/#9 Haxtun
6 pm – Championship Game