CLASS 4A

No. 5 Air Academy Kadets

Game data: No. 28 Golden (7-7-1) vs. No. 5 Air Academy (10-4-1) … 5 p.m. Wednesday at the Air Academy K-Dome. The winner will play either No. 12 Mead or No. 21 Cheyenne Mountain in the second round Saturday.

Scouting the Kadets: Air Academy finished the regular season 8-1-1, claiming the outright 5A/4A PPAC title after rebounding from a tough nonconference slate to start the season.

The high-scoring Kadets average 3.6 goals with a 1.87 GAA, led by sophomore Capri Dewing with 10 goals. Goalkeeper Emma Franzen, also a sophomore, has racked up 1,066 minutes in net and has notched three shutouts.

Senior Liza Louthan is second on the team in scoring with eight, followed by Zoe Sims with seven. The Kadets boast 13 players who have scored this year, 10 of whom finished the regular season with multiple goals.

This year marks a big leap for the Air Academy soccer team, which earned a No. 25 seed in the playoffs last year and got bounced in the first round. This season the Kadets moved up 20 spots in the RPI.

Scouting the Demons: Golden ended a four-game skid with a 7-1 win over Rangeview in the final game of the regular season.

The Demons are led by Emily Stec who has seven goals, followed by Grace Gardner with six. Golden averages 2.7 goals with 14 scorers netting goals in the regular season.

Katie Hageman and Audrey Pino split time in goal, combining for 115 saves and a 1.33 GAA.

No. 7 Sand Creek Scorpions vs. No. 26 Canon City Tigers

Game data: No. 28 Canon City (10-5) vs. No. 7 Sand Creek (13-2) … 6 p.m. Wednesday at Sand Creek High School. The winner will move on to the second round to face either No. 10 Palmer Ridge or No. 23 Glenwood Springs.

Scouting the Scorpions: Sand Creek stormed through the first half of the regular season on a 10-0 run cultivating a reputation as one of the highest-scoring teams in the state. By the end of the regular season the Scorpions averaged 5.8 goals led by sophomore Sydney Lasater with 30. Jadyn Ledoux followed with 17 and Zoey Shank had 15 goals. Sophomore goaltender Lexi Montero is 11-1 with six shutouts.

Sand Creek won four games by a 10-goal margin.

Scouting the Tigers: A four-game winning streak was spoiled for the Tigers in the final game of the regular season where they fell to St. Mary’s 2-1, but Canon City outscored opponents 27-3 in its four wins prior.

The Tigers are led by Cassidy Heimel and Macy French who have 13 goals each. Kyndal West follows with seven and Abigail Rupp has five goals and leads the team with 10 assists. The Tigers have two young goalies, sophomore Jordan Konty (710 minutes) and freshman Mady Ley (435 minutes) who have combined for 100 saves and a 2.483 GAA.

No. 10 Palmer Ridge Bears

Game data: No. 23 Glenwood Springs (10-4-1) vs. No. 10 Palmer Ridge (11-3-1) … 6 p.m. Wednesday at Don Breese Stadium. The winner will play either No. 7 Sand Creek or No. 26 Canon City in the second round.

Scouting the Bears: Palmer Ridge was riding an eight-game winning streak into the final match of the regular season before it fell to Cheyenne Mountain 2-0. But along the way the Bears posted six shutouts, outscoring opponents 41-3 in the final nine games of the regular season.

Sarah Miller leads Palmer Ridge with 14 goals, followed by Anna Mason with eight.

Freshman keeper Heather Holter has put in 740 minutes of work and notched eight shutouts. Senior Julia Howe has four shutouts through 320 minutes and the two have combined for 82 saves.

Scouting the Demons: Glenwood Springs won three straight before settling for a 2-2 tie against Battle Mountain in the regular-season finale. The Demons average 4.1 goals per game led by sophomore Tatum Lily with 12, and freshman Ella Johnson with 10. Summer McSwain leads the team with 12 assists.

No. 16 Classical Academy Titans

Game data: No. 17 Erie (11-4) vs. No. 16 TCA (10-4-1) … 6 p.m. Wednesday at The Classical Academy. The winner will play either No. 1 D’Evelyn or No. 32 Conifer on Friday in the Class 4A second round.

Scouting the Titans: After clinching a big win over No. 5 Air Academy in the final week of April the Titans went 1-2 to close out the season. TCA will look to rebound against No. 17 Erie.

TCA is led by three double-figure scorers, with sophomore Talia Schmidt leading the pack with 18 goals and nine assists. Trinity Harvey has 12 and Rebecca Thompson has scored 11 for the Titans. Senior Kaylee Thompson leads TCA in assists with 12.

Freshman keeper Melina McClure has eight shutouts and a 0.871 GAA, while senior Ashlee Pederson has been perfect through 218 minutes to help the team to a combined 0.672 GAA.

Scouting the Tigers: Erie won three of its last four in the regular season, outscoring opponents 19-4 along the way.

The Tigers are led by seniors McKenna Harrington (14 goals) and Alison McNeal (11 goals) as the offense averages 3.3 goals.

Zoe Hatch is the team’s No. 1 in the net with a 1.688 GAA through 955 minutes.

No. 21 Cheyenne Mountain Indians

Game data: No. 21 Cheyenne Mountain vs. No. 12 Mead … 6 p.m. Wednesday at Mead High School. The winner will face either No. 5 Air Academy or No. 28 Golden in the second round Friday.

Scouting the Indians: Cheyenne Mountain enters the postseason prepared after having faced some top competition due to one of the class’ most difficult schedules. The Indians are fresh off a 1-0 defeat by 5A No. 4 Rampart and defeated No. 10 Palmer Ridge in the final week of the regular season.

Lisa Long leads the Indians with 11 goals, followed by Carly Fetters with six. Cheyenne Mountain averages just 1.6 goals while goalkeepers Ashley Bertsch and Ari Betoni combined for a 1.086 GAA. Bertsch has 716 minutes in goal with 30 saves. Betoni has 255 minutes and 12 saves.

Scouting the Mavericks: Mead won 10 of its last 12 contests and is led by a hot-shot freshman forward Haley Williams who notched 22 goals in her varsity debut. Senior Peyton Fox has 12 goals as the team’s next-leading scorer.

The Mavericks average 4.4 goals, all the while holding opponents to 0.744, on average thanks to junior Brea Encinas in net, who has allowed just 16 goals to 1,691 minutes.

No. 22 Lewis-Palmer Rangers

Game data: No. 22 Lewis-Palmer (7-6-2) vs. No. 11 Green Mountain (10-5) … 3:30 p.m. Wednesday at Lakewood Memorial. The winner will move on to the second round to play either No. 6 Mullen or No. 27 Montrose on Friday.

Scouting the Rangers: Green Mountain claimed the team’s regular-season meeting in a 2-1 overtime thriller in March. Lewis-Palmer had a one-goal lead at the half before the Rams came back to force overtime, and ultimately scored in the second OT.

Lewis-Palmer’s Ellie Chrisler scored the Rangers’ lone goal. Lewis-Palmer scoring stats have not been updated for the season, but Chrisler led the Rangers with seven goals through five games, according to what is reported to MaxPreps.

Scouting the Rams: Green Mountain enters the postseason on a four-game winning streak, turning around a four-game skid in mid-April.

The Rams are led by Olivia Pietro with 11 goals. The next-highest scorer is sophomore Makenzi Dowell and senior Kennedy Hirst with four each.

Sophomore keeper Jayden Johnson has allowed 16 goals through 1,120 minutes for a 1.143 GAA.

No. 29 Discovery Canyon Thunder

Game data: No. 29 Discovery Canyon (6-7-2) vs. No. 4 Wheat Ridge (12-2-1) … 5:30 p.m. Wednesday at Lakewood Memorial. The winner will move on to face either No. 13 Holy Family or No. 20 George Washington in the second round.

Scouting the Thunder: Discovery Canyon had a bumpy journey into the playoffs, going through the final two weeks of the season 2-3-1, including a 4-4 tie with No. 5 Air Academy, and a 1-0 loss to No. 7 Sand Creek.

The Thunder will look to change their luck against No. 4 Wheat Ridge after missing the 2018 state playoffs. The teams met in early March with the Farmers claiming a 2-1 nonconference win.

Discovery Canyon is led by Sharon Mayes with 11 goals, followed by Carrie Bailey with seven. Mackenzie Seitz has a 1.493 GAA and five shutouts through 1,200 minutes.

Scouting the Farmers: With 24 goals, senior Molly Kratzer is Wheat Ridge’s biggest threat on an offense that averages 3.1 goals. Sophomore Jessica Brummett is second on the team in scoring with seven goals. Kratzer was responsible for both Wheat Ridge goals the last time the Farmers faced Discovery Canyon.

The Farmers’ two losses on the season were to Class 4A contenders, No. 3 Evergreen and No. 11 Green Mountain.

Continue below for the scouting report for Class 3A

CLASS 3A

No. 10 St. Mary’s Pirates

Game data: No. 23 The Academy (8-7) vs. No. 10 St. Mary’s (11-4) … 6 p.m. Wednesday at the Grace Center. The winner will move on to play either No. 7 Peak to Peak or No. 26 Delta in the second round on Saturday.

Scouting the Pirates: St. Mary’s enters the postseason surging on a 10-game winning streak and fresh off a 3A Tri-Peaks league victory.

The Pirates put together an impressive turnaround after beginning the season 1-4 and has not looked back.

They’re led by Katie Fowler with 14 goals, followed by Mary Brummel with 13 and Julia Creech with 12. Eighteen Pirates have registered at least a point this season and the team averages 4.5 goals. Seven players have registered game-winning goals, led by Fowler with five.

Senior keeper Becca Dunbaugh has 975 minutes in goal with a 1.723 GAA and seven shutouts.

Scouting the Wildcats: After dropping three straight The Academy came back to win the final two of the regular season, outscoring opponents 8-0. Kaylie Gabel leads the Wildcats with 22 goals and seven assists through 11 games, followed by sophomore McKenzie Stricker with 12 and eight, respectively, through eight.

Scoring stats are not complete on MaxPreps, but The Academy averaged 4.3 goals per game through 11 contests this season.

No. 18 Manitou Springs Mustangs

Game data: No. 18 Manitou Springs (7-7-1) vs. No. 15 St. Mary’s Academy (5-8-1) … 4 p.m. Wednesday at St. Mary’s Academy turf. The winner will move on to play either No. 2 Kent Denver or No. 31 DSST: College View.

Scouting the Mustangs: After losing two straight the Mustangs redeemed themselves heading into the playoffs with a 7-0 win over No. 22 Vanguard in the regular-season finale.

Bridget Bodor leads Manitou Springs with 13 goals and seven assists, while Caileen Sienchnect has 11 goals and eight helpers. Fifteen Mustangs have scored this season, with eight netting four or more as the team claimed a 4.1 goals-per-game average through the regular season.

Sophomore Caroline Maestas has a 1.889 GAA heading into the playoffs through 720 minutes. Taylor Foky has 419 minutes with a 1.337 GAA, and Sienchnect spent 61 perfect minutes in the net.

Scouting the Wildcats: Despite finishing the regular season under .500, St. Mary’s Academy had the hardest 3A schedule in the state, allowing the Wildcats to clinch at top-15 seed.

St. Mary’s Academy averages just a goal per game, and has three players with two goals, Darian Smith, Charlotte Swenson and Emma Stern.

No. 20 Colorado Springs Christian Lions

Game data: No. 20 Colorado Springs Christian (8-7) vs. No. 13 Prospect Ridge Academy (9-6) … 4 p.m. Wednesday at PRA turf. The winner will face either No. 4 Salida or No. 29 Basalt in the second round, set for Saturday.

Scouting the Lions: CSCS won three of its last five including a 3-0 win over No. 30 Atlas Prep, and held No. 18 Manitou Springs to one goal in a 1-0 loss. The Lions ended the regular season with a 3-0 loss to No. 4 Salida, who they could face again in the second round.

The Lions are led by Kait Halverson who has nine goals through 10 games, followed by E Ross with six through 14. CSCS averages 2.3 goals per game, while the defense, led by keeper M Boucher, allows 1.488 goals on average.

Boucher has 99 saves through 1,183 minutes in goal.

Scouting the Miners: Prospect Ridge lost three straight before storming back for a 10-0 win over Fort Lupton in the final game of the regular season.

The Miners average three goals, led by freshman Ainsley Macdonald and senior Lily Fletcher with eight each. Colleen Carrasco and Emory Wheeler have seven each.

Linda Leahy has allowed just 13 goals this season through 1,104 minutes, and has registered eight shutouts.

No. 22 Vanguard Coursers

Game data: No. 22 Vanguard (10-5) vs. No. 11 SkyView (7-6-2) … 4 p.m. Wednesday at SkyView Academy. The winner will face either No. 6 Aspen or No. 27 Englewood in the second round Saturday.

Scouting the Coursers: Vanguard made history this season marking the program’s first state playoff berth. Vanguard won seven straight before dropping the final two of the regular season, a 7-0 loss to No. 18 Manitou Springs, and 5-3 defeat by 2A No. 4 Fountain Valley.

Junior Aliyah Moya leads the Coursers with 28 goals, including back-to-back hat tricks and a four-goal performance through the last four games of the regular season. Emily Lovato has eight goals and leads the team in assists with four.

Sophomore keeper Hannah Baylor has a 1.158 GAA and 138 saves in goal.

Scouting the Hawks: SkyView averages 2.4 goals led by junior Maddy Etten who has netted nine this season. Olivia Brown follows with six goals and four assists.

In goal senior Ruby Schmidli and freshman Scotti Swanson split time with 57 and 30 saves, respectively. The team combines for a 2.741 GAA.

No. 30 Atlas Prep Gryphons

Game data: No. 30 Atlas Prep (9-6) vs. No. 3 Jefferson Academy (13-1-1) … 5 p.m. Wednesday at Jefferson Academy. The winner will move on to face No. 14 DSST: Stapleton or No. 19 Roaring Fork in the second round.

Scouting the Gryphons: Atlas Prep has won six of its last eight contests outscoring opponents 39-15. Scoring statistics are not updated on MaxPreps.

Scouting the Jaguars: Jefferson Academy has allowed just three goals against through the regular season, with its only loss of the year coming in a 1-0 defeat by No. 2 Kent Denver.

Kristen Capan has 12 goals for the Jaguars while goalie Brooklynn Kirkpatrick has a staggering 0.148 GAA, 11 shutouts and 61 saves on the year.

CLASS 5A

No. 4 Rampart Rams

Game data: No. 29 Arvada West (8-6-1) vs. No. 4 Rampart (15-0) … 6 p.m. Tuesday at D-20 Stadium. The winner will face either No. 13 Windsor or No. 20 Monarch in the second round on Friday.

Scouting the Rams: Rampart made history last week completing the program’s first undefeated regular season and enters the state tournament as the only unbeaten team in Colorado.

The Rams average 4.3 goals led by Grace McReynolds who has 10 on the year. She is followed by Kaitlyn Wilcox and Jordan Garrett with nine each.

Junior goalkeeper Katlyn Rosenbaum has allowed just six goals through 920 minutes and has racked up 10 shutouts.

Rampart is well above the national average in goals (4.3), assists (2.9) and shots (293), and has a 0.522 goals-against average – a mere fraction of the national average (2.27).

Scouting the Wildcats: Arvada West enters the postseason on a three-game winning streak including two shutouts and has not allowed more than a goal per game since April 12.

The Wildcats have one stand-out scorer in senior Makenna Fowler who has 10 goals on the year. The team’s next-highest scorer is Hailey Johns with six.

Arvada West averages 2.3 goals per game and a 0.933 goals against average thanks to seniors Ashleigh Burr and Katelyn Welch in goal, who have combined for 63 saves and seven shutouts.

No. 25 Liberty Lancers

Game data: No. 25 Liberty (10-4-1) vs. No. 8 Rocky Mountain (10-4-1) … 6 p.m. Tuesday at Rocky Mountain High School. The winner will face either No. 9 Fairview or No. 24 Mountain Vista on Friday in the second round.

Scouting the Lancers: Each of Liberty’s last six wins were shutouts heading into the final game of the regular season, where the Lancers settled for a scoreless tie against rival No. 32 Pine Creek.

The Lancers outscored opponents 39-7 in the final month of the regular season, led by Sydney Engelkins who finished with 11 goals and five assists. Amber Boains and Courtney Cowels followed with seven goals each. Cowels leads the team in assists with eight. Goaltender Maria Martinez finished with 10 wins, nine of which were shutouts, and boasts a .831 goals-against average.

Scouting the Lobos: Despite finishing with the same regular-season record as Liberty, the Lobos earned the No. 8 seed thanks in part to a 14.9 strength of schedule rating on MaxPreps, compared to Liberty’s 4.0 rating.

Rocky Mountain enters the postseason on a seven-game winning streak after starting the season 3-4-1.

The Lobos are led by Mikayla Eccher with eight goals and six assists. Sophomore Sidney Siple follows with six goals.

No. 32 Pine Creek Eagles

Game data: No. 32 Pine Creek (6-7-2) vs. No. 1 Broomfield (14-1) … 6 p.m. Tuesday at Broomfield. The winner move on to the second round Friday to face either No. 17 Legacy or No. 16 Rock Canyon.

Scouting the Pine Creek Eagles: Pine Creek will face a mountain in the first round of the 5A playoffs, taking on the state’s top seed Broomfield.

The second half of the Eagles’ schedule, however, should have helped prepare the team for the postseason. In April Pine Creek faced six teams who are now headed to the postseason, including its first-round opponent Broomfield, in which they lost 5-2. Bethan Duggan had a goal and an assist, and Lucy Hart also scored.

Hart leads the eagles with 12 goals, followed by Greer Garcher with eight. A staggering 20 Eagles have scored in a game this season, including 10 that have multiple goals.

Sophomore Lauren Lacy has racked up 825 minutes in goal with a 1.648 GAA and two shutouts. Azlan Tubbs also has a pair of shutouts and a 0.573 GAA through 279 minutes.

Scouting the Broomfield Eagles: Last time against Pine Creek Mallory Mooney and Shaylee Gailus scored twice, and Lindsay Hudson also scored.

Mooney leads the Eagles with 19 goals, followed by Gailius with 12 as the team’s only double-figure scorers. Hudson leads the team in assists with 11 and is third in scoring with six goals.

Broomfield averages 3.5 goals and has a 1.286 GAA thanks in part to junior Emily Stewart who has a 1.221 GAA and two shutouts through 655 minutes. Morgan Friday racked up 465 minutes in goal through nine games and earned a shutout and five wins.

Continue below for the scouting report for Class 2A

CLASS 2A

No. 4 Fountain Valley Danes

Game data: The 13-2 Danes earned a first-round bye and will host the winner of No. 12 Rye vs. No 5 Cornerstone in the Class 2A quarterfinals on Friday at 4:15.

Scouting the Danes: Fountain Valley enters the postseason on a six-game winning streak, with its last loss coming in a 3-0 defeat by No. 11 Thomas MaClaren in April. Fountain-Valley later took revenge in a 2-0 win over the Highlanders in the final game of the regular season. The Danes’ other loss was to Class 3A No. 20 in another 3-0 defeat.

Fountain Valley is ranked second in Class 2A in points behind No. 2 Dawson School and averages 4.6 goals per game. Sophomore Eryn Mitchell leads the offensive charge with 16 goals, followed by Jamie Johnson and Electa Clark with 12 each. Tilly Rahm has racked up 1040 minutes in goal with a 0.923 GAA. She has eight wins – seven of which were shutouts.

No. 11 Thomas MacLaren School

Game data: No. 11 Thomas MacLaren School (10-5) vs. No. 6 Crested Butte (12-2-1)… 1:30 p.m. Tuesday at Gunnison Middle School. The winner will face No. 3 Loveland Classical in the second round on Friday.

Scouting the Highlanders: Thomas MacLaren made history this season, claiming a spot in the Class 2A playoffs in the program’s first full varsity season. Last year the Highlanders went 8-1 in an abbreviated season, according to MaxPreps.

Thomas MacLaren averages 3.8 goals per game thanks in part to its core of young stars, led by freshman Kadence Christensen with 18 goals. Sophomores Sarah Blankinship and Annie Brown follow with 11 and 10 goals, respectively.

Junior goaltender Mia Gardner has racked up 153 saves in goal and has earned a 1.204 GAA through 930 minutes in goal.

Scouting the Titans: Crested Butte enters the postseason on a five-game winning streak and averaged five goals per game through the regular season.

Individual statistics were not updated on MaxPreps.

 

Air Academy High School plays Sand Creek in girls soccer on Thursday, April 25 at Air Academy Stadium in Colorado Springs. (photo by Liz Copan)

Liz Copan

Air Academy High School plays Sand Creek in girls soccer on Thursday, April 25 at Air Academy Stadium in Colorado Springs. (photo by Liz Copan)

Liz Copan