League standings trump overall standings

Manitou Springs is 1-5. So is Falcon. Discovery Canyon improved to 2-4. Awful, right?

Well, Manitou Springs jumped back into contention at 1-1, while the other two are 1-0 in league play after wins on Friday.

Manitou Springs turned the tables on Florence in 2A Tri-Peaks play, beating the Huskies for only the second time in the last nine meetings. Cole Sienknecht accounted for all four Manitou scores, running for two and passing for two more.

Falcon stopped a five-game slide by routing District 49 rival Sand Creek in the 4A Foothills opener.

And Discovery Canyon found a way to avoid drama for once, dominating Mitchell from the opening kickoff in a 45-14 win to open 3A Southern League play.

Lewis-Palmer quietly joining the 3A elite

There once was a time when Lewis-Palmer was among the football elite. As a 4A school, the Rangers went 9-3, then figured to dominate in a lower classification when they went down to 3A. Sure enough, LP went 9-3 again in 2011, upset Vista Ridge in a playoff game before losing the next week.

Since then, however, the Rangers haven’t been able to crack the six-win plateau and, more importantly, return to the playoffs.

But after Friday’s 63-48 win at Canon City, Lewis-Palmer improved to 5-1, and certainly will be favorites the next two weeks against Mitchell and Woodland Park. That leads into a tasty Halloween Eve smackdown against Discovery Canyon that will likely decide the league crown and automatic playoff berth.

TCA finds stride, moves winning streak to five

A team with high hopes entering the season, TCA stumbled out of the gates at 0-2 (well, Delta is 5-1 and Palisade is 6-0), so nothing to be ashamed of there.

Still, the Titans, with four more nonleague games to iron things out, have certainly done that. Now, TCA is flying at 5-2.

On Friday, TCA won its league opener 27-10 at Pueblo County, first spotting the Hornets a 10-0 lead.

By halftime, the Titans had forged a 10-all tie, then do-it-all playmaker Jayce Hall returned the second-half kickoff for a touchdown to give TCA the lead for good.

TCA plays Sierra next week before another chapter in what has become quite a rivalry over the years with Pueblo East, the defending 3A state champion. Circle Oct. 23 on your calendar and make your way to Voyager and Stout for that one.