Denver Post staff writers Neil H. Devlin and Jon E. Yunt look at upcoming events in high school sports:
BOYS BASKETBALL
Reloaded for rematch
Call it the most interesting rematch in the Class 4A Colorado Springs Metro League: Sierra, top-ranked in The Denver Post/9News 4A poll and the league leader, plays at No. 8 Lewis-Palmer today at 7 p.m.
The defending state champion Stallions (18-2 overall, 12-0 in league) won the first meeting 58-45 at home on Jan. 12. The Stallions’ only losses are to Class 5A No. 3 Fountain-Fort Carson in the season opener and on Dec. 12 to 5A No. 4 Montbello.
The Rangers have since added transfer Josh Scott, who is averaging 27.1 points over nine games.
On Friday, emerging Fairview will play at upstart Mountain Range at 7 p.m. in the Class 5A Front Range. The host Mustangs have galloped to a 15-5 record and are just two games off the league pace.
And don’t forget a Class 2A showdown Saturday: Top-ranked and 15-0 Colorado Springs School, featuring returning player of the year DeLovell Earls, plays at No. 7 Limon (13-2) and Matt Brown, The Denver Post’s Gold Helmet Award winner in football.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Mustangs, Falcons await road tests
Big doings in Class 5A Jefferson County today at 7 p.m. as Ralston Valley plays at Arvada West.
The visiting Mustangs are tied with Columbine at three games off the pace set by A-West (16-4), which has clinched at least the league crown and won 14 games in succession.
Highlands Ranch’s game Friday at ThunderRidge in the 5A Continental needs little introduction, but we’ll give you one anyway. The Falcons are top-ranked, the host Grizzlies are coming off a loss Tuesday to defending state champion Regis Jesuit and those three teams have accounted for every big-school title since 2000 (six by Highlands Ranch).
Also, the game will include participation in helping the fight against breast cancer.
No. 2 Holy Family plays Saturday at Faith Christian in a heavy-duty game in the 3A Metropolitan.
WRESTLING
Packed with pressure
Wrestling purists across the state will tell you the pressure this weekend is even greater than at next week’s state tournament at the Pepsi Center. Sixteen regional sites — from Trinidad to Greeley and from Grand Junction to Holyoke, with many in between — will produce four wrestlers in each of the 14 weight classifications. When all is said and done, 896 of the state’s finest will be on display at the state tournament.
The Class 5A sites are Heritage, Adams City, Aurora Central and Cherokee Trail. Six-time defending champion Ponderosa will compete at Adams City with Front Range League champ- ion Mountain Range.
Class 4A’s Western Regional is, of course, at . . . Mullen? On hand in that regional is Roosevelt, from Johnstown . . . nowhere near the Western Slope. But we digress. Also there are Montrose and Palisade, making this possibly the most competitive regional.
Class 3A defending champion and still-favored Centauri will compete at Trinidad’s Region 4.
Wiggins, which won five championships in a row from 1998-2002, will start another title quest at Holyoke in Class 2A’s Region 3.
