Highlands Ranch girls basketball’s Caryn Jarocki padded her Hall of Fame resume on Thursday night, as the Falcons thumped Arapahoe 62-27 at Sitting Eagle Gymnasium to give the coach her 600th career win.
It was a victory that, in the long term scope of the Falcons’ season, likely means little for a seasoned roster capable of winning the program’s eighth Class 5A state championship under Jarocki (600-163 over 33 seasons).
Yet the early-season win signifies something much greater for the all-time winningest coach in Colorado girls basketball history. No one else has even won 500 games, and Roosevelt’s Randy Longoria is the next closest active girls coach to Jarocki at 384 wins.
Thus, Jarocki is — without question — the matriarch of Colorado girls basketball. No one is likely to challenge her wins record soon, if ever, much less the intangible legacy she also has cemented.
Not that the humble coach cares about that, though — ask her anytime, and she will tell you her sole focus is on winning for her team.
The Falcons were paced by 26 points from junior power forward Autumn Watts and 19 points from senior point guard Tommi Olson, while Arapahoe was led by 12 points from junior guard Eliana McClarie.
Highlands Ranch (4-1) hosts Monarch next Tuesday before heading to Phoenix, Ariz., to compete in the prestigious Nike Tournament of Champions from Dec. 19-22.
