D-V Volleyball Preview
The Xavier Prep girls have won nine state championships including three in a row from 1995 to 1997 and then six in row from 2007 to 2012. Added to that incredible accomplishment is six runner-up finishes including the last two in 2013 and 2014.
Saguaro's Tyler Beauchamp set to finish high at state
Division II Boys
Nov. 2-3: Randolph Golf Course
Desert Edge junior Aaron Ramos won the Division II state championship by one stroke over Salpointe standout Trevor Werbylo (140-141).
Sahuaro senior Kathryn Ottman should be the main candidate for the state golfer of the year after winning the Division II state championship at the Del Urich Golf Course on Tuesday over Jessica Williams of Amphitheater.
Southern Arizona Update:
Rio Rico junior Allie Schadler won the Division III, Section III title with a time of 16:47.7. This is the lowest official time recorded for the two-time state champion in her high school career.
Her time is also the best in the nation for a junior by almost 35 seconds and fifth best in the nation regardless of class year. Schadler is only 24 seconds behind Oregon commit Katie Rainsberger (16:23.3 ). Rainsberger is a senior from Colorado.
Salpointe's quest to earn a top-four seed in the state playoffs was bolstered by a 3-0 win over Tucson on Thursday night. Teams seeded in the top four have a chance to host two matches in the playoffs depending, of course, on a victory in the opening round.
Safford and Empire met in a high stakes match Wednesday for a shot at the Division III playoffs and the Bulldogs came away with a 3-0 sweep to win Section III. Safford (9-7, 8-0 in section play) came in ranked 33rd while Empire (10-6, 7-1) was 37th. With only 16 teams making the playoffs, it was obvious the loser would be out.
The Division VI state playoffs got underway Saturday night with very little drama in the first round. No. 9 Glendale Prep beat No. 8 Salome 42-36 in a slight upset but the other three games went according to seed.
No. 6 Gilbert Christian beat 11 Ajo 64-22, No. 7 Mogollon got past No. 10 Williams 14-12 and No. 5 St. David defeated No. 12 Joseph City 58-14.
Salpointe was 2-4 at one point. A lot of experts offered to perform last rites for the Lancers, forgetting the first avenue to the playoffs comes through a section championship and the second option involves power points.
Cooper Bradford calmly approached what he thought would be his last official putt in high school. The Rincon/University senior knew his team needed to score a 157 to take over the last at-large playoff spot but he had no idea everything depended on how he finished.
It's been ten years since Patagonia qualified for the state playoffs. That's a decade of frustration that will certainly end next week but The Gregory School made sure the Lobos would have to wait a bit longer to celebrate after beating Patagonia 3-2 (23-25, 26-24, 12-25, 25-22, 18-16) Monday night.
Down 11-6 in the third and final set to archrival Sahuaro, the Lancers went on a 9-2 run to close out another win and another tournament championship over the Cougars, 23-25, 25-15 and 15-13.
Sunnyside takes control of the section with Tucson getting upset by Cienega 10-7. Tucson and Salpointe still in the hunt for the section title though. Sunnyside would have to lose last two games though.
Casa Grande is 6-1 overall and 2-0 in section play. The Division IV team has not made the postseason since 2006 and even then the Cougars were seeded No. 16 and had to face No. 2 Mesa Mountain View in the first round where they lost 57-7. It's been a rough road ever since.
The Lions Den Invitational proved to be a mixture of some of the best talent Southern Arizona has to offer regardless of school size. Besides the usual "Big School" powers such as Salpointe, Sahuaro, Tucson and Cienega, Marana Mountain View was able to attract Division IV and V powers Pima, Thatcher and St. David.
Down 21-17 with 7:59 left, Cody Cropp engineered the high school version of "The Drive" Friday night. The senior quarterback guided Pusch Ridge 79 yards in 14 plays to defeat Flowing Wells 24-21 to all but claim the Division III/Section VI championship.
23 teams will be taking part in the Marana Mountain View Lions Den Invitational this Friday and Saturday. The teams participating include returning Division IV state champion Thatcher and 2013 Division V state champion St. David.
Rio Rico state champion Allie Schadler's time of 17:18.4 is sixth best in the country and is the best time for a junior.
FOOTBALL: Southern Arizona D-II & III Playoff Glance
Sabino senior Taylor Nations came away with a win in the 100 Free, 100 Back and as the final leg of the 400 Free. Her performance at the meet was matched by Catalina Foothills standout Brooks Fail on the boy's side.
They call it the Seney-Lohman Trophy and Benson has been battling Willcox for a chance to hoist the Golden Football since 1961. The Cowboys have a 31-22-2 edge over the Bobcats but Benson has won the last four in row including a 68-0 win on Friday night.
The 14th Annual TYR High School Classic has 24 schools and over 625 swimmers and divers registered from around the state. The competition starts Saturday, Oct. 3 at 10 a.m. at the Hillenbrand Aquatic Center on the University of Arizona Campus, just east of McKale Center.
Seven of the top ten ranked Division V boy's teams will be taking part in the Old Pueblo Soccer Classic this Friday and Saturday in Tucson. Desert Christian is the host team.
State qualifying is getting heating up and teams and golfer are beginning to hit their stride heading into the final weeks. That was the case Monday when Catalina Foothills shot a 143 at Del Urich to get past Rincon/University (146) and Marana (150).
1826 articles by Andy Morales
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