Although we canít bring you up-to-date coverage of D 49 athletic events and programs, we can bring you in-depth information about players and coaches and their game-day achievements. Steve Wood, special education teacher and head baseball coach at Calhan High School, is the NFH sports columnist!The Falcon High School bowling team has proven again they are one of the best in the state. The team finished 11th in Colorado, out of 24 teams that qualified for the state finals competition, held Feb. 16. The Falcons have only been competing in bowling for six years, but they have qualified for state four times.ìThis is the highest finish in school history,î said Coach Brian Swanson.The team is comprised of five bowlers, and four of them qualified for state. Two placed in the top five. Senior Kassy Swanson finished second in state, proving that this yearís homecoming queen is also a pretty fair bowler. Morgan Vails, who is just a freshman, finished fifth in state. She is the youngest high school competitive bowler in Colorado. Freshman Zach Cook, son of Coach Mike Cook, and sophomore Kayla Schofield, from Patriot Learning Center, also qualified for state. The fifth member is another freshman, AC Stair.Even though Swanson will be graduating, this young team will be strong again next year. Swanson and Cook are already looking forward to next season. ìCoach Cook is the technical coach, and I am the ërah-rahí coach,î Swanson said. ìWe will be out looking for more bowlers. We would like to have 10 to 12 bowlers next year. What an outstanding season. The kids put in a lot of hard work, and we had great support from all the parents.îD 49 basketball updateScorpions winning streak endsHighly ranked Pueblo West ended the Sand Creek girlsí basketball team 13-game winning streak by a score of 49-43 Feb. 16 at Sand Creek High School. However, the Scorpions remain undefeated and in first place in the Pikes Peak League; with just one regular season game left. Pueblo West was ranked fourth in the state in 4A girlsí basketball and Sand Creek was ranked sixth. Led by Jínae Squiresí 17 points and 11 points by Liah Davis, the Scorpions continued their undefeated season in league play with a 72-28 win over Lewis-Palmer Feb. 19. The Scorpions last regular season game was against Falcon Feb. 22. They defeated the Falcons by a score of 70-43 earlier in January.The Scorpion girlsí success can be credited to a balanced attack on offense, led by four players who all average about 8 points per game. Coach Jamie Carey likes the fact that her team is balanced and so many different players are scoring threats. The balanced offensive attack starts with junior point guard Mikala Reese, freshman Liah Davis; and sisters, freshman Oliana Squires and junior Jínae Squires. Seniors Brittany Pratt, Jasmine English and Raven Daniels are all experienced scorers, along with junior Terra Murray. But the real key to the Scorpionsí great success this season may actually be their tenacious team defense. The athleticism of the Scorpions produces a stinging defense that can paralyze any offense. In Pikes Peak League play, Sand Creek is allowing an average of only 37 points per game. Carey has always made defense a priority. Daniels and Pratt are steady rebounders, and Davis is also strong on the boards. Reese and Daniels, along with the Squires sisters, are all great ball ìhawks,î leading the team in steals.Reese is an all-around player and the vocal and emotional team leader. She can score, come up with a steal when needed, grab a rebound; and, most importantly, set up her teammates with great passing, as she leads the team in assists.With an 18-4 overall record, including 13-0 in the Pikes Peak League, the Scorpions will be a force in post-season play. Sand Creekís only four losses have been at the hands of top teams in the state: Pueblo West, Pueblo South, Highlands Ranch and Grandview. The Scorpions are already playoff-tested from last year, making it to the 4A quarterfinals, which is beyond any team in Sand Creek history. After the loss to state runner-up DíEvelyn last season, Reese made a personal commitment to improving her game. There are three more freshmen on the varsity roster ñ Shayla and Shyla Armstrong and Tarah Patteron. There are also three sophomores on varsity ñ Brittany Zerwick, Taylore Thomas and Darielle Evans. Ashley Ramsey is a junior on the team.The most impressive Scorpion wins this year have been over league rivals Palmer Ridge and Air Academy. Palmer Ridge has only two league losses, both to Sand Creek; 46-41, at Sand Creek in January, and 57-47 at home. Air Academy, with just four league losses (including two to Palmer Ridge), also lost to Sand Creek twice; 44-34 in January at Air Academy, and 48-41 at Sand Creek Feb. 8. Sand Creek boys B-ball ñ 21 winsAfter going 18-0, the Sand Creek boysí basketball team lost their first game Feb. 12†to Discovery Canyon, 51-50. †Since then, the team that has been ranked No. 1 for much of the season got back on the winning track by beating Cheyenne Mountain, 49-37 Feb. 15 and then beating the Pueblo West Cyclones in overtime, 70-69, Feb. 16. †At 20-1, the Scorpions then faced their biggest game of the season so far. †With the league title on the line, Sand Creek went to††Lewis-Palmer, the defending 4A state champions, with a lot of confidence; in part, because the Scorpions beat the Rangers in a tight game, 67-64, at Sand Creek High School Feb. 5. Josh Smith led the scoring with 20 points during that game. Prior to the championship game, both teams were 11-1 in league play. Lewis-Palmer was 18-3 overall.After starting strong with a 10-3 lead at the championship game, the Scorpions couldnít maintain their swagger. The Lewis-Palmer Rangers came back strong, sparked by an enormous slam dunk by Justin Smith on a nice alley-oop pass from Tyler Owens early in the second quarter. Smith scored a game-high 20 points, which helped the Rangers cruise to a decisive 64-48 victory over the Scorpions.Bryan Jenkins led the Scorpions with 17 points, but the team missed Dylan Clark, who left the game in the first quarter with a stomach virus. Clark was unable to return until late in the third quarter when the Scorpions were down by 11. Clark, who still scored 10 points, was off the mark. ìHe runs the show for us offensively,î said Coach Joe Rausch. ìWhen heís not out there, it makes things a lot more difficult.îThe Scorpionsí stinging attack has been led all year by the leadership of their three team captains ñ seniors Smith and Jenkins and junior Clark. All three have lived up to their roles as captains by leading the team in scoring, rebounds and assists. Point guard Smith leads the team in scoring, averaging 16 points per game. Jenkins is at 12 points per game and Clark is also in double-figures at 11 points per game. †Smith, Clark and Jenkins are also one, two and three on the team in rebounds. Clark leads in assists, with Jenkins and Smith close behind. Smith also leads the team in steals.On Feb. 22, Sand Creek beat Falcon 60-43 in the last regular season game to give them a 21-1 season!Falcon girls three consecutive winsThe Lady Falcons basketball team won three games in a row (after losing four in a row). The biggest win was the decisive 57-32 victory over Lewis-Palmer Feb. 15. The Falcons also beat Vista Ridge, 56-41, and Cheyenne Mountain, 43-30. The victory over Lewis-Palmer was particularly satisfying for the Falcon girlsí team because they had previously lost to them, 45-37, in January. The balanced Falcon offense was led by three players in double-figures; freshman Harmony Pettis scored 12 points, junior Kelsey Hale scored 12 and senior Nikki Oliphant scored 10 points. Junior Ally Martinez added 8 points. Pettis also had four steals and five rebounds. Hale also had three steals and nine rebounds. Junior Challis Hackley contributed seven rebounds. Following the win over Lewis-Palmer, the Lady Falcons are 5-7 in the Pikes Peak League, and 8-13 overall. The Falcon girls played their last two games in February ñ Palmer Ridge beat them Feb. 19, 65-38. The Falcons last regular season game was Feb. 22 against league-leading Sand Creek.Falcon boys: five wins in a rowFalcon High Schoolís boysí basketball team recently won five games in a row. Four out of the five teams they beat were teams they had lost to earlier in the season. On Feb. 12, the Falcons won at Cheyenne Mountain, 45-44, on the strength of 12 points by junior Cody Curtis and sophomore Shaun Livecchiís eight rebounds. The Falcons had lost to the Indians, 69-61, in January.On Feb. 8, the Falcons beat Vista Ridge, 64-35, led by senior Brodie Hicks, who scored 8 points, pulled down nine rebounds, and dished out seven assists. Junior Chances Matlock led the scoring with 12 points and had seven rebounds. Senior Tyler Stover scored 10 points and dealt out five assists. The Wolves had previously beaten the Falcons 60-48 in January. On Feb. 5, the Falcons won on the road at Palmer Ridge, 52-38, led again by Hicks, who scored 18 points and grabbed nine rebounds. On Feb. 1, the Falcons beat Discovery Canyon, 50-38, led by a balanced scoring attack. Senior Nick Lenhard scored 12 points, Livecchi had 11 points, Brodie added 9 points and nine rebounds, and Stover scored 9 points. The Falcons had previously lost to the Thunder, 79-69, in January. On Jan. 29, the Falcons beat Air Academy, 71-58, with a scoring attack led by four players in double figures. Senior Tyler Burley scored 19 points, while Lenhard scored 17, Livecchi had 10 points and 11 rebounds and Stover added 11 points.The impressive winning streak came to an end Feb. 15 with a loss to Lewis-Palmer, 59-38. On Feb. 19, the Falcons beat Palmer Ridge again by a score of 70-47. The Falcons were led by four players in double figures: Matlock had 15, Livecchi and Stover each scored 13; and Curtis added 10 points.On Feb. 22, Sand Creek beat Falcon 60-43 in the last regular season game.
