AURORA | For the first time its short varsity history, coach Spencer Wagner believes the Regis Jesuit field hockey team is peaking ahead of the postseason.
The Raiders qualified for the playoffs in its first season of varsity play, but always felt their season came to an end before they hit their stride.
This season’s Regis Jesuit group has double-digit wins for the first time and come into the postseason on a five-game winning streak, which put them in the No. 5 slot in the eight-team playoffs when the Colorado High School Activities Association released the playoff bracket Tuesday. Regis Jesuit (10-5) is set to meet No. 4 Palmer Ridge (10-4) at 4:30 p.m. Thursday at Don Brees Stadium in Monument.
“We would have loved to host a playoff game this year, but we’re still going in the right direction,” Wagner said. “We won all the games we should have this year with the exception of maybe one and we showed the kind of growth we were looking for this season. I’m perfect happy with where we are right now and when you move up into the top five, anything is possible.”
Wagner also believes the Raiders have a better set up than ever in hopes of winning the program’s first playoff game. In the past two seasons, Regis Jesuit had to open the playoffs on the road against Colorado Academy, which is in the midst of a 34-game unbeaten streak. The Raiders lost 4-0 in 2011 and 3-0 last season.
“Playing CA in the first round of playoffs is a little defeating at times, so we have a bit more hope this year,” said senior Kat Law, who leads the team with eight goals and nine assists. “We’re much more confident this year, seeing how everything fell together. We’ve definitely improved as a program over the course of the season, so we’re really excited for playoffs. It’s a new season for us.”
Palmer Ridge dealt Regis Jesuit it’s last loss, 3-1 on Sept. 28, but the game was tighter than the score indicated. It also happened before the Raiders got on their current win streak, which included an impressive 2-1 victory over Cherry Creek, which beat them 2-0 the first time they played.
“My prediction is the game will be within a point, probably a 2-1 victory either way,” Wagner said of the rematch with Palmer Ridge. “When you get to games this close, it really just comes down to the day.”
Senior Abby Bradbury and sophomore Claire Stemper have alternated at goalkeeper for Regis Jesuit all season and Stemper will be in the cage against Palmer Ridge. She played in the first meeting and made 16 saves.
One thing the Raiders won’t do is take Palmer Ridge lightly. They learned their lesson in that regard in a game early in the season against Smoky Hill, which didn’t have a great record, but pushed out to a 2-0 lead on Regis Jesuit after one half.
Though Wagner didn’t like the way his team played in the first half, he was pleased with the response in the second half as the Raiders scored three times to escape with a 3-2 victory.
The lessons learned in that game stuck with the team, which lost only twice — to No. 3 Cherry Creek and No. 4 Palmer Ridge — the rest of the way.
“That was something our team needed,” Law said. “It was a good eye-opener and it showed that any team can beat you if you don’t play with intensity.”
The Regis Jesuit-Palmer Ridge winner advances to the semifinals, scheduled for Oct. 23 at All-City Stadium in Denver, where it will play the winner of the quarterfinal between defending state champion and top-seeded Colorado Academy (14-0) and No. 8 Cheyenne Mountain (3-10-2), a first-time playoff qualifier.
Sixth-seeded Denver East (7-6-2) faces No. 3 Cherry Creek (11-3-1) and No. 7 St. Mary’s Academy (7-6-1) meets No. 2 Kent Denver (10-1-1) on the other side of the playoff bracket.
2013 FIELD HOCKEY STATE PLAYOFFS
Quarterfinals, completed by Oct. 19
No. 8 Cheyenne Mountain (3-10-2) at No. 1 Colorado Academy (14-0) at Slater Turf Field, Oct. 16, 4:15 p.m.
NO. 5 REGIS JESUIT (10-5) vs. No. 4 Palmer Ridge (10-4) at Don Brees Stadium, Oct. 17, 4:30 p.m.
No. 6 Denver East (7-6-2) at No. 3 Cherry Creek (11-3-1), Oct. 19, 7 p.m.
No. 7 St. Mary’s Academy (7-6-1) at No. 2 Kent Denver (10-1-1), Oct. 17, 4:15 p.m.
Semifinals, Oct. 23 at All-City Stadium (Denver)
Cheyenne Mountain/Colorado Academy winner vs. REGIS JESUIT/Palmer Ridge winner
Denver East/Cherry Creek winner vs. St. Mary’s Academy/Kent Denver winner
Championship, Oct. 28 at All-City Stadium (Denver)
