AURORA | The Regis Jesuit field hockey team continues to seek its first-ever berth in the state championship game.
The Raiders moved a step closer to making it happen this season with a 1-0 quarterfinal victory over Cherry Creek Saturday afternoon at Lou Kellogg Stadium.
Senior Bridget Kennedy tallied the lone goal of the game for fourth-seeded Regis Jesuit, which posted its second 1-0 win over fifth-seeded Cherry Creek on the season. The prize is a trip to the Oct. 24 semifinals at All-City Stadium, where coach Spencer Wagner’s Raiders will face top-seeded Palmer Ridge.
Regis Jesuit (12-2-2) is set to play Palmer Ridge (14-1-1) at 5:30 p.m., followed by a 7:15 p.m. matchup of No. 2 Colorado Academy (12-2-2) and No. 3 Kent Denver (12-2-2).
The Raiders lost to the Bears 3-0 in the opening round of last season’s state playoffs and fell to them again 5-4 in overtime Aug. 26 in the first game of the season for both teams. Palmer Ridge has won the last three meetings between the teams since a 2-0 Regis Jesuit win in 2015.
The Bears’ only loss of the season came to Kent Denver by a 1-0 count on Sept. 18.
The only previous semifinal appearance for Regis Jesuit came in 2015 when it lost to Cherry Creek 1-0.
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at 303-750-7555 or sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter: @aurorasports. FB: Aurora Prep Sentinel
2017 STATE FIELD HOCKEY PLAYOFFS
Championship (Oct. 26 at All-City Stadium)
Semifinal winners, 7 p.m.
Semifinals (Oct. 24 at All-City Stadium)
NO. 4 REGIS JESUIT (12-2-2) vs. No. 1 Palmer Ridge (14-1-1), 5:30 p.m.
No. 3 Kent Denver (12-2-2) vs. No. 2 Colorado Academy (12-2-2), 7:15 p.m.
Quarterfinals
Oct. 21
No. 1 Palmer Ridge 2, No. 8 Cheyenne Mountain 0
NO. 4 REGIS JESUIT 1, No. 5 Cherry Creek 0
Oct. 20
No. 4 Kent Denver 1, No. 6 Denver East 0
No. 2 Colorado Academy 2, No. 7 Mountain Vista 1