AURORA | Over a two-day span, the city’s fate at the Class 5A state volleyball tournament will be decided.
The field for the Nov. 11-12 5A state tournament at the Denver Coliseum comes out of play Friday and Saturday at 12 three-team regionals scattered throughout the metro area and across the state.
As many as five Aurora teams could make the state field, as the city’s handful of regional qualifiers (who won their league championships or finished in the top 36 in CHSAA’s RPI standings) all head out on the road to play in separate regional tournaments.
Regional hosts can set the schedule and three of them involving Aurora teams — Region 1 at Fossil Ridge H.S., Region 5 at Denver East H.S. and Region 7 at Mountain Vista H.S. — opted to hold the tournament on Friday.
Grandview — the highest seed among Aurora teams at No. 18 — has a relatively short trip to play at Mountain Vista, beginning with a 6 p.m. match against No. 30 Boulder, followed by an 8 p.m. tilt with the seventh-seeded Golden Eagles.
Coach Rob Graham leads the Wolves into the postseason for the first time and hopes to replicate the success former coach Patty Childress had at this time of season. Childress led Grandview to 10 5A state championship matches, winning five of them.
Defending state champion Cherokee Trail, which goes in as the No. 24 seed, heads north and tries to get through a field that includes top-seeded Fossil Ridge as well as No. 36 Columbine.
Coach Terry Miller’s Cougars come into regionals with a sub-.500 record at 11-12 — with six losses in their last seven matches — but have played a very challenging schedule and return key pieces from last season’s title winner in seniors Kenzie Hendon, Robyn Krause, Mollee Picchione, Leah van der Sanden, Londyn Johnson and Emily Longnecker who know how to elevate their games in key moments.
Cherokee Trail faces Columbine in a match schedule for 5:15 p.m. and then go against Fossil Ridge at approximately 7 p.m.
Rangeview, the No. 32 seed, heads to fifth-seeded Denver East to face the Angels and No. 20 Highlands Ranch as coach Doug Walker’s team makes another push towards a 5A state tournament berth it has been so close to in recent years.
The EMAC champion Raiders (15-8) open with a 3:30 p.m. match against Denver East — a returning 5A state semifinalist — and finishes with a 5:30 p.m. contest against Highlands Ranch.
Ninteenth-seeded Eaglecrest missed the postseason altogether last season, but a very cohesive returning lineup has the program back on the winning track.
Coach Tanya Bond’s 16-7 Raptors have been off since a sweep of Douglas County on Oct. 25, as a four-match trip to Florida top open the season took the place of the season-ending tournaments many other teams played.
Eaglecrest heads to the 5A Region 6 tournament at Chaparral, where it will face No. 31 Monarch at 10:30 a.m., followed by a matchup with the sixth-seeded Wolverines at noon.
Like Cherokee Trail and Grandview, Regis Jesuit seeks a return to the state tournament after playing well there last season.
Under the leadership of first-year head coach Ellen Miks, the Raiders opened the season 3-12 — in part due to a very difficult schedule — but have won six of their last eight matches and enter the postseason as the No. 28 seed.
Though Regis Jesuit must travel to the Western Slope to play at ninth-seeded Fruita Monument, in a tournament that also includes No. 16 Pine Creek, it wouldn’t be a surprise if it came home with a state berth.
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at 303-750-7555 or sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter: @aurorasports. FB: Aurora Prep Sentinel
2016 CLASS 5A AURORA VOLLEYBALL REGIONALS
REGION 1 (Nov. 4 at Fossil Ridge H.S.)
Teams: No. 1 Fossil Ridge (20-3), NO. 24 CHEROKEE TRAIL (11-12), No. 36 Columbine (9-14)
Schedule: No. 36 Columbine vs. No. 1 Fossil Ridge, 3:30 p.m.; No. 36 Columbine vs. NO. 24 CHEROKEE TRAIL, 5:15 p.m.; NO. 24 CHEROKEE TRAIL vs. No. 1 Fossil Ridge, 7 p.m.
REGION 5 (Nov. 4 at Denver East H.S.)
Teams: No. 5 Denver East (19-4), No. 20 Highlands Ranch (15-8), NO. 32 RANGEVIEW (15-8)
Schedule: NO. 32 RANGEVIEW vs. No. 5 Denver East, 3:30 p.m.; NO. 32 RANGEVIEW vs. No. 20 Highlands Ranch, 5:30 p.m.; No. 20 Highlands Ranch vs. No. 5 Denver East, 7:30 p.m.
REGION 6 (Nov. 5 at Chaparral H.S.)
Teams: No. 6 Chaparral (16-7), NO. 19 EAGLECREST (16-7), No. 31 Monarch (12-11)
Schedule: No. 31 Monarch vs. No. 6 Chaparral, 9 a.m.; No. 31 Monarch vs. NO. 19 EAGLECREST, 10:30 a.m.; NO. 19 EAGLECREST vs. No. 6 Chaparral, noon
REGION 7 (Nov. 4 at Mountain Vista H.S.)
Teams: No. 7 Mountain Vista (18-5), NO. 18 GRANDVIEW (14-9), No. 30 Boulder (13-10)
Schedule: No. 30 Boulder vs. No. 7 Mountain Vista, 4 p.m.; No. 30 Boulder vs. NO. 18 GRANDVIEW, 6 p.m.; NO. 18 GRANDVIEW vs. No. 7 Mountain Vista, 8 p.m.
REGION 9 (Nov. 5 at Fruita Monument H.S.)
Teams: No. 9 Fruita Monument (17-6), No. 16 Pine Creek (16-7), NO. 28 REGIS JESUIT (9-14)
Schedule: NO. 28 REGIS JESUIT vs. No. 9 Fruita Monument, 9 a.m.; NO. 28 REGIS JESUIT vs. No. 16 Pine Creek, 10:30 a.m.; No. 16 Pine Creek vs. No. 9 Fruita Monument, noon
