AURORA | A look at some of the key games, tournaments and happenings in Aurora prep sports from Oct. 25-29:
• The Overland gymnastics team tries to earn the chance to defend its Class 5A state championship as it competes in a regional meet at 5 p.m. Oct. 25 at Arvada West High School. The Trailblazers go against a field that is rounded out by the host Wildcats plus Bear Creek, Green Mountain, Pine Creek, Pomona, Standley Lake and Thornton.
• The Gateway football team takes on winless Adams City at 4 p.m. Oct. 25 at APS Stadium with the chance to post its seventh victory of the season and solidify its position as a first round host for the upcoming Class 5A state playoffs.
• The closing night of the 5A football regular season is Oct. 26, with nine city teams in action. Eaglecrest plays at Cherry Creek in a 4 p.m. matinee, with the Raptors — currently No. 33 in the 5A wild card standings — likely needing a win to get into the 32-team playoff field. Smoky Hill goes against Grandview in the 7:30 p.m. nightcap at Stutler Bowl also needing a victory. Rangeview can win the Aurora League title outright with a victory against Denver East at 7 p.m. at All-City Stadium.
• The prep volleyball regular season reaches its conclusion on Oct. 27, as a few Aurora teams finished with a tournament due to a restructured postseason format. Instead of the district tournament round as in years past, teams can finish with tournaments. Eaglecrest is at the Ponderosa Mustang Classic, where the Raptors have a chance to gain revenge on a Pine Creek team it lost to in five sets earlier. Grandview is at Legend’s tournament, while Rangeview hosts its own tournament.
• The state cross country meet is set for Oct. 27, as Aurora’s four qualifying individuals (Eaglcecrest’s Mark Chalfant and Alicia Taurchini, Regis Jesuit’s Frank and Sean Morton) and seven teams (Grandview and Smoky Hill boys and girls, Overland boys, Cherokee Trail and Regis Jesuit girls) head to the Norris Penrose Events Center in Colorado Springs, the new site for the state meet after the past two years at the Arapahoe County Fairgrounds. Boys and girls races in four classifications are scheduled, with 5A girls leaving the starting line at 11 a.m. and 5A boys at 1 p.m.
• Four Aurora teams remain alive in the second round of the 5A state playoffs Oct. 29, with an all-Aurora quarterfinal set for 6 p.m. at Stutler Bowl when No. 4 Smoky Hill plays host to No. 13 Rangeview. The city’s other first-round survivors — No. 17 Eaglecrest and No. 28 Gateway — are on the road, with the Raptors visiting No. 1 Adams City for a 4:30 p.m. contest and the Olys trekking to District 20 in Colorado Springs for a 6 p.m. clash with No. 12 Pine Creek.
Reach Sports Editor Courtney Oakes at sports@aurorasentinel.com or 303-750-7555