Smoky Hill continues to fuel its reputation as a soccer school.
The Buffaloes boys won the Centennial League championship and made it all the way to the Class 5A state title game in the fall.
The school’s girls team made it a clean sweep of league crowns on April 30, as a 1-0 victory over Cherry Creek at Stutler Bowl delivered the first Centennial League championship for the girls since 2004.
Sophomore Brynell Yount scored the only goal of the game in the 63rd minute and sophomore goalkeeper Megan Kneefel made it stand up with eight saves, including three of the top-notch variety.
Yount also had the game-winning goal in Smoky Hill’s win over Cherry Creek last season.
The win likely will net coach Andy Colella’s team (10-1-1 overall, 6-0 in Centennial League) a top-five seed in the upcoming 5A state playoffs.
• Rangeview gave Aurora another girls soccer league championship when the Raiders wrapped up the East Metro Athletic Conference title with a 7-1 victory over APS rival Hinkley on April 30.
Vanessa Madera racked up three goals, Madison Garst scored twice and Megan Campbell and Jackie McBride also tallied for Rangeview, which improved to 8-0 in EMAC play with one game left and vaulted to 11-2 overall. Garst added three assists and Campbell two.
Jennifer Perez had the only goal for Hinkley, while goalkeeper Valeria Loera made 13 saves.
• A few Class 5A girls tennis regionals got underway on April 30, as Gateway and Smoky Hill played at Region 1 at Cherry Creek High School and Eaglecrest, Grandview and Rangeview traveled to North Shore Park in Loveland to play in Region 4.
No Aurora players advanced to championship matches at the Region 1 tournament, but Smoky Hill No. 1 singles player Angela Hudson went 2-1 and is scheduled to play for third-place when the weather-delayed tournament resumes May 3.
No. 3 singles player Karyna Zaberezhna, plus the No. 1 doubles team of Salina Trahan and Destinie Hudson and the No. 4 doubles team of Melody Su and Annie Grech also play for third. Winners of third-place matches could get playback for state tournament berth if they haven’t played the loser of the championship match at their position.
• Freshman Morgan Sahm fired a 5-over-par 77 to finish second in the Centennial League tournament April 30 at Saddle Rock G.C., helping Grandview to a third-place team finish.
The Wolves — who also had Emily Jung (8th) and Caroline O’Donnell (10th) finish in the top 10, had a team score of 353 — just four strokes behind second-place Cherry Creek and 10 in back of winner Arapahoe.
• The breakneck finish to the baseball season — prompted by waves of weather cancellations — hasn’t phased Grandview. Coach Dean Adams’ Wolves went 4-1 in a stretch of five games in six days to stay firmly entrenched in second place in the Centennial League standings.
The Wolves, who get a shot at league leader Cherry Creek in their finale, rebounded from a 5-2 setback to Arapahoe on April 25 with two 10-run victories over Smoky Hill along with wins over Mullen and Overland.
• The Cherokee Trail boys track team won yet another meet — the Lobo Cat Roundup in Fort Collins — on April 27, while the girls finished second to Fossil Ridge. Jaylyn Mars, Brandon Singleton, Harley Korte and the 4×200-meter relay team posted event wins for the Cougars.
Rangeview’s third-place result on the boys side was fueled by Jordan Medina’s 400 meter victory — with a time of 48.13 seconds that ranks second in the state — as well as Dezant Burks’ triple jump title and the 4×400-meter relay.
The Cherokee Trail girls got 100 and 200 meter victories from Shayna Yon, while also taking two relay titles. The bulk of 10th-place Rangeview’s points came from thrower Christina Fasci, who won the shot put, took third in the discus and placed second in the javelin, which is not a regularly contested event.
• The Regis Jesuit girls lacrosse team posted a key 15-13 victory over visiting Kent Denver on April 29.
Erin Schilmoeller and Erin Sungelo tallied four goals each for the Raiders, while Kathryn Blumhardt added a pair of goals and two assists. Goalie Emma Bohn stopped 14 shots in the nets.
• The Smoky Hill girls tennis team wrapped up third place in the congested Centennial League standings with a 5-2 dual meet victory at home over visiting Grandview on April 26.
The Buffaloes swept the singles from the Wolves and got a key point with a lengthy 5-7, 6-4, 7-6 (3) win by the No. 2 doubles team of Maggie McCarthy and Sam Morehead over the Grandview tandem of Shelby Hackney and Holly Evans.
• The Gateway baseball team notched a key 13-12 victory against Prairie View on April 26 to boost their playoff hopes out of the East Metro Athletic Conference.
Brandon Lopez drove in five runs and Miguel Gonzalez had two RBI and picked up the save on the mound for coach Brian Dossey’s Olys, who subsequently won their next three games to move up to third in the EMAC standings. The top four teams from the conference move on to the 5A districts.
Reach Sports Editor Courtney Oakes at sports@aurorasentinel.com or 303-750-7555