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Regis Jesuit High School Francesca Belibi on Monday March 06, 2017 at Grandview High School.
Photo by Gabriel Christus/Aurora Sentinel
Regis Jesuit sophomore Fran Belibi — who became the first Colorado girls prep basketball player to dunk in a game this season and has done it on three occasions — is among the selections for the inaugural A-Town All-Stars Girls Basketball Game, scheduled for 3 p.m. on Saturday, March 18, 2017, at Cherokee Trail High School. The girls game, presented by the Aurora Sentinel, joins the boys A-Town All-Star Game, which will be played for the second time and will follow the girls game. (Photo by Gabriel Christus/Aurora Sentinel)
AURORA | Five players from a Grandview team that won the Class 5A girls state basketball championship March 11 will be on the floor one more time for the inaugural A-Town All-Stars Girls Game.
The Wolves delivered the city’s first girls state basketball championship since the 2013-14 season when Regis Jesuit — the team Grandview defeated in an All-Aurora semifinal — topped 5A.
A handful of those Grandview players have been selected to appear in the A-Town All-Stars Game, scheduled to tip off at 3 p.m. March 18 at Cherokee Trail High School. At least one player from each of Aurora’s 11 5A & 4A programs is set to play in the game, with rosters selected by the Aurora Sentineland a panel of Aurora coaches.
Included in the contingent of the self-dubbed “Fab Five” selections from Grandview is Aurora’s first-ever McDonald’s All-American in senior Michaela Onyenwere, a three-time Colorado Gatorade Player of the Year who has signed with UCLA. Senior Kennede Brown, sophomore Alisha Davis, junior Jaiden Galloway and junior Leilah Vigil also were selected from a team that finished 27-1 and ranked No. 9 in the country by MaxPreps. Wolves coach Josh Ulitzky will be on the bench as an A-Town All-Star coach.
Sophomore Fran Belibi — who became a national sensation when she became the first Colorado girls basketball player to dunk in a game, a feat she’s matched on two other occasions — is also among the selections, along with junior teammates Noelle Cahill and Emma Wrede. With just one senior on the roster, the Raiders advanced to the semifinals as the No. 11 overall seed and finished 20-7.
EMAC champion Rangeview, which made it into the second round of the 5A state playoffs to cap a 15-10 season, feature two A-Town All-Star picks in senior Jaelin Jones and sophomore Angel Broadus, while Raiders head coach La Monte Weddle will guide one of the teams.
Cherokee Trail senior Taryn Foxen will play one last time on her home floor along with freshman teammate Makayla Hemingway, senior Jessica Stoner represents an Eaglecrest team that won the program’s first state playoff game in almost a decade and 5A playoff qualifier Overland has backcourt selections in sophomore Kailey Brown and junior Lyric Thompson.
Gateway guard Makayla Jones — the second-leading scorer among Aurora players — caps an outstanding senior season with a spot in the A-Town All-Star Game.
Sophomore Denali Hughes had a large impact on Vista PEAK after transferring in and represents a Bison team that finished second in its debut in the EMAC and qualified for the 4A playoffs.
Senior Bre Hill puts Hinkley in the game, while sophomore Aliya Givens represents Smoky Hill and senior Maria del Rosario Garcia of Aurora Central is also set to play.
At halftime of the girls game, two of Aurora’s Unified basketball programs will play an exhibition game.
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at 303-750-7555 or sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter: @aurorasports. FB: Aurora Prep Sentinel
READY TO GO?
AURORA | Information for the 1st A-Town All-Stars girls basketball game, presented by the Aurora Sentinel:
WHAT: 1st A-Town All-Stars girls basketball game
WHEN: 3 p.m., Saturday, March 18 (doors open at 2 p.m.)
WHO: Twenty of Aurora’s top girls basketball players from 11 city prep programs (Aurora Central, Cherokee Trail, Eaglecrest, Gateway, Grandview, Hinkley, Overland, Rangeview, Regis Jesuit, Smoky Hill and Vista PEAK) from the Aurora Public Schools, Cherry Creek School District and Regis Jesuit as selected by the Aurora Sentinel and a panel of Aurora coaches
TICKETS: $5, available beforehand online — bit.ly/ATOWN2017 — or at the door
Courtney Oakes is Sports Editor and photographer with Sentinel Colorado. A Denver East High School and University of Colorado alum. He came to the Sentinel in 2001 and since then has received a number...
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