Football roundup: Grandview gets big win over Cherry Creek

It’s not as though Grandview was flying under the radar. The Wolves, after all, were ranked No. 3 in this week’s Class 5A CHSAANow.com poll — and have been ranked since the preseason.

But Friday’s 24-6 win over No. 6 Cherry Creek was an announcement, of sorts: We’re to be reckoned with.

Grandview led 17-6 at the half and added a late score off a blocked punt that was recovered by Keifer Glau. Quarterback Cody Summers had a game, throwing for a score and rushing for another.

If they weren’t already, the Wolves, now 7-0, are a legitimate threat for the Class 5A title. They play Overland next week. Win that, and the season finale with Valor Christian could be for the No. 1 overall seed in the playoffs.

3A: (6) Roosevelt 34, (3) Holy Family 26

In a back-and-forth game which featured six ties or lead changes, Roosevelt pulled away in the fourth quarter to win.

Christian Majszak had four touchdowns to lead Roosevelt.

“It’s that time of year again,” coach Noland Eastin told ColoradoPreps.com’s Scoreboard Show. “We better start strapping our chinstraps on a little tighter, because that was a heck of a battle out there, and it could have went either way.

“It was back-and-forth,” he added. “It was just one of those epic battles. … The dust was flying around, kids were hanging in there. Their kids were battling. It was jsut a fun night of football. It was a good throw-back night.”

3A: Palisade 18, (3) Rifle 10

It’s a big upset that also does wonders for Palisade’s playoffs hopes. The Bulldogs improved to 5-2.

The team teams were knotted at 10 at the break, and again after three quarters before Caleb Clarkson scored the winning touchdown on a 9-yard run with 1:45 to play. According to the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel, Palisade had actually stopped Rifle on fourth-and-2 at their own 38 prior to the winning drive.

“The only way you’re going to compete against Rifle is you have to match their discipline and toughness, and that’s what we’re built on,” Palisade coach Joe Ramunno told the paper.

Easton Wood also had a touchdown pass to John Goff for Palisade, while Ty Leyba had a 56-yard touchdown run for Rifle.

5A: (1) Valor Christian 17, Cherokee Trail 7

The top-ranked Eagles grinded out a win against yet another tough Centennial League foe.

Quarterback Dylan McCaffrey threw for a touchdown and rushed for another.

Brian Dawkins Jr. and Eric Lee Jr. both had interceptions at key moments.

3A: (7) Delta 39, (10) Glenwood Springs 10

Delta scored the game’s final 29 points in the top-10 showdown.

Tristan Brown and Damon Jensen each had two touchdowns for Delta, running in place of a cramped Jonny Ponce, according to the Daily Sentinel.

2A: Sterling 21, (9) Eaton 14

The Tigers pulled off the upset after scoring the game’s final 14 points.

“We kind of came in at the half and had to make some quick adjustments to some of the things they took advantage of,” Sterling coach Rob Busmente told the Scoreboard Show. “We regrouped well at halftime and came out and made some of those adjustments, and we were able to go out and perform.”

Sterling plays at No. 1 Brush next week.

“This is the Patriot League,” Busmenete said. “There’s never a week off. There’s always a tough game waiting for you on Friday.”

2A: La Junta 21, (5) Florence 20

La Junta stopped No. 5 Florence’s two-point conversion attempt with 20 seconds to play to preserve the win in 2A.

“It was a great stop for us,” coach Clint Buderus told the Scoreboard Show. “The kids came through in the clutch and found a way to win.”

La Junta has won three games in a row after starting 1-3.

“We’re young. We’ve got 10 or 11 sophomores playing for us,” Buderus said. “We just had to get them some experience … and just had to get them rolling, get some confidence. This is a big win for us, it’s just a, ‘We can do it.'”

Notables

It was a foggy night for Colorado Springs-area games: Palmer Ridge-Durango, Discovery Canyon-Woodland Park (2nd), Fountain-Fort Carson-Doherty, Pine Creek-Liberty.
Longmont upset No. 8 Windsor in 4A, 32-31. It was just the second time Windsor has lost back-to-back games since 2008, according to this tweet.
Skyview won its first night home game under the new lights, beating Weld Central 26-22.
Arickaree/Woodlin, top-ranked in 6-man football, beat Flagler 71-0. Flager was ranked No. 9.
Erie halted a three-game losing streak with a 7-0 win over Frederick. The Tigers won the Miner’s Trophy.
1A No. 7 Rye edged Salida 20-16. “We had to battle our tails off to pull that out,” Thunderbolts coach Jeff Bailey told the Scoreboard Show.
Palmer Ridge reportedly threw a 99-yard touchdown pass tonight.