Football roundup: Chatfield rallies to top Dakota Ridge

Chatfield, the second-ranked team in Class 4A football, pulled off a late rally to avoid an upset at the hands of Dakota Ridge on Friday.

The Chargers — who trailed 12-10 at halftime, and 29-24 after the third quarter — got a big 10-point swing early in the fourth quarter to change the game.

“We had to kick a field goal where we wanted to score a touchdown, and the ensuing kickoff, they fumbled it,” Chatfield coach Bret McGatlin told the Colorado Preps Scoreboard Show. “We were able to put it in the end zone. Those 10 points right there just changed the complexion for us. After that, it just got us going.”

Ultimately, Chatfield scored the game’s final 19 points to win 36-29.

“It was a little scary there for a while,” McGatlin said. “Dakota Ridge came out and played really well. I have a lot of respect for that team.”

“We were shell-shocked in the first, second and most of the third quarter, because they came out and they smashed us in the mouth early,” the coach added later. “All of a sudden, we started playing our game. It was fun.”

6-man: (12) Arickaree/Woodlin 53, (5) Genoa-Hugo 45

Arickaree/Woodlin scored the game’s final 34 points after trailing 45-19 in the third quarter, and advanced to the 6-man quarterfinals as a result.

It was the lone 6-man playoff game of the night.

No. 2 Fleming beat No. 15 Otis 62-14 on Thursday. The remaining six games are all on Saturday.

Arickaree/Woodlin has reached the championship game each of the past two seasons, winning the title in 2014.

1A: (8) Burlington 7, (10) Limon 6

Burlington scored the winning touchdown with six minutes to play to seal a league title.

“It was definitely defensive-minded,” Burlington coach Glynn Higgs told the Scoreboard Show. “I think when you play eachother as long as we have, and we’ve both had some pretty good teams in the past, you kind of know each other. And it was a very physical game, as we expected.

“We made one more play,” Higgs added. “We kicked our extra point, and they weren’t able to” convert a two-point conversion.

The win clinched the 1A North Central for the Cougars (7-2, 5-0 in league).

2A: (9) Weld Central 17, Platte Valley 14

Weld Central got a late touchdown to secure a huge win and improved to 8-1 this season.

“Our kids played absolutely phenomenal tonight,” coach James Canaday told the Scoreboard Show. “They were very composed.”

The Rebels called a timeout just prior to the winning score.

“It was do-or-die, so we started talking about what we needed to call,” Canaday said. “Our offensive coordinator came up with a great play, and one of our better players, Alex Ries, was wide open and he caught it. … It was absolutely incredible. It was one of the neatest things I’ve ever been through.”

Notables

In 8-man, No. 5 Merino and No. 10 Haxtun had about an half-hour delay because a power outage took out the lights at the field. Merino went on to win 41-13.
Basalt won its first league championship since 1984 with a 46-22 win over Roaring Fork. The Longhorns finished 5-0 in the 2A Western Slope League, and is 7-2 overall. “They knew it was a way to keep playing next week,” coach Carl Frerichs told the Scoreboard Show, acknowledging the automatic postseason berth that comes along with the title.
1A No. 9 Crowley County beat Rocky Ford 47-26 to win the Santa Fe League at 4-0. It is the Chargers’ third-straight league title. “We were able to come through again this year,” coach Brandon Roe told the Scoreboard Show.
Boulder got its first win under new coach Vincent Smith, beating Smoky Hill 45-26.
3A No. 10 Conifer got a good win over Lutheran, 34-27. “Our defense came through for us against a really good team,” coach Larry Fitzmaurice told the Scoreboard Show. With the win, Conifer seized control of the West Metro League at 4-0.
2A No. 2 Resurrection Christian beat Eaton 38-6 to secure the Patriot West League championship. The Cougars are now 9-0 and will turn their attention to the playoffs, which begin next week. “At this point of the season, anybody we play is going to be a good football team,” coach Mark Roggy told the Scoreboard Show.
Thomas Jefferson edged Vista Peak, 35-34.