12 Fort Lupton Press
LOCAL
SPORTS
October 27, 2021
Fort Lupton likely headed for state tournament slot BY STEVE SMITH SSMITH@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
AURORA -- It seems likely that Fort Lupton’s soccer team will advance to the postseason for a second straight time starting Oct. 27. FLHS was in 20th place in the state’s Ratings Performance Index late last week, and the top 32 teams advance. The opponent and place of the first-round game are less certain. The pairings were due Oct. 25, after press time. Last year, FLHS earned the 16th seed in a COVID-shortened field and barely lost to top-seeded Colorado Academy in the first round. What is absolutely certain is that Fort Lupton did not win the Colorado League championship. Aurora Central saw to that by beating the Bluedevils 3-0 in Aurora Oct. 19. A year ago, the same two schools played for the league title in Fort Lupton, and the Bluedevils won. The Trojans’ Ivan Dorado .took advantage of a defensive mistake and scored in the 12th minute. ACHS added two goals in a span of six minutes late in the second half. One came by way of a penalty kick. “We battled, and we’re still breathing .. still walking and talking,” FLHS coach Kyle Reddy said. “We’re still going to make the state tournament. It would have been nice to get this one. It would have solidified a higher seed for us.” FLHS finished the regular season with a record of 12-3. “Last year, we only had 10 games,” Reddy said. “I’m proud of these boys. Our destiny is in our hands. We have to take each game seriously, each training session seriously. It’s one and done, and we have to understand overlying consequences. We can’t drop another game like this.” Reddy called the loss to Aurora Central “unfortunate.” “But these boys will find a way to bounce back,” Reddy said. “We controlled the majority of the game. We played together. We fed off each other. What went wrong for us was we beat ourselves. We could have beaten that team. At the end of the day, we beat ourselves.” Reddy knows of a few things where the Bluedevils need some work ahead of the state tournament. “Everybody’s head needs to be in the game before the game,” he said. “Even the day before the game. I like to say the day before the day before (the game) is the most important one -- hydration, nutrition taking care of your injuries. Come the day before, we know what we’re doing. The day of, we’re already there.”
Fort Lupton’s Isidro Fernandez heads the ball forward against the defensive effort of Aurora Central’s Jean Nishirimbe. PHOTOS BY STEVE SMITH
Fort Lupton’s Isidro Fernandez does the splits as Aurora Central’s Mark Ling has to figure out some other way to advance the ball.
Ponderosa brings an end to Frederick’s softball season BY STEVE SMITH SSMITH@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
AURORA -- Try as Frederick High School’s softball team did, Ponderosa High School’s team had enough answers to pick up a 12-6 win over the Warriors in the first round of the state 4A softball tournament at Aurora Sports Park Oct. 21. FHS never led. The Warriors spotted the Mustangs a four-run lead after three innings, then cut the deficit to a single run after Haley Howell’s home run and an Ali Davis RBI double. Ponderosa answered that
with a two-run home run by Olivia Trombley in the last of the fourth. FHS used an error off an infield grounder by Avery Salisbury two score two runs. Bella Hewitt added a scoring fly ball, and the Warriors trailed the Mustangs 7-6 after 4 ½ innings. Ponderosa Rachael Wassenaar countered with a two-run home run in the Mustangs’ half of the fifth inning. Two errors and a passed ball helped Ponderosa score three more times in the bottom of the sixth, “It seemed like they had an answer, and we didn’t make it difficult
for them at times,” FHS coach Roger Dufour said. “They took advantage of it, and we just couldn’t get that lead.” Mackenzie Sais had three hits for the Warriors. Hewitt and Ali Davis added two base hits. Trombley, who also was the winning pitcher, helped her own cause with two hits and three RBIs. Ellie Williams had a base hit and drove in a pair of runs. “We gave them too much, too many outs, too many free bases, too many ‘60 feet at a time’ on pitches,” Dufour said. “I’m not blaming it on any one thing. You can’t give teams
anything at this point. Everyone is good. It just wasn’t meant to be for us.” FHS finished 18-9 this season. “We competed,” Dufour said. “After being down, we scrapped back into it. We used our short game. Because we exited in the first round, it’s good experience for the younger girls. That’s valuable for us.” FHS loses seven to graduation. “We’re looking forward to reloading next year. We’ll have to figure out a couple of positions, but I’m excited for the returning players next year,” Dufour said.
