Prep notebook: Saints secure first boys volleyball postseason berth in program history

The Vail Christian boys volleyball team is headed to the postseason for the first time in program history.

The Saints made the 24-team field, announced Wednesday with the Colorado High School Activities Association’s release of the eight regional brackets. As the No. 10 seed, Vail Christian will travel to Thornton to face the host No. 7-seeded Stargate School and No. 18 Canon City on May 2.

“Certainly every year we’ve been working on progressing as a program, starting off with really modest and humble beginnings and getting kids interested in the sport,” said head coach James Scott, who has led the program since its inception in 2022. “What’s really important to the program is that we’re moving forward.”

Vail Christian went 3-7 that first year and 7-9 in 2023. Last year saw the first winning record as the Saints went 13-8 and finished 39th out of 72 teams. CHSAA split the boys volleyball field into two classes this spring; Vail Christian finished the year with a 9-9 record and was the 10th-ranked team in the final 4A Selection & Seeding Index.

“It’s really dominated by 5A. Since they were able to break down the classifications, ourselves and most of our competition now have a chance to really enjoy the opportunity to find success in the postseason,” said Scott, who feels this group is even better than the one he had last year.

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“We’re definitely stronger. We have a lot more tools to use on the court and certainly we’re looking at the competition — it’s gotten better,” he continued. “The schools in our league have gotten better and that’s a testament to what they’ve been able to do and who they’re playing and the kids who have access to clubs down in Denver — the sport is absolutely growing.”

Defending state champion Mountain Vista (21-2) is the second-ranked team in 5A, right behind top-seeded Littleton (22-1). Discovery Canyon, which won the first two state championships after CHSAA sanctioned the sport in 2022, is the 10th-seeded team in 5A.

Regis Groff (20-3) enters the 4A tournament as the top seed. Vail Christian enters the regional fairly battle tested, having faced No. 2-seeded D’Evelyn and No. 6 Denver Waldorf two times each. They also faced several 5A schools at a midseason tournament, including No. 17 Denver East.

“I think the fact we’ve had a chance to play more teams of higher caliber this season than we have in the past is always going to help the guys,” Scott stated. 

While Scott hasn’t seen a ton of film on Canon City yet, he knows the hosts will be tough.

“Stargate looks like a strong program,” he said. “I think it’s going to be a really good game. I think looking at who they have and where their strong suits are — they’re definitely going to push our guys and it’s going to come down to whether or not they want to answer the call and push back.” 

Other prep notes: Moritz scores 4 goals to lead Vail Mountain School

• Vail Mountain School junior Solveig Moritz scored four goals to lead the Gore Rangers to a 4-3 win over Roaring Fork on Tuesday in Vail. Shay Armistead found Moritz on two of the scores while Anika Jobson and Maya Maxson assisted on the other pair. The No. 13-ranked Gore Rangers improved to 6-3-1 on the season and 5-2 in the league.
• Charlie Vidal tallied 10 goals as Vail Mountain defeated Glenwood Springs 13-5 in boys lacrosse on Tuesday. Drew Johnson finished the game with a game-high five assists while Connor Wadey, Winston Pillsbury, Colby Saunders and Weston Roach all contributed with goals in the victory. The Gore Rangers improved to 6-7 overall and 4-2 in the 4A Western Slope with their second-straight victory.
• Eagle Valley freshman Eli Adams went 4-for-4 at the plate with three runs scored to lead the Devils to an 11-7 win over Aspen on Tuesday. Xander DeHerrera had two hits, two runs and four stolen bases and Mason McCormick struck out seven in four innings on the mound as Eagle Valley won its second straight game.
• Glenwood Springs improved to 13-5 with a 12-5 win over Battle Mountain at home on Tuesday. The Huskies got two hits apiece from Jaxon Hansen, Jack Reed, William Townsend and Kai Tipton, but allowed four runs in the third and fifth innings as the game broke open. Battle Mountain (7-7) faces Eagle Valley in a doubleheader on Saturday at 3 p.m. in Edwards.
• The boys and girls lacrosse and girls soccer state tournaments will be seeded on Sunday, CHSAA announced Wednesday. All three tournaments’ first-round matches begin next week. Teams are seeded using the CHSAA Selection & Seeding Index, with official rankings updated regularly with the latest RPI data. The 2A girls soccer and 5A girls lacrosse tournaments are 16-team single-elimination brackets, while all other tournaments feature a 32-team single-elimination bracket.