Championship, All-Star Tournaments Wrap CIRA Fall Sevens
Championship, All-Star Tournaments Wrap CIRA Fall Sevens
Summit HS won the CIRA Girls HS 7s last week, going 4-0 in the final tournament and giving up exactly one try through the day.
Summit beat Regis Jesuit 35-0, Monarch 33-0, Denver East 33-5 in the semifinal, and their own 2nd side, the Summit Tigers, 36-0 in the final. The Tigers got to the final with wins over Eagle Valley, Denver East, and a close one of Monarch.
Summit was led as they were all season by Viola Koning's playmaking and kicking, Ashley Misch and Lucia Hofmann's work at the breakdown, Teagan Barth, Braelyn Wentworth, and Luci Brady's tenacious defense. With the width and speed of attack through Rose Rode's passes exploiting the finishing quality of Ella Snyder, Regan Jackson, Olivia Lyman, and Hailey Russer, Summit was rarely challenged and finished the season 34-1, with their only loss being in the regional tournament in Idaho in the semis.
Snyder led the team with 33 tries in 35 games while Barth and Koning combined for 112 conversions. Ashley Misch was named team MVP, and 11 Summit girls were invited to the CIRA All-Star game.
A week later Ashley Misch (Summit) and Tahna Wilfley (Denver East) were both unanimously selected to the 2023 CIRA All-State Team. Misch, a senior, also finished ahead of junior Wilfley, senior Ella Snyder (Summit), and Lucy Walker (Denver East) for the Shalanda Baker Shield.
The Award honors the Colorado Player of the Year since 1998 and is named after former Air Force Academy and USA Eagle standout Shalanda Baker. Baker was the first four-time College All-American and played in the 1998 Women's Rugby World Cup. Baker is now the current Director of the Office of Economic Impact and Diversity at the US Department of Energy in the Biden administration. She was also a professor of law, professor of public policy and urban affairs, and the author of Revolutionary Power: An Activist’s Guide to the Energy Transition.
Juniors Olivia Lyman (Summit) and Hazel Pron (Regis Jesuit), senior Reagan Perez (Denver East), Snyder, and Walker, seniors Lucia Hoffman, Luci Brady, Regan Jackson, and Viola Koning of Summit, Malina Goldstein and Lydia Szabo (Monarch), and Erin Croke (Regis Jesuit), as well as Summit sophomore Teagan Barth rounedd out the All-State Team as voted on by the coaches.
Rylee Sharkey and Emma Bergsten of Eagle Valley, Mariah Healey, Kaliyah Schimpf, and Amelie Hunziker (Monarch), Jessica Morroni and Arianna Rios (Regis Jesuit), Sierra Reil, Gracyn Kent, and Sadie Slahetka (Tigers), and Kylee Mercer (Palmer) were all named All-State Honorable Mention.
Holly Minor of Eagle Valley was named Coach of the Year. The charismatic Minor led the second year program to a great year and her hard work and passion is demonstrated weekly by her players effort and sportsmanship on the pitch and their amazing team culture.
