Delta coaches Luis Meza, center, and Clayton Curtis congratulate 152-pound senior Hunter Brasfield after an upset win sent him into the 4A Region 4 semifinals.
Hotchkiss senior Joe Boyle controls Ruben Chagoya of Basalt to win a 3A Region 1 title. He is one of 7 Hotchkiss state qualifiers.
Hotchkiss and Paonia boys will square off this week on the basketball courts. Both are 6-4 in league play.
Delta senior Brooke Taylor scores two of her 12 points against Summit after grabbing an offensive rebound.
Paonia 195-pounder Tyler “TK” Kendall sets Rangely’s Drew Collins up for a pin.
Paonia freshman Bo Pipher sets TJ Richard of North Park up for a pin in Saturday’s regional semifinal round. He is one of 13 Paonia wrestlers headed to state!
Surrounded by coaches and his dad, Conner Beard signs Letter of Intent to play football for the University of Nebraska Kearney.
Hotchkiss' Jacobe Galley signed a Letter of Intent to play football and study engineering at Colorado Mesa University.
Hotchkiss senior Cody Bartlett signed his National Letter of Intent to run cross-country for Hawaii Pacific University.
Paonia head wrestling coach Andy Pipher is awarded his plaque by the Colorado High School Activities Association’s assistant commissioner, Bert Borgmann, after being named the 2A Wrestling Coach of the Year.
On Saturday night, Feb. 18, the Paonia Eagles won the Class 2A state wrestling title, by placing nine wrestlers, including a first place and a runner-up, and winning by a margin of more than 70 points.
Paonia qualified wrestlers in all 14 weight classifications — something done only one other time in the state's history.
Under head coach Andy Pipher, Paonia ended the season with 583 wins, 377 by pin, and 284 losses.
Also on Saturday night, Pipher was named the 2A Coach of the Year by the Colorado High School Activities Association.
"It's a great thing," said Pipher with a laugh after his team received their first-place trophy — their third in seven years. "It's really appreciated. When your peers are voting you in on something, it's a really great thing... It's a great honor."
Pipher said in a 2010 interview with the DCI that he probably would not have gone to college if not for wrestling. "Wrestling was my whole life."
Pipher commended his assistant coaches, Bobby Reed, Mike Reedy, Mark Milner, Nate Wiggins and Tim Austin, for their contributions and devotion to the sport and the team.
In addition to hosting the Screaming Eagles tournament, one of the bigger tournaments of the season, Paonia also hosts the Summer Duals every June, which attracts upwards of 20 teams.
"They just helped us a lot this whole year and that makes a huge difference. That takes a lot of pressure off of me," said Pipher. "A lot of the things they do makes my job real easy."
