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Rifle still on top of state 3A football polls

Phil Sandoval

Rifle retained its No. 1 spot in both the 9 News/Denver Post and Rocky Mountain News Class 3A state football polls going into this week’s action.

This is the third straight week the 5-0 Bears have topped both polls.

They are one of three Western Slope Conference schools included in the current state rankings.



Steamboat Springs returned to the polls after an absence of a few weeks. The Sailors, who raised their record to 3-1 and 1-0 in conference play with a 35-6 victory over Montezuma-Cortez last Friday, are the No. 9 team in the Rocky Mountain News polls.

Palisade, who suffered its first loss of the season in Friday’s 34-31 game with Rifle, is ninth in the 9 News/Denver Post state poll and No. 10 in the Rocky Mountain News rankings.



Roaring Fork is the lone area team in the football Class 2A rankings. After pulling out a 21-20 conference win over Hotchkiss last Friday, the Rams (3-1, 2-0) are the News’ No. 10 team. Conference rival Eagle Valley (4-0, 2-0) is ranked fifth in the 9 News poll and sixthg by the Rocky Mountain News.

After Saturday’s 48-7 loss to state-ranked conference foe West Grand, Parachute Grand Valley (3-1,1-1), the No. 10 team in last week’s Rocky Mountain News 1A rankings, has dropped out of the polls.

Other area teams in Top 10

Four other area prep teams are among the state’s Top 10 in their respective sports, according to the Rocky Mountain News. The Denver Post publishes high school polls only in football.

Glenwood Springs holds two of those spots.

The Demons are No. 3 among Class 4A boys’ cross-country teams state-wide. The only other Western Slope team to be honored is Montrose from the Southwestern League.

Both teams are scheduled to compete in Saturday’s Demon Invitational at Two Rivers Park.

Heading into play this week, 9-0 Glenwood is the No. 5 team in the 4A girls volleyball poll. They will face their stiffest challenge to date when No. 6 Steamboat comes to town for a league contest on Thursday.

Basalt is the lone area school currently, reguardless of classification, ranked in the state boys’ soccer polls.

The Longhorns have fashioned a 6-2-0 overall record and have moved up a spot in the 3A poll to seventh place from No. 8 last week.

Alpine Christian Academy rounds out the list of area teams in the state rankings. The Class 2A Crusaders are the No. 2 team in that division’s girls’ cross-country poll standings.


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