Winning a state baseball team often requires virtual perfection, physically and mentally.
University has been virtually perfect all season long.
But in an environment as tense as that of the state tournament, even the slightest of slip-ups is magnified.
When the top-seeded Bulldogs took their eyes off the proverbial ball Saturday afternoon, their entire state championship pursuit took on a completely different look. They also suffered a gut-punching 3-0 loss to second-seeded Coal Ridge at Butch Butler Field.
“We were nervous, and I don’t why,” University coach Casey Miller said after the loss. “But, the boys knew what we were playing for, and maybe we focused on that a little bit. Maybe we looked ahead a little bit. We didn’t look past Coal Ridge. But, maybe we were just a little too focused on what could happen if we won. And, I think that got to us.”
University senior Preston Natividad, left, works to get the Resurrection Christian runner out at third base while playing at Butch Butler Field in Greeley on Friday May 23, 2025.(Jim Rydbom/Staff Photographer)The loss to Coal Ridge, in the third round of the state tournament, was the first time the Bulldogs (24-4) have been shut out all season. That game featured the final two teams unbeaten in the eight-team double-elimination Class 3A tournament.
With that win, the Titans (25-2-1) clinched a spot in Saturday’s finals back at Butch Butler. They await whichever teams emerges among the final four teams left in the tournament.
At 12:30 p.m. Friday, University will look to keep its season alive and advance to Saturday’s finals when it faces the winner of a lower bracket third round game between fourth-seeded Resurrection Christian (19-9) and No. 5 Montezuma-Cortez (23-5) at 10 a.m. Friday.
The beauty of a double-elimination tournament for the Bulldogs: University’s hopes of securing its sixth state baseball title in program history remain very much alive.
University senior Will Korby snags the ball while playing Resurrection Christian at Butch Butler Field in Greeley on Friday May 23, 2025.(Jim Rydbom/Staff Photographer)The road is notably longer and more treacherous than it would have been had the Bulldogs defeated Coal Ridge this past Saturday.
If University wins its Friday afternoon game, it would need to defeat the Titans twice Saturday — at 10 a.m. and about 12:30 p.m.
It’s safe to say, the Bulldogs can hardly afford even the slightest lapse of focus like the one they had this past Saturday.
“We need to play better the next time we’re on this field,” Miller said. “Our pitchers will pitch, like they do. We had six errors the last two games, and not being able to score runs (Saturday) — if you don’t score runs, you can’t win games. … We’ll take a few days off. With Monday being Memorial Day, we’ll get back to it on Tuesday. We’ll get back to work.
“We’re used to having our backs against the wall.”
Resurrection Christian's standout senior Vaughn Green pitches during the fourth-seeded Cougars' 5-2 loss to top-seeded University during the second round of the Class 3A state baseball tournament Friday, May 23, at Butch Butler Field in Greeley. (Brian Stotts/Courtesy)Resurrection Christian braces for busy weekend
As long of a road as University would have toward claiming a sixth state title in program history, fourth-seeded Resurrection Christian would face an even longer trek if it plans on winning its third state title.
The Cougars’ previous two state titles came at the 2A level, in 2012 and 2014.
Resurrection Christian picked up wins against Montezuma-Cortez and The Classical Academy in the opening weekend of the 3A state tournament.
In the previous win against Montezuma-Cortez (23-5), the Cougars (19-9) scored the game’s only run in the bottom of the third, winning 1-0. Senior Charley Wilson hit 2 for 3 and had the winning RBI.
The Panthers bounced back from their first-round loss against Resurrection Christian this past weekend with a 9-2 win against No. 8 Valley and a 9-5 win against third-seeded Eaton in a pair of lower bracket games.
Windsor head baseball coach Brad Deal watches his team play against Aurora Central at Mo Kvamme Field in Windsor on Saturday May 18, 2024.(Jim Rydbom/Staff Photographer)Windsor looks to punch ticket to finals
Fourth-seeded Windsor, undeniably, had the most momentum of any team in the 4A state tournament this past weekend before running into a confident third-seeded Golden squad, and a prolonged weather delay.
The Wizards (21-7) defeated fifth-seeded Palisade 9-2 and top-seeded Pueblo County 8-2 in the first two rounds Friday to set up a game against Golden (25-3) — a matchup between the final two teams unbeaten in the tournament.
Windsor led 10-6 before the delay. After the delay, the Demons promptly scored six runs in the top of the fifth to take a sudden 12-10 lead. The Wizards scored a run in the bottom of the seventh but couldn’t complete the comeback.
Windsor juniors Jeremiah Calderon and Chris Valerio had two RBI apiece.
At 12:30 p.m. Friday at the Air Force Academy, the Wizards will face whichever team emerges from a 10 a.m. game between No. 5 Palisade (19-9) and No. 6 Cheyenne Mountain (18-8-1). The winner of that game takes on Golden at 10 a.m. Saturday and would need to beat the Demons twice to claim the title.
Windsor has never won a state baseball title.
Platte Valley looks to continue unlikely run
As the seventh seed in the eight-team 2A state tournament, Platte Valley (18-10) wasn’t exactly a tournament favorite at the start of this past weekend.
That quickly changed as the Broncos defeated second-seeded Dayspring Christian 4-1 in the first round and third-seeded Fowler 2-1 in the second round.
Platte Valley’s budding momentum reached a screeching halt, as the Broncos fell 10-0 in five innings to top-seeded Forge Christian (24-4) on Saturday — in a matchup between the last two teams unbeaten in the double-elimination tournament.
The Fury out-hit Platte Valley 11-2. Senior Jeremiah Molinar and freshman Cooper Moffatt each had a hit for the Broncos.
The Broncos move on to a 12:30 p.m. game Friday at the Runyon Field Sports Complex’s Hobbs Field. They await the winner of a 10 a.m. game between No. 8 Monte Vista (18-7) and No. 6 Denver Christian (18-9).
If Platte Valley wins Friday, it moves on to the finals against Forge Christian at 10 a.m. and would need to beat the Fury in back-to-back games.
The Broncos have one state title in program history: the Class B title in 1954 when the school was simply known as Kersey High School.
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