It was March 22 of last year, and Rudden started for Cherry Creek in a travel tournament against Valley Vista. An elbow injury cut short his sophomore season, so the then-junior was still looking to establish himself within Colorado’s most successful big-school program.

RELATED: Meet the finalists for the inaugural Roy Halladay Award

Rudden threw a complete game, one-hit shutout in a 1-0 win, dominating with his fastball-slider combo in a preview of what was to come as the right-hander became a central force in the Bruins’ back-to-back Class 5A championship seasons.

“He showed us his bulldog mentality,” Cherry Creek pitching coach Dave Veres recalled. “It was one of those (ah-ha) moments. No pitch clock needed for this guy. He’s a get-it-and-go type of guy. Puts all the pressure on the hitters. And once we got that one-run lead, he was like, ‘That’s all I need. That’s plenty.’

“And as that game went on, he got tougher and tougher to hit, which foreshadowed what he would do the next couple years. Once he got the ball, you couldn’t take it out of his hand.”

Rudden came up clutch for Cherry Creek in the biggest moments. Last year, he delivered under do-or-die circumstances in the penultimate game of the state tournament against Regis Jesuit, setting up Creek’s ninth ring. And this spring, he sealed the program’s 10th title with a masterful start, again against the Raiders, in the championship game.

Along the way, the Michigan commit excelled in the classroom (4.3 GPA) and set a high standard with community service and school club involvement. For all of that, Rudden is the winner of the inaugural Roy Halladay Award, to be presented annually to Colorado’s top senior ballplayer, scholar and community steward.

“To have my name in the same conversation as Halladay is such a blessing,” Rudden said. “The kind of player he was and the status he had is something that every Colorado baseball player hopes to achieve. So I’m blessed to get this honor.

“I believe this has a ton of potential to be a big-time award in the years to come. And I hope it motivates more high school players in the community to not just be good players, but good students and good people.”

Intensity is one of Rudden’s best intangibles that led to his impressive prep career on and off the diamond.

In this year’s title game, where Rudden threw five innings of one-run ball in an 8-1 Cherry Creek win, Regis Jesuit threatened to take an early lead with two runners on in the first inning. But Rudden struck out a pair of batters to escape the jam, then yelled toward the Raiders’ dugout.

“That was our chance, and then he slammed the door on us after that,” Regis Jesuit head coach Matt Darr said. “That first inning epitomized how there’s a competitiveness to him that’s another level compared to most. … You feel like you’re up against somebody who’s almost invincible even though we’ve seen guys with better stuff, but they’re not as tough as him.”

Rudden’s competitiveness translated to leadership in the dugout. Cherry Creek head coach Joe Smith said the senior routinely pulled fellow players aside for chats if they weren’t playing up to the program’s expectations of effort and hustle.

Rudden’s edge seeped into his schoolwork, too, where even as a senior he refused to let up in his final high school semester despite having a scholarship to Michigan in the bag.

“Wyatt had just come home from a game this spring, and he had pitched well,” said Rudden’s dad, Nick, who won a pair of baseball championships with the Bruins in the late 1990s. “Postgame, he lifted. Then he gets home at about 9:30, and I go, ‘What’s going on?’ He goes, ‘I’ve got to go study (for an AP test).’ This was routine for him. He would often be up until like 2 in the morning studying.

“That night, my wife (Megan) and I just looked at each other. Even with college already set, he was going up to study because he believes it’s his obligation to be the best he can be. He’s not the kind of kid who is going to leave anything on the table.”

Rudden’s younger brother, Cherry Creek junior second baseman Walker Rudden, saw that in Wyatt from a young age.

When Walker was 11 and Wyatt was 12, they played a tournament together in Cooperstown. When Walker hit a homer before Wyatt, the older brother was peeved.

“So then he came up the next at-bat and crushed one of the longest homers I’ve ever seen a little kid hit,” Walker said with a laugh. “Then he just smiled at me when we got back into the dugout.”

Outside of baseball and school, Rudden’s desire to give back didn’t waver.

Since childhood, Rudden’s been heavily involved in the Bags of Fun Foundation, which puts together backpacks with toys and games for children fighting life-threatening conditions. Since middle school, he’s volunteered about 15 weekends a year for Boys Team Charity, with projects such as cleaning up farms that target food scarcity, serving at food kitchens, and most recently painting planter boxes for a senior living facility. And this winter and spring, he’s been an assistant coach for a 9U Little League team.

Inside the walls of his school, he’s also involved in Link Crew, National Honor Society, DECA and Leadership Club.

“A quote I come back to a lot is, ‘Who you are when you do anything is who you are when you do everything,'” Rudden said. “Going through the motions at school will never better you, and neither will doing that in the community. If you want to be a great player and a great person, every time you have an opportunity to better yourself and better others, you have to take it.”

As Rudden heads off to Michigan, the 6-foot, 180-pound hurler’s hyperfocus in all aspects of life won’t sway. And as Cherry Creek senior teammate Mason Scott explains, neither will Rudden’s confidence on the mound, although he’ll need to further develop his curveball and changeup to be a more dynamic pitcher at the Division I level.

“There is no hitter that Wyatt is ever scared to pitch to,” Scott said. “He’ll throw inside. He’ll throw any pitch in any count. That’s what makes him make so difficult to hit off of — he’s not scared of you, and you know that. Wyatt’s favorite pitch is a two-seam on your hands, and I think that says everything you need to know about him.”

The Roy Halladay Award

The Roy Halladay Award honors the top senior baseball player, scholar and community steward in Colorado. The award, named after the late Hall of Fame pitcher who attended Arvada West before becoming a Cy Young winner with the Blue Jays and Phillies, factors in on-field performance as well as grades and community service.

The award is backed by a non-profit, the Colorado High School Baseball Player Award Corporation, led by board president Ed Henderson, treasurer Alan Bossart and secretary Justin North. The winner is decided by a 14-person selection committee, which votes on the winner and finalists based on a system that gives candidates three points for a first-place vote, two points for a second-place vote and one point for a third-place vote.

The trophy for the award, named “The Mighty Casey,” is made by the Lundeen Sculpture company in Loveland. It is an approximately 15-inch-tall bronze sculpture of an old-time ballplayer leaning on his bat. The winner also receives a $1,000 scholarship and an honorary luncheon put on by the non-profit in downtown Denver.

Anyone wishing to make a tax-deductible donation to the award should email reporter Kyle Newman at knewman@denverpost.com.

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Roy Halladay Award Winner

RHP Wyatt Rudden, Sr., Cherry Creek

One of several aces on a stacked Bruins’ pitching staff, the Michigan commit dominated in the title game win over Regis Jesuit and finished the season 9-2 with a 2.46 ERA and 85 strikeouts. He won the inaugural Roy Halladay Award for his play in addition to his grades (4.3 GPA) and service in the community.

Coach of the Year

Jackie McBroom, Golden

The 10th-year Demons coach led Golden to its first state title in 22 years, and second overall, amid their third straight Class 4A Final Four appearance. When McBroom took over the Golden program a decade ago, the Demons were perennially on the outside looking in when it came playoff time. Now, they’re a prominent 4A force.

Pitchers

RHP Ethan Wachsmann, Jr., Grandview

The Wake Forest commit dominated hitters with a fastball that ran into the high 90s while helping the Wolves to the Class 5A Final Four. Wachsmann was 8-1 with a 1.77 ERA in 11 games, with two complete games and 80 Ks.

RHP Hudson Alpert, Jr., Regis Jesuit

The Vanderbilt commit was a central reason for the Raiders’ return trip to the 5A state title game, even though he missed the final weekend of state due to injury. He was 6-3 with a 1.76 ERA and 65 Ks in 10 games.

RHP Ryan Falke, Sr., Cherry Creek

Another one of the Bruins’ big guns, the Washington State commit was a factor in why Cherry Creek only lost one time in state all season. Falke was 6-0 with a 2.72 ERA, one save and 70 Ks in 13 games.

RHP Sawyer Brinkman, Sr., Golden

The Dodge City Community College commit helped pitch the Demons to the title and was the Class 4A Jeffco League MVP in the process. He was 10-1 with a 1.52 ERA, 112 Ks and just 18 walks in 13 games.

RHP Ross Frank, Sr., Rocky Mountain

The Monterey Peninsula College commit and Roy Halladay Award finalist was the Lobos’ ace for three seasons while leading them back to the 5A tournament. He went 10-2 with a 1.28 ERA, 106 Ks and only eight walks in 14 games.

RHP Luke Reasbeck, Sr., Regis Jesuit

The North Greenville commit formed a formidable one-two punch alongside Alpert, going 5-1 with a 1.85 ERA in 10 games with 53 Ks and only four walks. He was pure nails during the Raiders’ state tournament run.

LHP Carter Wilcox, Sr., Cherokee Trail

The Iowa commit was a finalist for the Roy Halladay Award as the Cougars’ centerpiece. He went 5-4 with a 1.85 ERA in 12 games. His dominating swing-and-miss arsenal paced 5A with 116 strikeouts.

RHP Blake Swift, Jr., Pueblo County

The still-uncommitted Hornets ace was virtually untouchable this season with a 0.33 ERA and 11-1 record in 14 games, including 74 strikeouts and no homers given up as PCHS made the 4A state tournament.

LHP Maverick Scarpella, Jr., Broomfield

One of two aces for the Eagles alongside BYU commit Ethan Zufall, the Indian Hills commit routinely came up clutch during Broomfield’s deep playoff run. He threw a no-hitter in the regional final and went 8-1 with a 2.13 ERA and 75 Ks in 12 games.

Catchers

Brendan Fritch, Sr., Broomfield 

The Davidson commit could hit for average and power. He led 5A with a .545 average and also paced the classification with a .613 on-base percentage and hit five homers as the offensive soul of the Eagles’ Final Four team.

Spike Magill, Sr., Mountain Vista

The Evansville commit was a dominant backstop for the Golden Eagles and also Mountain Vista’s best offensive player with a .494 average, .556 on-base percentage and 1.361 OPS.

Jack Espiritu-Niswonger, Sr., Fairview

The Dartmouth commit has been a stalwart for three seasons behind the dish up in Boulder, hitting over .400 each year. This spring, he batted .411 with a .522 on-base percentage and 1.166 OPS.

Nate Glad, Sr., Cheyenne Mountain

The Northeastern Junior College commit helped the Red-Tailed Hawks to the 4A title game with his glove and his bat, as he batted .459 with seven homers, a .500 on-base percentage and 1.261 OPS.

Infielders

SS Owen Morgan, Sr., Fossil Ridge

The Oregon commit was a centerpiece of Fossil Ridge’s first 5A state tournament appearance, leading the SaberCats with a .538 average and .602 on-base percentage to go along with four homers and a 1.326 OPS.

1B/OF Connor Larkin, Sr., Cherry Creek

The Oklahoma commit cleaned up on postseason honors via the state’s Gatorade player of the year, the CHSAA 5A player of the year and the Centennial League player of the year while hitting .457 with 11 homers.

SS Tate Deal, Sr., Arvada West

The Evansville commit helped the Wildcats to a deep 5A tournament run with slick fielding and a powerful bat. He hit .391 with 12 doubles, nine homers, 32 RBIs and a 1.309 OPS.

SS Tommy Feldhake, Sr., Castle View

The South Carolina Upstate commit flashed leather as Castle View’s defensive leader. He raked, too, with a .472 average, .552 on-base percentage and 1.372 OPS topped off by an impressive performance at state.

INF Jansen Roberts, Sr., Cheyenne Mountain

The Crowder College commit’s play and leadership powered Cheyenne Mountain’s 4A title game trip. He led the team with a .481 average, eight homers, .865 slugging and 1.450 OPS.

SS Jaydon Stroup, Sr., Golden

The Mesa Community College commit was a starter as a sophomore when Golden lost in the 4A title game and has been a pillar in the two seasons since. He hit .402 with a .530 on-base percentage and 1.243 OPS.

SS Chase Chapman, Sr., Grandview

The uncommitted Wolves star provided plus-defense in addition to being the most consistent hitter on a 5A Final Four team; Chapman batted .451 with 21 extra-base hits, good for a .563 on-base percentage and 1.331 OPS.

SS Ethan Fillinger, Sr., Windsor

The UNC commit helped the Wizards to a third-place finish at the 4A state tournament with sure hands and a live arm in the six hole combined with a potent bat that hit .482 with four homers and a 1.354 OPS.

SS Sean Goldy, Sr., Cherry Creek

The West Virginia commit made an array of impressive plays during the Bruins’ 6-0 postseason run, with speed and quickness in the field and on the bases. He hit .368 with four homers, 17 steals and a .451 on-base percentage.

1B Luca Casali, Sr., Golden

The Western Oklahoma State commit was a key cog in the Demons’ title run and could play the outfield, too. As a hitter, Casali batted a team-best .456 with a .568 on-base percentage, .811 slugging and 1.379 OPS.

1B Bricen Moore, Jr., Douglas County

A versatile defender who can also play the outfield, Moore was the Huskies’ best hitter this season with a .429 average, 14 extra-base hits (three homers), .494 on-base percentage and 1.234 OPS.

Outfielders

Mason Griffin, Sr., Fossil Ridge

The UNC commit consistently came through in the clutch for the SaberCats through the state tournament. The Northern League player of the year led 5A with 50 RBIs while batting .511 with six homers and a 1.530 OPS.

Sam Harry, Sr., Castle View

The Cal State Sacramento commit led the Sabercats with a .489 average and .566 on-base percentage and also posted a 1.321 OPS to help Castle View to the 5A state tournament.

Caden Williamson, Sr., Broomfield

Another potent bat in the Broomfield lineup alongside Fritch, the Quinnipiac commit hit leadoff and played a speedy center field, batting .402 with 40 RBIs, five homers, a .728 slugging and a 1.205 OPS.

Colin Metz, Sr., Chatfield

The Dodge City commit who played on the Chargers’ defensive line during the fall was a heavy-hitter, leading Chatfield with a .429 average, 24 RBIs and nine homers plus a .473 on-base percentage and 1.283 OPS.

Christian Lopez, Sr., Regis Jesuit

The Cal Bakersfield commit showcased speed and defensive prowess as the Raiders’ center fielder. As the team’s leadoff man, Lopez also shined, hitting .398 with a .500 on-base percentage and team-best 15 steals.

Aiden Wilson, Sr., Pine Creek

The Garden City commit had a sure glove in the outfield and could also hit for average and power. He hit .463 with a team-best 41 RBIs and 17 extra-base hits, including seven homers and a 1.533 OPS.

Utility

RHP/SS/CF Cooper Vais, Soph., Arvada West

The 5A Jeffco League MVP propelled the Wildcats to a deep run in the 5A tournament. The head coach’s kid hit .347 with five homers, a .600 slugging and 1.022 OPS, and went 8-1 with a 1.29 ERA on the mound.

3B/OF Jack Phiel, Sr., Northfield

The Haverford commit tore up the City League this season while leading the Nighthawks to the league title. The defensively versatile Phiel batted .479 with 33 RBIs and 22 extra-base hits, including eight homers and a 1.650 OPS.

LHP/OF Favi Gaeta, Sr., Prairie View

The Colorado Northwestern commit was 10-1 with a 1.14 ERA and 96 strikeouts in 14 games this season as one of the more dominant arms in the state. He also raked offensively with a .405 average and 1.329 OPS.

RHP/1B Jerry Stone, Sr., Prairie View

The Colorado Northwestern commit was a one-two punch on the mound alongside Gaeta, with a 5-1 record, 1.34 ERA and 64 Ks in 12 games. He also had a .365 average, five homers and 1.152 OPS in the box.

RHP/1B Aaron Jaquez, Jr., Falcon

The North Carolina commit, who posted a 2.25 ERA and 32 Ks in five games pitching, did everything for the Falcons this spring en route to hitting .522 with 26 RBIs, a .570 on-base percentage and a 1.301 OPS.

LHP/1B Ben Simons, Sr., Coal Ridge

The Roy Halladay Award finalist led the state with 51 RBIs and was a dominant two-way player to lead the Titans to their first state title. He hit .565, and was 6-1 with a 1.11 ERA and 85 Ks in 11 games on the mound.

RHP/OF Easton Embrey, Sr., Palisade

The Florence-Darlington Tech commit used his arm and bat to help lead the Bulldogs to the 4A Final Four. Embrey hit .467 with a .508 on-base percentage and was the team’s most-used pitcher with a 4.15 ERA in 14 games.

RHP/SS Thomas Stewart, Sr., Mullen

The Virginia commit was the Mustangs’ unquestioned two-way star this spring, as he led the team with a .459 average, .564 on-base percentage and 1.240 OPS. He also had a 2.67 ERA in nine games on the mound.

RHP/OF/3B Maddox Burnett, Jr., Erie 

The BYU commit was a pillar for the Tigers this season and is one of the top juniors in the state. He hit .419 with a 1.085 OPS, and on the mound, he was Erie’s ace with a 2.74 ERA, 8-2 record and 70 Ks in 11 games.

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The Demons had just lost a 1-0 heartbreaker in the Class 4A title round to Severance after the would-be tying run was thrown out at the plate to end the game. So the runner-up trophy was sent back to Golden in the car of head coach Jackie McBroom’s wife instead of on the team bus.

“The players did not want that trophy on the bus,” McBroom recalled with a laugh. “We were proud of what we had accomplished, but there was a lot of disappointment that we didn’t win the whole thing.

“So the guys who were there with us, whether they were juniors or seniors this year, they didn’t forget that feeling. It was a driving force for them to get back to that spot and finish what the team from two years ago started.”

The Demons did just that, capturing the Class 4A championship by beating Cheyenne Mountain on May 31 at the Air Force Academy in the winner-take-all game of the double-elimination tournament. It gave the Demons their second title, but first since MLB all-star Mark Melancon headlined their original championship team in 2003. It also resulted in McBroom being tabbed as The Denver Post’s All Colorado Coach of the Year.

Raising the trophy that the Demons really wanted was a fitting capper for Golden, which has been Colorado’s most dominant Class 4A program over the last four years. In that time, they’ve made four state tournaments, three Final Fours and amassed a 97-20 record.

That’s a long way from what McBroom inherited in his first season leading the Demons in 2016. The year before McBroom took the job on 24th Street, Golden was 6-13 and finished tied for last in the Jeffco League. Now, they’ve won the league five years in a row.

“I give a lot of credit to that first group that I had,” said McBroom, who’d previously been a Golden assistant coach and head coach at Abraham Lincoln. “We finished 10-9 and didn’t make the playoffs, but those seniors started to change the culture, and then the talented sophomore class we had that year carried that on. We made the state tournament in my second year. The baseline (for perennial success) was set.”

This spring, the Demons lost only one regular-season game to a 4A opponent — a 3-2 setback to Denver North on April 1. After that, Golden rattled off 20 straight wins before losing to Cheyenne Mountain in eight innings in the championship round, which the Demons entered in the driver’s seat.

In the winner-take-all game that followed, Golden didn’t flinch under pressure in a 5-1 victory to secure the title.

“(McBroom) really didn’t even say much after that loss to Cheyenne Mountain — it was more about the way he was holding himself,” senior first baseman Luca Casali explained. “He didn’t seem stressed, he didn’t seem worried. The players saw that and we believed we were fine. We were ready to go take it.”

Four seniors fueled Golden’s title run: Casali (Western Oklahoma State commit), shortstop Jaydon Stroup (Mesa Community College), right-hander Sawyer Brinkman (Dodge City) and left-hander Taden Svendsen (Trinidad State).

Brinkman was Golden’s ace all season, winning 10 games with a 1.52 ERA, but it was Svendsen who pitched the decisive win over Cheyenne Mountain via 6 1/3 innings of one-run ball.

Casali noted that McBroom, who coaches with tough love, found the right balance of “knowing when to let the seniors take over the leadership in a situation, and when he should step in.”

“That played a big role in having our team mesh,” Casali said. “After that loss to Denver North, he let us hear it after the game. He was hard on us. But he also (empowered) us seniors with taking ownership of the team, and consistently solicited input from us about what we needed to work on, and what to focus on to keep bringing the younger players along.”

Coaching continuity has also been key in Golden’s rise as a 4A force.

Around McBroom, Charlie Stevens is the Demons’ longtime pitching coach. Assistant Chip Glass, the 1994 College World Series MVP with Oklahoma, coaches the outfield. And Chad Sigg, Roy Halladay’s catcher at Arvada West who has now won five state titles as a player and assistant coach, is also a key part of the varsity staff.

And if the last half-decade is any indication, the trophy accumulation in Golden might just be getting going.

“It amazes me every year that we show up in the winter and start hitting, and we’ve got a whole new crop of players who are capable of elevating the program again,” Sigg said. “It’s like Columbine football — you want to go play for programs like that. Jackie doesn’t go out and recruit kids, but they find him and want to play for Golden baseball. Every year’s a reload, not a rebuild, and we expect that to continue.”

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Ben Simons, Coal Ridge

Position: LHP/1B

GPA: 3.98

Commitment: None

Stats: .565 average, .672 on-base percentage, 51 RBIs, 15 doubles, 7 triples, 1 homer, .941 slugging, 1.613 OPS; 6-1 with 1.11 ERA and 85 strikeouts in 16 games, .177 opponent average

Community: Simons is heavily involved in his church doing lots of community work through that, including assisting the elderly with chores that they physically cannot do. He’s also involved with youth sports and mentoring in the New Castle community, having volunteered for youth basketball and baseball camps. For now, he is forgoing playing baseball in college — he had several JuCo offers, plus one to Colorado Mesa — to go on a two-year mission.

About Simons: Simons was the backbone of Coal Ridge’s run to the Class 3A state title game — the first boys championship in school history to put the small Western Slope town on the map. A two-way star, he led the entire state in RBIs and hit for contact and power as the driving force in the lineup. He was nearly untouchable on the mound and was CHSAA’s 3A player of the year, in addition to a three-time Western Slope League player of the year.

Ross Frank, Rocky Mountain

Position: RHP/SS

GPA: 3.9

Commitment: Monterey Peninsula College

Stats: 10-2 with 1.28 ERA, 106 strikeouts and only 8 walks in 14 games; .304 average with 21 RBIs, 6 doubles, 1 triple, .407 on-base percentage, .391 slugging, .798 OPS

Community: Frank volunteered at Respite Care in Fort Collins, where he worked with kids with special needs. Frank and his teammates took those kids to do activities, such as bowling and swimming, a few times a year. He was also a spirit leader at Rocky Mountain who was tasked with generating support for Lobo athletics, volunteered to serve food to those experiencing homelessness, and participated in a free baseball camp for local youth players.

About Frank: In a storied Rocky Mountain program that’s produced a few professional players, Frank etched himself into program history. The four-year letter-winner reset the Rocky Mountain pitching record book, overtaking former Mariners pitcher Marco Gonzales in single-season strikeouts and innings (71) as well as career strikeouts (245) and innings (188 1/3) while leading the Lobos back to the Class 5A state tournament in ’25.

Carter Wilcox, Cherokee Trail

Position: LHP

GPA: 3.67

Commitment: Iowa

Stats: 5-4 with 1.85 ERA in 12 games, 116 strikeouts, 35 walks, 2 homers allowed, .130 opponent batting average

Community: Wilcox assisted with Cherokee Trail’s annual Ronald McDonald House Donation and the school’s Unified Wiffle Ball game. He is also a member of the Cougars’ BE KIND program. He participated in the Unified Turkey Trot and raised money for Lahaina for school caps and gowns after the wildfires, and helped with hurricane relief. He helped run two elementary school field days.

About Wilcox: The southpaw consistently put Cherokee Trail on his back whenever he took the mound. Wilcox has drawn some Tim Lincecum comps for the way he gets the most out of his frame with a unique delivery and arm slot. He consistently revved his fastball up into the mid-90s, and when paired with a nasty high-70s slider, the Ks piled up and he led the state in strikeouts with his ability to generate whiffs in all parts of the zone.

The 6-foot-3, 205-pound first baseman, outfielder and pitcher had big numbers at the plate, batting .457 with 11 home runs, 37 RBIs and 20 stolen bases. He also made seven appearances on the mound, earning a 2-0 record with a 2.41 ERA and 31 strikeouts in 20 1/3 innings of work.

“Larkin has come up huge in big games and big moments,” Grandview head coach Scott Henry said in a news release. “He’s the biggest offensive threat we faced all year.”

Larkin carried a 3.46 grade-point average and signed a written letter of athletic aid to play baseball at Oklahoma starting next fall.

He is the latest addition to a bevy of Bruins who have won the award over the years, joining Brian Wilkinson (1987), John Burke (1989), David Spykstra (1992), Matt Brunson (1993), Darnell McDonald (1996-97), David Aardsma (2000), Joey Andrews (2001), Griffin Jax (2013) and Jack Moss (2020). McDonald was also the national player of the year in 1997.

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It took a second game to end Cheyenne Mountain’s magical run, but the Golden Demons (26-4) claimed their first Class 4A state baseball championship in 22 years on Saturday with a 5-1 victory at the Air Force Academy’s Erdle Field.

“Ever since that loss (two years ago), it’s just ate at me,” Casali said. “This has just been a huge goal for all of us that were on that team. This was such a fun year and a great team to do it with.

“This feels amazing.”

Casali, a senior first baseman, had two hits and a walk while scoring three times in the decisive game. He was part of the Golden team that lost the 2023 4A championship game, 1-0, to Severance. The final out was made at home plate.

His senior class has made the state tournament all four years. The Demons came back last year and won a program record 26 games, but finished fourth.

They needed 26 wins again this season, and had more adversity Saturday than expected.

“A phenomenal season,” Golden coach Jackie McBroom said. “We lost a game way back (on April 1, to Denver East). We had a little heart-to-heart with the team. Then the guys got busy and went to work.

“We ran off 20 wins in a row and here we are today.”

Casali scored his team’s first three runs, and then a two-run triple from sophomore Liam Leffert finally gave the Demons some breathing room in the fifth inning. Senior starting pitcher Tayden Svendsen allowed just one run on eight hits in 6 1/3 innings.

Golden won its first three games of the state tournament to earn some rest before Saturday, and had reeled off 20 straight victories entering the day. The Demons had to work overtime to finally put away the upstart Red-Tail Hawks.

Cheyenne Mountain (21-9-1) won three times this weekend at Erdle Field to reach a decisive second game Saturday. The Hawks ended Golden’s winning streak with a 5-2 victory in eight innings in the first game.

They beat Golden ace Sawyer Brinkman, who took his first loss in two seasons after pitching into the eighth. Running short on pitchers, Cheyenne Mountain turned to catcher Nate Glad, who had thrown two innings this season, according to MaxPreps.

Glad got the final eight outs and stranded eight baserunners to keep the Hawks alive. Even in the second game with the club running on fumes, the Hawks had two runners on in the top of the sixth but couldn’t conjure one more big hit in a weekend full of them.

“We obviously wanted to come in here and win game one and we had a lot of opportunities,” McBroom said. “They wouldn’t go away. It was kind of like, ‘When are you guys going to stop?’ They just kept coming. We really had to go out there and earn it.”

Golden showed plenty of championship moxie of its own. The Demons had 40 minutes to rebound from a potentially crushing loss.

McBroom said his team needed five. Casali called it a complete reset.

His double and a run-scoring single from senior shortstop Jaydon Stroup in the bottom of the first inning helped reclaim some mojo. And Svendsen worked his way out of trouble the rest of the way.

A few of the players from the 2023 team who have graduated were on the field to celebrate, all wearing shirts that said state runner-up on the back. It was a full-circle moment for a program that has been building toward its second state title. The first, in 2003, featured future MLB All-Star Mark Melancon.

The building blocks for a third were on display as well. Lefferts and fellow sophomore Anthony Boucher delivered the biggest hits of the day, while freshman Austin Bittner relieved Svendsen to get the final two outs and kick off the celebration.

“It’s just the best possible way to end it,” Casali said. “As a senior, I’m just so proud of these guys. We were grinding all year. We definitely had to earn it the hard way here today.”

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The Bruins dominated Regis Jesuit on Saturday at All-Star Park with an 8-1 victory in the Class 5A title game. Senior right-hander Wyatt Rudden was masterful, while the Raiders’ pitching staff — which had ace Hudson Alpert injured and used its two other top arms on Friday to advance — couldn’t hold down the Bruins’ potent lineup.

With the win, Cherry Creek became the first 5A program to repeat since Rocky Mountain won four in a row from 2007-10. It’s the second time the Bruins have won consecutive titles, as Cherry Creek claimed five straight from 1995-99.

Colorado’s all-time winningest coach Marc Johnson retired at the end of last season, but the Bruins didn’t miss a beat behind longtime assistant-turned-boss Joe Smith.

“When I accepted the job, coming in after Marc Johnson, some people said, ‘Why would you take that job?'” Smith said. “I was following the greatest high school coach possibly in the nation, but definitely in the state of Colorado. But without pressure, what opportunities are there in life?

“With the leaders we have on this team, I just guided them and they took the reins. We started 1-4-1, and our players never batted an eyelash. They came ready to play, ready to work. There was adversity and mistakes we made in a lot of those games that allowed us to grow and get better.”

With 12 college commits on the roster and seven Division I pledges, Smith steered the talent-rich Bruins to their 10th title. That tally trails only two small-school programs — Revere (11) and Eaton (15) — for the most in state history. The Centennial League champions finished 23-5-1, with their lone loss in-state a 3-2 setback to Grandview on May 9.

Johnson, who attended most of the Bruins’ games this season and was there Saturday to see them win the program’s first ring without him, said his successor “did a good job of keeping the team balanced.”

“Joe didn’t let them run away (with their egos) thinking we’re all this, we’re all that, even though on paper they were the best team in the state,” Johnson said.

Regis Jesuit, coming from the consolation side of the bracket, needed to beat Cherry Creek twice on Saturday to win the title, as the Bruins did to the Raiders last year. But Rudden was too dominant for Regis to sniff a second game.

The Raiders might’ve had a reasonable chance had Alpert, the Vanderbilt commit who suffered an elbow injury in last weekend’s outing against Arvada West, been available.

“We didn’t really have enough (medical) information on his diagnosis, and weren’t confident enough to roll him out there,” Regis Jesuit head coach Matt Darr said. “It’s not worth the kid’s future at this point. He didn’t feel right (against Arvada West), didn’t do much this week. It’s not worth it. It feels like it is, but it’s not.”

Cherry Creek loaded the bases with a single and two walks in the second, then used a double-play grounder and a wild pitch to push two runs across against sophomore right-hander Ryan Neumann.

The Raiders got a run back in the third to cut the score to 2-1. Senior center fielder Christian Lopez led off with a single, and a sacrifice bunt by junior second baseman Chase Massey moved Lopez to third. Lopez then scored on a wild pitch.

But that was all Regis Jesuit would get against Rudden, the Michigan commit who allowed three hits over five innings and 102 pitches, with eight strikeouts. Rudden kept Regis Jesuit guessing with a low-90s fastball, a low-80s slider and a mid-70s curveball.

“I didn’t have my best stuff, but I competed and I gave it all I had,” Rudden said. “I had some rough tracks, but I knew if I just put the ball in the zone, I was going to have a chance. As the game went on, I knew I needed to use those secondary pitches a little more and get some punch-outs with the slider.”

Cherry Creek tacked on three more runs in the third off junior left-hander Alexander Denny. Senior third baseman Mason Scott’s RBI single, senior DH Lucas Schultz’s RBI ground-rule double and junior right fielder Tyce Smith’s sacrifice fly added up to a 5-1 lead.

“The offense gave me room to be flexible with my pitches, because after we started scoring, the pressure came off,” Rudden said.

The Bruins continued to tack on in the latter innings. Smith added a two-run single off sophomore right-hander Cade Filleman in the fifth, extending the lead to 7-1, and Cherry Creek scored one more off a wild pitch in the sixth. Junior outfielder Ari Rothman, senior shortstop Sean Goldy and senior first baseman Connor Larkin each had a multi-hit performance.

“We knew if we manufactured some runs today, we could get to their pitching, and that’s what we did,” said Tyse Smith, who played his freshman season at Regis Jesuit before transferring to Cherry Creek. “(Another title) was the expectation, and today we met the expectation in all aspects.”

The Bruins’ bullpen slammed the door with a scoreless sixth by junior left-hander Max Goldberg and another zero by senior right-hander Anthony Graziano in the seventh.

Graziano got senior right fielder Gavin Cronin to pop up to end the game, prompting the Bruins bench to clear and dogpile in celebration.

As Cherry Creek passed around the trophy, Darr and Johnson shared a moment. The latter reminded the Regis Jesuit coach that although Johnson won nine titles, he was also runner-up six times. Darr, in his 11th season with the Raiders, won the 2019 title by beating Cherry Creek and Saturday marked his third runner-up finish.

Darr believes the Raiders, who return five of their top six arms and five starters in the field, are capable of another championship push in ’26.

“It was an emotional season in a lot of ways and a hard season with a lot of adversity, but to make it to the championship game on the final day, I’m really proud of this group,” Darr said. “We’ve had more talented teams, but this group is maybe as competitive as I’ve had.”

On the other side of the diamond, Cherry Creek graduates a pivotal group of seniors, but the cupboard always seems to restock in Greenwood Village.

“The past two years, we’ve instilled a culture that is going to continue to live on,” Rudden said. “There’s a good chance there’s going to be a lot of similar success like this in the very near future.”

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Well, there’s only one Charlie Scofield, but he is the biggest reason the Red-Tailed Hawks will play Saturday for a Class 4A state championship. Scofield, a senior who is committed to play at Wheaton College next season, was the winning pitcher in both games Friday at Erdle Field as the Hawks came back to defeat Palisade, 5-3, and then hung on for dear life to knock out Windsor, 5-2.

Oh, and Scofield knocked in four of the club’s 10 runs at the plate as well.

“I, for sure, did not wake up thinking that I would do that today,” Scofield said. “But I mean, to have done it now … it feels amazing. Just to help the team anyway I can, it’s exhilarating.”

Scofield’s biggest contribution came on the mound. He took over for starter Colton Johnson against Palisade in the sixth with the game knotted at 3-3 and tossed two shutout innings. Johnson was the hero at the plate, driving in the winning runs in the top of the seventh with a bases loaded-single.

The crafty lefty was just getting started. Windsor had scored 42 runs in its five-game state playoff run, including a 12-11 loss to Golden last weekend. Scofield shut the high-powered Wizards down, scattering three hits across six shutout innings.

He faced one jam, but induced an inning-ending groundout with two runners on in the fourth. Scofield’s full line for the day: Eight innings, zero runs, six strikeouts … and two wins.

“That’s the best I’ve seen him pitch — ever,” said senior catcher Nate Glad, who had four hits between the two games and kept two aggressive baserunning teams at bay from behind the plate. “It was awesome. I think we got some momentum and just kept our energy up the whole day.”

Cheyenne Mountain built a 5-0 lead through the first six innings. Then Scofield ran out of pitches and it went a little sideways.

“It was terrifying,” Scofield said. “I was thinking about (the pitch count) a lot. Every inning I’d come in and ask one of the coaches how many I had left.”

Swope turned to shortstop Andrew Campbell, who allowed four straight singles without getting an out. When Charlie Doyle relieved Campbell, the Wizards had the tying run at the plate with nobody out and the heart of the order coming up.

Doyle gave up two hard-hit balls, but both were right at left fielder Chase Hoendervoogt. In between, he hit a batter, so Windsor had the bases loaded and the winning run at the plate with one and two outs.

Naturally, the final out was in Scofield’s hands. Doyle induced a ground ball to first base, which Scofield scooped up and calmly took himself to the bag before setting off a combination of exhales and celebratory roars.

“Throughout the game, it was pretty stress-free,” Swope said. “Then all of a sudden, they didn’t miss a pitch. Every ball they hit was on the screws. Doyle did such a great job coming in, putting the fire out. That’s not easy, especially when one team has momentum like that and you’re coming in with all that traffic.”

The Hawks will be back at Erdle Field on Saturday morning. They need two wins against Golden, which is 25-3 this season and undefeated in the state tournament.

Scofield and Johnson can’t take the mound because of pitch-count limits. The Demons, many of whom were in attendance Friday afternoon, will be rested. They beat Cheyenne Mountain, 7-4, earlier in the tournament.

“We definitely could have beaten them last time,” Glad said. “The errors (they committed four) and the hitting just wasn’t there. I think we have a really good shot against them.”

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Fast forward to Friday, and the sophomore right-hander put an exclamation point on a breakout campaign, throwing a complete game to propel Regis Jesuit back into the Class 5A baseball championship.

Kroll outdueled Grandview ace Ethan Wachsmann as the Raiders beat the Wolves, 2-1, at All-Star Park. Kroll allowed one run on three hits, while Wachsmann also allowed one run through five innings before being pulled after hitting his pitch limit.

“The testament to (Kroll) is that he didn’t even pitch very well today, and he gave up one run in a semifinal game,” Regis Jesuit head coach Matt Darr said. “He was battling his command a little bit, but he showed why he’s one of our special arms. He’s grown in front of us this year.”

The Raiders loaded the bases against Wachsmann in the first inning, but the Wake Forest commit used his high-90s fastball to get consecutive strikeouts to end the threat. Wachsmann ended up with 11 Ks, a dominant effort that came to an end after he surpassed the 110-pitch count mark by hitting the leadoff batter of the sixth inning.

Grandview was up 1-0 at that point — after senior outfielder Kyler Vaughn singled, advanced to second, stole third and scored on Kroll’s wild pitch in the third inning.

But after Wachsmann exited, Regis Jesuit saw its opening. Senior right-hander Josiah Giron walked the first batter he faced, then hit the second to load the bases with no outs. After a flyout, senior right-fielder Gavin Cronin perfectly executed a suicide squeeze bunt to tie the game. Then, a two-out, full-count walk by sophomore Diesel Bernosky made it 2-1.

“We realized (Wachsmann) wasn’t pinpointing fastballs every pitch, so we were taking first pitch most of the game after the opening inning,” said Cronin, an Air Force Academy commit. “Every inning, we were determined to keep taking good at-bats. Even in some of the strikeouts we had, we ran the pitch count up, which ended up being really important at the end.

“When I saw the bunt call, I knew it was my time, and I delivered. We’ve practiced that a ton, but I haven’t had a pressurized one like that.”

The one-run lead was all Kroll needed, as the sophomore used his combination of a mid-80s fastball and mid-70s slider to keep the Wolves off balance. Kroll retired Grandview in order in the sixth and seventh innings to cement the win.

“I’ve been thinking about this game all week, especially after the injury issues I had last season,” Kroll said. “After that inning (where Grandview scored), a switch flipped. I was trying to do too much before that, and I just settled in and trusted my stuff.”

In the morning game, Regis Jesuit beat Broomfield 6-4 to advance to the semifinal. Eagles senior left-hander Maverick Scarpella gave up five runs over three innings, then senior right-hander Clayton Green allowed one run over the final four. The Raiders faced a 2-0 deficit after two innings, but then uncorked a five-run third.

Senior right-hander and North Greenville commit Luke Reasbeck threw a complete game for the Raiders with two earned runs. At the plate, junior Jacob Olson had two hits and two RBIs, junior Deion Cesario-Scott blasted a solo homer and Cronin also had an RBI.

“We needed that big third inning, because that first inning or two, it looked like we weren’t ready to play,” Darr said. “That inning gave us a lot of momentum the rest of that game, and coming into this one (against Grandview).”

Regis Jesuit, which lost twice on the final day last season to Cherry Creek as the Bruins captured their ninth state title, now finds the shoe on the other foot. This year, Cherry Creek is in the driver’s seat and will need to be beaten twice. Saturday’s first game is at 10 a.m., with the second game at 12:30 p.m. if necessary.

The Bruins will have all of their pitchers available, including star senior right-handers Wyatt Rudden (Michigan commit) and Ryan Falke (Washington State). Fellow senior right-hander Cael Knobbe, a CSU-Pueblo pledge who turned in a dominating relief performance against Grandview in last weekend’s winners-bracket semifinals, is also fresh.

The Raiders still have a handful of arms left, including junior right-hander and Vanderbilt commit Hudson Alpert. Sophomore right-handers Ryan Neumann and Cade Filleman and junior left-hander Alexander Denny are also available as Regis Jesuit looks to pull off the upset for its fourth title.

Cherry Creek’s beaten Regis Jesuit in close games twice this year. The first was a 2-1 triumph on March 27 in Greenwood Village, and the second came last week in the second round of the state tournament when the Bruins rallied with two runs in the seventh to walk-off the Raiders, 4-3. But Darr is confident his team can get payback on Saturday at All-Star Park.

“Our competitiveness was on display against Mountain Vista in the district championship, and it’s been on display this whole tournament,” Darr said. “In the past, I’ve had very talented teams that weren’t very competitive, but this one might be more competitive than talent. On a championship day like tomorrow, that may matter more.

“Weird things have happened in sports. Last year, we weren’t meant to win. Maybe it’s flipped this year.”

Whoever wins, the diamond will be stacked with recruits on two of the most talented Colorado high school teams in recent memory. There are 21 college commits between both rosters, including a dozen Division I players. Cherry Creek has 12 commits, seven Division I, and Regis Jesuit has nine commits, five Division I.

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Unfortunately for the Wolves, Cherry Creek’s been even better.

In yet another high-stakes showdown between the Centennial League and Cherry Creek School District rivals on Saturday at All-Star Park, the Bruins thumped the Wolves 7-1 in the Class 5A state tournament semifinal. It advanced defending champion Cherry Creek to next weekend’s title game, and relegated Grandview to the consolation side of the bracket in the Final Four.

With the victory, Cherry Creek improved to 5-1 against Grandview in 2024 and ’25. That includes a 3-0 record in the state tournament, where Cherry Creek dealt Grandview both of its losses last season, as well as a victory in the Centennial League title game earlier this month.

“We know they’re a good team, but we come into each game knowing we can beat them,” said Cherry Creek senior shortstop Sean Goldy, a West Virginia commit. “We believe we have better guys all around the field. (Today’s win was) us meeting expectations that have been with us since the start of the season.”

Cherry Creek had three multi-run innings on Saturday while consistently applying pressure to Grandview’s defense. Meanwhile, the Wolves were held to just two hits, both of which came from sophomore Matthew Schimberg. Senior right-hander Cael Knobbe was brilliant for the Bruins, blanking the Wolves over 5 2/3 innings.

Knobbe, a CSU Pueblo commit, used a mix of a mid-80s fastball, low-80s sinker and mid-70s slider to keep the Wolves off-balance. He spelled Cherry Creek starter Connor Larkin with one out in the second inning, after the southpaw ran into a jam with the bases loaded.

Grandview, trailing 3-1 at that point, wasn’t able to capitalize as Knobbe induced a flyout and a groundout to end the threat. Upon catching the third out of the inning as he hustled to cover first on a grounder, Knobbe let out a roar.

The Wolves never truly threatened again.

First-year Cherry Creek head coach Joe Smith called Knobbe “the best player on the field today.”

“Our nickname for (Knobbe) is the ‘Silent Assassin,'” Smith said. “The kid has ice water in his veins; his heartbeat never rises. That moment wasn’t too big for him. Bases loaded, they had momentum coming and he came in and shut the door.”

Tyce Smith, Owen Elser, Mason Scott and Cooper Campbell all had RBIs for the Bruins, who came through with two outs for several of those knocks and also benefited from a couple of throwing errors on errant pickoffs by the Wolves.

The closest Grandview came to scoring again after the second was when they stranded a runner on third base in the fourth. The inning before, Scott’s RBI ground-rule double made it 4-1 to give the Bruins breathing room and chase Grandview starter Nick Martensen from the game. An error led to another run, and Cherry Creek proceeded to tack on two more in the fifth.

“We’ve got to play as good as we can play to hang with them,” Grandview head coach Scott Henry said. “They came up with three two-out RBI hits today, and we didn’t, and that was kind of the difference. And we had that opportunity in the second and didn’t take advantage of it.

“In order to beat them, we’ve got to keep them under three, four runs. And we’ve got to have better two-out hitting.”

Even with the defeat, Grandview advances to its fifth Final Four and third under Henry, who is in his 10th year at the helm. The Wolves (who have never won a title) await the winner of Regis Jesuit and Broomfield next Friday. The winner of that Grandview game will have to beat Cherry Creek twice next Saturday to dethrone the Bruins.

That will be a tall task for whoever comes out of that consolation bracket, considering Cherry Creek has a dozen college commits (including seven Division I pledges) and will have its entire arsenal of pitchers available for Saturday.

But Cherry Creek, which beat Regis Jesuit twice on the final day last season to send retiring coach Marc Johnson out in storybook style, isn’t getting complacent in search of its 10th state title.

“We’re treating that first game on Saturday like it’s single-elimination for us, so we’ve got to be ready to go for that first game and go get the title,” Goldy said. “If we play hard and focused for seven innings, we don’t think anyone can beat us.”

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