Who's Back from the CHSAA 3A All-State Team: Part 1

The Colorado High School Activities Association releases an all-state team after every season and, as expected, it is loaded with talent. But many of the players who make such teams are seniors, and seniors graduate. Let’s look at the Class 3A players in Colorado who were voted to the CHSAA all-state team last winter and are returning to their teams’ rosters in 2019-20.   FIRST TEAM * NOTE: Uncommon but not unfounded, 80-percent (4 of 5) of last year’s 3A all-state first team was composed of players from St. Mary’s and Colorado Springs Christian School. Those two teams combined for a 51-3 record with all three of those losses coming against one another. CSCS beat St. Mary’s during the regular season but St. Mary’s, now the two-time defending champs favored to win a third this winter, beat CSCS at districts – 40-34 – and in the state championship game – 56-34. The difference between them this season is that CSCS graduated its top two players from ‘18-19 while St. Mary’s top two are back.   Seneca Hackley, 2020, 5-9, G, St. Mary’s With multiple offers on the table, Hackley has a ton of juice coming into her senior season as one half of the best one-two punch in Class 3A. A club player in the Rockies organization, she had a big summer and appears to be poised for an even bigger winter. As a junior, Hackley averaged 13.7 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 4.0 blocks and came close to blocking one shot for every game. She shot 34 percent from 3-point range and has designs on scoring more as a senior.   Josephine Howery, 2020, 5-9, G, St. Mary’s The catalogue of St. Mary’s head coach Mike Burkett’s embarrassment of riches continues as now we come to the CHSAA 3A Player of the Year. As a junior, Howery led the Pirates in scoring with 19.2 points a game. That was the second best average in 3A and is the sixth-best ’18-19 scoring average of any returning player in Colorado. The primary catalyst behind St. Mary’s back-to-back state titles, Howery is a balanced and skilled player who can drive and shoot. She uses a pull-up jump shot to keep defenders off balance and her long arms and quick feet help her affect the passing lanes at the defensive end. On top of her obvious scoring abilities, Howery averaged 6.1 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 3.0 steals throughout her junior year.   SECOND TEAM Hailey Griego, 2020, 5-9, P, Pagosa Springs The Pagosa Springs Pirates went 22-4 and reached the Final 4 last season with Greigo steering the ship. A tough player in the post at only 5-foot-9, Griego averaged 7.2 rebounds a game while leading Pagoso Springs with 12.5 points a night. She also had 2.0 steals on defense and played well in the Pirates’ all-around team passing system. Her season-high scoring performance came on Dec. 21 against Eaton in which she scored 26 points on 12 fields goals and just two free-throws.   HONORABLE MENTION Corrie Anderson, 2020, 5-8, G, Colorado Springs Christian School The Lions may have graduated their top two seniors from last season – all-state first teamers Megan Engesser and Rachel Ingram – but they have Anderson coming back and she figures to play a prominent role in ’19-20. As a junior, Anderson put up 7.8 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.6 steals a game. When she gets hot from long range, she can be a threat and shot 30 percent on 3-pointers as a junior.   Emily Broadhurst, 2020, 5-7, G, Roaring Fork Entering as the No. 23 overall seed, Roaring Fork’s time in the 3A state tournament was short-lived but likely wouldn’t have happened at all without Broadhurst supporting a core of seniors last winter. She led the team with 4.1 assists, grabbed 6.2 rebounds, ripped 3.4 steals and scored 6.6 points. With three of the Rams’ top scorers graduating, look for Broadhurst’s point totals to increase.   Cydnee Collins, 2020, 5-8, PG/PF, Eagle Ridge Academy Eagle Ridge might have made a solid run in the state tournament if not for a first-round matchup with eventual runner-up Colorado Springs Christian. But the Warriors have their top four scorers returning, including Collins who averaged 13.4 points a game. Collins also put up 9.6 rebounds, 3.2 steals and 1.3 blocks last season and along with fellow seniors Jackie Alvarez-Gordillo, Olivia Mendoza, Jazz Scott and Aryanna Hiatt, should be looking to get the Warriors past the first round at state.   Catherine Cummings, 2020, 6-0, C, St. Mary’s Well what do you know – another all-state player from the two-time defending champions. Holding down the paint along with 2021’s Madison and Morgan Bodette, Cummings doesn’t wast an inch of her 6-foot standing. In 2018-19, she averaged 10.6 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.2 blocks a game.   Mikylah Espinosa, 2022, SG/SF, The Academy The Academy went 22-2 last season with a duo of freshmen – Espinosa and teammate Aryanna Perez – leading the team in scoring. Espinosa averaged 16.0 points a game while also averaging 6.2 steals, 1.8 assists and 1.7 blocks. With 384 total points her freshman season, she is easily on pace to surpass the 1,000-point career mark as she continues to develop as a player.   The second part of our look at returning players from the 2018-19 CHSAA 3A all-state team will post Tuesday.