NoCo Nine: Wrestling wins, PSD skiing's Front Range first and surging Lambkins lead best in local preps

The holidays are behind us and the high school sports action is rolling now in 2024.

From the ski slope to the basketball court and especially on the mat, it was a busy week in Fort Collins-area preps.

Rivalry wrestling matches are underway, hoops squads are surging and we have some key games coming up on the ice.

Here are the best things we saw from area high school sports over the past week:

Note: If you have nominations for future NoCo Nine editions, please send them via email to ChrisAbshire@coloradoan.com for consideration.

PSD ski squad shows out at home meet

The Poudre School District Nordic ski team finally got opponents on their own Front Range turf.

The "Prairie Dogs" are Colorado's only high school ski squad outside of the mountains and got to host their first true home race at Windsor's new Hoedown Hill.

More: 'Gamechanger for us': PSD ski team hosts first-ever high school nordic race on Front Range

The Stars dominated a small field, as Cade Shortridge (boys) and Ellayna Potter (girls) took home individual race wins in the 5-kilometer skate.

This was just the start for PSD, which is coming off its best season ever and looked sharp on a new track in this year's season opener.

Fort Collins wrestling gets crosstown rivalry win over Rocky

This is shaping up to be an ultracompetitive season for city teams on the mat.

Rocky Mountain and Fort Collins faced off in another city showdown last week, with the Lambkins winning 43-18.

Here are some notable results from the crosstown dual:

• 113 weight class: Lir Loughlin (Rocky) beat Cam Smith (Fort Collins) by 10-9 decision

• 138: Jack Helgerson (FCHS) beat Kaemon Cobb (RMHS) in 2:48 via pin

• 144: Sorin Sierra (FCHS) beat Jesse Thompson (RMHS) by 4-3 decision

• 150: Jude Miller (FCHS) beat Jacob Daniel (RMHS) in 0:56 via pin

• 285: Alex Carl (RMHS) beat Ben Rios (FCHS) by 5-2 decision

The Fort Collins win sets up a big showdown this Thursday between Fort Collins and Poudre, with the city title likely on the line.

Rocky tops Timnath in local hoops showdown

This was a special cross-classification showdown, as two local teams off to strong starts matched up last Wednesday in Timnath.

Ultimately, Rocky's 6A squad was too much for the 3A Cubs, as the Lobos pulled away after three competitive quarters for a 78-51 win. Sara Chicco had 17 points despite foul trouble, while Meela Delap dominated inside with 16.

Both teams look like possible contenders, with Timnath (9-3) among the 3A top 10 and Rocky Mountain (9-3) sitting just outside the 6A top 10.

Fossil Ridge wrestler claims tournament title

The city's wrestling depth was on full display down Saturday at Eaglecrest's Rodriguez Tournament of Champions.

Fossil Ridge's Connor Jacquot battled his way to the 190-pound title with five match wins, including a dominant championship-match win in less than a minute.

It was another strong showing for Jacquot, who also finished runner-up at the Torgy tournament the week prior to kick off a promising 2024.

Fort Collins girls basketball keeps surging

The Fort Collins girls basketball team is absolutely rolling right now.

The Lambkins picked up a pair of crucial wins last week, beating Erie 48-43 before holding off Broomfield 50-47 on the road. Both teams were ranked in the CHSAA 6A seeding index top 15 before Fort Collins knocked them off.

Behind those big wins, the Lambkins also surged to No. 8 in 6A with an 8-2 record, including a 2-0 start in the Front Range League.

PSD Stars girls wrestling romps in home dual

The PSD girls wrestling squad is having another standout season, continuing last week with a dominant 48-18 home dual win over Skyview.

The Stars' best led the way, as Aubrey First, Pearl Morris, Ezry Bonomo and A'miyah McGee all won via pin. Mariah Gonzales, Anna Bratton, Kalli Roberts and Maddi Hill also won matches for PSD.

Expect to see most of those names at the state tournament next month.

Windsor boys basketball crushing league foes

The Wizards demolished their competition last week, winning three league games by a combined 133 points over Longmont, Greeley West and Greeley Central.

John Backhaus had a 50-point week, Madden Smiley dropped 20 in a game and Johnnie Reed had multiple double-digit rebounding efforts.

The Wizards are up to No. 10 in the 5A seeding index and are set to host No. 1 Silver Creek on Wednesday in a key game.

Windsor wrestling sits atop 4A rankings

They're No. 1! At least Windsor is, according to the latest On The Mat 4A rankings.

The Wizards sit on the 4A throne for now as they chase a return to the top of the state podium for the first time since 2020.

No individual Windsor wrestlers are ranked first in their weight class, but there's remarkable depth.

Windsor has wrestlers ranked in 10 of the 12 weight classes, led by defending state champion Evan Perez (No. 2 at 190) plus James Pantoja (No. 3 at 113) and Cale Meuchel (No. 3 at 215).

Games of the Week (Jan. 15-20)

We're getting into the heart of the winter season now, with some key games this week.

• Fossil Ridge wrestling at Rocky (Wednesday, 7 p.m.); Fort Collins at Poudre (Thursday, 7 p.m.): This pair of crosstown rivalry showdowns on the mat will go a long way toward determining city supremacy this season.

• Standley Lake at PSD hockey (Friday, 6 p.m.): The Stars are having a great bounceback season, sporting a 6-2 record and top-5 rating. They'll host the currently-unbeaten Gators on Friday night.

This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: NoCo Nine: Best of Fort Collins-area sports for week of January 7-13