Few things bring joy to the holidays like the stories shared at holiday gatherings, often regaling the indelible memories of past glories. The 2023 calendar year for M-CHS, Mancos, Dolores and Dove Creek added a whole new volume of celebrations that the community can relive for generations to come.

With a team state title, two individual champions, and a bundle of state appearances, league crowns, legacies continuing, and uncharted territory achieved, the stories cataloged here are among the many that will add to the lore of Montezuma and Dolores County athletic traditions.

For the second straight year, eight-man football’s best team resides in Southwest Colorado – with the Mancos Bluejays breaking through to take home their school’s first ever football title.

The Bluejays, on the strength of seven all-state performers and the eight-man Coach of the Year Josh Gardner, controlled all facets of the game against opposition on their way to a 12-1 record and vengeance against Haxtun in the state final, topping the Bulldogs 40-0.

State Player of the Year Kail Wayman orchestrated an offense that scored 40 or more points in all but two of their outings, while the Bluejays defense shut out six of their final seven opponents to cement themselves as the best in the classification.

The run culminated a stretch of six straight playoff appearances, including a previous bid in 2021 to play in the state final – so their celebration on the field at CSU-Pueblo felt like the summation of achievements for the past half-decade in the making.

There’s hardly a record on the M-CHS track and field leader board that Class of 2023 sprinting savant Zander Cruzan didn’t threaten. At the end of a sterling career on the track at Jefferson County Stadium in Lakewood, Cruzan would inscribe his name on to the three records that he had been most avidly pursuing – the 100, 200, and 400 meter dashes.

On his way to capturing two state titles in the 200 and 400 at the 3A state championships, Cruzan rewrote the school records with times of 48.76 in the 400, 21.26 in the 200, and 10.61 in the 100.

Winning practically every event in which he competed, Cruzan also enjoyed success in the high jump and long jump, while also helping the Panthers 4x100 relay advance to the state championships.

Dominance on the mat has become second nature for Mancos’ Cole Dainty-Guilfoyle, whose 40-3 junior campaign landed him center stage at the Ball Arena floor for the 2A state championships. Much like he had all season, Dainty-Guilfoyle showed his resiliency, battling back from a mid-match deficit to Wray’s Caeden Bauer to strike with a third-period pin to send him to the victory at 175 pounds.

Dainty-Guilfoyle’s effort headlined an impressive showing for Bluejays wrestling, as Mancos took third in the state tournament as a team, thanks to six podium finishes (the top six) for Bluejays wrestlers under the guidance of head coach Ty Penning.

New high-water marks across the board for Panthers baseball capped a 22-6 season, replete with an unprecedented state appearance. Included in the run for head coach Tim Passell’s group, the Panthers broke just about every offensive record in the books, all while taking a share of the 3A/2A Intermountain League crown.

The Panthers enjoyed a blend of experience and youth that synergized a spring season that propelled the Panthers on an 11-game winning streak, a marathon three-day regional title, and a victory in the opening round of the state tournament – all program firsts.

Bulldogs boys athletics enjoyed one of the best years in school history during the 2022-23 academic calendar, and after their football state title (and Mountain League crown) from last fall, Dove Creek made a clean sweep of the San Juan Basin League basketball and track and field titles in the winter and spring seasons.

Behind all-state caliber performances from Kade Hankins on the court and track, Dove Creek posted a 16-7 record while making a Sweet 16 appearance in the 1A basketball tournament, only to follow it up with a tremendous season on the oval. After taking the runaway victory in the SJBL race, Dove Creek nearly nabbed the program’s first track and field team title.

The Bulldogs finished as runner-up to Cheraw in the 1A championships to cap the careers of a number of impactful seniors.

The Bears cross-country programs pounced onto the state scene in a big way this autumn, as the girls team made their maiden voyage to the CHSAA 2A state championships, while the boys program sent their first individual qualifier in five years.

Fielding a team of experienced upperclassmen, the Dolores cross country program produced plenty of strong meets throughout the regular season, but saved their best for the Region 4 meet, where the Bears earned the final qualification spot in dramatic fashion on their home course.

The Bears went on to take 14th at the state meet, led by junior Everlee Heaton, while boys team representative Aaron Nielson took 91st overall in the 2A boys championships.

In many ways, the Mancos and Dove Creek volleyball teams validated the old proverb – iron sharpens iron. The two programs brought out the best in one another, and in doing so, the two teams both reached incredible heights this fall.

Mancos edged the Bulldogs for the league crown – Mancos’ first in over a decade – while both teams qualified for their respective state tournaments.

Led by all-state seniors Teya Yeomans and Haylie Higgins for Mancos and Kalie and Kylie Gatlin for Dove Creek, both teams surpassed 20 wins, while Dove Creek matched a program-best finish at the 1A state tournament with a trip to the Final Four.

A special season for the Bulldog girls basketball team placed themselves in a class of their own in an already-rich Dove Creek basketball history. The Bulldogs captured third place in the 1A state tournament after posting a 23-win season that included a league, district, and regional title.

Guided by a strong group of upperclassmen, including all-state first teamer Lexi Gray, Dove Creek bounced back from early season losses to rattle off 21 consecutive wins on their way to the state tournament semifinals in Greeley, eventually knocking off the defending state champions Flatirons Academy to claim the program-best finish.

The Dove Creek football and Mancos boys basketball teams have put together the expectation that they will advance in the postseason, as both programs extended their streaks of moving on in their respective state tournaments. For the Bulldogs, their 8-3 season included the program’s fourth straight visit to the quarterfinal round of the 8-man football bracket, led by all-state tailback Gage Buffington.

Meanwhile, Mancos moved their postseason streak to five consecutive years of qualifying for the Sweet 16 in the 2A basketball field, following up on a season in which the Jays collected 17 wins and a district title.

Montezuma-Cortez boys and girls golf have made quite a tradition of making the state championships. For the fifth straight season, the boys program advanced as a team to the biggest stage, while the girls posted a third consecutive team appearance in the state championships.

Led by Vince Lopez’ eighth place finish for the boys and Chesnie Patrick’s 18th place effort for the girls, the boys team took seventh while the girls landed 10th in their respective tournaments. Both Panther programs posted plenty of high finishes throughout their regular season tournaments, while their state finishes rank among each program’s best-ever final ranking.

Rebounding from a slow start to their spring campaign, the Panther girls soccer team caught fire, posting an 11-match unbeaten streak on their way to back-to-back 3A Southwest League titles. M-CHS went undefeated through league play, with a staunch defense allowing just four goals in league matches on their way to the crown.

Paced by leading goal scorer sophomore Jordi Mahler, the Panthers proved to be one of the rising programs in the 3A classification, nearly posting an upset in the opening round of the state tournament.

After years of near-misses, the M-CHS Cheer squad can put state finalist on their list of program achievements, as the Panthers took 4th in the state finals at the 3A Spirit Championships. Led by head coach Emily Baumgartner for over the past decade, the Panthers put together one of their best-ever performances to qualify for the finals.

The M-CHS Marching Panthers, under the guidance of William Winslow, continued their rich tradition as one of the best small school bands in the state – with the Panthers claiming seventh in the final standings of their state competition. With drum major Tamryn Ashton at the helm, M-CHS scored well at regionals to make the state field to cap another sterling year for the Panthers band.