Apparently, fall previews for high school sports can wait a wee bit longer.
This past month has seen national decorations bestowed upon former Legacy star Juliauna Hayward (All-American), Boulder graduate Calvin Pielke (Scholar All-American) and Longmont track and field coach Scott Dickinson (state’s coach of the year), to name a few.
Hayward, who signified her new chapter in athletics and academics while posing for pictures in her new University of Colorado threads this past week, was among 11 players and seven outgoing seniors named to the All-American high school first-team by the platform, ‘Just Women’s Sports’.
It’s beginning to look a lot like soccer season! #GoBuffs // #SideBeforeSelf pic.twitter.com/tFcrh5aJvx
— Colorado Buffaloes Soccer (@CUBuffsSoccer) July 25, 2022
Hayward was joined on JWS’ inaugural All-American list by Grandview standout Jordan Nytes, the 2022 Colorado player of the year. Her mention came in the wake of being named a top-10 2022 recruit by Top Drawer Soccer, and followed a spring season that landed her BoCoPreps.com player of the year, netting 17 goals and 22 assists from the midfield.
Pielke, meanwhile, was the lone boys’ player from the state to be named a Scholar All-American by the United Soccer Coaches.
The selected group was made up of 54 boys and 72 girls who had elite success both on the field and in the classroom (a minimum of a 3.75 GPA to qualify).
Pielke’s latest recognition comes after he scored 21 goals in the fall for Boulder, which was ranked first in Class 5A heading into the postseason. He was a first teamer on the state’s list following the season and he narrowly missed out on being named BoCoPreps.com’s 2021 soccer player of the year, which went to Legacy’s Cooper Stephens.
The United Soccer Coaches, which has thousands of members and is recognized as the largest soccer coaching group in the world, had previously awarded Broomfield coach Jim Davidson as a national coach of the year for 2021. It also ranked the Eagles’ girls team No. 1 in the country for a span last spring.
Dickinson also was honored just months after leading the Trojans to their first boys’ track and field title in a decade. He was tabbed Colorado’s track and field coach of the year by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.
Scott Dickinson was named the Colorado Track and Field Coach of the Year by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. Congratulations Coach!!! https://t.co/xBErCXudZm
— LHS Athletics (@GoTrojanNation) July 25, 2022
Dickinson’s boys team was highlighted by a pair of individual state titles from both distance runner Connor McCormick and jumper Caleb Johnson. The Trojans beat out Cheyenne Mountain and defending champ Niwot by 16 points in the 4A team race.
