The high school fall sports playoffs are right around the corner for local teams, so it’s a good time to look at how these teams stand in the playoff rankings.
All teams from Durango High School, Bayfield High School and Ignacio High School have less than two weeks left in their regular seasons. Most of them are in a good position to make the playoffs. Sports like softball, boys golf and boys tennis have already finished their seasons. All the cross country teams make it to the postseason with regionals and then have the chance to qualify for state.
Here’s a breakdown of, as of Wednesday night, each team’s postseason outlook, including their remaining schedule:
Football: The Durango High School football team has consistently been a top program in Colorado and 2025 is no different. Durango is 6-2 overall and 2-1 in the 4A Soco 2 League.
On offense, the Demons are strong and balanced with dual-threat quarterback Grady Feeney, powerful running back Gus Halls and a group of talented receivers. On defense, Durango is led by longtime Division I coordinator and head coach Rocky Long and has playmakers at every level of the defense.
Durango is safely in the playoff field and is ranked fourth in 4A in Colorado High School Activities Association’s Selection & Seeding Index with two games remaining. The Demons are the highest-ranked team in 4A with two losses because their two losses are to No. 2 Palmer Ridge and No. 3 Montrose.
Two winnable games remain for the Demons in the regular season at home against Liberty and on the road at Vista Ridge. Liberty is 2-6 overall and ranked 41st out of 42 in 4A in CHSAA’s Selection & Seeding Index. Vista Ridge should be a tougher game as the Wolves are 14th in 4A at 6-2 overall.
If Durango can finish the regular season at 8-2 overall, it won’t likely move up from fourth in 4A. The top three schools should end the season undefeated, although Montrose does have a tough test at No. 7 Pueblo West to end the regular season.
At 8-2 overall, the Demons would get potentially two home games in the state playoffs before going on the road to face the No. 1 team in 4A in the state semifinals. There, Durango head coach Hunter Holmes would be one game away from making the Demons a December program again.
Boys soccer: The Demons boys soccer team is having an off-season to the program’s standards at 7-5-1 overall. However, Durango is still safely in the 4A state playoffs with two games left.
Durango has some work to do if it wants to hit 10+ wins for the 11th consecutive full season. The Demons are 21st in 4A in CHSAA’s Selection & Seeding Index; the top 32 teams make the state playoffs. Durango’s offense has been solid, but its defense has struggled for most of the season.
A big opportunity awaits on Friday with Durango’s game against Montrose. The Red Hawks are fifth in 4A and Durango beat Montrose, 2-0, on Sept. 26. Durango also plays Palisade at home on Saturday and the Demons also won 2-0 at Palisade on Sept. 5.
If Durango can win both of those games, it’ll help its playoff seeding. The Demons would need to get inside the top 16 to get a home game in the first round, which might be a stretch.
Volleyball: The Durango volleyball team has bounced back from a tough 1-8 start, but the Demons’ postseason hopes evaporated with their loss to Bayfield on Tuesday night.
Talented players like Devyn Edwards and Hadyn Durango have been bright spots this season, but the Demons have struggled with consistency and struggled early in the season to fill the shoes of four-year setter Eva Stewart.
Durango had work to do before the Bayfield match to get into the top 36 to qualify for regionals. Now, the Demons are 8-14 overall, 5-4 in the 4A/5A Southwestern League and 45th in 5A. With only one game left in the regular season against 4A’s 43rd-best team in Grand Junction, it would take an act of God to move up nine spots after a win against a poor 4A school.
The best the Demons can do is send their seniors out with a win on Saturday against Grand Junction, finish the season on a positive note and look ahead to next year.
Football: After a 3-0 start to the season, the Bayfield High School football team has work to do to stop a four-game losing streak and a lot of work to do to make a trip to the state playoffs.
Bayfield hasn’t been to the 2A state playoffs since 2021 and was looking primed to return after beating its first three opponents by an average of 21 points per game. Then, Bayfield lost its next three games by an average of 42.7 points per game.
The Wolverines are 26th in 2A after a 10-9 loss vs. Salida last Thursday. Bayfield has a great opportunity to bounce back against 0-7 overall Gunnison on Saturday and then the Wolverines will face 2A’s No. 21 team in Montezuma-Cortez (4-3 overall) on Oct. 31.
Even if Bayfield wins its final two regular-season games, it’s not likely it’ll jump up 10 spots to get into the top 16 and make it to state.
Boys soccer: There might not be a local high school sports team more on the playoff bubble than Bayfield High School’s boys soccer team.
At 6-7-1 overall and 3-1-1 in the 3A Intermountain League, the Wolverines are 36th in 3A and 32 teams go to state. Bayfield has struggled to put any momentum together this season. It took Bayfield until Oct. 6 to have its first two-game winning streak.
The Wolverines haven’t lost since Sept. 27 and look to continue that with their season finale at Montezuma-Cortez on Friday. Bayfield beat the Panthers, 2-1, on Oct. 6.
If Bayfield wins that final game, it has a shot of getting in the field, but it would need some help in the form of losses from the teams ahead of the Wolverines.
Volleyball: The Bayfield High School volleyball team is having another strong season. The Wolverines are fresh off winning at Durango on Tuesday night, have won five consecutive matches, are 13-5 overall and 5-2 in the 3A Intermountain League.
Experience one of this team’s calling cards. Seniors Evelette Hollibaugh, Avery Shipman, Lauren Rich, Grace Barber and Mae Quintana have been playing together for years and it shows with their playmaking and composure on the court.
The Wolverines are fifth in 3A with a few more games on the rest of their schedule than most. Bayfield plays Pagosa Springs on Tuesday and then plays in the Colorado Invite in Colorado Springs on Oct. 31 against some 4A and 5A competition.
Bayfield is in a great position to host a regional for the first time since 2021. The top 12 teams in the state host a regional, so Bayfield looks like it will have some extra home games for its stellar senior class.
Football: The Ignacio High School football team is peaking at the right time. After starting the season 0-5, the Bobcats have won their last two games. However, with two regular-season games left, Ignacio is still on the outside looking in for the 1A state playoffs.
Ignacio is ranked 27th in 1A at 2-5 overall and 2-1 in the 1A South Central. The playoffs are looking very unlikely for the Bobcats because they are 11 spots below the top-16 ranking needed to get to state. Another reason the playoffs are unlikely is because of Ignacio’s remaining schedule. The Bobcats play 1A’s No. 11 team in Monte Vista; Ignacio needs an upset victory if it wants a minuscule chance of getting inside the top 16.
Regardless, the Bobcats have a great opportunity to finish the season with a win against 0-4 Del Norte on Oct. 31.
Volleyball: One of the most impressive local high school fall sports teams is the Ignacio High School volleyball team. At 17-3 overall and 10-0 in the 2A/1A San Juan Basin League, the Bobcats have won seven consecutive matches and are basically a lock to make the 2A regionals.
Despite the Bobcats’ gaudy record, they are only ranked 12th in 2A, despite beating 2A’s No. 6 team in Dolores. The Bobcats still have three games to improve that ranking and host a regional.
Ignacio should beat 1A’s No. 50 team in Dove Creek on Saturday before a big rematch at Dolores on Tuesday and then another big test against Sargent on Thursday. The Farmers are 16-1 overall and are seventh in 1A.
If the Bobcats can win all three games, there’s no doubt they’ll stay inside the top 12 and host a regional. A 2-1 record with a loss against Dolores might also be enough.
bkelly@durangoherald.com
