Denied a place in the 2025 CHSAA Class 3A Baseball State Tournament’s opening Round of 32, despite ranking second in the Intermountain League, Bayfield was still sufficiently represented when the All-IML Team was revealed.
Coming on the heels of circuit champ Montezuma-Cortez’s monstrous season and appearance in the final four, the list of honored players included five of BHS head coach Clay Miller’s Wolverines.
His student-athlete days extended by his decision this past month to play football and – hopefully – baseball at Doane University in eastern Nebraska, graduated senior Austin Wilmer, most often found either atop the pitcher’s mound, at shortstop or second base, was named First Team All-Intermountain.
“Austin’s been our ace all year, our big-game dude,” Miller had said on May 13, following Bayfield’s doubleheader sweep of Alamosa – upping BHS’ league record to a runner-up 4-4 and the squad’s final overall record to 8-13. “He’s been the leader all year, on and off the field; I loved to see that.”
Regularly holding down the hot corner when not slinging heaters himself, graduated senior Micah Cornelia also received First Team All-IML recognition along with sophomore infielder/pitcher Cameron Queen, plus sophomore first baseman/pitcher/outfielder Josiah Mayfield.
Junior Tavian Box was awarded honorable mention all-league for his work, primarily at either middle-infield position but also sometimes on the hill or even in the outfield.
M-CHS junior Cory Carver was voted player of the year after helping the Panthers (8-0 IML) go 4-2 in the postseason and end up 23-6 overall. Having improved greatly upon a 16-9 (7-1 IML) record in ’24, Montezuma-Cortez’s dream season ended with a 10-2 loss May 30, in Greeley to Loveland Resurrection Christian.
IML Coach of the Year Tyler Buhr led Centauri to a fourth-place finish in league and an 8-15 overall record after a 23-5 rout of Trinidad on May 12, followed by a season-ending, 9-8 loss the next day at Buena Vista.
Statewide, the Colorado Dugout Club Coaches Association named Greeley University’s Casey Miller the Class 3A Coach of the Year and junior Gage Viken the Player of the Year, despite UHS falling 3-2 to New Castle-based Coal Ridge in the 5/31 grand finale (the Bulldogs had, however, tripped the Titans 3-2 that morning – in 14 innings – to force a rematch).
Carver was a CDCCA First Team All-3A selection, while Oakes was a second team pick. Junior Parker Conrad received an honorable mention nod, as did Daves, but no other IML players were chosen.
Monday afternoon, the CHSAA All-State Teams were announced, and again the IML was saluted. Carver was voted First Team All-3A and Oakes second team, while Wilmer, Daves, Krupa, Pittman, Ralston and Buhr were Honorable Mention recipients.
