Now that COVID-19 has officially ended the 2019-2020 sports season in the state, time to look at some final state-placer numbers.

 

There were 59 championship trophies handed out in the fall and winter. That covered nine sports --  badminton, football, cross country (boys and girls), golf (boys and girls), swimming (boys and girls), girls volleyball, basketball (boys and girls), soccer (boys and girls) and wrestling. Fifty-one different schools won a championship or two or three. Another 28 schools who didn't earn a championship nabbed some runner-up honors.

 

Here's the composite leaderboard based on the complicated scoring system I concocted over a few days in my lonely writer's den. Schools receive two points for each championship and one point for each runner-up. Here are the top 10 (12 including ties):

 

1.  (tie) Flagstaff (6); Chaparral (6). 3. (tie) Brophy (5), Desert Vista (5)  and Hamilton (5). 6. Liberty (4), Mesquite (4), American Leadership Queen Creek (4), Campo Verde (4), Catalina Foothills (4), Salpointe (4) and Millennium (4).

 

Flag High was the only school to win three titles, taking D-II boys and girls cross country and 4A girls soccer (Hard to swallow that given I'm a Coconino grad). Chaparral won titles in (D-I girls swimming and 6A girls soccer and was runner-up in 6A boys soccer and D-I boys swimming.  Brophy won D-I swimming and 6A soccer. Desert Vista won D-I girls cross country and 6A boys basketball. Hamilton won D-I boys golf and added runner-up finishes in D-I badminton, 6A girls basketball and 6A girls soccer. 

 

Three of the schools scoring four points won two titles - Liberty 6A football and D-I wrestling; Mesquite D-II badminton and 4A football and ALA-QC  3A football and 3A boys basketball. Campo Verde won D-II boys swimming plus runners-up in 5A football and D-II girls swimming; Catalina Foothills won D-II girls swimming and took second in D-II girls cross country and 4A girls soccer; Salpointe won 4A boys basketball and took second in D-III girls cross country and D-II boys swimming; Millennium won 5A girls basketball and runners-up in 5A girls volleyball and 5A boys basketball. 

 

The rest of the state champions by conference: 6A/D-I - Perry (badminton); Highland (boys cross country); Desert Vista (girls cross country); Chandler (Open football); Pinnacle (girls golf); Basha (girls volleyball); Valley Vista (girls basketball). 5A/D-II  -Williams Field (football); Higley (boys golf); Ironwood Ridge (girls golf); Sunnyslope (girls volleyball); Ironwood (boys basketball); Casteel (girls soccer); Carl Hayden (boys soccer); Sunnyside (wrestling). 4A-D-III - Page (boys cross country); Prescott (girls cross country); Saguaro (boys swimming); Scottsdale Prep (girls swimming); Greenway (girls volleyball); Seton (girls basketball); Washington (boys soccer); Yuma (wrestling); 3A-D-IV - North Phoenix Prep (boys cross country); St. Michael (girls cross country); Northwest Christian (girls volleyball); Sabino (girls basketball); Veritas Prep (boys soccer); Gilbert Christian (girls soccer); Santa Cruz Valley (wrestling). 2A - Round Valley (football); Blue Ridge (fall boys soccer); Northland Prep (fall girls soccer); Scottsdale Christian (girls volleyball); Rancho Solano (boys basketball); Thatcher (girls basketball). 1A - Williams (football); St. David (girls volleyball); Fort Thomas (boys basketball); Rock Point (girls basketball). 

 

 

 

Chandler continued its dominion in football, hanging on late in topping Saguaro in the state's first Open Division championship game.

 

For the first time in likely forever, Xavier Prep did not win a championship in a school year, albeit a truncated year. Golf, volleyball, swimming and soccer yielded runner-ups in golf and swimming. The Gators normally win at least a couple of those titles each year.

 

Saguaro won a championship - but not in football. Boys swimming brought home the hardware. The second boys swim title in school history. Time between titles was 48 years.

 

A Mesa school made its first football title-game appearance in 10 years. It was Red Mountain -  losing in overtime to Liberty in the 6A final. 

 

ALA-Queen Creek won titles in football and boys basketball after being ineligible to compete in postseason in 2018-2019.

 

Sabino girls basketball won the 3A title after being stripped of a final four spot last year due to a prior contact violation.

 

Charlie Wilde won another championship at Pinnacle. Not in basketball like the two prior years. This one in girls golf with his daughter in tow.

 

State title streaks of at least three and as many as 30-plus are intact for these fall and winter sports heading to next year -- Brophy swimming, Chandler football, Perry badminton, Chaparral girls swimming, Flagstaff boys and girls cross country, Page boys cross country, Chaparral girls soccer, Sunnyside wrestling, Northland Prep fall girls soccer and Scottsdale Christian girls volleyball.