Athlete of the Week: Woodland Park High School's undefeated football team
The Woodland Park Panthers football team completed a historic regular season, accomplishing something their program has not done in over two decades.
Woodland Park is having the best season the program has seen since 2005 when the Panthers went 7-3. But with the regular season finale win over La Junta, the Panthers are now a perfect 9-0 and have won a league title for the first time since 2000.
The Panthers got their first big test of the season in Week 3 when they hosted Colorado Springs Christian.
This was a game taken over by Panthers quarterback Marqus Joseph Schoenburger, as he was responsible for three of the four touchdowns that propelled them to a narrow 28-25 win.
Woodland Park picked up blowout wins in their next two games before hosting a number-one ranked team for the first time in program history.
The Lamar Thunder strolled into Panthers territory as a favorite to win state, but it was a different conversation after the game. Woodland Park took down Lamar 24-20 behind their lockdown defense and another great three-touchdown performance by Schoenburger.
Just two weeks later, the Panthers found themselves battle-tested once again as they took on rival Manitou Springs on the road.
For the first time this season, Woodland Park was held scoreless in the first half and they trailed 7-0. But, the Panthers responded in the second half, scoring the equalizer in the third quarter and getting the go-ahead touchdown with under two minutes to play in the fourth.
The Panthers escaped that one with a 14-7 win.
The last time Woodland Park won a league title, they made it all the way to the state championship. The opportunity for history to repeat itself begins this week as the Panthers are seeded seventh in the 2A playoffs and will host Sterling in the opening round.