Erik Melgoza

Romero Funeral Home/Alamosa

Former CHSAA assistant commissioner Bert Borgmann, left, and his son, Logan.

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DENVER – The Colorado High School Activities Association had to take care of some sad business before its legislative council meeting Jan. 24.

Association members said goodbye to a pair of administrators, Alamosa High School Athletic Director Erik Melgoza and former CHSAA assistant commissioner Bert Borgmann. Melgoza died over the holidays, while Borgmann passes away from complications of surgery a week or so later.

Melgoza was the girls basketball coach at Lamar High School before becoming the AD at Alamosa High School. He graduated from Eads High School and earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Adams State University.

“His focus was always on the student-athlete,” Krueger said.

CHSAA board of directors President Luke DeWolfe said after watching Borgmann at so many state basketball tournaments, he realized that Borgmann was CHSAA.

“Bert believed in education-based athletics, that it was the best place for students to gain skills that will benefit them for the rest of their lives,” DeWolfe said. “The bylaws he helped create are a collective vision of what he meant to the association.”

“I’ve never known a time when Bert was an integral part of our family,” Krueger said. “We lost two incredible colleagues. It’s a loss we feel in impact and in our hearts.”

Other business

The council voted to allow six-man football teams to play a 10-game schedule. Each classification of football has a built-in bye week in the schedule. Agenda notes said the new arrangement will spread out officials’ workloads during the season and allows schools more flexibility in scheduling games.

The council also agreed to add another classification of girls wrestling in time for the 2024 school year. Cora Lanter, the athletic director at Severance High School and former AD at Fort Lupton High School, said as many as 117 teams could field girls wrestling programs by the time the next two-year enrollment cycle begins.

“With the prospect of 117 teams, it would require a 30-team regional tournament (with the present set-up),” she told the council. “It would make a tournament of that size a burden on the schools. In the interests of equally matching what we do for the boys, I would ask that we add a second classification.”

Ninety-nine percent of the council that cast votes were in support.