Columnist Spencer Patterson: Durango strives for more than perfection

Spencer Patterson

Thursday, April 13, 2000 | 10:35 a.m.

Spencer Patterson's prep sports notebook appears Thursday. Reach him at spencer@lasvegassun.com or 259-4085.

What could possibly be better than going undefeated?

The Durango boys volleyball team is trying to find out this spring. Through 12 area matches, the Trailblazers have yet to drop a single game this season -- an amazing feat given Las Vegas' best-of-5 format.

Despite playing a tough nonconference schedule that included matches with perennial local powers Green Valley, Chaparral and Cheyenne, the Blazers are 36-for-36 in games played and showing no signs of letting up.

The team's accomplishment comes as no surprise to coach Bob Kelly. From the moment his players stepped into the gym, he stressed the importance of not letting up, even with a 2-0 advantage on the board.

"If we don't have a focus, we can get sloppy or lazy," Kelly said. "There's no guarantee we can win all our matches, so we have to play our best all the time."

The closest Durango came to losing a game came against Green Valley, when the Blazers trailed 8-2 in game three. Kelly's club charged back with a 13-2 run to keep its streak intact.

The Trailblazers' ability to stay focused for entire matches has been key in their attempt to repeat as Clark County champions (Northern Nevada does not participate in boys volleyball). The first title seems only to have made Durango's players hungrier for another.

"Winning every match isn't really a goal, but we wanted to put standards on ourselves so there is motivation going into every match," Kelly said. "I told the team that winning isn't the important thing. It's how good a team we can become."

Durango's senior core -- setter David Doxey, outside hitters Sean Doney and Graham Vikin and middle blockers Robert Olds and Josh Waldron -- have provided the bulk of the arsenal thus far, along with sophomore Martrel Johnson, a member of the Sun's all-state basketball squad.

With a division title virtually in the bag after one week of conference play, the Blazers might be tempted to begin thinking about their postseason run.

But with their remarkable streak intact, it doesn't appear they'll be thinking about anything but their next game, as the cliche goes.

"We've got some good players with some talent," Kelly said. "Let's see how far we can go."

"(Centennial) is closer to the house that we're building, and Silverado would have been 25 miles away," Condron said. "It's a family decision. Silverado's been a great place and it's a very supportive administration, but I have two kids now and being 25 miles away, it's hard to give 100 percent to a program."

Condron leaves Silverado with a 32-41 overall record. This year, his team went 17-10, finished tied for the Southeast Division title and came within a game of earning the school's first state tournament appearance.

Condron, who will continue teaching physical education and health at Centennial, will serve as an assistant coach under Bulldogs head coach Greg Bohls.

Basic senior Riva Davidson set a school record in the 50 freestyle in last Friday's meet with Palo Verde at UNLV. Davidson finished the race in 25 seconds flat, besting the time of 25.13 by Cindy Martin in 1987. ...

Palo Verde's Steve Crossley sank a hole in one on the fourth hole at Angel Park's Mountain Course -- a 164-yard par 3 -- on Tuesday. ...

Green Valley moved up one spot to No. 15 in this week's Baseball America high school top 25 poll. Silverado, which was ranked No. 20 last week, dropped out. ...

The Vegas Stars 18-under ASA softball travel team will hold tryouts on Saturday, April 22 at 3 p.m. at Silverado High School. For more information, call Leslie Bausher at 363-9100.