Durango suddenly gets back on track

Spencer Patterson

Monday, April 22, 2002 | 10:45 a.m.

Just one week ago, Durango baseball coach Mike Gomez expressed major concerns about his team heading into a key portion of its league schedule.

Back-to-back no-hitters by two of his pitchers and a big day by his offense against rival Bishop Gorman have the Trailblazer coach singing a much different tune at the conference season's halfway point.

"We are probably playing our best ball of the year, which is really encouraging," Gomez said. "Our chemistry is coming together, and most of our kids have finally begun to accept their roles."

Senior right-hander Jeff Jacobsen set the tone for Durango's big week, holding Bonanza without a hit for seven innings on Tuesday. Then, two days later, classmate Robbie Martinez no-hit Clark in a five-inning win.

The Blazers' completed their perfect week with an impressive 10-3 triumph over a Gaels squad that had won six straight coming in. With the win, Durango (21-4, 4-1) pulled into a tie with Gorman atop the Southwest Division.

"Our destiny is in our own hands at this point," Gomez said. "We're still not real consistent offensively, but we're doing a better job of competing, especially with two strikes."

Gomez's team was boosted by the return of pitcher Matt Davis, who picked up the win against the Gaels, outfielder/pitcher Isaiah Whigham and utility man Nick Bumstead. The Blazers are also hoping pitcher Frank Damewood, who is nursing a sore back, will return to the mound soon.

Top-ranked Centennial suffered just its second loss in its last 19 games on Friday, falling 3-2 at Cimarron-Memorial. The Bulldogs (23-5, 3-1) sit in a three-way tie with the Spartans and Palo Verde atop the Northwest Division.

Las Vegas is the only area squad to make it to the halfway mark without a league loss. After sweeping their five Northeast Division foes, the Wildcats (16-10) have won 10 of their last 12 games.

"I'm pleased with what they're doing. It was like a switch that came on with these kids," Las Vegas coach Sam Thomas said. "But I'm certainly not going to sit back and say we've won the division. We're got Eldorado and Chaparral this week, and that's big for us."

As expected, the Southeast Division has featured some fierce competition, with all five teams picking up at least one win. Basic and Silverado are 3-1, Green Valley is 2-2 and Coronado and Foothill are tied at 1-3, after the Cougars defeated the sixth-ranked Falcons last Thursday.

League play resumes on Tuesday. The top four teams in the four divisions qualify for the 4A Sunset and Sunrise tournaments, which begin May 8.