As always, pitching will decide things

Nick Christensen

Friday, March 18, 2005 | 9:06 a.m.

Jerome Streets doesn't want to hear about favorites.

"Last time I checked, we haven't won any regional titles," said Streets, Sierra Vista's third-year softball coach. "We haven't won any state titles."

Titles or not, Streets' Mountain Lions are considered by many to be the favorites in what figures to be a unique year in Nevada softball.

For the past decade, pitching -- more specifically, a pitcher -- has set the tone for softball season. First, it was Kourtney Davis taking Galena to three state titles in four years. Then, Brianne McGowan guided Wooster to four consecutive state titles. Last year, it was Centennial pitcher Shannon Crisp steamrollering the Bulldogs to the crown.

"This year, there isn't a dominant pitcher," Bonanza coach Cheryl Speer said. "You could have good pitchers ... they're good in that they have a low ERA, they can keep the ball down, they don't have a huge number of runs scored on them. But they don't strike out 15 in a game."

That's why this year is a big unknown in 4A softball. And that's why Sierra Vista might have the right combination to pull off a run this year.

Thursday afternoon, Streets was frustrated with his team's play in a 6-2 home win against Shadow Ridge. As his team ran laps around the outfield fence, Streets, who wouldn't allow his players to talk to the media, said he hopes to see improvement before he can feel more confident in his squad.

"We're working on fundamentals all the time," he said. "They do the little things well to win close ballgames. We're just working on the little things."

And while he doesn't have a dominant pitcher, Streets does have two good ones. Juniors Kylee Kissane and Rebecca Rumsey make the Mountain Lions tough to score on on a daily basis.

"They've progressed very well, both are good athletes, mentally strong," he said. "Everybody in town knows they're going to go as far as they take us."

As with every sport in the Southwest Division this year, a lot of how Sierra Vista does will depend on how the opening of Spring Valley High School affects them. Sports at Durango, Bonanza and Sierra Vista were all impacted by the new zone, and Streets said he lost only two players to the new school.

Other teams that might have the right combination to make a run at the state title are Palo Verde, Cimarron-Memorial and Silverado.

Palo Verde is led by this year's next-best-thing, pitcher Lindsey Callaway, who threw a perfect game last year.

"Callaway can have a lot of strikeouts she had nine on us on Tuesday, but she's hittable," Speer said. "Crisp was the only one we had to compare around here. She had all kinds of no-hitters. I think anybody could win. It's all about who peaks at the right time."