Tiny Coleville cashes in where it counts most

Nick Christensen

Tuesday, May 17, 2005 | 9:34 a.m.

About a two-hour drive south of Sparks is Coleville, nestled along the edge of the Sierras in the idyllic Antelope Valley.

Coleville High School draws students from all over northern Mono County, from as far away as the county seat of Bridgeport. Still, Coleville High has the distinction of being one of the smallest NIAA schools, with an enrollment of 62 this year.

Still, the Wolves fielded a softball team of 15 girls this year, many of whom had already been a part of the state runner-up volleyball team and the basketball team that lost by three in overtime of the 1A North semifinals.

"This group of kids have been pretty successful, all the way throughout sports," Coleville athletic director Will Sandy said.

Coleville also is one of the five NIAA schools located in cash-strapped California, leaving the Wolves to fend for themselves on the road when they have to travel to games in towns like Jackpot and Eureka.

"We have to cut corners any way we can," Sandy said. "They're on their own meal-wise, they stay in a school gym. They'll bring an air mattress and sleeping bags and they're ready to go."

It's just something the kids are used to, says Coleville assistant coach Scott Bush, who handles the team's press for his wife, coach Debie.

"It's a little bit different than maybe some of the bigger schools," Bush said. "Especially in the smaller districts, you have to save your money a little bit."

Scott and Debie consulted when asked if any Nevada schools had ever stayed in Coleville's gym. None they could remember.

The Wolves will stay in a hotel this weekend when they travel to Overton for the 1A state championship, where a full quarter of the students at Coleville High will spend their Friday and Saturday.

"Any time we have baseball and softball, there's not a lot going on," Sandy said.

Not only has the staff at Coleville done something many 4A coaches can only dream of -- putting together a team of 15 players -- they put together an awfully good one, one that has won three state championships in the past five years.

"We started out with 21, we had as many as 26," Bush said. "We were trying to find uniforms for all of them. If you come out you're part of the team. We try to get as much playing time as you can, everybody gets equal practice time."

In fact, the Wolves went 23-1 in 2005, the loss coming three games into the season to 2A North champion Battle Mountain.

Pitchers Jolene Sam and Jesslyn Sturdivant provide a successful duo of arm strength, something rare in the smaller schools.

Sam went 16-1 this season, logging a 0.93 ERA and 185 strikeouts in 105 1/3 innings. Sturdivant pitched another 39 2/3 innings, striking out 24 but allowing just three earned runs.

More importantly, Bush said, everyone's getting an opportunity to be a part of the team -- sleeping bags on the gym floor and all.

"If you go to a big school, some of these girls don't get to learn about the sport at all," he said. "It's one of the nice things about a small school."

Coleville is scheduled to play Tonopah at 2 p.m. Friday at Moapa Valley High School.