PREP VOLLEYBALL PLAYOFFS:
Gaels fall to Trailblazers in heated semi matchup
Richard Brian
Bishop Gorman’s Dannielle Diamant (15) hits a ball over the net against Durango during the Sunset Regional volleyball tournament at Centennial High on Friday.
Saturday, Nov. 8, 2008 | 12:11 a.m.
Related stories
- Skyhawks bump Gators in 4 for regional title
- Spelmen drives Trailblazers to semifinal win over Centennial
- Bishop Gorman breezes past Legacy into semifinals
- Top-seeded Gators defeat Las Vegas
- Dragons fire past Rancho to advance to semifinals
- Third-seeded Coronado headed to girls’ volleyball region semifinals
No. 1 seed Bishop Gorman had already beaten No. 2 seed Durango three times during the girls' volleyball regular season. A fourth win Friday would have given the Gaels the Sunset Regional title and a berth in the state championship.
Unfortunately for the Gaels, Durango was able to edge them in five to pull the upset, 3-2 (18-25, 25-21, 25-16, 20-25, 15-4) in the regional final at Centennial, giving them back-to-back regional titles.
"It's tough to beat anyone four times, but we knew what to expect," Gorman coach Ed Van Meetren said. "We have three seniors who have been here since finishing as (region) runners-up four years ago. We felt this was one of our best chances to get it done."
Durango coach Kelly O'Quinn said she felt her young team was overmatched against the Gaels in the Sunset Regional championship.
"I thought Gorman was going to take care of us. They have throughout the year. I was just hoping we could keep it close," O'Quinn said.
The Gaels dropped the first game 25-18 to Durango, but won the next two games 25-21 and 25-16 to get the match, 2-1.
Durango trailed early in the fourth game at 9-7, then Stanford-bound senior Hayley Spelman, the Trailblazers' opposite hitter, put the team on her shoulders.
The Southwest Division MVP had 40 kills and pushed the Trailblazers to a 25-20 win in the fourth game and 15-4 win in the fifth. She scored 12 of the team's points in the fifth game.
"We shut down mentally in the fourth game and stopped playing," Van Meetren said. "Hayley stepped up and kept putting the ball away."
Durango will face whichever team loses Saturday's Northern Regional final matchup in Reno between Bishop Manogue and Reno High.
"It's been a long year of training beginning players. I never thought we would be going to state. This is icing on the cake," O'Quinn said.
Senior Dannielle Diamant led the Gaels with 19 kills and five blocks, while sophomore outside hitter Kylie Shaw added 11 kills and a block.
Brent Hinckley can be reached at 990-7822 or brent.hinckley@hbcpub.com.
Spotlight
- Most Read
- Discussed
- Most E-mailed
- Ritz-Carlton Lake Las Vegas to close in May
- Pricey land buy on Strip a bit of a surprise
- Engineering marvel taking shape near Hoover Dam
- Harry Reid’s co-writer unloads while discussing polls, Obama quote
- Grim numbers show Nevada leads nation in suicides over 60
- UNLV back in the polls: No. 23 in AP, No. 25 in ESPN/USA Today
- Police: Legal runner returned to home, shot husband and wife
- MGM Mirage to leave N.J. in dispute over Macau partner
- GOP should blame itself for deficit, not Democrats
- The 10 best steakhouses in Las Vegas
Blogs
The Kats Report
A very quick list of which females could replace Steven Tyler in Aerosmith (2 Comments)
A 3.5-day sprint, highlighted superflously at Flamingo with Las Vegas newcomers
Politics: Ralston's Flash
Horsford: No taxes now, but tax reform later (14 Comments)
Gibbons: Cutting the budget can help me raise money (10 Comments)
Gibbons: Lawmakers made State of State worse with taxes (5 Comments)
Ugly lawsuit between former garbage czar, ex-elected official continues in court Monday (7 Comments)
The Kats Report
The Fortune Ball speaks: Take the Saints on the money line
Calendar »
- 9 Tue
- 10 Wed
- 11 Thu
- 12 Fri
- 13 Sat
-
Far East Movement at Blush
Blush Boutique Nightclub | 10 p.m. to 11:59 p.m.
-
Benji Madden at Moon
Moon Nightclub | 10 p.m. to 11:59 p.m.
-
Hugh Fink at the Riviera Comedy Club
The Riviera Comedy Club
The Sun
Locally owned and independent for more than 50 years.
Technorati























Post a comment
Commenting requires registration.
Comments are moderated by Las Vegas Sun editors. Our goal is not to limit the discussion, but rather to elevate it. Comments should be relevant and contain no abusive language. Comments that are off-topic, vulgar, profane or include personal attacks will be removed. Full comments policy.
If you would like to submit your comment as a letter to the editor, you may submit it here.