Drake’s “Started From The Bottom” blared through the Durango High School gymnasium as the Demons’ volleyball team prepared for its home opener.
New head coach Colleen Keresey lets the team play music as a reward during lighter practices, a gesture that helps her relate to her players on top of the fact that she knows where they’re coming from.
Not too long ago she was in their shoes at Colorado College (2007-10) and DHS (2003-06).
This season, she had to adjust to a new role as DHS’ head coach when longtime head coach Robin Oliger was let go just three weeks before the Demons’ season opener.
“Its been fun,” Keresey said. “The girls are a blast to coach.”
Not only has Keresey had to adjust to her team, the Demons have had to adjust to her.
Keresey previously coached the junior varsity program, which helped ease the transition.
“She’s been really easy to adjust to,” said Bella Bernazzani, daughter of John and Robin Bernazzani. “It’s her positive attitude; she tells us it’s OK to make mistakes as long as we fix them.”
DHS (4-6, 1-1 Southwestern League) played on the road and at neutral sites for a month before its first home games – 6 p.m. Friday against Montrose, then 11:30 a.m. Saturday against Grand Junction.
During that stretch, the Demons sometimes struggled with slow starts in sets, requiring comebacks that occasionally were too big to overcome.
“Sometimes we don’t have the fire lit at the start,” Bernazzani said. “It’s a matter of wanting it.”
Keresey has tried to correct that issue by increasing the competition in practice and having her team focus on goals. Chief among those goals should be a pair of SWL wins against the Indians and Tigers.
Both teams run high-tempo offenses to take advantage of their players’ athleticism and are relatively young and inexperienced.
“They play similar to us,” said Gabi Razma, daughter of Ed and Kristina Razma. “They’re also a pretty young team, so we have to make them make the errors.”
kgrabowski@durangoherald.com
