The Demons hope one trip to Denver begets another.
The Durango High School volleyball team earned a No. 21 seed and will head to Denver to take part in the Class 4A Region 4 tournament beginning at 10 a.m. Saturday at Thomas Jefferson High School.
At 12-11 with a solid strength of schedule, Durango made the 36-team field with room to spare. But it’s the first time since 2009 the Demons won’t open the postseason at home, a feat made tougher the last two years with the change to a 12-region, winners-to-state format over the old district-regional-state swing.
Coincidentally, Durango qualified for state in each of those years it opened at home. The Demons will try for a fourth-consecutive trip to the Denver Coliseum on Saturday. The state tournament takes place Nov. 8 and 9.
Thomas Jefferson earned host duties, and No. 33 Greeley Central will join TJHS and Durango on Saturday. Thomas Jefferson earned the No. 4 seed and host duties by virtue of a 21-1 overall record and a Denver Prep League title.
The Spartans’ only loss this season came in the regular season’s penultimate match, a 3-0 defeat to Grandview. Before that, they rattled off 20 consecutive victories. TJHS is led by the duo of Jessica Jackson and Celeste James, who average a combined 10.4 kills per set and have accounted for 567 of the team’s 674 kills. James and Jackson also lead the team in digs with 166 and 164, respectively.
Greeley Central, meanwhile finished 11-12 overall and 3-11 in a stacked Northern League. The offense runs through Megan Graefe, a junior outside hitter who has racked up 200 kills this year, 106 more than her closest teammate, and her 87 digs also lead the Wildcats.
Durango will counter with a well-rounded attack. Jessie Brammer leads the way with 156 kills, and the Demons have three other players with 100-plus kills: Bella Bernazzani, Laura Lieb and Berkeley Davis. Most of the passing is handled by Logan Clark, who has 405 assists, while some of the action falls to Alli Davis, who had 182.
Durango also has six players with more than 100 digs. Gabi Razma leads the way with 350, followed by Mikayla Montoya with 211.
On Saturday, Thomas Jefferson will play first against Greeley Central, then DHS will play Greeley Central, followed by DHS against TJHS. The winner of the three-team pool will advance to state.
heraldsports@durangoherald.com
