Head coach Kelley Rifilato watched all year as her Durango High School volleyball players overcame adversity and schedule delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. So when the Demons finally took the floor Thursday night, she knew they would be ready.
“This whole COVID thing has been so insanely bizarre, but our girls have kind of gotten used to it,” Rifilato said. “They figure out what the next day brings and do the best they can.”
Thursday brought the start of Durango’s spring season that was pushed back from the fall because of the pandemic. Several players from the girls basketball team finally came out of a quarantine Monday, giving them only three days of practice before the season opener. But Durango didn’t miss a beat.
DHS thumped Grand Junction Central 25-8 in the opening set and went on to secure a 3-0 victory behind set wins of 25-14 and 25-16.
“The girls had been waiting for this for a long time,” said Rifilato, the team’s first-year head coach who previously coached at Bayfield High School and Fort Lewis College. “Only having a few days with the whole team to prepare was tough, but the girls felt confident and played confident today.”
DHS (1-0, 1-0 5A/4A Southwestern League) rolled off seven aces in the first set alone against the Warriors (2-3, 1-2 SWL). The Demons’ back line was phenomenal all night digging the ball. Senior libero Leah Wesley tallied 20 digs, while seniors Lainey Voss and Kyle Rowland also had double-digit digs.
“We blocked a lot of balls and had a ton of digs. It was really great defense,” Rifilato said.
Sophomore Leah Wolf led DHS with 12 kills, while Mason Rowland, a sophomore who was the league’s player of the year in basketball, had 11 kills.
Paige Ammerman also had seven kills, as did Kyle Rowland.
“We were so balanced,” Rifilato said. “From June through the end of October, we were outdoors playing grass doubles. Our ball control was above the norm I felt because we have been so used to playing with two. Now with six, we were very calm, patient and confident.”
DHS will look to carry that confidence into a 1 p.m. Saturday home opener against rival Montrose.
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
