It wasn’t the Demons’ day.
The Durango High School volleyball team worked all season to host a regional tournament, and the Demons were awarded the No. 12 seed and host honors for the Region 12 Tournament. But when action got underway Saturday morning at DHS, they had no answer for No. 25 Ponderosa, which swept the Demons 25-18, 25-16 and 25-17.
“Not being able to go to state is obviously a bummer, but just the fact that we got to host a regional my senior year, I never even thought that would happen,” Durango senior Ally Snow said. “And to be able to end with my four favorite seniors, one couldn’t be here, was a joy in itself. Even though we didn’t get exactly what we wanted it was a great season, and definitely ending on a win made it sweeter.”
After the loss to Ponderosa, Durango knocked off Pueblo County in a best-of-three match 20-25, 25-23 and 25-12.
Ponderosa went on to sweep No. 13 Pueblo County 25-22, 25-14 and 25-10 to advance to the 3A state tournament.
Unlike the Demons (17-8) and Hornets (19-5), the Mustangs (13-14) never seemed to feel the pressure of the matches and played from start to finish with poise.
“We have some great leadership on the team and it was up to them to calm everyone down,” Ponderosa head coach Deb Barnes said. “We play in a very difficult league, and when things are going quick and fast and the score is tight, keeping everyone calm comes from the leadership.”
In the opening match of the day, Durango and Ponderosa traded points early in the first set, but a couple hitting errors by the Demons knocked them out of rhythm and Ponderosa pulled away.
The second set followed the same pattern as the first. Durango and Ponderosa played each other tight through the first handful of points and were tied 5-5 before the Mustangs went on a few short runs to build a cushion.
Durango made a quick push early in the third set, but couldn’t maintain the momentum and again the Mustangs pulled away for the win.
“I definitely think we really, really wanted it, there’s no doubt about that,” Snow said. “I really think everyone was putting in the effort, but I think we were playing as individuals and that’s what took a toll on us. It was almost too much pressure.”
After Ponderosa wrapped up the title, Durango and Pueblo County met for their match.
The Demons dropped the first set 25-20, but bounced back and took the second and third sets 25-23 and 25-12 to send the team’s seniors out with a victory.
“That’s the mentality of this team. We know we didn’t play our best against Ponderosa, and they just wanted to redeem themselves,” DHS head coach Colleen Vogt said. “It feels really good to end our season with a win. Only one other team gets to end their season with a win, so hopefully that’s the memory that sticks with them. It was an excellent season and it was a lot of fun.”
The experience of hosting a regional will be beneficial to the returning players for Durango, and the impact of the senior class of Brianna Brown, Kylee Cosse, Lana Razma, Brett Rowland and Snow is sure to continue to influence the returners.
“They had a great experience and were led by a great season class,” Vogt said. “They saw how it’s supposed to be done. Hopefully not only can we repeat the winning, but repeat the team bond we had this year, because that’s what the seniors brought.”
kschneider@durangoherald.com
