There are always talented athletes at Durango High School, and college coaches have taken notice, with four student-athletes announcing their next chapter on Wednesday.
Nolan Pace, Juliana McKown, Trevor “Denny” Woods and Landin “Bubba” Padilla participated in a college signing ceremony at the Impact Center at Durango High School as they showed off their future colleges’ colors and logos in front of family, friends, coaches and teachers.
Pace will be playing golf at Division III Virginia Wesleyan University in Virginia Beach; McKown will compete in acrobatic and tumbling at Division II Saint Leo University in Tampa, Florida; Woods will swim at Division II Colorado Mesa University in Grand Junction; Padilla will play baseball at Western Nebraska Community College in Scottsbluff, Nebraska.
In October of 2024, the NCAA eliminated the National Letter of Intent, and athletes now sign written offers of athletic aid. This changed traditional signing day procedures. Division I’s early signing period started on Dec. 3 and ended on Dec. 5. All other Division I and Division II sports besides football and basketball’s signing dates started on Nov. 12.
Even though the initial signing date for most sports had passed, Durango High School still wanted to honor its athletes with a ceremonial signing event.
Pace is the one athlete out of the four who is finished with their high school career in their respective sport. The highlight of Pace’s senior season for the Demons was when he won the Fruita Monument Wildcats Invitational by shooting a 5-under-par 67 and led the Demons to a second-place finish in the team standings.
A long hitter, Pace was a constant scorer for the Demons in the regular season, and he was the top placer at state in 33rd.
“I’m really excited,” Pace said. “I’m so happy that I’m being welcomed by the Virginia Wesleyan community. I’m excited to be a Marlin. I’m flying out there tomorrow (Thursday) with my mom and grandpa to go to the college.”
Virginia Wesleyan’s facilities really impressed Pace, and he compared them to high-level Division I facilities. It’s basically year-round golf down there, which will be great for his development as he gets to work with the team’s six coaches.
Pace found out about the school online and was immediately drawn to the prospect of playing there. He finalized his decision in September, and Pace is leaning toward majoring in cybersecurity.
“When I got out there, I ate lunch with the guys during my visit,” Pace said. “We were just laughing the whole time. It was like family immediately.”
Pace will miss the time on the bus going to tournaments with his Durango teammates and head coach Kirk Rawles.
McKown has been a cheerleader and has competed in gymnastics in Durango. It will be an adjustment for her to compete in acrobatic and tumbling, since it combines stunts and tumbling. She’s been practicing on her own to prepare for the change.
She decided she was going to Saint Leo University about a month ago, and she plans on majoring in education so she can be an elementary school teacher.
“I was offered an amazing opportunity to tumble and do acrobatics, which I've been wanting to do ever since I was born,” McKown said. “I just love tumbling and everything that it comes with.”
McKown is thankful for all the coaches who have been a big part of her experience as she focuses on her spring season before going to college.
Padilla is a part of a loaded senior class for the Durango High School baseball team. Last season, the Demons went 15-10 overall, won their regional and made it to the state playoffs. Padilla played in all 25 games, finishing with a 0.341 batting average, and was a great player at shortstop.
He made his decision to go to Western Nebraska Community College a few weeks ago. Padilla plans to major in business administration, and he will play second base in college.
“Coach Jones, he brought me in like a son,” Padilla said. “They’re a winning team, so that was definitely a big influence. So definitely the coaching, and I sat down there with the team and ate with them, and it was great.”
The Demons return nearly their entire roster from last season. Padilla is very confident and said he trusts all of his teammates with his life. He’s focusing on his mindset as he goes into his final high school season.
Woods committed to Colorado Mesa in early October. He wants to study music at Colorado Mesa. A fantastic swimmer in the breaststroke, Woods is confident he could compete for the Mavericks right now in the 100-meter breaststroke.
He enjoyed the college signing ceremony at the Impact Center. Woods enjoyed the questions and having his coach speak about him, which was heartfelt.
Woods has had a good relationship with the Colorado Mesa coaching staff for a while, and it’s close by, so he has plenty of experience swimming in that pool. When he went on his official visit, he liked the team and the way they trained. He felt the belief from the coaching staff, which was important for Woods, coming from a small town. Woods hopes to train for the 2028 Olympic trials.
The speedy swimmer has come a long way swimming in Durango, dropping over a second in the 100 breaststroke and four seconds in the 200 breaststroke last summer. He got second at sectionals.
“My best memories are probably when we go to travel at a swim meet, and it’s the last day,” Woods said. “So then the whole team goes out and eats dinner together … Those are team-bonding moments. It's totally a family for me, because of how much time and energy I have to put into the sport. These are the friends I have. These are the ones who pursue this dream with me.”
bkelly@durangoherald.com
