The Durango girls cross-country team had a solid start to the season.
At the team’s opening meet at the Cheyenne Mountain Stampede on Friday in Colorado Springs, the site of this year’s state meet, the Lady Demons placed fourth out of 20 competing 4A schools with 107 points.
Battle Mountain won the 4A girls portion of the meet with 49 points. Valor Christian finished second with 71 points, followed by Air Academy with 93.
Senior Abby Scott set the pace for Durango, finishing fifth overall with a time of 20 minutes, 7.8 seconds across the two-mile course.
Anna Smagacz and Ruth Holcomb came in with top-20 finishes, placing 18th and 19th overall, respectively. Kiara Hamlin (34th) and Bekah Moenning (41st) rounded out Durango’s scoring, followed by MaddyJo Robbins (44th) and Stevi Cameron (45th).
The fourth place finish equaled the team’s preseason ranking in the 4A girls coaches’ poll. However, some of Durango’s top runners, including Madeleine Burns, who is expected to compete with Scott for the top spot on the team, did not compete.
On the boys side, Bayfield, which was unranked in the preseason poll, placed 11th in 3A with 272 points.
Elco Lopez led the Wolverines, finishing 21st overall in 18:47.1. Durango coach David McMillan could not be reached for comment.
Boys Tennis
Boys TennisThe Durango boys tennis team had a rough go in its first couple matches of the season in Grand Junction.
The Demons fell to Aspen 7-0 on Thursday, then lost to Smokey Hill 5-2 in their first match of the Lowery Bishop tournament on Friday at Canyon View Park.
After the loss to Smokey Hill, Durango rebounded and cruised past Grand Junction Central 7-0.
Durango head coach Alan Batiste said senior Tommy Rodgers provided some bright spots for the Demons, while freshman Ethan Craig had a good showing.
The Demons will continue play at the Lowery Bishop on Saturday.
Softball
SoftballThe Durango softball team picked up a victory in its first outing of the 2017 season, toppling Sierra 27-22 Friday in Colorado Springs.
The Lady Demons were scheduled to play a doubleheader with Sierra, but a score for the second game was not reported and head coach Melissa Fundora could not be reached for comment.
kschneider@ durangoherald.com
