EDITOR’S NOTE: In the “Senior Spotlight,” The Durango Herald will publish personal stories from athletes, coaches and teams affected by the cancellation of spring sports in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic. To share a story, email sports editor John Livingston at jlivingston@durangoherald.com.
My first thought is, “I don’t know where to begin.” When the truth be told, I know exactly where to begin.
The three senior baseball players for Durango High School in the 2020 season were on their way to laying down a foundation within the program that was sure to stay put for many years to come. In fact, I’m pretty sure they did that in spite of the fact they were only able to sneak one game into their senior season.
I have been very lucky to have been able to coach some very talented players here in Durango since 1999. Many of them have moved on to be very successful men after their time at DHS. It’s gratifying to see many of them become successful and productive workers, businessmen, entrepreneurs, teachers and, the best of all, fathers. There was something about Sten Joyner, Griffyn Hyson and Luke Ford that was, and still may, last in Durango High School baseball history.
I remember clearly the first day I sat down with Ford and talked to him about coming back out for the high school baseball team. I had seen Luke in the hallway of the high school several times before I was lucky enough to speak with him. He carries himself like a baseball player; not too cocky and not too humble, just the right mix for a kid that pitches from the left side on a high school baseball team.
It’s OK that you can’t quite get a bead on a kid like that, it is what gives him his edge as a competitor. Anyone who has been around the game long enough would see what I’m talking about if you were around that kid for two minutes. I remember thinking to myself after our first meeting, “That kid will help us win games.”
I believe everything happens for a reason but it’s eating me up to know that I won’t get a chance to watch that kid compete on the mound and in the outfield for us. I am able to find solace in the fact he has committed to the University of Utah and will work toward becoming an engineer. I have tremendous confidence that he will excel in college and beyond.
It took a few weeks for Joyner to walk into my classroom and talk to me about baseball. As much as I wanted to hunt him down and get in his ear about what he wanted his senior year to look like, I was patient and let him come in when he felt comfortable enough to start talking baseball.
Since October, Joyner and I have had some of the best baseball discussions that I have ever had with a player. He has a unique type of focus that you don’t see very often in a high school baseball player. He was constantly thinking of ways that this team could be better. His leadership throughout fall and winter workouts is something that I will always remember when I think back to all of the preparation that went into this spring. Sten wanted his senior year to be special, mostly because he knew in his soul that this team had the talent, chemistry and desire to be good. Sten has decided to continue his education at the Colorado School of Mines in the fall of 2020. I am wholeheartedly rooting for him to play baseball in some form or fashion for the Orediggers. He would be a heck of a catcher, infielder and hitter for them.
Hyson is one of the best leaders I have ever coached. Once his senior football season ended, he made it to every preseason workout that we held. If practice started at 6:30 a.m. he was standing at the door at 6:15 waiting to get into the building. On Fridays, when we had freshman-only preseason workouts, there he was at 6:15 a.m. waiting to get his extra work in. Never an excuse, never a reason why he couldn’t be there. He is the epitome of a senior leader who leads by example. He is genuine and truly wanted was best for DHS baseball, even if that meant it wasn’t what was best for him at the time. Character traits like that are hard to come by in a time when “me” often supersedes “we”.
This year, we did something new and different for our tryouts. Many colleges in the country have a time in their season that consists of a week of workouts, events and challenges that bring out the competitive nature in their players and show the coaches who is truly there to compete. Sten and Fynn named our version of these events “The Trials.”
Hyson was the first captain to pick his team the night before “The Trials” began. The strategy Hyson used to pick his team was consistent with how a true leader would pick his team. It wasn’t important for him to pick the fastest and strongest kids in the program for his team. He chose competitors. At first, many of us quietly raised an eyebrow as we watched Hyson pick his team. But, after two days of competition, Hyson’s team changed drastically for the better. Because of his leadership, those kids will be competitors for the rest of their high school career. He will attend Eastern Arizona College in the fall and has a legitimate chance to develop into a solid college baseball player if he continues to work to reach his potential.
I will miss these guys. With their leadership, talent and experience, the 2020 Demon baseball team was on their way to a great season. I am hoping that not all is lost and the freshman, sophomore and junior classes will learn from the example set by these three young men.
It’s easy to talk about what could’ve been. What’s hard for me as I sit here and write this is that I believe that all the “could’ve been” talk is true. Ford, Joyner and Hyson had worked hard to create a team that was headed for success. Even though the record won’t show it this year, I believe that because of their positive impact in a shortened senior season, Durango High School Baseball will be a program that is recognized in the state of Colorado for many years to come.
Rob Coddington is the head baseball coach and a social studies teacher at Durango High School. He can be reached at rcoddington@durangoschools.org.
