Much of Colleen Vogt’s life has been spent on the volleyball court at Durango High School. In 2020, she will take a step away from the bench.
Vogt resigned her post as the head coach of the Demons after the 2019 season anticipating the birth of her first child. This summer, Vogt and her husband David, the head coach of the DHS football team, welcomed their son Troy.
Now away from summer workouts and not anticipating the start of a new season, Vogt reflected on a seven-year stint as the Demons’ head coach. It unexpectedly began in 2013, when she was named the head coach on the eve of the new season when longtime head coach Robin Oliger was removed from her post after 25 years.
“It happened so quickly. I think I was only 23 at the time,” Vogt said. “I was not much older than the seniors in high school I had. But it was fun being able to coach where I played.”
Vogt, known in her playing days as Colleen Keresey before she married David Vogt, was a star for the Demons during her varsity high school career. She was an all-state honorable mention selection as a senior in 2006 and was named the team MVP after she led the Demons to a league title and a third-place finish in the Class 4A state tournament.
She went on to play at Colorado College, where she recorded 833 career assists and 97 aces to rank in the program’s top-15 all time in both categories.
After she graduated college in 2010, it wasn’t long before Vogt was back leading the Demons on the court as an assistant coach before taking over the reins in 2013.
“I felt like I already knew so much about the program and already had learned so much from (Oliger) as a player and as an assistant coach,” Vogt said. “Looking back, it was difficult at the beginning, but it was such a great experience, and I am glad it happened.”
Under Vogt, the Demons had a winning record of 91-81 overall and 35-27 in the always tough 5A/4A Southwestern League. The Demons routinely made the regional tournament, though they never quite reached the state tournament.
Last season, the Demons improved from 9-14 a year earlier with a young squad to go 14-11 and 5-3 in league and reach the regional championship game at Cheyenne Mountain, a 3-1 loss.
“We had such a wonderful group of athletes, and the girls and I just had a great time,” Vogt said. “It was fun to build relationships that lasted a couple of years and to watch the work of the girls come to fruition. Though we lost the last playoff game, it was one of the most fun games I’ve coach in with how competitive it was and how hard the girls played.
“All of the competitive games we had with Fruita, Montrose and Bayfield over the years, seeing how excited the girls would get with rivalries, it made those games fun and special, and I will miss that.”
DHS athletics run in Vogt’s blood. Her father, Sheldon Keresey, was a longtime coach and administrator at DHS. When it wasn’t volleyball season, Vogt was regularly running the scorer’s table for basketball games.
Vogt doesn’t plan to stay away from volleyball coaching long. Once Troy is a bit older, she knows her desire to coach will creep back. And she will be ready for the next challenge.
“I will always have a passion for teaching and coaching. I love working with the girls,” she said. “I had a great time coaching at DHS, and I will miss the girls so much. Getting to coach and watch them grow over four years, that is the part that is tough to leave.”
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
