Preps: Durango girls soccer surprises Sunset opponents

When the 1998-99 girls soccer season started, Bishop Gorman and Bonanza were everyone's picks to win the Sunset Division. The Gaels had the speed; the Bengals had the size.

What about Durango? Well, the Trailblazers had a lot of freshmen on their roster, rarely a formula for success.

With less than half the season remaining, though, Durango is the talk of the Sunset, leading the way with an area-best 32 points.

The Trailblazers are 11-1-2 overall and have yet to lose a conference game this winter. And according to coach Barry Forget, his ninth graders are a key reason why.

"These girls have learned the system quickly, and so far it's worked," Forget said.

Four different freshmen have started in the Durango midfielder this year: Gwen Burgess, Nicole Maturino, Alyssa Partell and Pam Riddle.

The maturation of that quartet, along with a stingy defense that has limited Sunset foes to five total goals thus far, have combined to make the Trailblazers legitimate contenders for the school's first zone title.

"It really comes down to playing good defense," Forget said. "They take a lot of heart in that, and if it's close we have a chance."

Even the loss of its home field while the school installs a new track hasn't derailed Durango. The Trailblazers have moved several games to the larger boys soccer field -- a move that will serve them well next month when they host the 4A Southern Zone tournament on the very same field.

* MAJOR SETBACK: Cimarron-Memorial's boys basketball team went into last Friday night's home game against Bishop Gorman tied for second place in the tough Sunset Division. Just four days later, the Spartans were in fifth, in danger of missing out on the playoffs altogether.

Cimarron's trouble began with a heartbreaking 68-66 loss to the Gaels, a game that saw would-be game-winning shots by Marcus Banks and Brian Lang wiped out by officials at the end of regulation and overtime, respectively.

Then, on Monday, the Spartans suffered an even bigger setback, falling at Bonanza 54-47.

That loss could come back to haunt Cimarron, which is the first of the division's serious contenders (Cheyenne, Gorman, Durango and Clark are the others) to lose to a squad in the division's lower half.

The Spartans stopped the bleeding with a 78-70 win over Western Wednesday night.

* THEN THERE WAS ONE: Bishop Gorman's stunning 49-48 loss to Cimarron last Friday leaves Silverado as the only area girls basketball squad with a perfect league record. The Gaels still sit atop the Sunset Division standings, but their seven-game conference unbeaten streak is over.

The Skyhawks are 10-0 and securely in first place in the Sunrise.

* TIDBITS: Green Valley became the first area squad to clinch a playoff berth in girls soccer Tuesday with a 5-1 win over Valley. Gators' senior Cosette Joffs ran her area-best goal total to 26 with four tallies in the game. ... Meadows' senior Victor Wright recently visited Princeton University, said to be the two-way football star's top college choice. ... Lake Mead Christian junior Mindy Giffin was last week's NIAA Female Athlete of the Week. The Eagles' junior scored 77 points in a two-night span, spearheading wins over Indian Springs and Mountain View. Giffin is averaging 28 points for 5-3 Lake Mead. ... KSFN AM-1140 will broadcast Friday's Rancho at Las Vegas boys basketball game live at 6:45 p.m.

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