HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS YEAR IN REVIEW
By JON GOLD
REVIEW-JOURNAL
Happy endings are old hat to Bishop Gorman.
Now it can add successful beginnings.
In their first season at the school's new Southwest campus, the Gaels won the state Class 4A football championship in the fall, to go along with a third straight state baseball title in May.
In between, Gorman added team titles in girls basketball, boys soccer and girls tennis for a total of five championships, more than any other Nevada high school program.
For its accomplishment, Gorman was selected as Sports Illustrated's No. 8 high school athletic program in the country.
With the football title, its first since 1983, Gorman felt an added sense of pride.
"It was a great feeling getting around the rest of the student body and the faculty after that weekend," coach Bob Altschuler said. "Just moving into the new school pulled the alumni back together. It made them feel that while the school may be old, there's still that sense of family."
Gorman wasn't the only local school with a fruitful fall, though. Silverado won two team championships, taking home titles in girls volleyball and girls golf.
With a winter win in boys bowling, the Skyhawks' three team titles tied with Reno and Palo Verde for second most in the state.
The Panthers won championships in boys tennis, boys swimming and boys golf.
Among smaller schools, Yerington and Truckee each had three state 3A titles, followed by Boulder City and Pahrump Valley with two each.
Needles bested the 2A field with four state championships, one more than Whittell, while Owyhee and Pahranagat Valley each had two state 1A crowns.
But clearly, in this school year, the state belonged to Gorman.
"It's not just the state -- but the school was rated eighth in the country by (Sports Illustrated)," Altschuler said. "That's quite an achievement, and that's not just in any one sport."
Contact reporter Jon Gold at jgold@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4287.
BEST OF THE BOYS
HEAD OF THE CLASS
Statistical averages for Cheyenne's Elijah Johnson, widely regarded as one of the country's top 50 juniors last season: 15.7 points, 8.9 assists, 7.4 rebounds, 3.7 steals.
FOOTBALL
BISHOP GORMAN
Bishop Gorman's road to the state Class 4A football title might not have been paved in gold, but it did not have many potholes, either.
The Gaels cruised through a 10-0 regular season, with their narrowest victory coming in Week 4, when they defeated Upland (Calif.) 50-33.
In the state playoffs, Gorman had its biggest hiccup of the season against Palo Verde in the Sunset Regional final. The Panthers led by three points with 23 seconds remaining, but a Dylan Barrera-to-Kamana Kaimikaua touchdown pass gave the Gaels a birth in the state final.
In the championship matchup at Sam Boyd Stadium, Gorman easy handled McQueen 38-17 behind Keola Antolin's 203 rushing yards and three touchdowns -- giving the Gaels' their first state title since 1983.
TENNIS
GREEN VALLEY
Green Valley's Evan Song entered the state tournament as an afterthought. Stacked against three individual regional champions, he was expected to be silenced.
But three consecutive upsets -- including a 6-1, 6-3 defeat of defending state champion Stan Breland of Canyon Springs in the final -- gave Song the 4A individual boys title.
BASKETBALL
CHEYENNE
Cheyenne justifiably felt a sense of destiny after a whirlwind journey through the Sunset Region tournament, which featured an upset of top-ranked Mojave in the semifinals, then a 61-54 defeat of Bishop Gorman for the Sunset title.
A 93-55 smashing of Douglas in the state semifinals only confirmed that everything was clicking for the Desert Shields.
But then came Reno, and Austin Morgan, in the state championship game. And, well, there went the destiny.
Morgan scored 37 points -- including 26 in the second half -- and the Huskies rallied from a 17-point first-half deficit to beat Cheyenne 76-72 in the state 4A finals at UNR's Lawlor Events Center.
Johnson had 19 points, eight rebounds and five steals in the losing effort.
SOCCER
BISHOP GORMAN
Gorman overcame the Oct. 11 death of beloved coach Victor Arbelaez to win its second consecutive state 4A title with a 1-0 victory over Douglas on Nov. 10.
Gaels junior forward Nick Eary led the way in the championship game -- again. A year after scoring twice in Gorman's state title win in 2006, Eary had the lone goal against Douglas.
WRESTLING
MOJAVE
Mojave's state 4A championship might have seemed like a foregone conclusion when the team qualified wrestlers in 12 weight classes.
But the Rattlers certainly wrestled like they had something to prove.
Behind individual champions Jake Evans (130 pounds), Alex Proffitt (171) and Reggie Powers (189), the team won its second consecutive title with 206 points, more than 60 points ahead of runner-up Damonte Ranch.
BASEBALL
BISHOP GORMAN
A 41-3 record.
A third straight 4A state championship.
A national No. 1 ranking.
There isn't much left to be said about Gorman's baseball team.
The Gaels accomplishments could fill Yankee Stadium, but UNR's Peccole Park will have to do. Gorman wrapped up the state title with an 8-3 victory over Green Valley in mid-May, with a familiar late-game rally. Just as they did in winning their previous two state titles, the Gaels came on strong in the late innings, scoring five runs in the bottom of the sixth for the win.
As in previous championship runs, Gorman had to overcome early trouble. The Gaels lost their first game of the Sunset Regional tournament to Palo Verde 2-1, but outscored their opponents 70-13 the rest of the way.
TRACK AND FIELD
CHAPARRAL
Chaparral's contingent at the state 4A finals might have been small, but the Cowboys qualifiers certainly came up big.
Joeal Hotchkins, Tyquiese Anthony, Jose Olague and Quentin McCloud led Chaparral to a third-place finish with 51 points in the state meet, placing near the top of almost every event they entered. Damonte Ranch nipped Galena for the team title, 55-54.
SWIMMING
PALO VERDE
With elite swimmer after elite swimmer, the Palo Verde boys easily outraced the competition all season -- possibly never better than at the state 4A meet.
With Cody Miller, Jake Priest, Jay Sirat and Gianni Sesto leading the way, the Panthers had five individual titles on their way to a convincing state crown.
BEST OF THE GIRLS
HEAD OF THE CLASS
Statistical averages for Bishop Gorman's Ashley Gayle in her last three high school games: 13.7 points, 14.5 rebounds, 10.3 blocks. Gayle had three straight triple-doubles in the Gaels' Sunset Regional win and two state tournament wins.
VOLLEYBALL
SILVERADO
Staring at Durango's Hayley Spelman through a volleyball net can be an imposing view, but it didn't seem to bother Silverado.
The Skyhawks successfully neutralized Durango's 6-foot-6-inch middle blocker in a 25-23, 25-21, 25-19 state 4A championship victory.
While Spelman compiled 19 kills, Silverado effectively eliminated her daunting presence on the block and in the back row. Sophomore Kaitlin Keathley was the Skyhawks' main weapon, tallying six blocks.
Avenging an early season loss -- their first regular-season loss in four years -- the Skyhawks finished 21-1.
GOLF
CENTENNIAL
With one putt, Alex Borcherts erased a week's worth of bad luck and won the state 4A girls golf individual title.
The Centennial senior sank a 12-foot putt on the second playoff hole against Coronado's Bethany Glassford, capping a comeback from a three-stroke deficit after the first round.
CROSS COUNTRY
SPRING VALLEY
The Grizzlies' Kourtney Moody found herself caught in a crowd of Northern Nevada cross country runners at the state 4A championship meet. Seven upstate runners crossed the finish line before Moody, but her eighth-place performance led Las Vegas runners. Carson, Reno and South Tahoe finished 1-2-3 in the standings.
SOCCER
CENTENNIAL
Facing a scorching Green Valley team with plenty of state playoff experience, Centennial needed to find the great equalizer.
The Bulldogs had to find a way to match the Gators' momentum and savvy. After all, Green Valley had advanced to its third straight Southern Nevada final by outscoring opponents 17-1 in the Sunset Regional tournament.
As it turns out, all Centennial needed was a little speed.
Outracing their lofty opponent, the Bulldogs utilized their quickness in the championship game, as Ashley Mosely connected with Bethanie Skelton for the lone goal in a 1-0 victory.
BASKETBALL
BISHOP GORMAN
For three seasons in a row, Gorman's girls have hoisted the state 4A championship plaque.
And for three seasons in a row, Ashley Gayle was in the middle of it all. Literally.
A center with an incredible wingspan, Gayle paired with Danielle Diamant to give the Gaels twin 6-foot-4-inch towers on the inside, and Gayle was at her best when it mattered most.
In the playoffs, the University of Texas-bound senior registered three consecutive triple-doubles to close the season, including 18 points, 16 rebounds and 10 blocks in Gorman's 65-48 win over Reno in the state final.
SWIMMING
PALO VERDE
The Palo Verde girls swimming team didn't possess the star power of its counterparts on the boys team, but the Panthers did not disappoint.
Palo Verde's girls placed second to Reno in the state 4A meet, 102-66. The Panthers' total was 20 points better than third-place Coronado.
TRACK AND FIELD
WESTERN,
CANYON SPRINGS
Western and Canyon Springs' paths to a second-place tie in the state 4A girls track championship could not have been more different.
The Warriors compiled six top-four finishes, including victories in the 100-meter dash by Tiarra Tyler and the 400 relay and 1,600 relays.
Meanwhile, the Pioneers' highest finish was second to Western in the 1,600 relay. But Canyon Springs also won two bronze medals and had 10 other top-nine finishes.
The teams both had 51 points, four behind state champion Reno.
SOFTBALL
SHADOW RIDGE
Even if Shadow Ridge had played a perfect game against Reed in the state 4A semifinals, it might not have mattered.
After all, Spanish Springs awaited the winner.
Led by Northwest Division MVP Rayna Bradshaw, the Mustangs finished an impressive 25-3 season with a 3-2 semifinal loss to the Raiders, who then suffered a 17-0 defeat by defending champion Spanish Springs.
