R-C Sports Notebook: Spanish Springs makes a statement

A lot has been made this year (particularly by me) about the strength of the Sierra League in wrestling.

And again, there is much to be made there. You've got virtually every powerhouse program in the Northern 4A (Douglas, Carson, Galena, Damonte Ranch, Fallon, etc.) going at each other every week.

Then you get something like this weekend where Spanish Springs, the frontrunner for the High Desert League title pops up and wins the Carson Valley Invitational with a number of those Sierra League powers in attendance.

So what does it mean? First of all, the obvious, it means Spanish Springs is a rising power in the region and has been for a number of years.

The Cougars quietly finished as the fourth-ranked team in the region last year, were the ninth-ranked team in the region a year prior and were unranked in 2006.

This week, they will likely take over the No. 1 spot in the polls. So, needless to say, they are a team to watch out for.

But there are a couple conditions. They claimed the team title Saturday by just one point over Douglas, the current No. 1 team in the region. That point, I'm told, came on a penalty imposed by a referee during one of the matches for something that had nothing to do with the athlete who was wrestling at the time.

So really, the tournament could have gone either way.

A number of other 4A powerhouses (most notably Damonte Ranch, Galena and Reno) were not at the invite. So the Cougars' victory, impressive as it was, doesn't necessarily translate into an indicator that they should be favored to win the regional title.

From where I'm standing, this really could be anyone's ball game this year. That's not necessarily anything new, but does make for an exciting final month of wrestling.

Aside from Spanish Springs and Douglas, who placed four and five wrestlers in the finals Saturday while winning two and three titles respectively, Carson put six wrestlers on the medal podium without qualifying one for the finals.

Manogue had a number of wrestlers in the finals, as did Fallon, and South Tahoe even had a medalist.

Given the right breaks, the right things happening in the right brackets, it could end up being any one of about four or five teams that takes the regional title home.

Spanish Springs, Douglas and Carson seem to have the most depth, but Damonte Ranch and Galena have some of the top individual threats. Fallon's Trent deBraga is a virtual lock for the 160-pound title and if the rest of the Greenwave roster can rally around him, they could have an outside shot.

It'll make for interesting theater, watching the next month play out. But if Saturday told us anything, it was that maybe we (and by that, I mean I) haven't given the High Desert League enough credit.

Commentator 1: "Did he just fumble the ball?"

Commentator 2: "I think he just fumbled ... yeah, it's a fumble."

- The Douglas girls' basketball team had three extended stretches of stellar defense during which they didn't allow any points Saturday against Woodcreek. All combined, the shutout streaks added up to almost a full half of basketball. I wrote recently about how impressed I was with the Tigers' press defense. After watching their zone prowess on Saturday, I'm starting to wonder if this will be one of the better defensive teams the school has ever had.

Commentator 1: Wow, was that pass just intercepted?"

Commentator 2: I think he just intercepted that pass ... yeah, it's an interception."

The Douglas girls' basketball team is 9-8 heading into league play. The Tigers have had a winning record at this point in the year two other times in the last five years. Which years were those?

I only caught the tail end of this one because I was interviewing the Carson wrestling coach at the time, but during the 285-pound finals at the Carson Valley Lions' Club Invitational, the Incline and South Tahoe wrestlers in the bout got a little carried away and ended up throwing each other into the scorer's table. As I told my friends afterward, I got to add another item to my list of "Well, that's new"

Commentator 1: "I think he might have completed that pass for a touchdown."

Commentator 2: "Yeah, it looks like he got that one in there for a touchdown."

- Fallon boys' basketball. I believe this is time No. 3 I've had the Greenwave in this slot this season, but after their upset wins over Hug and Carson last week, they continue to impress. All of the sudden, Fallon is realistically looking at being one of the top four or five teams in the region.

- Spanish Springs wrestling. It's been a quiet rise, but after edging out Douglas in the Carson Valley Invitational on Saturday, Spanish Springs just may claim the top spot in the Sierra Nevada Media Polls this week. The Cougars already have a statement win over Carson this year. All of the sudden, they are a realistic contender to win the regional championship. Don't forget, though, Saturday's victory was just a one-point margin. Douglas will be right there with them.

- Damonte Ranch boys' basketball 77, No. 7 Reed 73: Not sure if this is more telling of how much Damonte Ranch has improved or how down Reed is this year. Either way, it makes Tuesday's game with Douglas much more interesting.

- North Valleys girls' basketball: The Panthers have very quietly put together a very strong non-league season. How well that translates into the uber-tough High Desert League will be the real story. There will be a number of High Desert League teams that could've potentially won the Sierra League that will miss the playoffs this year.

Not-so-much: Heading into the thick of league play, Reno boys and girls, Manogue boys, and Reed girls have all lived up to their powerhouse billing. None of the above have lost to a Northern Nevada team yet and each has held its own against stiff out-of-state competition. I believe you're honestly looking at Reno-Manogue in the boys' regional final and Reno-Reed in the girls' final. A lot can happen between then and now, though.

If I had a vote for overall player of the year in the Northern 4A Regional basketball honors ballots (and I don't), this is what it would look like, based mostly on their respective performances over the last week:

Boys' Basketball

1. Austin Morgan, Reno; 2. Keith Feutsch, Manogue; 3. Zach Sanford, Reno; 4. Bobby Hunter, Manogue; 5. Taelor Marchbanks, Spanish Springs.

Girls' Basketball

1. Ashley Armstrong, Manogue; 2. Jessica Waggoner, Douglas; 3. Stephanie Rovetti, Reno; 4. Danielle Peacon, Reed; 5. Erica MacKenzie, Reed

Commentator 1: "Was that ball tipped?"

Commentator 2: "Yeah, that looks like it was tipped."

The top athletes, regardless of sport, at Douglas High determined by production during competition, overall value to their team, ability to perform with consistency in routine situations, performance compared to others at the same position throughout the state/region, ability to come up big in clutch situations, versatility, attitude, sportsmanship, overall athletic ability, heart, potential at the next level, and a host of other intangibles (emotional leadership, role-playing value, work ethic, etc.) This is all, of course, just my opinion.

Winter Sports

1. Jessica Waggoner, basketball

2. Nico Barker, wrestling

3. Hillary Sapp, skiing

4. Taryn Williams, basketball

5. Crystal Rutledge, skiing

6. Parker Robertson, basketball

7. Tim Souza, wrestling

8. Dillon Spates, wrestling

9. Dany Heidt, basketball

10. Chris Downs, basketball

If there were more names on the list: Eddie Kollar, wrestling; Wes Peterson, wrestling; Michael Sepulveda, wrestling; Justin Freeman, wrestling; Tyler Cook, wrestling; James McLaughlin, basketball; Ally Freitas, basketball; Tim Rudnick, basketball; Zach Falanga, wrestling.

2008-09 School Year

1. Jessica Waggoner, volleyball/basketball

2. Tim Rudnick, football/basketball

3. Nico Barker, football/wrestling

4. Taryn Williams, volleyball/basketball

5. Parker Robertson, football/basketball

6. Dany Heidt, soccer/basketball

7. Ally Freitas, soccer/basketball

8. Luis Pina-Duarte, football/basketball

9. Niki Hamzik, tennis/basketball

10. James McLaughlin, basketball/football

Since I've been here (2003)

1. Luke Rippee, football/basketball/baseball (2003)

2. Jessica Waggoner, volleyball/basketball/track (2005-present)

3. Brittany Puzey, basketball/softball (2003-04)

4. Tim Rudnick, football/basketball/baseball (2006-present)

5. Bridget Maestretti, volleyball/basketball/softball/track (2004-08)

6. Tyson Estes, football/basketball/baseball (2003-05)

7. Ryan Pruitt, football/wrestling/baseball (2005-07)

8. Mike Gransbery, soccer/basketball (2004-07)

9. James McLaughlin, football/basketball (2006-present)

10. Kayla Dunn, volleyball/softball (2004-05)

Commentator 1: "What just happened?"

Commentator 2: "I don't know ..."

"One of the Lowry wrestlers has lost his singlet ... if anyone finds it, please turn it into the scorer's table." Announcer at the Carson Valley Classic

- My wife worked Thursday morning, meaning that I watched the girl while attempting to flip between the Clemson-Nebraska game, the Georgia-Michigan State game and the Winter Classic Red Wings-Blackhawks hockey game at Wrigley field. I kept notes because I'm a nerd. Here's what I ended up with:

"Let's see, three good, possibly great sporting events on TV at the same time. Time to get the remote ready.

- CBS is doing some sort of season review for Clemson. I don't care.

- ABC has something on the similarity between Georgia and Michigan State's running backs. Still don't care.

- Wow, never seen Wrigley field look like that before. Oops, now we're talking about the history of hockey and how it started on outdoor ponds. This isn't going well.

- The Gator Bowl is off the ground first. We're in Florida and the stadium is that Red? Could be a long day for Clemson.

- Georgia-Michigan State has kicked off. This could be one of the better games of the day.

- Michigan State just attempted a fake punt and Georgia sniffed it out like they had the call beforehand. Then again, it's fourth and 10 inside the Bulldog 40 and Michigan State really thought they were going to fool anyone with that punting business?

- Clemson's punter just bobbled his mouthguard in the air like five times. It was fantastic.

- We're still talking about the history of hockey on NBC. A reporter just asked the Blackhawks' captain if he thought his team would have the home-ice advantage ... what with the game being in Chicago and all. What the heck?

- I'm quickly realizing I don't care about any of these games.

- Michigan State just picked off Matthew Stafford and returned it deep into Bulldog territory. The Georgia defense doesn't let them do a thing with it.

- 45 minutes into the NBC hockey broadcast and they finally drop the puck. I'm 30 seconds in and quickly remembering why I don't watch hockey on television.

- The girl is holding out her "Jonah: A Veggietales Movie" DVD with that wry little smile of hers. My sports watching is apparently over for the time being.

If you don't make sure your television is prepared for the Feb. 19 changeover to digital broadcasting, all you'll be left with is a single channel that plays the weird Money Tree catepillar commercials all day long. Just consider yourself warned.

- Little girl tights should come with an operating manual.

- Producers from Lost and Heroes are in negotiations to have the casts of the two shows make crossover guest appearances on each other's sets in an effort to further tangle the two most complicated storylines in the history of television.

Irrational Fear: Large boats. I'm talking like the big cruise liners from "The Poseidon Adventure"

Guilty Pleasure: The old Wave Runner Gameboy game

2007 (13-5) and 2004 (12-4)