BY DARRELL MOODY
Nevada Appeal Sports Writer
It was good to see some people finally realize that Carson High School does indeed have a boys and girls basketball team.
I say that only half in jest. There was a nice crowd for last Tuesday's Douglas-Carson games, though certainly not what I hoped for or expected. There shouldn't be an empty seat to be had when rivals square off in anything.
For you students that want to use the old "it was a school night excuse", save it. The varsity games were over by 8:40 p.m., which gives you plenty of time to do a couple of hours of homework before going to bed.
Personally, I think the schedule should be arranged so that any Carson-Douglas games are played on Friday or Saturday, which I assume would bring more people to the event. An even better idea would be to play the Carson-Douglas basketball games in the same week or on back-to-back days.
I've said all along that the yearly football game should by played on Nevada Day right after the big parade. It might be strange at first playing a Friday afternoon game, but once the tradition took hold, it would be huge.
It shouldn't take a game against Douglas to get some people in the gymnasium. Let's face it folks, unless you are of drinking or gambling age, there isn't a whole lot to do in either Carson or Gardnerville. Support your teams boys and girls. They represent you.
People don't understand that when they are in a gym yelling and screaming for their school they can make a difference in the game. It's no secret that big crowds get athletes excited about playing " at any level.
This is a time when both Carson teams could use some help. Both are fighting to make postseason. The boys finished the first half 4-3 while the girls were 3-4. In my estimation, it's going to take eight wins to reach the playoffs, and that's certainly doable for both teams.
- The news that Nevada backup quarterback Nick Graziano decided recently to transfer to Division II Arkansas Tech wasn't surprising at all.
In fact, it's something I told anybody who would listen all last football season, that Graziano would leave at the end of the year. I'm sure it didn't surprise the coaching staff, either.
I thought Graziano should have transferred after being injured two years ago against Fresno State. That would have been the time to do it. He would have had two years to play instead of one. There was no way Graziano was going to beat out Colin Kaepernick for the starting job, especially after having to sit out an entire spring practice. It just put him too far behind.
Graziano is a competitor. He just wants to play, plain and simple. If he can't do it at Nevada, he might as well find a place that needs him and will give him a fair opportunity to challenge for a starting job. Barring injury to Kaepernick, there was no way Graziano was going to get a shot to start with the Pack.
Two seniors shared the workload at Arkansas Tech, so Graziano should be in a position to come right in and play.
- Ryan Radtke, the first-year voice of the Nevada Wolf Pack and voice of the Reno Aces, said that the new stadium in downtown Reno is progressing nicely.
Radtke said that he'd been told that the stadium will be ready by the April 17th opener barring any major problems with snow.
This is a chance for Northern Nevada sports fans to show they aren't front-runners. This will be good baseball, and during the course of the season fans will get a chance to see pros in town on rehab assignments. Baseball is great family entertainment and affordable even in tough economic times.
- Nevada's basketball team is on a five-game conference winning streak, and the Pack faces its biggest test when it visits Utah State on Thursday.
The game will be televised locally on the Nevada Sports Network starting at 6 p.m.
Utah State is the toughest place to play in the conference. More than half of USU's Spectrum is packed by students, and they are right on top of the floor. It's a great environment, the way college basketball should be. Being in Lawlor at times is like being in a church compared to being at the Spectrum in Logan. Of course, Nevada doesn't offer as many free tickets to the student body compared to Utah State.
If Nevada can pull off an upset win, it will tie Utah State for first place. Both teams went 1-2 in both preseason polls (media and coaches).
- Capital City Volleyball Club's 18 Black team captured the California Kickoff in Oakland, defeating Sequoia Crush in the finals 25-18, 27-25 for the Club Division title. The 18 Black team entered the tournament as the No. 11 seed and went undefeated over the two-day tournament to capture the championship. The team is coached by Justin Malley, who coaches the Carson High School team.
Members of the team are:
Emily Aguiar (Galena); Kayla Baumgardner (North Tahoe); Danilee Beebe and Bryli Friberg (Spanish Springs); Dayma Cox and Kayla Lommori (Yerington); Danae Eckert, Nikki Keller, and Blaike King (Carson); Megan Mitchell (Douglas); Corey Phillips (Bishop Manogue); Nikki Schneider (Truckee) and Hannah Sugui (Reed).
The club's 18 Red team also had a very successful tournament. Entering the event as the 40th seed, the team lost only one match " to the 18 Black team " to take fifth place. The team is coached by Dana Aiono.
Members of the team are:
Callie Black (Fallon); Christine Dupuis and Taryn Williams (Douglas); Shannon Earwood and Cameo Lommori (Carson); Ashley Evdokimo (McQueen); Hayley Ignatich (Dayton); Jackie Lee, Katrina Spencer, Elizabeth Stacy (Reed); Kimberly Naut (Galena); Erica Stoddard (Reno); and Rachael Welch (Damonte Ranch).
- Contact Darrell Moody at dmoody@nevadaappeal.com or (775) 881-1281