Zuri Berry: Perfection possible this spring?
By Zuri Berry, zurib@theunion.com
» More from Zuri Berry
12:01 a.m. PT Mar 26, 2008
Is attaining perfection possible in such a young spring season?
Four Nevada County teams have grappled, somewhat, with the possibility of perfect seasons already - with one still pushing the envelope.
Nevada Union's boys volleyball team (21-4), NU's golf team (5-1) and Bear River's softball team (9-0) came out of the gates winning all of their respective contests this spring season with only the Bruins escaping into spring break unscathed.
If this was a more timely column, Nevada Union's volleyball team would be right there in the mix of perfection talk, being the No. 21 team in the country. The Miners lost four matches in the highly competitive Las Vegas Easter Invitational tournament last week. Previously, they had mowed down their competition to begin their year 15-0, a mark celebratory of their national ranking by StudentSports.com.
But don't forget the Miners golf team, which got Ogilvy'd early in their season by Rocklin, a 195-215 defeat at Whitney Oaks March 13.
This, in the midst of shooting under 200 twice - so far - in one season.
NU golf coach Hank Davidson has had the luxury of throwing out usually top tier scores of 44 this season, as players are threatening more often to reach par than ever before.
If we extend the breadth even further, Nevada Union's swim team would garner consideration up until losing to Sierra Foothill League rival Granite Bay early in the season.
These are truly a few exciting teams for one spring season.
But Bear River's defending Sac-Joaquin Section title softball team still has a chance at what every coach this side of sanity says is impractical.
"No; Not at this level," NU boys volleyball coach Marco Salcedo says in response to the possibility of going undefeated. "In boys volleyball, it's next to impossible. The level of play, especially when you start getting to these top teams, anybody can beat you.
"And it's so difficult to remain perfect," Salcedo said. "The level is so high. If you look at college play to all the club play you do, they all have big guys, they all have big hitters. It comes down to one or two plays. To even have a high record that we're at, it's still a high achievement."
For golfers, it may be a more simplistic reasoning behind their inability to stay unbeaten. Every Tom, Dick and Harry is not going to shoot at par for every single match of the season. The scores at Alta Sierra Country Club just aren't as likely at some foreign course.
But Bear River's softball coach Duane Zauner admits perfection is plausible, while he says it's definitely unlikely.
"It's always possible," Zauner said. "But with softball, we're gonna see some real good pitching next week (at the NorCal tournament). If we don't get the hits we need to, we'll struggle.
"I think it's going to be very difficult," he continued. "Everyone's got a target on us. Next week we go to the NorCal tournament; The chances of us winning four games is slim."
Slim, daunting, unimaginable - but possible.
(Right now is a good time to start knocking on wood.)
The Bruins softball team is a rare bunch: athletically gifted, defensively sound and cohesive in a way that makes any casual onlooker giddy. You often hear the cliché, they have "team chemistry."
I'd like to think that if the Bruins do win out, it wasn't an unimaginable task by a bunch of unimaginable players.
You don't achieve what they, as well as four other teams have already, thinking like that.
Either way, it'll be good theater.
Zuri Berry is a sports writer at The Union. His column appears Wednesdays. Contact him via e-mail at zberry@theunion.com or by phone at 477-4244. You can also read his blog online at TheUnion.com.
