NOTES: Moapa Valley tennis players recovering from ATV wreck

Moapa Valley girls tennis coach Donna Swanson knew her team faced an uphill battle in the opening round of the Division I-A Southern Region tournament.

The events of this past weekend made the Pirates’ task even more difficult.

“We’re just here for the experience,” Swanson said Tuesday at Darling Tennis Center before the start of Moapa Valley’s match against Faith Lutheran. “It sounds like a defeatist attitude … but we’re glad to be here and glad that three of the girls were able to come.”

Moapa Valley was forced to alter its lineup against the Sunset League champion Crusaders after four players — including three regulars — were injured Saturday in an all-terrain vehicle accident. Swanson said seniors Jordyn Ramos and Kim Graffam, along with junior Tatyanna Garcia, each suffered a concussion when the ATV they were riding on hit a patch of soft sand and flipped. Freshman Michelle Whiting underwent surgery to repair nerve damage in her knee.

“It’s pretty bad, but they do expect her to be able to use her knee fine,” Swanson said. “She definitely incurred the worst of the damage out of all of them. Michelle was up and coming. She’s a freshman, but definitely a girl with a lot of potential, so I hope this does not keep her out and she can recover fully.”

Ramos played singles for the Pirates during the regular season but had limited mobility following the accident and played doubles on Tuesday. Graffam and Garcia, the No. 3 doubles team, watched from the stands as Moapa Valley lost 16-2 to Faith Lutheran.

Ramos is the only one of the injured players who qualified for next week’s Division I-A Southern Region individual tournament.

Swanson said she thought about forfeiting Tuesday’s match when she heard about the accident. The Pirates (5-5) competed against Faith Lutheran with a full lineup of three singles players and three doubles teams.

“It was pretty scary for all of them. They were real shook up,” Swanson said. “Between the floods and everything, it’s been a year for us.”

■ LEGACY PLAYER ON MEND — Legacy football player Armando DeLaTorre, who was injured during Friday’s 41-14 victory over Durango, returned to practice Monday, according to Longhorns coach John Isola.

DeLaTorre was taken by ambulance as a precaution following the injury, and Isola said the senior linebacker suffered a “stinger.”

■ CRUSADER CELEBRATION — Faith Lutheran will hold a dedication ceremony for its new gymnasium before Friday’s homecoming football game against Sierra Vista. The ceremony starts at 5:30 p.m. and is open to the public.

The gym, officially called the Crusader Competition Center, opened at the start of the academic year. The 26,000-square-foot building is touted as the most technologically advanced school gym in the area.

■ RECENT COMMITMENTS — Palo Verde senior Austin Manthey to Grand Canyon (Ariz.) for men’s soccer. … Las Vegas senior Elias Miller to Brigham Young for football.

Contact reporter David Schoen at dschoen@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5203. Follow him on Twitter: @DavidSchoenLVRJ.