The end of a busy three-week stretch promised to test the nation’s top team in Cathedral Catholic CA as the Dons looked to ace their latest challenge in the Durango Fall Classic in Las Vegas this past weekend.

The run kicked off at the beginning of September with a trip to Hawai’i which culminated with a victory over Moanlua HI to win its first tournament of the season. The following weekend the Dons were back on the mainland and headed north two hours to participate in the Dave Mohs tourney in Huntington Beach, which ended with Cathedral Catholic sweeping Marymount CA, 25-20, 25-17, for the crown.

Then came Durango, the most daunting tournament of the year and one that would test the Dons’ undefeated record in ways the prior two events couldn’t. Cathedral Catholic held all the answers and after downing Marymount once more in the championship earned the Durango title after last claiming it in 2019. On top of it all, not only did the Dons push their overall mark to 24-0 but they have yet to drop a set this season.

It featured knocking off Archbishop Mitty CA in qualifying play Saturday morning before dispatching Punahou HI in the quarters and ‘Iolani HI in the semifinals.

“Durango is such a prestigious tournament we were going in knowing we needed to play well and not thinking about having to win,” Cathedral Catholic coach Juliana Conn said. “Coming in as the No. 1 seed we knew it would be hard and it was. We played some really good teams from Hawai’i. We played Marymount again. Even Mitty in the first round on Saturday came to play. We had a nice run of good matches we put together to win. We focused on taking care of each match because we know everyone is coming after us just like they did with Marymount last year. We are learning to come ready to play because no team is going to give us an easy win.”

Cathedral Catholic was among the best teams in the country last season but the way Marymount – which captured the Durango title in 2021 – was built it didn’t matter. However, with Marymount graduating so much and Cathedral returning so many it is now the Dons who control their destiny to a national championship.

The only mainstays from last year’s lineup not back were the starting setter and libero. That would be enough to derail some programs but with junior Amanda Saeger ready to take the reins of the offense and sophomore Maya Evens positioned to take over in the backrow the Dons have hardly missed a beat. The lineup is built around senior sensation and outside Julia Blyashov, a 5-star recruit committed to Stanford. She’s one of the top nine kill leaders back from a year ago. No doubt that type of familiarity and depth are going to lead to plenty of successful outings.

“We’ve been playing well,” Conn said. “We have a big bench and anytime someone is having a tough time we can switch it up. People keep stepping up. It’s a big group and sometimes with that many good players it can be hard to accept smaller roles. But this group is embracing it and girls are waiting for their chance while still supporting whoever is on the court. The feedback this weekend from other coaches was great. They were telling us how engaged our bench is.”

Though Marymount graduated a ton from last year’s national championship roster, one player who is back and has kept the Sailors a formidable threat is senior outside and 5-star recruit Torrey Stafford. Though Marymount has lost nonleague contests to Mira Costa CA and Redondo Union CA and a league showdown with Sierra Canyon CA so far, the Sailors have found success in recent tourneys like Dave Mohs and Durango, finishing runner up to Cathedral Catholic at both.

In Vegas, Marymount overcame a team it previously defeated this season in Vista Murrieta CA in Day 2 qualifying to make the championship bracket. There, the Sailors swept Assumption KY in the quarters and previously undefeated Fayetteville AR in the semis.

“They are still really good even though they lost all those seniors,” Conn said of Marymount. “I felt like they were ready to beat us because they didn’t want to lose in back-to-back weeks.”