DON McDERMOTT MORE COLUMNS Advertisement

In researching the Times historical series on Nye County athletics in general, Pahrump Valley High School in particular, we have uncovered three events that occured over a period of 14 months in 1985-86.

In July 1985 Larry Goins was hired as the football coach at PVHS and his wife, Elaine, was employed as an elementary school counselor.

In September 1986, it was announced that Ray DePalma would be the primary elementary school principal in this district, after spending two years at Gabbs and another two at Tonopah.

On the same day that story was published, the Pahrump Valley Junior Golf Founders Club was organized. Involved were Tom Woods, the pro at the Calvada Valley Golf and Country Club, along with Hollis Harris, Don Denkers, Dottie Lipsky, Darlene Howard and Darrell Bellamy (a faculty representative).

Their prime mission was to form an organization which would help create boys' and girls' golf teams at Pahrump Valley High School.

Larry and Elaine Goins are now the principals involved in the operation of the founders club, which last week was elected to the PVHS Athletics Hall of Fame.

So was DePalma, who became one of Nevada's finest administrators and athletics directors and is a member of the Nevada Hall of Fame.

With all of this lead-in, you have to know a pitch is about to be made ... again.

The athletics director's job at PVHS is open.

Larry Goins lives in Pahrump, as he has for the last 23 years.

It is time that Goins returns to the valley as AD at the high school. He is the right man for the job, which has special significance now that Pahrump Valley is moving into Class 4-A in the next school year.

Goins was named the AD at Sierra Vista High School in 2001. He reportedly has been named the AD at a new Las Vegas high school, Desert Oasis (located in the Mountain's Edge area of southwest Clark County).

Despite having to travel to Las Vegas continuously since being named the AD at Sierra Vista, Goins has remained involved with the junior golf program in the Pahrump Valley, working tirelessly with many other volunteers to ensure the well-being of kid golfers 7 to 18 years old.

Pahrump Valley's other kids programs -- Little League baseball and softball and AYSO -- will benefit from his experience of working with such an organization. He can offer guidance to both administrators and coaches alike, should additional sports be added at the high school.

Most important, however, is his familiarity with how Class 4-A works. Knowing the system is essential; being oblivious to the challenges can only ensure long-term difficulties.

Pahrump Valley needs every advantage it can get as it prepares to move to Class 4-A, where most schools have at least 2,300 students in the upper four grades (compared to the possible 1,350 PVHS will have next fall). Consider that in the Sunset Region Southwest Division is Bishop Gorman. While that parochial school has less than 1,200 students, it can attract boys and girls from all over the world, literally.

Gorman won state championships in football, girls basketball and baseball in the 2007-2008 athletics campaign, if that gives you any kind of idea how fierce the competition will be in 2008-2009.

Pahrump Valley already has some excellent coaches on staff, but what has to be done is for someone to enrich the feeder programs in football, basketball, soccer, volleyball, baseball and softball.

We witnessed some summer softball action last week; believe it when I say that program is in serious need of some sensible direction, particularly in pitching and catching mechanics. Pitchers and catchers shouldn't be expected to go out onto the field without have a strong idea of what they are supposed to do in fast-pitch softball.

But we digress...

Having strong leadership in running any program is vital. Athletics at Pahrump Valley is a big deal, and has been, ever since they were introduced at the fledgling high school in the early 1970s.

For years, girls' teams in basketball, volleyball and golf have been dominant. Boys teams had plenty of success, contrary to what some people believe, but only wrestling teams were able to achieve state championships.

Going into Class 4-A will be a new adventure for PVHS students. It will be a heckuva lot of fun if they know they have the support of not only the community, but school administrators as well.