Briggs Barlow struck out 10 while pitching five strong innings Thursday to lead Tech, seeded second in the Desert League, past the Desert League’s top-seed Silverado in the 4A state baseball playoffs at Sierra Vista.
Tech (17-16) advanced to Saturday’s 10 a.m. championship game with the win and will play the losers bracket winner. Silverado (20-11-1) will face Mater East or Clark in Friday’s 4:30 p.m. semifinal.
Anthony Sekikawa went 2-for-3 to lead the Roadrunners’ offense, which put five runs on the board in the middle innings to pull away.
No. 1S Mater East 9, No. 2S Rancho 8: Benson Ornelas went 3-for-4 with two triples, a double and six RBIs as the Knights (25-7) scored a run in the bottom of the seventh inning to defeat Rancho (14-17).
Colin Tocker went 3-for-3 with a triple to help Mater East, which plays Clark at 2 p.m. Friday, with the winner advancing to the 4:30 p.m. losers bracket semifinal against Silverado.
No. 1M Clark 4, No. 2M Spring Valley 2: Carlos Cosme and Rylan Swanbeck each went 2-for-3 as the Chargers (23-9) overcame an early deficit to beat the Grizzlies (16-16-1).
Ryland Gregorich singled in an RBI for Clark.
3A state baseball playoffs at Spanish Springs
No. 1N Elko 5, No. 2S Virgin Valley 3: Elko pitcher Travis Monett held Virgin Valley to two hits, and the Indians scored two runs in the fifth inning to go ahead for good in their first-round victory.
Elko (29-6) plays Boulder City in a winners bracket game at 12:30 p.m. Friday, and the Bulldogs (19-10) play an elimination game against Wooster at 10 a.m. Friday. A victory in that game would lift them into the semifinals.
No. 1S Boulder City 11, No. 2N Wooster 1: Spencer Aten had a home run, a double and five RBIs as the Eagles (19-12) defeated the Colts (23-10) in five innings.
Gavin Robinson added two hits and two RBIs for Boulder City.
2A state baseball playoffs at Needles
No. 2N Yerington 11, No. 1S Needles 6
No. 2S Lake Mead 21, No. 1N Lake Tahoe 7
1A state baseball playoffs at Smith Valley
No. 2S Liberty Baptist 8, No. 1N Smith Valley 5
No. 1S Pahranagat Valley 19, No. 2N Mineral County 4
4A state softball playoffs at Sierra Vista
No. 1D Faith Lutheran 6, No. 2D Desert Oasis 1: At Sierra Vista, Zoey TarBush went 3-for-3 with two doubles and an RBI as the Crusaders (26-1) advanced to the title game with a win over the Diamondbacks (16-3).
Brynndal Gonzales added two triples for Faith Lutheran, which will play the losers bracket winner for the championship at 10 a.m. Saturday. Desert Oasis will play either Legacy or Tech in the semifinals at 4:30 p.m. Friday.
No. 1S Tech 10, No. 2S Foothill 6: Navaeh Fuller had a double and three RBIs as the Roadrunners (22-5) scored nine runs in the first two innings and stayed alive in the losers bracket with a victory over the Falcons (17-10).
Tech will play Legacy at 2 p.m. Friday, with the winner advancing to a 4:30 p.m. semifinal against Desert Oasis.
No. 1M Legacy 7, No. 3D Spring Valley 6: Amelia McClerkin went 2-for-4 with an RBIs as the Longhorns (25-9) built a big lead before surviving a late rally to beat the Grizzlies (17-9).
Elena Rodriguez pitched 6.1 innings to earn the victory for Legacy.
3A state softball playoffs at Spanish Springs
No. 2S Pahrump Valley 13, No. 1N Fernley 4: Jaycie Hayes had two triples and five RBIs, and also struck out 12 to earn the pitching victory as the Trojans beat Fernley 13-4.
Jaelyn Rodriguez added a double and three RBIs for Pahrump (31-8), which plays Virgin Valley in the winners bracket semifinals at 1 p.m. Friday. The Vaqueros (26-11) play Lowry in an elimination game at 11 a.m. Friday, with the winner advancing to the semifinals.
No. 1S Virgin Valley 2, No. 2N Lowry 1: Kamzlee Dalton struck out 11 while tossing a complete-game six hitter to lead the Bulldogs (22-12) past the Buckaroos (28-6).
Julia Leavitt doubled to help Virgin Valley.
2A state softball playoffs at Needles
No. 2N Yerington 7, No. 1S Needles 6
No. 1N Battle Mountain 7, No, 2S White Pine 4
1A state softball playoffs at Smith Valley
No. 1N Wells 18, No 2S Round Mountain 8
No. 2N Pyramid Lake 10, No. 1S Pahranagat Valley 5
Contact Jeff Wollard at jwollard@reviewjournal.com.
