State preps baseball roundup: Foothill advances to 4A title game

Foothill’s Bryce McKnight took the mound Thursday knowing a strong performance could help make the Falcons’ path to the Class 4A state championship a whole lot simpler.

The junior hurler came through, striking out six while throwing a five-hitter to lead the Falcons to a 9-1 victory over Shadow Ridge at the 4A state baseball tournament at the College of Southern Nevada. The win clinched a berth in Saturday’s state championship game for Foothill (27-6), the No. 1 seed from the Mountain League.

Shadow Ridge (27-6), the defending 4A state champion and the No. 1 seed from the Desert League, will face either Durango or Silverado in an elimination game at 4:45 p.m. Friday at Bishop Gorman for the other berth in the state title game.

The Falcons opened up what was a 2-1 game with three runs in the fourth inning and four more in the fifth, helped by Michael Gibson, who went 3-for-5 with two doubles and three RBIs.

Koa Sibal and Quinten Terrell each went 2-for-2 for Foothill.

— No. 4M Silverado 12, No. 2D Bonanza 0: At CSN, Kanoa Wolfgang allowed four hits while striking out three, and the Skyhawks (13-17) scored at least one run in all five innings to roll past the Bengals (13-17). Hogan Hawkins went 3-for-3 with two RBIs, and William Ritchie had a double, triple and four RBIs for the Skyhawks, who play Durango in an elimination game at 2:30 p.m. Friday at Bishop Gorman.

— No. 5M Durango 10, 2M Sierra Vista 7: The Trailblazers (13-18) outlasted the Mountain Lions (16-17) to stay alive.

Class 3A

— No. 1S Pahrump Valley 2, No. 2N Churchill County 0: At Virgin Valley, Kyle McDaniel went the distance, striking out 11 while allowing five hits, and the Trojans (26-7), the South’s No. 1 seed, scored two runs in the fourth inning to beat the Greenwave (21-8), the North’s No. 2 seed. Andrew Zurn went 2-for-3 for Pahrump Valley, which will face Virgin Valley at 3:30 p.m. Friday for a berth in the state title game.

— No. 2S Virgin Valley 5, No. 1N South Tahoe 3: At Virgin Valley, Jared Jensen went 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBIs, and the Bulldogs (25-11) scored two runs in the seventh to edge the Vikings (26-6). Bryce Intagliata allowed seven hits while striking out five for Virgin Valley.

Class 2A

— No. 2S Lake Mead 8, No. 1N Yerington 1: At Reno, Trevor LaPres had a home run, a triple and two RBIs, and Braeden Hauf went 3-for-4 with a triple and two RBIs to lead the Eagles (20-5) past the Lions (20-5-2). Nathan Fennema went the distance for Lake Mead, holding Yerington to five hits while striking out nine. The Eagles will play Needles at 8:30 a.m. Friday for a berth in the state title game.

— No. 1S Needles 2, No. 2N West Wendover 1: At Reno, the Mustangs (25-10) scored two runs in the bottom of the sixth to rally past the Wolverines. Kai Cortez went 2-for-3 with a double and two RBIs to lead Needles, and Talon Paget earned the win, striking out eight while tossing a four-hitter.

Class 1A

— No. 1S Indian Springs 4, No. 2N Wells 3: At Bishop Gorman, the Thunderbirds (19-4) scored two runs in the bottom of the seventh to rally past the Leopards (22-14). Indian Springs will play Pahranagat Valley at 11 a.m. Friday for a berth in the state title game.

— No. 2S Pahranagat Valley 5, No. 1N Smith Valley 0: At Bishop Gorman, the Panthers (20-9) took control with three runs in the second en route to a win over the Bulldogs (23-2).