Top 5 Nevada high school softball championship games from the 2000s
Fifth in a series: Here are the top five high school state softball championship games from the 2000s, as selected by the Review-Journal staff. Saturday: baseball.
No. 5: Boulder City 3, Dayton 2
2010, Class 3A, Reno
Senior Brittany Patt scored on a passed ball with two outs in the bottom of the 10th inning to give the Eagles their first state title since 1999.
With snow flurries occasionally falling, Patt singled with two outs and moved to third on Ali Rants’ double. She then raced home when Dayton’s catcher couldn’t handle a pitch.
“The girls were making fun of me because I never slide, so they pummeled me,” Patt said. “This moment is amazing.”
No. 4: Pahrump Valley 13, Fernley 10
2019, Class 3A, Mesquite
Junior Kaden Cable blasted a walk-off three-run homer to left field with two outs in the eighth inning to give the Trojans their first state title since 2005.
Cable, Pahrump’s No. 9 hitter, was 4-for-4 with seven RBIs and scored the tying run in the seventh. Pahrump trailed 10-7 entering the inning.
Kareena Nelson reached on an error to start the bottom of the eighth for Pahrump. With two outs, Hailey Cuellar drew a walk, setting the stage for Cable.
“I knew it was my pitch, but I had no idea it was going to be a home run,” Cable said. “I could not believe it. I was hysterical.”
No. 3: Spring Valley 6, Boulder City 5
2016, Class 3A, UNR
Vivian Quiroz-Montano looped an RBI single into short left-center with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, scoring Michaela Hood with the winning run and giving the Grizzlies their only softball state crown.
Boulder City took advantage of three errors to take a 5-3 lead in the ninth.
Mariah Ward’s one-out RBI double and Stephanie Huff’s RBI single tied the game. One out later, Quiroz-Montano won it.
“I wasn’t looking for a home run; I was looking for something where (Michaela) could get home,” said Quiroz-Montano, a junior catcher. “It was amazing, the most amazing feeling in the world.”
No. 2: Palo Verde 12, Reed 8
2014, Class 4A, UNR
Down to its No. 4 pitcher because of injuries and illnesses, Palo Verde found a way to win its second state title in four years.
After losing a potential clinching game to Reed 11-7, the Panthers turned to senior second baseman Melissa Lacro to start the decisive game. Lacro, who had pitched only four innings all season, navigated her way through five innings and also hit a three-run triple in a seven-run fifth.
“I knew there was a chance that I was going to have to pitch this game,” Lacro said. “I just kept believing I could do it.”
Two-out singles in the sixth by McKenzie McBride and Lacro broke an 8-8 tie and gave Palo Verde the lead for good.
Rachel Williams, who battled shoulder problems throughout her high school career and threw 145 pitches in the first game of the day, pitched the final two innings for the Panthers.
“(Lacro) hasn’t pitched in three months. For her to take the ball and do what she did …,” Palo Verde coach Kelly Glass said. “Rachel has worked through so much, and she’s grown up a lot.”
No. 1: Centennial 7, Reed 4
2009, Class 4A, Majestic Park
Kylie Bartlett’s two-out, two-run double to left center in the top of the 11th inning broke a 4-4 tie, and Jennifer Watkins threw a complete-game eight-hitter as the Bulldogs won their first state title since 2004.
Centennial, which lost the potential title-clinching game 7-1, took a 4-1 lead in the eighth inning of the decisive game before the Raiders’ Kristi Pasley crushed a two-out, three-run homer to tie the score.
Sarah Cudahy’s two-out single on an 0-and-2 pitch and Paige Reese’s infield single set the stage for Bartlett, who fouled an 0-and-1 pitch behind the plate, but Reed’s catcher dropped the ball to give the Bulldogs another chance.
“I was just looking middle-in,” Bartlett said.
Katie Lee tacked on an RBI single for Centennial, and Watkins retired the side on five pitches in the bottom of the inning.
“We rose from the dead a lot this year,” Centennial coach Mike Livreri said. “We kept believing in ourselves.”
