Desert Oasis defeats Trojans 11-1 behind MJ Hernandez’s strong start
In the first of two regular-season games scheduled this year, Pahrump Valley High School varsity baseball head coach Drew Middleton saw where the holes in the Trojans fall.
Handling an 11-1 loss at home in front of packed home crowd, the game tended to Desert Oasis’ bats as the Diamondbacks were able to amass 11 runs between the second and fourth innings, calling for an eventual mercy-run rule in the fifth inning.
The Trojans (4-3) struggled to amount more than five quality at-bats against the Desert Oasis’ starter, INF/RF MJ Hernandez.
The righty gave up four hits and one run (zero earned) over five innings of work, striking out four while mitigating any walks.
Pahrump Valley’s offense punched first in the bottom half of the first inning, but wouldn’t be able to strike a bite back on Hernandez’s day at the office.
Junior Cody Fried singled on a fly ball to centerfield scoring leadoff hitter junior Tony Whitney, who reached earlier on an error by the Diamondbacks senior shortstop Lincoln Guillermo.
Desert Oasis (10-2) quickly responded in the second inning.
After loading the bases with a walk and two singles, the Diamondbacks tied the game on a fielder’s choice and then surged ahead as freshman Sebastian Mansell and senior Lincoln Guillermo delivered RBI singles to give Desert Oasis a 4–1 advantage.
The Class 5A Desert League Diamondbacks broke the non-league contest open in the third.
Senior Aidan Smith sparked the rally with a two-out triple, and consecutive walks loaded the bases before Hernandez and Mansell each drove in runs with base hits, extending the lead to 7–1.
The Diamondbacks continued the offensive onslaught in the fourth inning. RBI singles from Ashton Kidd, Landon O’Dell, and Hernandez pushed the margin to 11–1.
Meanwhile Hernandez continued to keep the Trojans’ offense in check, allowing only a small handful of baserunners.
After the fourth inning, Desert Oasis’ defense and pitching closed the door.
The Diamondbacks retired the final several batters in order, including multiple strikeouts and routine outs, securing the 11-1 road victory.
While not the ideal pace of play the Trojans are used to keeping, the Trojans have an opportunity to regroup as they compete in a two-day tournament at Durango and Cimarron High School against Durango, Mater East Academy Las Vegas and Moapa Valley High School.
Contact Jacob Powers at jpowers@pvtimes.com. Follow @jaypowers__ on X.
