Pahrump Valley High School recognizes 2018-19 champions

The banners marking Pahrump Valley High School athletic championships look a little more crowded after Monday night.

The 10 teams that won titles of some kind during the 2018-19 school year were recognized in the school gym, with the five boys teams introduced during halftime of the girls basketball game and the five girls teams taking their turn at halftime of the boys basketball game.

Tops on the list was the softball team, which captured the Class 3A state championship for the first time in 14 years in May. The Trojans (30-11) went 10-0 to claim the Sunset League title, then defeated Virgin Valley, Boulder City and Moapa Valley (twice) to claim the 3A Southern Region title, outscoring their opponents 39-14 in the process.

They moved on to the 3A State Tournament, where they had lost their previous six games to Northern Nevada schools.

Although they were challenged, they won three consecutive games over Lowry (6-5), Fernley (7-3) and Fernley again (13-10) on Kaden Cable’s game-ending home run to win the state title in Cassondra Lauver’s first year as head coach.

The girls soccer and girls golf teams each won league and region titles. In soccer, the Trojans (15-5-2) went 7-1 to share the 2018 Sunset League title with Western, but, after splitting two games with the Warriors during the regular season, the Trojans edged their rivals in the 3A Southern Region final on a late goal by Makayla Gent.

The Trojans girls golfers claimed the 2018 region title by three strokes over Boulder City, as Breanne Nygaard (153), Makalea Petrie (171), Jessica Pearson (198) and Anastassia Furman (207) each finished in the top 10 in Mesquite. The Trojans went on to place second in the 3A State Tournament in Truckee, California, six shots behind the Eagles. Nygaard shot 161 to finish third, with Petrie in ninth at 184.

Seven Pahrump Valley teams — football, baseball, wrestling, boys golf, boys cross country, girls volleyball and girls basketball — were recognized for winning Sunset League championships.

The football team had a memorable 2018, going 5-0 in the Sunset to capture its first league title since 2005. The Trojans (7-4) went on to snap an 11-game, 40-year playoff losing streak, defeating Boulder City in the second round of the playoffs to reach the 3A state semifinals.

In baseball, the Trojans won their third consecutive Sunset League title, with only a 6-4 loss to Del Sol getting in the way of a 10-game sweep. Pahrump Valley (26-10) won three games in the 3A Southern Region Tournament before falling to Moapa Valley one game short of the region final.

The wrestling team had some drama in its quest for a second consecutive Sunset League title, spotting Western 29 points on Senior Night in Pahrump. In desperate need of bonus points, the Trojans saw their seniors — Isaak Cruz, Dylan Grossell and Tristan Maughan — each record a pin and, combined with forfeits they knew were coming, the Trojans had another league crown sewn up.

The boys golf team, like the girls, had little competition for the Sunset League title. The Trojans went on to place second in the region as Koby Lindberg (168) and Kasey Dilger (173) recorded top-10 finishes. The Trojans finished the spring by placing third at the 3A State Tournament in Genoa behind Truckee and Boulder City.

Girls volleyball (17-12) shared the Sunset League title with Mojave as each went 11-1 to dominate the rest of the group. The Trojans then defeated Somerset Sky Pointe 3-1 in the 3A Southern Region Tournament before falling to Boulder City to end the season.

Finally, the girls basketball team used its suffocating defense to go 21-13 overall, 9-1 in the Sunset to edge Mojave by a game to defend its league title. The Trojans then rolled to a 47-26 win over Virgin Valley in the 3A Southern Region Tournament before falling in an ugly 29-24 affair to host Moapa Valley.

Pahrump Valley has begun adding to its banners for next year’s ceremony, as the girls soccer and girls golf teams already have captured titles this year.