LAS VEGAS — The Churchill County Greenwave pitcher, Kayla Buckmaster, stymied the Trojans’ hitting for two games at the Class 3A Southern Nevada State Softball Tournament at Faith Lutheran High School May 18-20. The Fallon-based team eliminated Pahrump Valley from the tournament on the second day.
“We were crowding the plate,” Trojans coach Eli Armendariz said. Also, Trojans hitters hit at least seven to eight flyballs during that game.
Game 1
Buckmaster’s great pitching gave Pahrump Valley their first loss of the tournament, 10-3 on May 18 to the Greenwave. Churchill County led early in the game, 1-0 after the second inning and by the third inning they had five unanswered runs.
After three scoreless innings, the Lady Trojans attempted to make a comeback.
The Trojans put two runners on board and Jill Smith then blasted a double to centerfield, scoring two runs. Skyler Lauver would then come up and single Smith home for the Trojans’ only runs of the game.
Buckmaster struck out seven Trojans batters in their first meeting.
Game 2
Faced with elimination on the second day, the team had to keep winning to keep playing in the double-elimination tournament.
They played two games on May 19. In their first game of the two, they played the Moapa Valley Pirates, the team that beat them twice at the regional tournament and upset Pahrump to take the regional title.
This gave the Trojans an opportunity for revenge and they seized the day.
“The team wanted them to know who should have won that regional title,” Armendariz said.
Pahrump took out their hitting frustrations on the Moapa Valley Pirates with 17 runs on 15 hits for the 17-6 win over the Pirates. Skyler Lauver and Terrena Martin both had three hits, while Jessica Pearson and Jordan Egan each had two hits.
This set up a rematch with Churchill County on the same day.
Game 3
The Greenwave had lost their second game to the second-seeded Fernley Vaqueros, 5-4 and this gave Pahrump a chance to eliminate them.
In the second game of the day, Trojans pitcher, Krista Toomer, held the Greenwave scoreless through four innings. In the bottom of the fifth inning, the Greenwave broke the tie and scored five runs.
Churchill County’s Buckmaster continued to pitch well against the Trojans and held them scoreless until the last inning.
Pahrump finally broke through in the seventh, Lauver had an RBI single followed by an RBI double by Egan. The Trojans had two runs with the bases loaded and two outs. Jackie Stobbe singled home Lauver for the last run, but that was the end. A Trojans runner was thrown out at home plate to end the game.
The regional and state tournaments were like a mini-season for the Trojans, playing eight games in the two-week period, going 4-4.
For Armendariz, there was no doubt the season was a good one.
“We had a very good season,” he said. “I just wish the league was stronger and more competitive. Barring any injuries, we should have a great year next year, with the majority of the team being freshmen and sophomores.”
Contact sports editor Vern Hee at vhee@pvtimes.com