How did the Pahrump Valley baseball do against The Meadows?

There was dancing in the streets (and the dugout) as the Trojans got sweet revenge at home against The Meadows School last Monday.

After dropping game one of the split doubleheader on the road, Pahrump Valley made sure to send the home fans in attendance who packed the bleachers with something to talk about in the 8-3 league victory.

Andrew Zurn was the Mustangs’ kryptonite as the Trojans (20-7-1-, 7-1) senior hurled a complete game. In seven innings of work, the senior only gave up five hits, three earned runs, and one walk while accumulating five strikeouts. Of Zurn’s 92 pitches thrown, 63 were called for strikes.

“I just kind of trusted my defense and let them work. I was trying to go after each batter and put the ball in play,” Zurn said. “I was really getting ahead the whole day and just staying away from their barrel living away, living high and living low.”

Following the end of Zurn’s sixth inning of work, coach Roy Uyeno asked Zurn from the dugout if his arm felt fine enough to go one more.

Zurn’s response?

“I told coach I felt great and had all the confidence in the world. I knew they weren’t going to hit me, so I told him I was good,” Zurn said.

The Trojans would post the first run of the game in the bottom of the second following Aidyn Cratty’s wheels as the senior was able to score on a botched pick-off attempt from first base.

A leadoff triple in the top half of the third inning by the Mustangs (15-12, 9-2) junior Carson Rinetti and a past ball that skirted away from sophomore Benny Cimperman allowed the Mustangs to tie the contest 1-1.

Responding quickly in the bottom of the inning, the Trojans scraped together three runs following a sharp single to left field from junior Vinny Whitney that scored sophomores Aaron Rily and Cody Fried. Vinny later came around to score following an error by Mustangs catcher Connor McGill to extend the Trojans lead to 4-1.

The Mustangs got their only other runs of the contest to pull within one in the top of the fourth inning. Errors committed by sophomore Tony Whitney at second base and Cratty at shortstop allowed two to cross on extra outs given away.

Despite the errors, the Trojans turned two clean double plays in the contest: one in which Zurn had a diving catch and back-pick to third for an unconventional 1-5-0 double play.

Knowing a one-run lead wasn’t enough for The Meadows, the Trojans offense showed out for its fans in the bottom of the fifth inning.

The fiesta began when Tony Whitney singled hard on a line drive to right field and his brother Vinny being plunked the next at bat. Zurn would later single on a hard ground ball to center scoring the Whitney brothers.

After subbing Zurn out for courtesy runner Dominik Wilson, Cratty put a dagger in the Mustangs, launching his third home run of the year over the left field wall to extend the Trojans to lead 8-3.

“I was expecting the curve. He left it hanging this time and I was up in the front of the box. I knew what I had to do, and I had the right swing,” Cratty said. “It was honestly exactly what we needed for the team to get the little morale boost we needed. I really didn’t want to pitch today and Andrew saved me with that performance.”

With two games remaining on the regular season schedule, the Trojans are looking to bolster their second program championship as they head into the Class 3A Southern Region Playoffs starting May 5th.

Contact Jacob Powers at jpowers@reviewjournal.com. Follow @jaypowers__ on X.