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March 28, 2024 2:19 pm
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Pirate Girls End Season In 2 State Tournament Games

By DAVE BELCHER

Moapa Valley Progress

Pirate catcher Kessa Evans makes a catch during a second round state championship tournament game against Pahrump Valley played on Friday. PHOTO COURTESY OF NIKKI STAHELI.

Last week the Moapa Valley High School Softball team travelled into Las Vegas where they participated in the NIAA State Tournament. It was the first time the Pirate team had competed at State since 2001.
The Moapa team has never won a state championship in softball. But they were facing three other teams in the tournament who had won eleven of the past 14 state championships. Pahrump Valley has won three: 2003, 2004 and 2005. Fernley, the Pirates first round opponent, has won four state titles: 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2013. Churchill County has won a total of six state championships; four of them in the last six years including 2011, 2012, 2014 and 2015. Boulder City won it all in 2010 and Lowry won State in 2006.

Last year’s state champion, Spring Valley, is now in the 4A.
The first seed this year belonged to Churchill County (Fallon) who was undefeated this season with 24-0 in league play.

In the first game of the State tournament, Moapa Valley faced second seed Fernley on Thursday night. Fernley had almost beaten Fallon in the regional title game last week, 3-2.
Moapa Valley had beaten Pahrump Valley playing from the loser’s bracket and needed to beat the Trojans twice for the region title. They did that and became the #1 seed from the south going into the State Tournament.

In the first state game against Fernley, the Pirate bats were controlled by pitcher McKenna Montgomery who scattered just four Pirate hits throughout the game, never more than one hit in an inning.
Pirate junior Kessa Evans and sophomore Emilie Barraza each hit doubles while sophomore Lainey Cornwall and senior Daesha Stastny each singled. These were the only hits of the game for the Pirates.
“They are very athletic,” said Matt Messer of the Fernley team. “They took advantage of every little mistake we made; even when we held the ball too long they took a base.”

Fernley scored two runs in the first inning and two more in the second inning. Single runs in both of the fourth and fifth gave the Vaqueros a 6-0 lead headed into the sixth.
In the top of the sixth Fernley scored five more runs and then held the Pirates scoreless again to end the game after six innings with an 11-0 win. Montgomery finished with just two walks and seven strikeouts.
Barraza was the losing pitcher for the Pirates. She allowed all 11 runs on 15 Vaquero hits. She hit 4 batters, walked one and struck out 3.

Hailie Edgar was the leading force for the Vaqueros with four hits in four at-bats. She scored three RBI’s and scored 3 times herself.
Fernley had only one extra base hit in the game a double by Montgomery who finished 2-4. Brooke Chapin was 2-3 with 3 RBI’s while Macie Kirk finished with one hit and 3 RBI’s.

The Pirates were moved into the loser’s bracket of the double elimination tournament. There they played Pahrump Valley again. The Trojan team was ready for revenge against the rival Pirates.
Moapa Valley would only get six hits in the game costing them a 17-6 loss in the season ending game.

The began by looking like another tight, exciting game. Pahrump Valley scored the first run in the first inning followed by a run by Moapa Valley in the bottom half of the first inning. Neither team scored in the second inning, keeping the score tied to start the top of the third inning.

Then Pahrump’s bats awoke suddenly, as they scored six runs. The game was far from clean for the Pirates as Moapa Valley would commit six errors during the game.
But Pahrump was even worse committing 8 errors themselves and allowing Moapa to keep the game close in the third inning. The Pirates scored 4 runs and trailed by just two runs.
Pahrump Valley wasn’t finished, though. They scored four more runs in the fifth inning and then added six more in the sixth. The Trojans held a tired Pirate team scoreless in the bottom of the sixth to end the game in six innings.

Pahrump Valley finished with 15 hits sending them to the semi-final game against Fallon who was beaten for the first time by a 3A team for the first time this year.

Moapa Valley finished with a 22-13 record.

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