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Baseball and Softball Players Make All-Southern Teams

By GANNON HANEVOLD

Moapa Valley Progress

MVHS pitcher Chase Hadley was one of two Pirate players named to the NIAA All State First Team in baseball. The other was Coby Longman.

The Moapa Valley High School baseball and softball teams both booked a trip to the state tournament in 2019 and finished at the top of their division in the regular season. With that success, the Pirates placed themselves on the radar when it comes to contenders on the diamond. With that team success, Moapa players saw adjacent individual honors come in not long after the season concluded. Many athletes were recognized as All-Southern Region or All-State players: Nevada’s best of the best in the 3A.

On the baseball side, Hunter Wrzesinski, Rylan Evans, and Luke Bennett were named to the All-Southern Region Second Team.

As a senior, Bennett cited the very immediate bond he and the team were able to form with Head Coach Justin Williams as one of the reasons for his success. Williams assumed coaching duties in the middle of the season this year and was named All-Southern Region Coach of the Year.

“It felt very rewarding,” Bennett said. “To overcome all of the coaching changes we’ve been through, it’s been kind of tough to dig down and connect with one. But with Coach Williams, bonds formed quickly.”

Starting pitcher Emilie Barraza was selected for the NIAA All State First Team in softball. The other Pirate player selected for this honor was Lainey Cornwall.

Meanwhile, seniors Coby Longman, Chase Hadley, and Payton McDermott were named to the All-South First Team, and received state honors as well. McDermott made the All-State Second Team while Longman and Hadley were named to the All-State First Team (the highest honor in the 3A).

“It was pretty awesome to get that,” McDermott said. “I have worked harder each year to reach my best and I’ve had amazing teammates to help me know everything about the game.”

Hadley described his approach to the game of baseball. “It was nice to see all the time and effort pay off,” he explained, “The best baseball players in the world fail seventy percent of the time, so you have to be able to rebound and learn from failure. Treat every moment like Game 7 of the World Series.”

Meanwhile, Moapa Valley’s softball players were cited as some of the best in the state as well. Abbie Evans, the team’s leader in home runs this season, was named to the All-Southern Region Second Team, while Lainey Cornwall, Kaitlyn Anderson, and Emilie Barraza, made the All-Southern Region First Team.

Barraza and Cornwall reached the pinnacle of Nevada softball when it comes to individual performance by being named to the All-State First Team, while Anderson was not far behind on the All-State Second Team.
“I’m so honored to receive this award and thrilled to know that my work was recognized,” Barraza said.

Cornwall echoed a similar tone of humility. “It was exciting to me that as a team we were able to go to state and compete better than we have in the past,” the senior third baseman explained.

Barraza, a two-year starter on the mound, has always been a diehard fan of college softball. She recognized the impact that has had on her passion for the game.

“The energy and intensity college players play with is infectious and it makes me want to be a better teammate and work harder,” she said.

Meanwhile, as to the key to softball success, Barraza said, “The most important step for me was deciding I wanted to give softball my all.”

These incredible athletes gave the game their all, no matter the field; and they left a legacy on Moapa Valley athletics.

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