3A STATE: Surprising Horlacher sends Bulldogs into winners’ bracket final

RENO — Zach Horlacher wasn't the obvious choice to start Virgin Valley's first game of the Class 3A state baseball tournament.

 

Bothered by a sore shoulder for much of the season, the senior right-hander had tossed only 8 1/3 innings before Thursday's start.

 

But he nearly matched that in the first round.

 

Horlacher fired a four-hitter and struck out eight to lead the Bulldogs past Dayton, 8-4, in the state opener at Wooster High School. Virgin Valley (23-8) will meet Truckee, a 6-5 winner over Spring Creek, in the winners' bracket final Friday at 1 p.m.

 

"He's been one of our best pitchers the past two years, and we just decided coming into this that if he could get us the first game, it would be big for us," Virgin Valley coach Boyd Wittwer said of Horlacher. "It was a great effort on his part."

 

Horlacher gave up hits to two of the game's first three batters, but didn't surrender another until the seventh inning.

 

He hadn't pitched in a game in three weeks, and that was only a 1 1/3-inning effort.

 

"It's been a while since I've pitched, but once you get the rhythm, it just comes naturally," said Horlacher, who threw 71 of 124 pitches for strikes. "I didn't think I'd be able to go the whole game, though."

 

Virgin Valley broke the game open with five unearned runs — all with two outs — in the fourth inning.

 

Each of the Bulldogs' eight runs was unearned, as the Dust Devils (15-14) committed five errors.

 

"When they made a mistake, we made them pay," Wittwer said."We did a good job of that."

 

Dayton pitcher Conner Oliver easily retired the first two Bulldogs in the bottom of the fourth before three singles, two walks, a hit batsman and two costly errors allowed Virgin Valley to take a 6-1 lead.

 

The Dust Devils responded with two unearned runs on a misplayed fly ball in the top of the fifth, but the Bulldogs cashed in on two more Dayton errors in the sixth to add two insurance runs.

 

"It started getting in their heads, and we had to take advantage of it," said Horlacher, who also scored two runs.

 

Tanner Tichenor went 2-for-4 with a pair of two-out RBI singles for Virgin Valley, which had only six hits, but benefited from six walks and the generous Dayton defense.

 

"You're always looking for perfection," Wittwer said. "This is close enough."