Faith Lutheran makes new memory

Faith Lutheran's baseball team won the Class 3A state title two years ago, but a disappointing finish last season made the memory seem distant.

The Crusaders won the regular-season 3A Southern League crown in 2008, only to go 0-2 in the league playoffs and miss the state tournament.

That early exit provided extra incentive that Faith Lutheran has ridden back to state.

The second-seeded Crusaders jumped to a five-run lead and held on for a 7-6 home win over third-seeded Moapa Valley on Saturday to clinch a best-of-3 league playoff series, 2-0. The win assured Faith Lutheran a spot in this week's four-team state tournament.

"It feels good," Crusaders senior shortstop/pitcher Terry Unruh said. "... I'm excited to try to win a title on our home field again."

Faith Lutheran (13-20) hosts the state tournament, which it will open at 3 p.m. Thursday against Spring Creek.

"We're getting hot at the right time," said Faith Lutheran coach Tony Girod, whose team will be gunning for its third 3A state title in five years.

The Pirates (14-18) scored four runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to pull within 7-6. But Unruh struck out two of the three batters he faced in the seventh to get the save and end Moapa Valley's season with seven straight losses.

"We were swinging right down to the very end," said Moapa Valley coach Matt Messer, whose team dropped the series opener 13-3 Friday.

Alex Barnes tossed five innings to get the win, allowing four runs on three hits and three walks. He struck out three.

Bobby Burns (two doubles, three RBIs) and Adam Finlayson (two runs) both went 4-for-5 for Faith Lutheran. Unruh and Barnes had two hits each.

Kevin Cardinal was 2-for-3 with a double for Moapa Valley. Dallin Seely went 1-for-4 with a double and three RBIs, and Matt Vallet was 1-for-3 with two RBIs for the Pirates.

• Virgin Valley 6-7, Boulder City 7-2 -- At Mesquite, Brandt Eaton went 2-for-3 with a two-run homer in the nightcap as top-seeded Virgin Valley (25-7) advanced past Boulder City (10-20) in a best-of-3 Class 3A Southern League series.

Jason Wittwer went 2-for-2, and Travis Leavitt and Terran Leavitt each 2-for-4 for the Bulldogs, who will meet Truckee (Calif.) in the first round of the state tournament Friday at Faith Lutheran.

In the opener, Cole Stubitz went 3-for-4 with a home run and drove in the decisive run with a sixth-inning double.

Wittwer was 3-for-4 with two triples and a double.

• Lake Mead 20, Indian Springs 19 -- At Alamo, Deven Serrano's one-out double scored D.J. Johnson and capped a three-run bottom of the seventh inning by Lake Mead (19-8) in the Class 1A Southern Region tournament title game.

Johnson (five RBIs) and Josh Bratton had three hits each for Lake Mead. Johnson had a three-run homer and Drew Erickson a two-run shot.

Patrick McClain had three hits, and Nick Vandever was 2-for-5 with a homer and three RBIs for Indian Springs (18-6).

Both teams will open the state tournament Thursday at Arbor View.

• The Meadows 9, Needles 6 -- At Needles, Calif., The Meadows (17-8) rebounded from a 13-7 loss to Needles earlier in the day to capture the Class 2A Southern League tournament over host Needles (21-6).