Gorman ready for state tournament

Bishop Gorman won its third consecutive state high school baseball title in May with a cast of familiar faces.

But even with several of those veterans not playing this summer, and others offering sporadic support, the Gaels haven't missed a beat.

Gorman, the two defending champion, enters today's American Legion state tournament with a 61-7-1 record and the event's top seed.

Gorman, which went 22-2 in league play this summer, will play eighth-seeded Silverado (10-14 in league) at 8 p.m. today at UNLV's Wilson Stadium. Fifth-seeded Las Vegas (14-10) will play No. 4 seed Centennial (15-9) at 5.

On Sunday, sixth-seeded Reno will play No. 3 seed Coronado (18-6) at 5 p.m., with seventh-seeded Green Valley (13-11) playing No. 2 seed Sierra Vista (20-4) at 8.

The tournament, which features two four-team, double-elimination brackets, continues through Saturday, with a single championship game scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

The Gaels might be even tougher at state with several of those familiar faces ready to give the team a boost in the tournament.

Jeff Malm, the Southern Nevada Player of the Year during the high school season, is expected to be back for Gorman's second game after completing play for the USA Baseball 18U National Team.

Malm, who hit .586 with eight home runs and 69 RBIs this summer in 35 games, will bolster the lineup.

But Gorman will get the most help on the mound. Along with Malm, who was 8-0 this summer, the Gaels expect to have Stephen Manthei, Donn Roach and Paul Sewald ready. Those three combined for just 30 innings this summer but were key cogs during the school year.

"It helps our pitching staff tremendously," Gorman coach Chris Sheff said. "Our lineup is pretty set. Malm comes back and solidifies our middle. On our offensive side, we've got some young guys, but they've produced all year. That'll pretty much stay the same. Predominantly we bring back our older guys to help on the mound."

With Malm missing time, Joey Rickard and Johnny Field have picked up the slack offensively.

Rickard, a first-team all-stater during the high school season, picked up where he left off, batting .452 with 17 homers, 75 RBIs and 107 runs from the leadoff spot.

Field moved into the No. 3 hole to replace Malm and has responded by hitting .413 with 19 homers, 99 RBIs and 81 runs.

"Joey Rickard and John Field have had large summers, and that's helped us with Malm gone a lot," Sheff said. "And they've had power numbers, too, which has been impressive.

"It's been pretty special to watch those two guys play."

Also helping has been junior-to-be Matt Hall, who played sparingly during the high school season. He hit .455 with 94 runs from the No. 2 spot in the order and went 10-0 with two saves and a 2.64 ERA.

Contact Prep Sports Editor Damon Seiters at dseiters@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4587.