Gorman sweats out victory

Bishop Gorman's American Legion baseball team cruised through seven innings Thursday at the state tournament. Then things got interesting.

The Gaels held off a late Durango rally to defeat the Trailblazers 9-7 at UNLV's Wilson Stadium to move into Saturday's championship game.

"Maybe it's focus, but we just haven't been able to throw strikes late and made it interesting for ourselves," Gorman coach Chris Sheff said. "But luckily we had a cushion to play with."

The Gaels (54-20) play Coronado (20-9) at 7:30 p.m. Saturday for the title and a spot in the Western Regional in Kearns, Utah.

Gorman led 9-2 after seven innings, but two relievers failed to shut the door before the Gaels turned to ace Donn Roach, who got the final two outs.

Roach, who started and earned a win in Gorman's first tournament game, was preparing for a start in Saturday's title game when things got close, and Sheff decided to use him in relief.

"He was throwing a bullpen (session) anyway setting up for Saturday," Sheff said. "We figured as long as it was a quick couple outs for him that we'd be OK."

The Gaels had 10 hits in the first three innings, taking a 6-1 lead. But Gorman failed to capitalize on other chances, leaving 11 runners on base.

"We stress all the time that you've got to execute," Sheff said. "And instead of it being a 9-2 game, it could have been something more, and then things get interesting because we can't pitch."

Johnny Field got the Gaels going with a two-run homer to key a three-run second. Gorman added three more runs in the third, keyed by Taylor Cole's two-run single.

The Gaels had 18 hits, with six players recording at least two, including Cole, who was making his first start on defense in the tournament. An all-state shortstop during the high school season, Cole has played sparingly this summer.

"We weren't sure if we were going to use him, but since he's here it seems ridiculous not to use him," Sheff said. "He's mainly out here to pitch."

Jeff Malm and Paul Sewald each had three hits for Gorman. Sewald also had a strong start on the mound, allowing one earned run on four hits in seven innings.

Brad Johnson was 2-for-5 with a three-run triple in the ninth to lead Durango, which finished 40-36.

• Coronado 10, Silverado 6 -- Andrew Gans singled home Josh Bryan with two outs in the bottom of the seventh to break a 6-6 tie and help the Cougars oust the Skyhawks.

Coronado added three runs in the eighth on an RBI double by Donnie Ladao and a two-run single by Brandon Evans.

Javy Perez (9-1) came on to pitch in the seventh with the score tied 6-6 and shut down the Skyhawks for his third win of the tournament. He retired all seven batters he faced.

The Cougars took advantage of Silverado's pitching wildness early, scoring six runs in the first two innings on five walks and five wild pitches. Josh Bryan's towering two-run homer to left made it 6-2.

Bryan and Evans each went 2-for-4 with two RBIs to lead the Cougars, who had 10 hits.

Adam Koglin was 2-for-3 with three RBIs for Silverado, which finished 19-16.