The Pahrump Valley High School Lady Trojans wrapped up play at the Colorado River Invitational in Needles, California on Saturday, Feb. 28, finishing the tournament with an impressive 5-1 record after splitting their final two games against the Tolleson Wolverines of Arizona and the Yuma Catholic Shamrocks.
Entering the final day of the tournament, the Lady Trojans had already built strong momentum and continued to showcase solid pitching, timely hitting and disciplined defense throughout two tightly contested matchups.
The day began with Pahrump Valley facing the Tolleson Wolverines, with Jaycie Hayes taking the circle for the Lady Trojans. Hayes set the tone immediately, striking out all three batters she faced as the Wolverines went three up, three down in the opening inning.
Pahrump Valley wasted little time generating offense in the bottom of the first. Aspen Middaugh led off with a single to shortstop before Autumn Colon followed with a bunt. The play resulted in an error by Tolleson’s first baseman, allowing Colon to reach safely and advance to second while Middaugh moved to third.
Hayes then delivered a hard ground ball single to right field that scored Middaugh for the game’s first run. Evalenne Armendariz followed with another RBI, sending a ground ball to left field that brought Colon home. Courtesy runner Sydney Crotty entered for Hayes and advanced to second on the play.
The inning ended on a line drive double play off the bat of Mariah Gray that resulted in Armendariz being doubled off first, followed by a groundout by Madison (Madi) Rodriguez, but the Trojans had already built a 2-0 lead.
Hayes continued to dominate from the circle. A fly out to Sadie Freeman in right field and two strikeouts kept the Wolverines off the bases in the second inning. Tolleson returned the favor in the bottom half, holding the Trojans scoreless.
The Wolverines again went three up, three down in the third inning with Hayes recording another strikeout and a groundout back to the pitcher.
Pahrump Valley threatened to add more runs in the bottom of the third. Colon delivered a double on a fly ball to left field and Hayes followed with a ground ball single to third. However, Tolleson’s defense came up with a key play when Colon attempted to steal home, with the center fielder firing a strong throw to the plate to record the out.
Armendariz later worked a walk, but a fielder’s choice and a pop out to the catcher ended the scoring opportunity.
The defensive battle continued through the fourth inning. Hayes struck out another batter and worked around a walk before finishing the inning with a pop out to shortstop. Tolleson’s defense again held firm in the bottom half as the Trojans were retired in order.
The Wolverines mounted their best chance in the top of the fifth after reaching base on an error and a single, but Hayes shut the rally down with a clutch strikeout that stranded two runners.
Pahrump Valley added an insurance run in the bottom of the inning. Colon opened with another double to left field and Hayes was hit by a pitch, bringing Crotty in again as the courtesy runner. After Armendariz flew out to right field, Colon tagged up and moved to third.
Gray delivered the key hit of the inning with a fly ball single to left field that scored Colon to extend the lead to 3-0. A line out by Madi Rodriguez and a fly out to right by Jaelyn Rodriguez ended the inning.
Tolleson had one final chance in the sixth inning, the longest game the Lady Trojans played during the tournament. Once again Hayes closed the door, recording another strikeout as the Wolverines were retired, sealing the 3-0 victory for Pahrump Valley.
Late Rally Falls Short Against Yuma Catholic
In their final game of the tournament, the Lady Trojans faced the Yuma Catholic Shamrocks from Yuma, Arizona.
Pahrump Valley opened the game with a single from Middaugh, but the Shamrocks’ defense held strong as a pair of strikeouts and a fly out to center ended the inning.
In the bottom of the first, Yuma Catholic took advantage of early opportunities. A single to the pitcher and an error allowed the runner to advance to second. Another error at first base put two runners aboard. After a pop out to shortstop, an aggressive baserunning play resulted in a steal of home to give the Shamrocks a 1-0 lead before the inning ended on a pop out and a groundout.
The Trojans were held scoreless in the second inning despite a solid single from Gray, as a pop out and a ground ball double play ended the frame.
Pahrump Valley’s defense responded with a clean inning in the bottom of the second. Hayes recorded a strikeout, followed by a fly out to right field and another strikeout to keep the Shamrocks from adding to their lead.
The Lady Trojans tied the game in the top of the third after capitalizing on defensive miscues by Yuma Catholic. Riley Saldaña was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and Sadie Freeman reached on an error by the pitcher while advancing to second on the play. Saldaña moved to third during the error.
After a strikeout by Middaugh, a wild pitch allowed Saldaña to score, evening the game at 1-1 before Colon struck out and Hayes grounded out to second base to end the inning.
Yuma Catholic quickly answered in the bottom half of the inning. After a groundout to start the frame, the Shamrocks doubled to right field and followed with a walk and a single to load the bases. A ground ball to the pitcher resulted in an error that allowed a run to score.
A highlight defensive play came moments later when Colon fielded a ground ball at second base and made a heads-up throw to catcher Madison Rodriguez to record an out at the plate.
Despite the effort, a fly ball single to center and an error allowed two more runs to cross the plate before a runner was caught stealing to end the inning with the Shamrocks leading 4-1.
The Lady Trojans responded in the fourth inning. Armendariz struck out looking before Gray and Madi Rodriguez were both hit by pitches. Jaelyn Rodriguez then delivered a hard ground ball single to left field to load the bases.
Saldaña struck out, but Dakota Glenn—batting in place of Freeman—came through with a line drive single to right field that scored Gray. Middaugh followed with a single to center to bring home another run and cut the deficit to 4-3 before Colon struck out to end the inning.
Pahrump Valley’s defense again held strong in the bottom of the fourth with a groundout to Middaugh at shortstop, a line out back to Hayes and a fly out to left fielder Myah Krolczyk.
In the top of the fifth, the Shamrocks held the Trojans scoreless with a fly out, a pop out in foul territory and a strikeout.
Yuma Catholic added one final run in the bottom of the inning after two singles and a fielder’s choice before Hayes recorded a strikeout. Time was then called, giving the Shamrocks a 5-3 win and ending the Lady Trojans’ run in the tournament.
The loss prevented Pahrump Valley from advancing to the championship game, but Head Coach Brian Hayes remained pleased with his team’s overall performance.
“Our coaching staff was happy with the way we played this weekend,” Hayes said. “If we had won our last game we would have played in the championship game. We felt like we were the best team there. Yuma Catholic outplayed us and had more clutch moments than we did. We are excited and have high expectations this season.”
The Lady Trojans finished the Colorado River Invitational with a strong 5-1 record, providing an encouraging start to the season as they look ahead to the rest of their schedule.
*Photos are from a different game this season.
