Legacy Longhorns Rally in Sixth Inning, Top Pahrump Valley Trojans 9-4

Pahrump Valley's Trojans had everything going their way through the middle innings on March 10, carrying a 4-1 lead against Legacy and finishing the game with 11 total base hits. None of it was enough. Mental errors in the fifth inning let the Longhorns tie the game, and a five-run bottom of the sixth buried Pahrump Valley 9-4 in a non-league contest at Legacy.

Head coach Drew Middleton did not mince words afterward. "It was just like the Rod Poteete Memorial tournament championship game against Douglas," Middleton said. "We let a 4-1 lead slip in the fifth by errors and made too many mental errors to win."

The collapse came despite genuine competitive baseball from Pahrump early on. In the second inning, the Trojans loaded the bases after Cody Fried led off with a sharp single to left field, Jack Walker added a single on a fly ball to center, and Dominic Chiancone delivered another single after Anthony Montanez struck out. Legacy escaped when Jacob Selbach's fly ball to third ended the threat with the score still tied. Pahrump's defense then held in the bottom half, with Chiancone recording a groundout and a strikeout from Mendoza helping strand a pair of Legacy singles.

The game stayed competitive until the Trojans built their 4-1 advantage, at which point errors began compounding. Legacy tied the game at four in the fifth, then detonated for five runs in the sixth to put the contest away.

Olvin Espinoza made the Trojans pay on both sides of the ball. The Legacy pitcher worked six innings without allowing a single earned run while striking out seven, extending a streak in which he has not thrown fewer than seven strikeouts in three consecutive appearances. At the plate he went 2-for-4 with two runs, two RBI, and a double, with those two runs setting a new career high for him.

Elijah Thompson matched Espinoza's offensive productivity with a perfect 4-for-4 afternoon that included two RBI, one run, and a double, a performance that set a new career high in hits for the Pahrump Valley senior. Tyson Lake contributed a home run and two runs on a 1-for-3 line, while Hunter Campbell picked up his first stolen base of the season.

Legacy entered the game having won three of its last four and surrendering just 3.3 runs per game on average over that stretch. The Longhorns' record now stands at 7-4 on the season, while Pahrump Valley falls to 5-2.

Both teams return to action this week. Legacy hosts Southeast Career Tech on Wednesday at 3:30 p.m., while the Trojans welcome Desert Oasis to Pahrump on Saturday at 11:00 a.m.