The Desert Oasis Aces got an outstanding pitching performance from Izzy Gutierrez in the opening round of the American Legion Western Regional on Wednesday.
Josh Sharman and Dustin Mansell topped Gutierrez on Thursday.
Sharman and Mansell combined on a four-hitter to lead the Desert Oasis Aces to an 8-0 win over Greeley (Colorado) in the American Legion Western Regional in Denver.
Sharman allowed two hits and struck out six over four innings to get the win. He also picked off two runners, and Desert Oasis was able to lift him after throwing only 57 pitches.
“Sharman was phenomenal,” Desert Oasis coach Paul Buboltz said. “We were fortunate enough to be able to pull him below 60 pitches, which allows him to be able to come back Sunday.”
Mansell struck out two in three scoreless innings to pick up a save. Gutierrez allowed one earned run in 6⅔ innings on Wednesday.
The Aces took control with a three-run third inning highlighted by a two-out, two-run triple by Parker Schmidt.
“That was a huge hit with two outs,” Buboltz said.
Desert Oasis pulled away with a four-run fifth. Schmidt had an RBI double, Zach Czerniawski had a sacrifice fly and the Aces scored two runs on an error in the inning.
Czerniawski added an RBI double in the seventh for the final margin.
Desert Oasis, which moved to 2-0 in the tournament and will play League City (Texas) at 6 p.m. on Friday.
“It feels good to be 2-0, but tomorrow’s another big game fo rus,” Buboltz said. “If we get a win tomorrow, we’re in the championship game for sure, so tomorrow’s a huge game for us.”
American Legion Western Regional
At Denver
Wednesday’s Results
League City (Texas) 6, Albuquerque (N.M.) 2
Desert Oasis 3, Petaluma (Calif.) 2
Fort Collins (Colo.) 5, Tucson (Ariz.) 3
Greeley (Colo.) 2, Pleasant Grove (Utah) 0
Thursday’s Results
Tucson (Ariz.) 19, Albuquerque (N.M.) 2
Petaluma (Calif.) 5, Pleasant Grove (Utah) 2
League City (Texas) 5, Fort Collins (Colo.) 3
Desert Oasis 8, Greeley (Colo.) 0
Friday’s Games
Game 9 — Petaluma (Calif.) vs. Fort Collins (Colo.), 11 a.m.
Game 10 — Tucson (Ariz.) vs. Greeley (Colo.), 2:30 p.m.
Game 11 — League City (Texas) vs. Desert Oasis, 6 p.m.
Saturday’s Games
Game 12 — Winner Game 9 vs. Loser Game 11, 2 p.m.
Game 13 — Winner Game 10 vs. Winner Game 11, 6 p.m.
Sunday’s Games
Game 14 — Winner Game 12 vs. Winner Game 13, 11 a.m.
Game 15 — Winner Game 14 vs. Loser Game 14, if necessary, 2:30 p.m.
