Desert Region: Diamondbacks rout Basic in winner-take-all final
Held without an extra base hit in the first game against Basic, Desert Oasis’ baseball team came to life when it mattered most Friday.
The host Diamondbacks hit four home runs and breezed to an 18-0 victory over Basic to win the Desert Region Tournament. Desert Oasis (30-7) was the lone undefeated team in the tournament entering Friday and needed the cushion after a 2-1 loss to the Wolves in the first game.
Both teams advance to next week’s Class 4A state tourney, but Desert Oasis looks to add more hardware when it faces Mountain Region champion Las Vegas (27-8) in the Southern Nevada Championship game at noon Saturday at Bishop Gorman.
“Now that’s our offense,” said Desert Oasis coach Paul Buboltz, whose team got homers from Colby Smith, Aaron Roberts, Campbell Holt and D.J. Jefferson. “I’m so happy for this senior class, this is something they have worked their entire career to grab. It’s been an emoti0nal few days and I just think we came out flat in the first game.”
Basic’s Daniel Clayton stopped the high-powered Diamondback offense, allowing just a Colton Zobrist RBI single in the second inning of first game.
But the Diamondbacks jumped on freshman Colin Hushaw for three runs in the top of the first of the decisive contest. Smith’s two-run shot over the left field wall was the big blow.
Smith, who drove in four runs and scored four times, added an RBI single in the second as part of a two-run second inning, pushing the Desert Oasis lead to 5-0.
Roberts belted a three-run homer in the third, and Holt followed with a blast to make it 9-0.
Desert Oasis lefty Josh Sharman stopped the Wolves (29-6-1) on three hits, all singles. Basic, which had to finish Thursday’s suspended game against Liberty before meeting Desert Oasis, had hits from Demetrius Vigil, Zach Hose and Dominik Tavares.
“This is a great feeling, going to state,” said Buboltz. “But we have baseball still to play this weekend.”
Basic 2, Desert Oasis 1 — In the opener of the regional final twinbill, Hunter Katschke’s sacrifice fly in the top of the sixth was the difference as the Wolves won for the second time Friday.
Dalton Miller had the other RBI for Basic, with a one-out single that brought home Tavares.
Basic 8, Liberty 7 — At Desert Oasis, Hose’s sacrifice fly with one out in the bottom of the ninth plated Kyle Turner with the winning run as the Wolves edged the Patriots in the losers’ bracket final.
Turner singled with one out, stole second ahead of a walk to Katschke and stole third ahead of a walk to Demetrius Vigil. Hose followed with a fly ball to left deep enough to plate Turner.
Turner was 3-for-5 with two runs, and Hose was 3-for-4 with two runs for Basic.
Logan Meusy was 2-for-4 with three runs and three RBIs for Liberty (22-10-1).
