RENO — The Palo Verde softball team is still perfect, and now Centennial gets another chance to take down the Panthers — this time with a berth in the state title game on the line.
Palo Verde, the Southern Region champion, started off its third consecutive appearance in the Class 5A state tournament with an impressive 10-1 win over Reed, the North’s No. 2 seed, on Thursday at UNR’s Hixson Park. Centennial, the South’s No. 2 seed, defeated Northern champion Spanish Springs 9-3 in the opening game.
Palo Verde (23-0) and Centennial (19-13) will play in a winners’ bracket state semifinal at 12:30 p.m. Friday with a spot in Saturday’s state title game at stake.
Spanish Springs (25-12-1) will play Reed (28-8-1) in an elimination game at 10 a.m. Friday. The winner of that game will play the loser of Palo Verde-Centennial in another elimination game later Friday.
Palo Verde junior pitcher Ava Koenig threw a one-hitter with nine strikeouts, and senior Mya Bartlett hit a grand slam in the sixth inning to cap the win.
“I was kind of struggling at the beginning of the game, made that mental switch and just pounded the ball,” said Bartlett, who finished with a team-high five RBIs.
Koenig and the Panthers did trail briefly. She walked a pair of Raiders in the top of the first, one of whom came around to score on a stolen base and an error.
In the bottom half of the first, senior Paige Brandes singled to score a run, and an error allowed junior Taylor Johns to come around and score as well, giving Palo Verde a 2-1 lead.
The Panthers added to their lead on a two-run triple from sophomore Alexis Kearnes before Koenig helped herself out with an RBI double to left to put Palo Verde up 5-1 after one.
“We just got to hit tomorrow, and I think play defense the same way we have all year,” Koenig said.
Bulldogs attack
Centennial jumped on Spanish Springs with four runs in the first two innings.
Sophomore Sloane Merrell went 4-for-4 with a walk, two RBIs and a run scored, and senior Lily Fournier struck out 11 in a complete-game victory. All three Spanish Springs runs were unearned.
“We’ve come to expect it,” Centennial coach Mike Livreri said. “We expect Lily to pitch a great game, give us a chance in every game, and she’s done that for us all throughout the season.”
In the top of the first, Campbell Cole and Hailey Smith each recorded an RBI to give the Bulldogs a 2-0 lead. Cole had an RBI groundout, while Smith drove in Abigail Estrada, who doubled off the left-center-field wall.
Merell had an RBI single in the second, and Estrada followed with a bases-loaded walk to give the Bulldogs a 4-0 lead.
In the seventh inning, Leeah Ibarra smacked a three-run double that short-hopped the left-center fence to give the Bulldogs a 7-1 lead.
“That was huge,” Livreri said. “She cashed those in, and it’s nice to have some breathing room in the seventh.”
Palo Verde has beaten Centennial four times this season, but two were by 1-0 margins.
