There aren’t many high school sports in Southern Nevada with parity quite like Class 5A baseball.
That’s why both leagues had ties for first place at the end of the regular season.
The high school baseball playoffs begin Monday with 5A and 3A Southern Region opening-round games. The 4A state tournament begins Wednesday.
The 5A playoffs were wide open last year with Bishop Gorman and Basic out of the postseason. Things appear to be even more wide open this year with both teams back in the playoff field.
Here’s a breakdown of how the playoffs shape up:
Class 5A
League champions: Bishop Gorman (Desert), Palo Verde (Mountain)
Co-favorites: Palo Verde and Basic
Palo Verde emerged victorious last year, winning the Southern Region and state titles. The Panthers returned some of their core from last year, including Tanner Johns. The Grand Canyon commit is hitting .400 with five home runs and 34 RBIs and went 7-1 on the mound.
The Panthers have their top hitter, catcher and TCU commit Brady Dallimore, for this postseason after he missed last year’s title run with an injury. Dallimore leads Palo Verde with a .477 average.
Then there’s Basic. Palo Verde and Basic split their two regular-season meetings, which caused the tie atop the Mountain League standings, with the tiebreaker going to Palo Verde.
Basic has just as deep of a lineup as the Panthers, led by USC commit Tate Southisene, who is hitting .521 with seven home runs, 38 hits and 28 RBIs. Oregon commit Andruw Giles is hitting .432, and Miami commit Matthew Kelley is hitting .405.
The Wolves might have an edge with a deeper pitching rotation. Lincoln Evans (3.06 ERA) and Johnny Villarreal (3.73) both went 6-0 on the mound.
Dark horse: Las Vegas High
Las Vegas finished tied atop the Desert League with Bishop Gorman, but the tiebreaker went to the Gaels.
The Wildcats have two strong starting pitchers in Joseph Ponticello (6-1, 1.19 ERA, 85 strikeouts) and Mickey Martinez (7-2).
Ole Miss commit Bryden Bull hit .468 with 30 RBIs and five home runs.
Potential first-round upset: Centennial over Bishop Gorman
None of the higher seeds are safe in their opening-round games, but Gorman might be a little more susceptible entering the playoffs after losing its last two games.
Centennial has played well against many of the state’s top teams, with wins against Basic, Palo Verde and Faith Lutheran.
Tyler Jackson, a Seattle University commit, leads Centennial in hitting at .457, and sophomore TCU commit Jake Turner is batting .426.
Class 4A
League champions: Tech (Desert), Durango (Mountain), Silverado (Sky)
Co-favorites: Durango and Silverado
There could likely be a rematch of last year’s 4A state title game, won by Durango. Silverado beat the Trailblazers 3-2 in the regular season March 7.
Durango will be tough to beat with Oklahoma commit Alexander Mercurius, who leads the state with 10 home runs. He’s hitting .568 with 48 RBIs.
On the mound, Mercurius went 6-2 with a 1.63 ERA and 79 strikeouts. He has 319 career strikeouts, a state record for a 5A/4A player, according to known records by the NIAA.
Silverado enters the playoffs with experience after making a run to last year’s title game. TCU commit Giovanni Guariglia is hitting .500 and posted a 2.62 ERA with 68 strikeouts in 10 appearances on the mound.
Dark horse: Sierra Vista
Sierra Vista and Silverado tied atop the Sky League and split two regular-season meetings, both in extra innings. Sierra Vista also split its two regular-season meetings with Durango and has the best chance to challenge the top two.
Potential first-round upset: None
The higher seeds — Bonanza, Legacy, Rancho and Western — have separated themselves from their opening-round opponents and should win their first games. (The league champions and Sierra Vista have byes.)
Class 3A
League champions: Virgin Valley (Desert), Boulder City (Mountain)
The favorite: Virgin Valley
You can make the case for several teams in 3A, but Virgin Valley has a slight edge as the defending state champion. The Bulldogs also enter the region tournament winners of eight straight games.
Dark horse: The Meadows
The Mustangs lost to Virgin Valley in last year’s state title game, and they enter the playoffs battle-tested after facing several 5A and 4A opponents during the season.
Potential first-round upset: Pahrump Valley over Moapa Valley
Pahrump Valley lost to Moapa Valley early in the season, but the Trojans battled through the tougher Mountain League and have a chance to beat the Pirates.
Contact Alex Wright at [email protected]. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.
Baseball playoff schedule
All games at 4 p.m. at higher seed
Class 5A
Southern Region tournament
Monday
No. 4D Foothill at No. 1M Palo Verde
No. 3M Faith Lutheran at No. 2D Las Vegas High
No. 4M Centennial at No. 1D Bishop Gorman
No. 3D Arbor View at No. 2M Basic
Class 4A
State tournament
Wednesday
No. 4D Doral Academy at No. 3M Western
No. 4S Eldorado at No. 2M Rancho
No. 3D Clark at No. 3S Bonanza
No. 4M Cimarron-Memorial at No. 2D Legacy
Thursday
Doral Academy-Western winner at No. 1S Silverado
Eldorado-Rancho winner at No. 1D Tech
Clark-Bonanza winner at No. 1M Durango
Cimarron-Memorial-Legacy winner at No. 2S Sierra Vista
Class 3A
Southern Region tournament
Monday
No. 4D Canyon Springs at No. 1M Boulder City
No. 3M Pahrump Valley at No. 2D Moapa Valley
No. 4M SLAM! Nevada at No. 1D Virgin Valley
No. 3D Mater East at No. 2M The Meadows
