RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
POSTED: May 18, 2012
The Reno High baseball team showed last week it could win a big game with a devastating single inning. Thursday at Peccole Park, it showed it could win by scrapping for every base and taking advantage of any opportunity.
The Huskies’ reward? A date today against six-time defending champion Bishop Gorman in the 4A state tournament winners’ bracket final.
Reno advanced Thursday with a hard-fought, 6-5 win over Coronado in a game with enough twists and turns to build a roller-coaster.
“We played good defense, and we got good pitching from (starter Vinnie) Koci and (reliever Austin) Atkerson,” Reno coach Pete Savage said. “I think Gorman is a good, quality ballclub, and we have a ton of respect for them. But our focus is to play against the game itself and to execute against the game. We can only worry about the players in our dugout.”
After using a three-run fifth inning to take a 5-4 lead — a rally that included two bunts, a wild pitch, an error and a walk — the Huskies had to hold on in the top of the seventh. Reno was clinging to a 6-4 lead with no outs and the bases loaded before Atkerson entered and took advantage of his team’s strong defense. A double play and a grounder to the shortstop ended the game and set the Huskies up for a date with the nationally ranked Gaels.