Durango, Bishop Gorman move into showdown in Legion finals

The top two seeds in this year's American Legion State Tournament weren't just playing their opponents in Tuesday's semifinals. They were also battling ghosts from their past.

For No. 1 Durango, that meant defeating Silverado, a squad which had defeated the Trailblazers in four of the past five meetings.

And for No. 2 Bishop Gorman, it meant overcoming Reno, just three months after the Gaels were knocked out of the high school playoffs by fellow Northern Zone representative Carson.

Yet when all was said and done, the tournament's seeding held, setting up today's meeting between Durango and Gorman, two familiar Sunset Division's rivals.

The Trailblazers (62-22) got to the final by the skin of their teeth, holding off a fierce ninth-inning Skyhawk rally for a 9-8 victory.

"We had lost four of five to Silverado, three of those in the ninth innings," Durango coach Tom Appleyard said. "So we knew we had to get everything we could get offensively, because they might come back."

The Gaels (44-12) had an easier route, riding a complete-game, 11-strikeout performance by southpaw Ben Fox to an 11-3 win.

"I said to them, 'We've been already been knocked out this year by a Reno team, let's not let it happen again,' " Gorman coach Tim Chambers said.

For most of game one, it looked like Durango would have little trouble putting away the third-seeded Skyhawks (34-16). With his club up 6-2, Trailblazer right-hander J.T. Sherman (12 strikeouts) cruised into the seventh inning.

But Silverado finally got going at the plate, scoring two in the seventh on an RBI double by Joe Wickman (4-for-5) and a run-scoring single by Tommy Rojas to pull within two.

Durango appeared to ice the game with three in the top of the ninth, but the Skyhawks chased Sherman and got within a single run in the final frame.

Closer Jack Newark retired the final two batters to preserve the Trailblazers' spot in today's finale.

In game two, Fox overcame a shaky start to shut out the Knights (41-17) for the final seven innings. In his nine innings, he allowed just seven hits and walked four batters.

Nearly every player in the Gaels' lineup contributed offensively, with centerfielder Jason Van Meetren and first baseman Ryan Lee supplying home runs for the victors.

Gorman, the tournament's defending champion, will play in the title game for the fourth consecutive season. Chambers' club is vying for its third trip to regionals in four years.

Durango right-hander Scott Yahraus will likely take the mound against Gorman right-hander Nate Fouts.

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