Dayton baseball gains split vs. Lowry

The Dayton High baseball team gave Lowry its first loss in Northern 3A in the battle between the division's top two teams on Saturday at Dayton.

Dayton lost the opener 7-5, but came back to win the nightcap 7-6. Lowry is now 10-1 in Northern 3A while the Dust Devils are 9-3 in league.

The Dust Devils look to be in strong position to finish second. They will be favored in season-ending doubleheaders against Incline and Yerington.

It's also possible that Dayton could still catch Lowry as the Buckaroos still have tough games left in a doubleheader against Spring Creek and a makeup contest with Truckee. If Dayton ends up as the No. 2 seed it would host the No. 5 seed in a best-of-three playoff series with the winner going to the NIAA 3A State Tournament.

"It puts us in pretty good position ourselves," said Dayton coach Craig Miller about the split. "It kind of secures the second place spot for us right now. I think we're setting ourselves up pretty good for hosting the playoffs."

Jason McKinnon hit three solo home runs on the day, leading off both games with a homer. In the nightcap, Dayton jumped out to a 4-0 lead and led 7-2 when McKinnon homered and Joe Delaski hit a two-run shot. Cory Yoder took a 7-2 lead into the seventh, but gave up four runs before nailing down the last out to pick up the win.

Dayton also led 4-0 in the opener. Delaski was sailing along before running into trouble in the fifth when Lowry hit two two-run homers on its way to scoring six runs. McKinnon also had a double and three RBI in the opener.