Steve Puterski / LVN Photo
Third is the word.
The Fallon baseball and softball teams each clinched the No. 3 seed for Friday and Saturday’s Northern Division I-A playoff series.
Both clubs will host a three-game series starting Friday’s doubleheader at the Ed Arciniega Complex. The baseball games will begin at 1 and 3 p.m., while softball is tentaively slated for 2 and 4 p.m. start times. Saturday’s games begin at 11 a.m. if needed.
The Fallon baseball team (8-4 Northern DI-A) locked up the No. 3 seed with season sweeps over Dayton and Fernley recently and have won 12 consecutive games. Elko (12-0) is the No. 1 seed, while Lowry (8-4) is second. The Buckaroos beat Fallon to win the tiebreaker.
Fernley (6-6) locked up the No. 4 seed and will host either South Tahoe (5-6) or Truckee (5-6).
Fallon, meanwhile, will play either South Tahoe or Sparks (5-7). Elko hosts rival Spring Creek (2-10), the No. 8 seed. Lowry will host either Sparks or Truckee.
On the softball diamond, the Lady Wave (9-3) take on South Tahoe (5-7). Fallon finished by No. 1 Fernley (11-1) and No. 2 Lowry (11-1). Fernley beat the Buckaroos to win the tiebreaker.
Fernley hosts Spring Creek (1-11), Lowry gets Dayton (4-8), and No. 4 seed Elko (7-5) will battle Sparks (6-6).
The winners of the three-game series advance to next week’s regional tournament in Winnemucca. The tournament is a double-elimination format and the top two teams qualify for the state tournament on May 16-18 in Las Vegas.
The Lady Wave aim for their third consecutive state championship, while the baseball team looks to capture its second title in three years.