It wasn’t pretty, but the Desert Vista Thunder somehow squeaked out a 1-0 win over the Millennium Tigers.
The game was a duel of dominant pitchers as the offenses were silenced. For a team that has crushed opponents in its wins, the 1-0 victory proved the Thunder can get it done when the offense can’t. The ceiling is a state championship for Desert Vista.
“We don’t shy away from it,” Desert Vista head coach Pat Herrera said. “State championship is what we talk about. It’s how hard we work. So that’s our goal.”
If the past has taught us anything, it is that Desert Vista can bounce back from a tough loss. That knack for competing will help the Thunder in the tail end of its regular season and make a deep run in the state playoffs.
The team has also lost heartbreakers like its 8-7 loss at Hamilton last Friday. After running into the second-best ranked team in the state, the Thunder found a way to bounce back just a few days later.
“For them to come back today and fight their butts off like that was really special,” Herrera said. “Shows a lot about their character.”
Desert Vista came into the Monday matchup at a solid 14-7 and a top-20 ranking in Arizona. Much of the Thunder’s success is thanks to the team’s impressive hitting as the lineup has compiled a .344 batting average and 142 RBIs. Even more impressive is Desert Vista’s .462 on-base percentage and 93 base on balls.
Yet, that offensive firepower was nowhere to be seen in the matchup against Millennium. The Thunder tallied just four hits and a sole run off senior Jayden Garrison’s bat in the first inning.
“The tough thing, too, is that the first time he’d seen him,” Herrera said. “So he goes up first at bat, and he fouled off, I think it was a nine pitch at-bat. So he fouled off a couple tough pitches, and then the kid, probably the only mistake he made all day.”
Garrison is usually the star of the show with his .400 batting average, six home runs and 19 RBIs so far this season. Sophomore pitcher Hagen Haefs stole the show with six dominant innings while only surrendering two hits over that span.
“That’s what we do,” Herrera said. “That’s all we talk about. Defense will keep us in every game and throwing strikes. That’s what he did. He mixed it up well.”
13 of Desert Vista’s 15 wins this season have been decided by three or more runs. Some of those final scores include a 19-3 win against Desert Ridge, a 16-0 victory against Marcos de Niza and a 19-5 win against Mountain View.
The Thunder have a stellar lineup with six players hitting above .300. Desert Vista’s pitching staff boasts an impressive 2.62 ERA and six complete games. The team’s fielding is even more impressive with a high .946 fielding percentage.
All signs point to the fact that Desert Vista is one of the hottest teams in Arizona high school baseball. The 1-0 win against Millenium showcased that the Thunder can win pitchers’ duels or knock the cover off the ball and score 10 runs. The team’s ability to win games both ways will be crucial heading into the state playoffs.
Desert Vista has five regular season games left to end the regular season. Corona del Sol and O’Connor will make for stiff competition that’ll help prepare the Thunder for the rigorous schedule they’ll face in the playoffs.
The Corona del Sol and O’Connor games will decide Desert Vista’s true ceiling. The Thunder have a great chance to knock off a Corona del Sol team that’s lost two of its last three games.
The three-headed snake of Desert Vista’s lineup, pitching staff and defense will make it a hard team to beat. This is the Thunder’s year to make a deep playoff run and even win state.
