Hoping for another title

Faith Lutheran has the advantage as regional begins

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The Class 3A Southern League baseball regional begins Friday at Faith Lutheran High School and the host Crusaders should have more than just the home-field advantage heading in.

Riding a streak of three straight state titles -- two at 2A and one in its first year moving up to 3A last year -- Faith Lutheran is seen by most as not only the team to beat in the Southern League regional, but as the team to beat in the entire state after going 27-12 and beating the Northern League's Lowry, 8-4, in the NIAA state championship game last year.

Under the direction of first-year coach Tony Girod, who moved up from assistant coach last season, the Crusaders won their last 14 games and let teams know their move up to 3A would certainly not stop their winning ways.

Despite graduating key seniors Ryan Iodence, Adam Buccieri, Jeff Farnham, Jeff Brignola and John Nixon, Faith Lutheran returned several key players from last year's championship roster. The Crusaders again dominated Southern League play this spring, registering an 11-1 record as of press time and on pace to become the top seed in the division heading into the last week of the regular season.

The team's only league loss as of press time came against Moapa Valley, 5-0, on April 4 in the first game of a doubleheader. Although the Pirates made Faith Lutheran walk the plank in that game, the Crusaders bounced back to win the second game and then proceeded to sweep twin bills from league counterparts Pahrump Valley and Boulder City -- second in the league with an 8-2 record and Faith Lutheran's biggest rival -- and a pair of doubleheaders against Virgin Valley.

Leading the Crusaders' solid pitching staff is sophomore Tyler Iodence, the younger brother of Ryan, who is now playing for Western Nevada Community College in Carson City where he started the season off 2-1 with a 1.96 ERA.

Along with some quality work on the mound, the Crusaders also were getting some decent production from its offense, led by Grant Fowler, Chase Morgan, Sean Brown, Dave Anderson, Adam Jones and Dylan Young, all of whom had their share of decent days at the plate this spring.

Fowler was a first-team, All-State selection last season while teammates Morgan and Young were all second-team selections.

With good pitching and hitting, three straight state titles and the luxury of hosting the Southern League playoffs in Summerlin this year, the Crusaders are in prime position to qualify for the state tournament, which will be held May 19-20 at Damonte Ranch High School in Reno.

As far as possible opponents on the horizon from the 3A Northern League, Lowry, the same team Faith Lutheran defeated in last year's championship game, is leading the division. The talented Buckaroos had registered a 14-game win streak midway through the season and a 10-1 record as of press time.

The championship game of Southern League will be held Saturday at Faith Lutheran, 2015 S. Hualapai Way, with the winner advancing to the state tournament.