SOUTH LAKE TAHOE " Douglas High didn't forget a key loss to South Tahoe pitcher Max DeLallo in its quest to win the Sierra Division baseball title last year.
Facing DeLallo again with the Sierra Division crown within grasp Friday, the Tigers didn't allow the Vikings' ace to repeat the performance.
The Tigers nicked DeLallo for four runs in the first three innings and then rode the strong pitching of left-hander Tyler Hoelzen to a 5-1 victory on a rainy afternoon at Todd Fields.
The win pulled Douglas (12-3) into a first-place tie with Carson (11-2) heading into next week's showdown between the schools for the league championship.
"It's always fun playing against your rival, whether it's for a league title or not, but this adds to it," Hoelzen said.
Carson plays Fallon in a doubleheader Saturday and can regain the one-game lead it took into the week.
"That's why you play high school baseball, to get an opportunity to win a league championship against your rival," said Douglas coach John Glover, whose team finished second to Reno last year after winning the title in 2007. "All these kids work hard, so they deserve it, but we know Carson is going to be ready to go, so we're going to have to match up with them."
Hoelzen repeatedly pounded the strike zone in the first four innings before losing his rhythm in the fifth. He struck out nine of the first 11 Vikings to step to the plate and finished with 10 punchouts. He departed after the fifth after experiencing some discomfort in his left shoulder.
"When Tyler is on, he works quick and he does throw strikes," Glover said. "He gave us another good outing."
South Tahoe had two baserunners in the fifth inning, but Hoelzen helped himself by picking off a runner at first base. After Hoelzen was relieved by Tim Rudnick to start the sixth inning, the Vikings broke into the scoring column on Ricky Braun's two-out home run to left. It was Braun's first varsity home run.
A walk to Gary Prescott and a single by DeLallo put the Vikings within a hit of getting back into the game, but Rudnick escaped the jam with a strikeout.
Rudnick struck out two of the four hitters he faced in the seventh to close out the victory.
Despite his slow start, DeLallo never allowed the Tigers to pull away.
"In previous games, I'd give up only a few runs in the first inning, but in the second inning I'd either fall apart or there were lots of errors," DeLallo said. "This time, the whole team came in and we made plays."
DeLallo retired 13 of the final 18 hitters he faced and wasn't bothered by a pitch count that reached 153.
"The balls were still heavy, getting waterlogged," DeLallo said. "I started to feel it at the end, but I could keep throwing. It's my first time all year that I made it past the fifth inning."
South Tahoe skipper Matt Tillson said DeLallo has been effective with high pitch counts before.
"He's a horse for a you. Last summer, I'd get him up there pretty high, and he was fine," Tillson said. "He was a confident pitcher out there today, and he was throwing a lot of strikes."
Glover and his Tigers tried to disrupt DeLallo early by taking a lot of pitches and putting their baserunners in motion. Douglas extended DeLallo to three straight full counts in the third inning, setting up its biggest rally.
"The game plan coming in was to get the ball in play and try to move some runners around a little bit, and it worked early for us. Not being in those double play situations helps," Glover said. "You know (Max) is going to get his outs. He make quality pitches when he has to. He's tough."
Leading 1-0, Tanner Thomas walked, stole second and scored his second run on Tim Rudnick's base hit up the middle. Rudnick kept the wheels turning by swiping second and third bases, then came home on a Hoelzen single to right, making the score 3-0. After Troy Torres reached on a slow roller to short, Kameron Van Winkle hit a chopper up the middle that enabled Hoelzen to score from second base for a 4-0 lead.
Van Winkle was involved in a scary moment in the fifth when a DeLallo pitch hit him in the batting helmet. After taking several minutes to gather himself by walking down the third-base line, Van Winkle remained in the game.
In the sixth inning, Beau Davis' sacrifice fly plated Jeff Crozier with the Tigers' final run.
Hoelzen led the Tigers by going 2 for 2 with a walk, a run scored and two RBI.
Tanner Braun collected two of the Vikings' six hits, while Prescott reached base in
all three of his at-bats.
South Tahoe (7-22 overall and 1-14 in division) will conclude its season with a three-game series against Damonte Ranch next week.
The Vikings took the Sierra Nevada Sport Media's top-rated team the full 21 innings in their three meetings with the Tigers.
"They haven't quit, and I think we are going to get one from Damonte next week," Tillson said. "We like the way the team is playing and the way their energy level is going. If we hit the ball, we have confidence in our three starters that we can win a game."
Notes: KTHO Radio (590 AM) broadcasted Friday's game, with Dan McLaughlin doing the play-by-play and Mark Garratt providing analysis. It's reportedly the first time a local radio station has aired a baseball game ... STHS senior Kyle DiGrande beat out an infield single in the fifth inning, even though he's been hindered by a pulled hamstring ... the starting time for Friday's game was moved up 90 minutes to accommodate the Douglas players for prom night.
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