High school baseball: Kesling powers Valley to 1A playoff victory

SPANISH FORK — The way the Valley Buffaloes saw it, no one expected them to defeat St. Joseph in the 1A baseball quarterfinals on Tuesday afternoon. Actually, no one expected Valley to be any better than mediocre this season.

So with that in mind, Valley figured it could just play loose and relaxed against the favored Jayhawks, and their care-free attitude paid off in a 1-0 win.

"We were the underdogs so we really didn't have anything to lose," said Valley pitcher Paul Kesling. "So we just came out and played our hearts out."

Kesling threw his heart out against a team that entered the state tournament on a 15-game winning streak. He tossed a complete game, allowing just three hits and striking out seven. Kesling has been Valley's big-game pitcher throughout the season, and he saved his best performance for the state tournament.

"Paul's been solid all year," said first-year Valley coach Brett Lamb. "He hits his spots, keeps the ball down and throws ground balls when we need them. He threw awesome today."

St. Joseph didn't have many chances to score, and Valley made sure to keep the door shut when the Jayhawks' opportunities were there. St. Joseph's Taylor Gallegos hit a one-out double in the second, but the Jayhawks couldn't push him past third. In the sixth, Dylan Evans led off with a single, but Valley ended the inning with a double play.

"Our bats kind of failed us today, but the defense was there and that's all that mattered," Lamb said.

Kesling scored the game's lone run in the fourth. Catcher Kyle Harris hit a sacrifice fly to shallow center, and Kesling had enough speed to beat out the throw to home to give Valley a 1-0 lead.

Gallegos threw a gem in a losing effort for St. Joseph. He recorded 13 strikeouts and allowed just four hits.

It's been quite a turnaround season for the Buffaloes, who won just one game in the 2006 and 2007 seasons. They were picked to take last place in Region 15, but defied expectations by taking third. Tuesday's victory was the biggest win the program has earned since winning the state title in 2002.

"These kids got a lot of heart," Lamb said. "They've played through a lot of adversity. Their goal early in the season was to be here and they're here."

In other quarterfinal games: