Catalina Foothills can advance to the Class 4A state baseball championship game with a victory Wednesday night, while Nogales must win to stay alive in the same bracket.
The second-seeded Falcons have breezed through the double-elimination Class 4A playoffs so far; Wednesday, they'll face 11th-seeded Phoenix St. Mary's. The Falcons can advance by simply winning; lose, and the teams will play again Saturday for a spot in the final. Nogales, the top seed, has been fighting through the loser's bracket ever since the second round, when it lost to Salpointe Catholic. The Apaches can force a winner-take-all game by beating No. 5 Peoria Sunrise Mountain Wednesday night.
Wednesday's games come one night after the 11th-seeded Sahuarita beat Winslow to capture the Class 3A state softball title. Read about it here, and check out the Star's photo gallery form the game here.
Here's a look at the rest of this week's games:
Wednesday
Baseball
Class 4A state semifinals:
No. 2 Catalina Foothills vs. No. 11 Phoenix St. Mary’s at Tempe Diablo Stadium, 4 p.m.
At stake: Foothills advances to Monday’s state title game with a win. If St. Mary’s wins Wednesday, teams will play again Saturday at Hohokam Stadium.
No. 1 Nogales vs. No. 5 Peoria Sunrise Mountain at Tempe Diablo Stadium, 6:30 p.m.
At stake: If Nogales wins Wednesday, teams will play again Saturday at Hohokam Stadium. If Sunrise Mountain wins, it advances to Monday’s state title game.
Thursday
Softball
Class 5A state semifinals:
No. 3 Cienega vs. No. 6 Peoria Centennial winner at Rose Mofford Softball Complex, 7:30 p.m.
At stake: Cienega advances to Monday’s state title game with a win. If Centennial wins, it’ll play Cienega again Saturday at Rose Mofford.
No. 8 Ironwood Ridge vs. No. 4 Scottsdale Chaparral at Rose Mofford Softball Complex, 7:30 p.m.
At stake: Ironwood Ridge advances to Monday’s state title game with a win. If Chaparral wins, it’ll play I-Ridge Monday again Saturday at Rose Mofford.
Class 4A state semifinals:
No. 5 Salpointe Catholic vs. No. 1 Canyon del Oro at Pima College, 4:30 p.m.
At stake: Salpointe advances to Tuesday’s state title game with a win. If CDO wins, it’ll play Salpointe again Friday.
Saturday
Baseball
Class 3A state semifinals:
No. 5 Sabino vs. No. 12 Empire at Amphitheater High School, 6:30 p.m.
At stake: The winner advances to Monday’s Class 3A state title game. The loser is eliminated.
Class 3A state semifinals:
No. 3 Sahuarita vs. No. 2 Queen Creek Casteel at Surprise Sports Complex, 6:30 p.m.
At stake: The winner advances to Monday’s Class 3A state title game. The loser is eliminated.
