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Friday, April 24, 2026 at 2:53 AM

Vaqueros stay in hunt for first-round bye

Vaqueros stay in hunt for first-round bye
Robert Perea, The Fernley Reporter

The road to get there contains many obstacles, but the Fernley High School boys basketball team stayed in contention for a first round bye for the 3A North Region Tournament with a win Tuesday night in Dayton.

The Vaqueros beat Dayton 51-48 to remain tied for third place in the Northern 3a with a 9-3 record. They are one game behind South Tahoe for second place and a game and a half out of first, held by Elko with a 10-1 record.

This weekend will be a defining one for the Vaqueros, playing Friday at 7:30 at Spring Creek, which is tied with Fernley for third place, then visiting Elko Saturday at 2:30 p.m.

South Tahoe, meanwhile, plays at Sparks Friday and hosts Lowry Saturday. South Tahoe holds a tiebreaker advantage over the Vaqueros in the event of a head to head tie for second place by beating the Vaqueros in both meetings, but Fernley could win a 3-way tiebreaker for first if it sweeps this weekend’s game, because it would have beaten Elko twice in that scenario.

The top two teams get a bye for the first round of the regional tournament, which will be played Feb. 16-18 in Winnemucca.

In Dayton, the Vaqueros rallied from a fourth-quarter deficit to get past the DustDevils, 51-48.

Dayton held a 31-27 lead going to the fourth quarter, which Dayton stretched to 7 with about two minutes remaining, but after struggling offensively all night, the Vaqueros put 24 points on the board to pull out the win.

"We were lucky we got out with a win, but some nights you need that," coach Derek Miller said.

Zach Burns was the only Fernley playing to score in double figures, with 24 points, including four 3-pointers. Justin Turner pitched in with 9 points, and both Drake Howe and Ren Arroyo scored 8, as Fernley shot just 32 percent from the floor, making 19 of 60 field goal attempts.

Trevor Burrows scored 20 points for Dayton, Jonathan Ply had 12 and Brenden Thomas added 10.

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Comment author: Jack & Nancy CookComment text: Wonderful man. Created a precious family with Linda. Will always respect and admire his contribution to teaching at FHS.Comment publication date: 4/18/26, 10:27 AMComment source: Howard David JacksonComment author: JeffDickersonComment text: Very well reported, even though our motion was denied.Comment publication date: 4/15/26, 11:05 AMComment source: Judge allows Fernley City Council to proceed with corrective agenda item in Lau expulsion caseComment author: Todd fossumComment text: Hi my name is todd fossum i'm clarence's stepson, I was wondering if he had any siblings. I think he said he had a sister that just survived cancer. If she can get ahold of me or any buddy, my number is 916. 3 4 3 1 1 7 7.Thank you have a blessed dayComment publication date: 1/16/26, 4:33 PMComment source: Clarence L Shields C Comment author: Carl HagenComment text: So just curious, what is the point of a franchise agreement if it is not exclusive?Comment publication date: 12/15/25, 4:18 PMComment source: Council approves non-exclusive franchise agreement for waste collection C Comment author: Christine S GleasonComment text: In the first photo, the woman in the middle, wearing the black shirt, is SaraH Jean Gleason. She is not an FHS Leadership Student but is the person who is responsible (with the help of her father) for starting the Fernley Community Thanksgiving Dinner in 2011. She attended this year's dinner while home from Arizona State University, where she is working on her PhD.Comment publication date: 12/8/25, 8:52 PMComment source: About 400 meals served at Community Thanksgiving DinnerComment author: SusanComment text: RIP Sean. Prayers to the family, sorry for your loss.Comment publication date: 9/25/25, 1:11 PMComment source: Sean Everett Turner
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