The Basalt High School baseball team pulled off a first-round stunner in the Class 3A state baseball playoffs earlier this week.

The Longhorns, seeded No. 28 in the 32-team 3A field, shocked No. 5 seed Manitou Springs 2-1 in the playoff game at Manitou Springs.

“This was one of the most exciting games for me personally as a coach,” said Basalt head coach Bud Hickman, a longtime prep coach in Colorado.

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“We played errorless ball, and the entire team contributed to the win,” Hickman said. “The one player who stood above all was senior pitcher Noah Schoenberger.”

With a powerful lineup featuring four hitters with .500-plus batting averages, the Longhorns went to a simple pitching strategy — fastballs on the inside corner.

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“Noah and Tucker Schoon, our catcher, did exactly what we planned,” Hickman said. Schoenberger allowed only one run in seven innings against the No. 5 team in Class 3A.

The Mustangs threatened in the sixth inning but were denied on a line-drive double play started by Miles Levy at third base.

Schoenberger shut down Manitou in the seventh inning with the Longhorns up 2-1.

The win sent the Longhorns into a second-round game against No. 12 Peak to Peak of Lafayette.

Peak to Peak ended the Basalt season 10-2.

But the first-round playoff win will rank among the top accomplishments of the program, Hickman said.

The Longhorns finished the season 9-12, including a first-round playoff win.