Valley West got a peak performance when it needed it most.

More specifically, it was a Nolan Peak performance.

With his team facing elimination, Peak turned in a dominant performance on the mound to lead Valley West to a 10-0 victory over Tamaqua in the District 18 9-11 year-old Little League Tournament on Monday.

The Valley West victory sets up a winner-take-all showdown between the same two teams tonight at 6 p.m. at Valley West.

“Nolan is our No. 1 pitcher and he was amazing tonight,” said Valley West coach Bob Tranguch. “He pitched a heck of a game for us when we had to have it.”

Peak worked five-and-two-thirds innings before reaching his pitch count limit. He allowed just five hits while striking out nine and walking two.

“We’ve hit the ball really well throughout this tournament, but it just wasn’t our day,” said Tamaqua coach Mark Bartczak. “You have to give their pitcher a lot of credit for that. He was really dealing tonight. We just couldn’t bunch anything against him.”

Tamaqua entered the contest have won all three of its previous games in the double-elimination tournament by mercy rule. It had scored 62 runs in those three games, which included an 11-1 victory over Valley West just four days earlier.

“It was a night-and-day difference from our game against them last week,” said Tranguch. “We played nervous in the winner’s bracket final game.

“Tonight, it was a 100 percent different vibe from our kids. We told them to relax and play like they had nothing to lose, and that’s exactly what they did.”

Valley West took charge right from the start, scoring a pair of runs in the top of the first. Peak had a double in the frame, and Valley West also took advantage of two Tamaqua errors.

Another Tamaqua error led to an unearned run in the third that made it 3-0.

“We gave them too many opportunities,” said Bartczak. “Valley West is a very good team, and you can’t make the kind of mistakes we did tonight against good teams because they will make you pay - and that’s what they did.”

Valley West broke the game open in the top of the fourth with a four-run outburst that made it 7-0. Connor Graham, Jase Tranguch, Jaymin Reggie and Joseph Abad all had hits in the frame with Abad’s two-run double the big blow.

Gavin Frederick added a two-run double in the sixth as Valley West finished off the win in impressive fashion.

“Pitching, hitting, defense ... we played well in all aspects of the game,” said Tranguch. “Give our kids credit. They really stepped up with their backs to the wall.”

After three impressive tournament games, Tamaqua now has to regroup in a hurry.

“Our kids have played with great effort and great heart,” said Bartczak. “In practices and games, they have given us everything they’ve had the last three weeks - and their performance earlier in the tournament earned them the opportunity to have another chance Tuesday.

“We need to put tonight behind us. We still have everything we wanted to accomplish when the tournament began in front of us, and I’m confident that they will respond.”

TAMAQUA DOMINANCE ... Prior to being shutout last night, Tamaqua had beaten Freeland/Hazle Township, 28-3; Towamensing, 23-2, and Valley West, 11-1. They needed to play just 11 innings total to dispose of those three opponents, and had scored runs in 9 of those 11 innings.

HITTING STARS ... For Valley West, Peak had two hits and scored twice, while Graham and Tranguch both had one hit and scored twice. For Tamaqua, Evan Shannon and Gavin Lutz both had two hits, while Darvin Faust had one.

CHANCES ... Tamaqua left a pair of runners on base in the first, second and fourth innings, and left a total of nine runners on base in the game.

Valley West 201 403 - 10 7 2

Tamaqua 000 000 - 0 5 5

Peak, Silva (6) and Tranguch, Graham (4). Bartczak, Tirpak (5), Barrett (6) and Tirpak, Baddick (5). W-Peak. L-Bartczak.