Little League Majors stars qualify for state tournament

Distance and tough opponents proved to be no problem for the Big Horn County Little League (Lovell) Majors all-stars at the district tournament in Pinedale last week and over the weekend as they punched their ticket to State with four wins in five games.

Starting with pool play, the Mustangs crushed Tri Basin (Big Piney) 28-0 on July 8 and Star Valley 7-5 on July 9. Moving into the tournament bracket, the Mustangs shut out Riverton Saturday 10-0, then eliminated traditional power Rock Springs 12-6 on Sunday morning. The ‘Stangs played Cody for the championship and fell 5-1, but both teams advanced to the state tournament in Torrington.

“I’m extremely proud of how our team came together and performed,” Coach Nicc Crosby said. “They had a goal to make it to State since we got together. Our staff has been pushing them hard in practice to improve on what we saw in the All-Stars and Stripes tournament. They’ve been a very coachable, determined and resilient group. It was great to see that all pay off and have them reach their goal.

“We’ve gotten better at hitting faster fastballs and recognizing and hitting curveballs. We had a few guys struggle at the plate in our first tournament who came through with some big hits at district. It’s nice to look at your lineup and know that every player has a great chance to hit the ball and get on base. Even most of our strikeouts came after we worked the count and saw a lot of pitches.”

The defense, pitching and baserunning was solid in Pinedale, as well, Crosby said.

“Our pitchers and catchers were on the same page, and our defense was as good as any team at the tournament,” he said. “We’re getting better at finding the line between being aggressive without taking unnecessary risks when it comes to our fielding and baserunning. It has been very rewarding watching their growth and development.”

Pool games

Lovell rocked Tri Basin in game one. Details are sketchy except for the blowout score, coach Nicc Crosby said, because of a GameChanger app glitch that stopped recording plays and statistics after an inning and a half of play with Lovell up 9-0 after three runs in the first inning and six in the second and Kooper May striking out the side in the first.

Game two against Star Valley Thursday was a battle. Trailing 4-3, the Mustangs plated three runs in the top of the fifth to lead 6-4 as Jamen Crosby hit a two-run single and May drew a bases-loaded walk, then held Star Valley to a single run in the bottom of the inning. The Mustangs scored an insurance run in the top of the sixth on a Jace Grant RBI single and blanked Star Valley in the bottom of the inning to claim the 7-5 win.

The Mustangs banged out 16 hits including a homerun by Hayden Harshman. Cayden Dickerson, Crosby, Harshman, Jace Jameson and Luke Bischoff had two hits apiece in the game, and Harshman had three runs batted in, Jameson two and May and Grant one each.

Jameson, Harshman, May and Crosby handled pitching duty, with Jameson allowing one run, Harshman three and May one. Jameson struck out five Star Valley batters.

Riverton

May shut out Riverton on two hits Saturday while striking out seven and walking two. 

Leading 4-0 after three innings, the Mustangs doubled their score with four in the fourth and added two in the sixth. May hit a two-run homerun in the game, while Crosby, Grant and Logan Timpany each hit a double. Leadoff hitter Dickerson led the team with three hits and three runs and added one RBI. Crosby and May led with two RBIs apiece.

Rock Springs

Lovell came out strong against Rock Springs Sunday morning, plating three runs in the first inning, four in the second and three in the third, leading 10-2 en route to a 12-6 win.

Jameson picked up the win on the mound, allowing five runs, three earned, in five innings of work on seven hits and four walks while fanning five. Crosby pitched the final frame and allowed one unearned run on one hit and a pair of walks, recording one strikeout.

May hit his second homer in as many games, a two-run blast in the first inning, and Grant ripped a triple, Crosby and Taysom Butler a double each. May went 3-4 at the plate with three RBIs and two runs. Crosby, Hudson Morgan, Butler and Grant had two hits apiece. Grant matched May with three RBIs, and Dickerson, Crosby, Morgan and Butler drove in one run each.

Cody

Cody clung to a 1-0 lead in the championship game until the fourth inning, plating four more runs to lead 5-0. Lovell scored a run in the bottom of the same inning but couldn’t get the bats going in the contest, finishing with only three hits.

Harshman got the start on the hill and allowed five runs in 4 2/3 innings of work on six hits and a walk, fanning two. Timpany finished up, allowing no runs in his inning and a third as Cody got three hits but no walks. Timpany struck out one.

Morgan went 2-2 at the plate for the Mustangs, and Harshman had the only other hit. May had the lone RBI.

“Cody is the only team that has beaten us,” Coach Crosby noted. “They’re really solid. Our boys have played them tougher than anybody. I’m awfully proud of them.

“I’m excited to play more baseball and see how we do at State. I can’t thank Coach Morgan, Coach Timpany and Wild Bill (Sheckler) enough for all their time and effort helping me coach these boys. The parents have also been so supportive. It’s just been a special team to be a part of.”

The Mustangs will play in the Wyoming Little League State Tournament in Torrington July 23-26.