Rangers earn Sunday sweep

Richard Anderson photo

Laramie left fielder Coleton Wilson is congratulated by teammates after scoring against Sand Creek Sunday in the Dooley Oil Classic American Legion baseball tournament at Cowboy Field. Laramie won a pair of games, beating Sand Creek 21-2 and Boulder County 11-9.

Laramie finishes 3-2 in Dooley Oil Classic

By Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org

The Laramie Rangers couldn’t have been more disappointed and pleased at the same time with how they played Saturday night in the tough 1-0 loss to Dothan, Ala.

On Sunday, the pain turned to pleasure with a pair of wins in the Dooley Oil Classic at Cowboys Field, as Laramie crushed Sand Creek (Colorado Springs, Colo.) 21-2 in five innings and then held off Boulder County (Colo.) 11-9 in the final game of the tournament.

Laramie finished 3-2 in the tournament, winning three of its last four games.

“We’re pretty happy with the way our ball club is playing right now,” Laramie manager Sean McKinney said. “We’re pitching it well, we’re hitting with runners in scoring position and we’re making plays behind the guys. I like where we are at.”

Talk at Cowboy Field on Sunday still centered on Saturday night’s outstanding game. Dothan scored the game’s only run in the top of the seventh on a suicide squeeze bunt and Laramie loaded the bases with no outs in the bottom half of the inning, but couldn’t score as the Alabama ace pitcher Karsten Whiston struck out two Rangers and got a ground ball to end the threat.

The Rangers shook off the loss and had a solid two games on Sunday.

“That Alabama game was one of the greatest games that I have ever been a part of,” McKinney said. “We could have beaten them. We were one run away from that and then we win the tournament. It was one of those things that the kids responded. I think the mark of a good team is to come back after an emotional, tough game like that and beat two very good teams. And we did that.

“We really played well against the first team (Sand Creek) and Boulder is always really solid and we got them too. We played really well when we needed to.”

Laramie, which is now 10-18 on the season, is 5-5 in the last two weeks (including the strong Rapid City tournament), losing three one-run games.

In the first game of Sunday, the Rangers spotted Sand Creek a run in the top of the first, but came back to score seven times in the bottom of the frame and led 11-1 after two innings. Laramie then closed strong, with a 10-1 edge in the final two innings.

Laramie finished with 15 hits in the game, led by Skyler Joy's three hits and two RBI. Jon Sorenson, Mike Garner and Jason Rodriguez all had two hits each, with Rodriguez knocking in four runs.

Max Schoen pitched three innings for the win, with Mike Hudson going the final two innings.

The Rangers, however, got off to a slow start against Boulder County when Sorenson, making his first pitching start of the season, walked the first three batters and then gave up a bases-clearing double. McKinney quickly brought in Garner and Garner got out of the jam without any further damage, pitching into the fifth with an 8-4 lead.

Boulder County chipped away at the Rangers and made a little closer at the end with three runs in the seventh, but Joy got a final ground ball out to end any comeback hopes by the Tigers.

“Sorenson, we want him to be a starter sometime and this was his first opportunity,” McKinney said. “I’m sure he was a little nervous and tired from the weekend. But that will come … he’s still a young guy; he still has to work on getting ready for games like this. But we’ll keep working with him and get him ready."

Garner pitched four innings and gave up three hits and just one earned run.

“Mike Garner pretty much saved that game," McKinney said. "We didn’t want to put him in until the third inning, but he came in and pitched so well, keeping us in the game, giving us a chance to win it.”

Laramie had just seven hits in the game, with Wilson leading the way with two hits and two RBI. The Rangers did take advantage of six Boulder County errors and eight walks.

The Rangers will stay home again next week, hosting the annual Laramie Firecracker Tournament Thursday through Sunday at Cowboy Field.

This past weekend proved to be a good weekend for American Legion baseball and McKinney sees more of the same in next week’s future.

“We had a great time,” McKinney said. “I want to thank the parents who helped out. I want to thank Mike Malloy and a couple of his guys. Without Mike and the parents, we couldn’t have gotten this done. I appreciate their help and I appreciate the kids with their hard work.

“We played good baseball; there were a lot of good teams here. I think it was good for this town and we’re ready to do it again next weekend.”

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