by Bobby Abplanalp
Wyoming Sports.org
CHEYENNE -- The Cheyenne Grizzlies overcame a late three-run deficit to rally past Laramie 5-4 in 10 innings in the first game of the Mountain Collegiate Baseball League championship series Friday night at Pioneer Park.
Laramie, 24-23, can force a decisive game three back in Cheyenne Saturday night with a win at home Saturday afternoon (12:35 p.m.) at Cowboy Field. Cheyenne, 27-16, can win its first MCBL championship with a win in Laramie.
“We probably should have won,” Colts manager Ryan Goodwin said. “I thought we made a couple more mistakes than they did and some things got out of whack there. I also feel like I can look at two key pitches in that game that went against us that if they go differently, we’re winning that game no matter what.”
The Colts would strike first, thanks to a single and two stolen bases by second baseman Tyler Kipke, which allowed him to come home when center fielder Josh Warren grounded out to first base for a 1-0 lead after the first inning.
Cheyenne would answer in the second inning when right fielder Donovan Petta hit an RBI sacrifice fly to right field that sent catcher Michael Surina home to tie things up 1-1 heading into the third inning.
Laramie would retake the lead in the top of third after Grizzlies shortstop David LeResche bobbled a ground ball by Colts designated hitter Keith Towne, allowing him to get to first base safely, scoring Kipke. Warren would then come home off a wild-pitch from Cheyenne starting pitcher Josh Boyer for a 3-1 lead after three innings.
The Colts would increase their lead in the top of the seventh when Kipke scored his third run of the day after first baseman Casey Martin got a sacrifice ground out to first base to lead 4-1.
The Grizzlies would stay close and answer with a run of their own in the bottom half with center fielder Kyle Konicek scoring off a ground out to first base by third baseman Sam Radbil, making the score 4-2.
Cheyenne was not done there, as it would tie things up in the eighth with two-out RBI singles by Konicek and Radbil.
The Grizzlies would then load the bases in the bottom of the ninth with one out, but Nathan Hardy relieved closer Ryan Forrest and got the final two outs to force extra innings.
Laramie could not score in the top of the 10th and it came down to the final out in the bottom of the inning for the Grizzlies. Second baseman Sam McNeil hit the game winning RBI single for the 5-4 come from behind victory.
The Colts will try to stave off elimination Saturday in the friendly confines of Cowboy Field. If Laramie wins, there will be a deciding game three at Pioneer Park at 7 p.m.
“We need to stay mentally locked in and that’s how we’re going to win it,” Goodwin said of game two. “We can’t make the mistakes when we make them because that puts us in tough situations. If we come out tomorrow and don’t make mistakes, then we’ll be fine. We’ll be all right.”
Friday, July 31, 2009
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Colts hold on to advance to championship series
by Bobby Abplanalp
Wyoming Sports.org
The Laramie Colts advanced to the Mountain Collegiate Baseball League championship by holding off the Greeley Grays 11-9 in the single elimination first-round playoffs at Cowboy Field Thursday night.
Laramie, 24-22, will begin a best-of-three championship series with the MCBL regular-season champion Cheyenne Grizzlies, beginning in Cheyenne. Game two will be in Laramie and game three (if necessary) will be in Cheyenne.
After limping into the post-season, it certainly did not show for the Colts Thursday. Trailing 1-0 after one inning, Laramie tied things up when third baseman Erik DeJong grounded out to first, which allowed Colts first baseman Casey Martin to score.
Laramie used a big third inning, scoring three runs off of two hits. The scoring started on an errant throw by Grays second baseman Nick Huckaby that sailed wide of first baseman Greg Herbst, sending Colts second baseman Tyler Kipke home. Laramie shortstop Eric Cain hit a two-run RBI single sending in catcher Jesse Tierney and designated hitter Keith Towne for a 4-1 lead.
Greeley would make up a run in the top of the fourth inning when designated hitter Rhys Roberts got an RBI walk off of Laramie starting pitcher Alex Alemann.
The Colts answered that run in the bottom half of the inning when Kipke hit an RBI single bringing home right fielder Lee Orr to up their lead to 5-2 going into the fifth inning.
Both defenses held serve for the next two-and-a-half innings, until Orr stole third in the seventh inning and scored on an errant throw by Grays catcher Nick Stepanovich that put the lead at 6-2.
The Colts would some much needed insurance runs in the eighth inning when a two-run throwing error scored Towne and Martin, and Cain would come home off an RBI triple by Orr. Laramie made it 11-2 when Orr scored off Kipke’s second RBI single of the night.
Greeley was not ready to quit playing and rallied in the ninth with seven runs starting with a two-run double by Herbst. Right fielder Cotton Nolan got an RBI walk off Colts reliever Branden Jamison and O’Dowd and Stepanovich scored off a dropped ball by Cain. Nolan scored off an RBI walk, left fielder Darron Lattomus came home off an RBI single by third baseman Patrick Roche, and Leo then came home off an RBI sacrifice fly by Huckaby.
The Colts, however, finally shut the door and ended Greeley's comeback attempt and ended the Grays season.
“I would have liked to thrown the knockout punch in the bottom of the eighth,” Colts manager Ryan Goodwin said. “Once they got a couple guys going, you just had that feeling that was way scarier then we wanted, but a dub’s (W) a dub and you just move on and fight the next day.”
Laramie had 11 hits on the day, highlighted by Tierney going 3-for-6 with three singles.
“In the playoffs, you just got to be able to shut the door,” Tierney said. “I think that’s going to be the biggest thing in these next couple of days is getting the lead and giving them (Cheyenne) no life. What we did tonight is just keep giving them stuff; pitchers are getting behind in their counts later in the game and taking bad approaches, but all in all it was a team win today.”
Alemann got the win on the mound through eight innings, allowing 12 hits and striking out six.
The Colts will begin the championship series Friday against the Cheyenne Grizzlies, with game one beginning at 7 p.m. Game two will be Saturday at Cowboy Field at 12:30 p.m. If both teams split the first two games, then the series will move to a deciding game three in Cheyenne on Saturday at 7 p.m.
“We got (starting pitcher) Taylor Henry on the bump tomorrow,” Goodwin said. “We’ll just go out and take our approaches with us. If we can go out and steal the opening game at their (Cheyenne) place, then that puts us in the drivers seat giving us a chance to clinch at home and you can’t ask for more than anything then that.”
Tierney said it would be big for the Colts to win that first game.
“Coming back (to Laramie) with home-field advantage, with the way we’ve been playing here lately, it’s been pretty good," Tierney said. "Getting up 1-0 on the series is huge; we need to shut the door right on Cheyenne and let them have no life.”
Colts' notes
The Colts will be under new ownership next season, as owners Matt and Heidi Peterson sold the franchise to team doctor and long time Laramie physician Kent Kleppinger.
“We owe Matt and Heidi a lot,” Tierney said. They’ve been doing a lot for us. This is my first year here and bringing home a championship to them would be awesome; it would be a pretty big accomplishment for us.”
Wyoming Sports.org
The Laramie Colts advanced to the Mountain Collegiate Baseball League championship by holding off the Greeley Grays 11-9 in the single elimination first-round playoffs at Cowboy Field Thursday night.
Laramie, 24-22, will begin a best-of-three championship series with the MCBL regular-season champion Cheyenne Grizzlies, beginning in Cheyenne. Game two will be in Laramie and game three (if necessary) will be in Cheyenne.
After limping into the post-season, it certainly did not show for the Colts Thursday. Trailing 1-0 after one inning, Laramie tied things up when third baseman Erik DeJong grounded out to first, which allowed Colts first baseman Casey Martin to score.
Laramie used a big third inning, scoring three runs off of two hits. The scoring started on an errant throw by Grays second baseman Nick Huckaby that sailed wide of first baseman Greg Herbst, sending Colts second baseman Tyler Kipke home. Laramie shortstop Eric Cain hit a two-run RBI single sending in catcher Jesse Tierney and designated hitter Keith Towne for a 4-1 lead.
Greeley would make up a run in the top of the fourth inning when designated hitter Rhys Roberts got an RBI walk off of Laramie starting pitcher Alex Alemann.
The Colts answered that run in the bottom half of the inning when Kipke hit an RBI single bringing home right fielder Lee Orr to up their lead to 5-2 going into the fifth inning.
Both defenses held serve for the next two-and-a-half innings, until Orr stole third in the seventh inning and scored on an errant throw by Grays catcher Nick Stepanovich that put the lead at 6-2.
The Colts would some much needed insurance runs in the eighth inning when a two-run throwing error scored Towne and Martin, and Cain would come home off an RBI triple by Orr. Laramie made it 11-2 when Orr scored off Kipke’s second RBI single of the night.
Greeley was not ready to quit playing and rallied in the ninth with seven runs starting with a two-run double by Herbst. Right fielder Cotton Nolan got an RBI walk off Colts reliever Branden Jamison and O’Dowd and Stepanovich scored off a dropped ball by Cain. Nolan scored off an RBI walk, left fielder Darron Lattomus came home off an RBI single by third baseman Patrick Roche, and Leo then came home off an RBI sacrifice fly by Huckaby.
The Colts, however, finally shut the door and ended Greeley's comeback attempt and ended the Grays season.
“I would have liked to thrown the knockout punch in the bottom of the eighth,” Colts manager Ryan Goodwin said. “Once they got a couple guys going, you just had that feeling that was way scarier then we wanted, but a dub’s (W) a dub and you just move on and fight the next day.”
Laramie had 11 hits on the day, highlighted by Tierney going 3-for-6 with three singles.
“In the playoffs, you just got to be able to shut the door,” Tierney said. “I think that’s going to be the biggest thing in these next couple of days is getting the lead and giving them (Cheyenne) no life. What we did tonight is just keep giving them stuff; pitchers are getting behind in their counts later in the game and taking bad approaches, but all in all it was a team win today.”
Alemann got the win on the mound through eight innings, allowing 12 hits and striking out six.
The Colts will begin the championship series Friday against the Cheyenne Grizzlies, with game one beginning at 7 p.m. Game two will be Saturday at Cowboy Field at 12:30 p.m. If both teams split the first two games, then the series will move to a deciding game three in Cheyenne on Saturday at 7 p.m.
“We got (starting pitcher) Taylor Henry on the bump tomorrow,” Goodwin said. “We’ll just go out and take our approaches with us. If we can go out and steal the opening game at their (Cheyenne) place, then that puts us in the drivers seat giving us a chance to clinch at home and you can’t ask for more than anything then that.”
Tierney said it would be big for the Colts to win that first game.
“Coming back (to Laramie) with home-field advantage, with the way we’ve been playing here lately, it’s been pretty good," Tierney said. "Getting up 1-0 on the series is huge; we need to shut the door right on Cheyenne and let them have no life.”
Colts' notes
The Colts will be under new ownership next season, as owners Matt and Heidi Peterson sold the franchise to team doctor and long time Laramie physician Kent Kleppinger.
“We owe Matt and Heidi a lot,” Tierney said. They’ve been doing a lot for us. This is my first year here and bringing home a championship to them would be awesome; it would be a pretty big accomplishment for us.”
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Colts-Grays rained out
The Laramie Colts Mountain Collegiate Baseball League playoff game with the Greeley Grays scheduled for Wednesday night at Cowboy Field was rained out.
The two teams will try again at 6:35 p.m. on Thursday. The winner of the second-place/third-place game will take on regular-season champion Cheyenne in a best of three format.
Laramie manager Ryan Goodwin said that there was still some discussion on the rest of the tournament schedule, which could possibly be Friday through Sunday. That still is up in the air, though, as the league might try to finish the tournament sometime on Saturday.
The two teams will try again at 6:35 p.m. on Thursday. The winner of the second-place/third-place game will take on regular-season champion Cheyenne in a best of three format.
Laramie manager Ryan Goodwin said that there was still some discussion on the rest of the tournament schedule, which could possibly be Friday through Sunday. That still is up in the air, though, as the league might try to finish the tournament sometime on Saturday.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Colts continue to struggle, fall to Foxes
by Bobby Abplanalp
Wyoming Sports.org
Same story, different day for the Laramie Colts, as the Fort Collins Foxes used a five run first inning to pull away for a 7-2 win in Mountain Collegiate Baseball League action at Cowboy Field Tuesday night.
The frustrations of the highs and lows in the 2009 MCBL regular season have appeared to catch up to the Colts, with the home crowd witnessing the ejections of Laramie manager Ryan Goodwin and left fielder Jonathon Olla in the sixth inning for arguing calls by the home plate umpire.
What was shaping up as a promising regular-season finish with a league high six-game winning streak, has quickly turned sour, as the Colts have been beaten up in three straight games.
While repeating as back-to-back-to-back regular season champions is still possible, the Colts more likely will play for second place for the right to host a first-round playoff game.
However, that game may be against the Foxes, a team that has taken seven-out-of-12 meeting from Laramie this season. If the playoffs started today, then the Colts would host the Greeley Grays, a team they have been more fortunate against this season, but the Foxes are making a strong case for the post season riding a four-game winning streak, while the Grays have lost seven straight.
Fort Collins, 15-21, took a 7-0 lead heading into the bottom of the sixth when first baseman Cameron Duckworth hit an RBI single sending third baseman Eddie Allen home.
Laramie, 22-20, would finally get on the board in the bottom half when right fielder Lee Orr hit an RBI single of his own, scoring center fielder Josh Warren in his first game back from a hamstring injury.
“It’s doing better,” Warren said of his hamstring. “It’s still pretty tight, but I wanted to get back out and get going again and get a couple games in before we go down the last little stretch. It’s at least strong enough that I can run.”
Colts shortstop Eric Cain would lead off the bottom of the ninth inning with a single and would eventually score off a ground out by first base by Kolt Browder, but that would be all Laramie could muster in defeat.
“I just think we need to relax and play like we have been,” Warren said. “We’ve kind of got really up tight the last few games for some reason. We’re not playing like we can, this team plays best when we’re loose and just having a good time. I think if we just get back to that, then we’ll hit the ball a lot better and have fun and we’ll win.”
Laramie will hit the road for two games, starting Thursday in Fort Collins, Colo., hoping the third time is a charm against the Foxes at 6:15 p.m., followed by back-to-back games with the first place Cheyenne Grizzlies beginning on the road Sunday at 7 p.m., then with the conclusion of the regular season at Cowboy Field Monday at 6:35 p.m.
Wyoming Sports.org
Same story, different day for the Laramie Colts, as the Fort Collins Foxes used a five run first inning to pull away for a 7-2 win in Mountain Collegiate Baseball League action at Cowboy Field Tuesday night.
The frustrations of the highs and lows in the 2009 MCBL regular season have appeared to catch up to the Colts, with the home crowd witnessing the ejections of Laramie manager Ryan Goodwin and left fielder Jonathon Olla in the sixth inning for arguing calls by the home plate umpire.
What was shaping up as a promising regular-season finish with a league high six-game winning streak, has quickly turned sour, as the Colts have been beaten up in three straight games.
While repeating as back-to-back-to-back regular season champions is still possible, the Colts more likely will play for second place for the right to host a first-round playoff game.
However, that game may be against the Foxes, a team that has taken seven-out-of-12 meeting from Laramie this season. If the playoffs started today, then the Colts would host the Greeley Grays, a team they have been more fortunate against this season, but the Foxes are making a strong case for the post season riding a four-game winning streak, while the Grays have lost seven straight.
Fort Collins, 15-21, took a 7-0 lead heading into the bottom of the sixth when first baseman Cameron Duckworth hit an RBI single sending third baseman Eddie Allen home.
Laramie, 22-20, would finally get on the board in the bottom half when right fielder Lee Orr hit an RBI single of his own, scoring center fielder Josh Warren in his first game back from a hamstring injury.
“It’s doing better,” Warren said of his hamstring. “It’s still pretty tight, but I wanted to get back out and get going again and get a couple games in before we go down the last little stretch. It’s at least strong enough that I can run.”
Colts shortstop Eric Cain would lead off the bottom of the ninth inning with a single and would eventually score off a ground out by first base by Kolt Browder, but that would be all Laramie could muster in defeat.
“I just think we need to relax and play like we have been,” Warren said. “We’ve kind of got really up tight the last few games for some reason. We’re not playing like we can, this team plays best when we’re loose and just having a good time. I think if we just get back to that, then we’ll hit the ball a lot better and have fun and we’ll win.”
Laramie will hit the road for two games, starting Thursday in Fort Collins, Colo., hoping the third time is a charm against the Foxes at 6:15 p.m., followed by back-to-back games with the first place Cheyenne Grizzlies beginning on the road Sunday at 7 p.m., then with the conclusion of the regular season at Cowboy Field Monday at 6:35 p.m.
Monday, July 20, 2009
Colts fall to Foxes, drop second straight
by Bobby Abplanalp
Wyoming Sports.org
The Laramie Colts have yet to shake the cobwebs of the end of a recent six-game winning streak, as last place Fort Collins rolled to an 11-5 win Monday night at Cowboy Field.
It was a windy and cold night at the ballpark, and Colts first baseman Casey Martin refused to use the weather as an excuse.
“Actually, we did a pretty good job with it,” Martin said of the wind. “It was definitely a factor, but the wind was blowing for them (Fort Collins) too, so you can’t blame it (the loss) on that.”
Laramie, 22-19, has now lost two straight, including a humbling 17-5 defeat to the league-leading Cheyenne Grizzlies 17-5 in Cheyenne Sunday night.
The Colts remain in second place of the Mountain Collegiate Baseball League standings, but are running out of time to catch the Grizzlies.
Meanwhile, Fort Collins has now won three straight and is making a late playoff push.
The Foxes got off to a quick start scoring in four of the first five innings, jumping all over the Colts for an 8-0 lead.
Laramie did not get anything going until the bottom of the fourth inning when a throwing error by Fort Collins shortstop Josh Lopez allowed Colts first baseman Casey Martin to safely reach first, scoring two runs.
Colts center fielder Lee Orr hit a double in the fifth and would later score off a wild pitch to cut the lead to 8-3.
Fort Collins answered in the top of the seventh with three runs to make it 11-3.
Laramie would try to rally in the eighth when Martin scored off a sacrifice fly hit by second baseman Eric Cain, followed by an RBI single scoring third baseman Eric Krznaric. That would be as close as the Colts would get, as they fell to 2-4 against the Foxes at home this season.
“We missed a lot of opportunities tonight. We had some guys on base and we left them out there,” Martin said. “I think that’s the big thing; we get guys on base, especially in scoring position with less than two outs, you know, we got to get those guys in. We had the bases loaded a couple times today.”
Colts manager Ryan Goodwin was unavailable for comment.
The two teams will meet again Tuesday night at Cowboy Field, beginning at 6:35 p.m.
Wyoming Sports.org
The Laramie Colts have yet to shake the cobwebs of the end of a recent six-game winning streak, as last place Fort Collins rolled to an 11-5 win Monday night at Cowboy Field.
It was a windy and cold night at the ballpark, and Colts first baseman Casey Martin refused to use the weather as an excuse.
“Actually, we did a pretty good job with it,” Martin said of the wind. “It was definitely a factor, but the wind was blowing for them (Fort Collins) too, so you can’t blame it (the loss) on that.”
Laramie, 22-19, has now lost two straight, including a humbling 17-5 defeat to the league-leading Cheyenne Grizzlies 17-5 in Cheyenne Sunday night.
The Colts remain in second place of the Mountain Collegiate Baseball League standings, but are running out of time to catch the Grizzlies.
Meanwhile, Fort Collins has now won three straight and is making a late playoff push.
The Foxes got off to a quick start scoring in four of the first five innings, jumping all over the Colts for an 8-0 lead.
Laramie did not get anything going until the bottom of the fourth inning when a throwing error by Fort Collins shortstop Josh Lopez allowed Colts first baseman Casey Martin to safely reach first, scoring two runs.
Colts center fielder Lee Orr hit a double in the fifth and would later score off a wild pitch to cut the lead to 8-3.
Fort Collins answered in the top of the seventh with three runs to make it 11-3.
Laramie would try to rally in the eighth when Martin scored off a sacrifice fly hit by second baseman Eric Cain, followed by an RBI single scoring third baseman Eric Krznaric. That would be as close as the Colts would get, as they fell to 2-4 against the Foxes at home this season.
“We missed a lot of opportunities tonight. We had some guys on base and we left them out there,” Martin said. “I think that’s the big thing; we get guys on base, especially in scoring position with less than two outs, you know, we got to get those guys in. We had the bases loaded a couple times today.”
Colts manager Ryan Goodwin was unavailable for comment.
The two teams will meet again Tuesday night at Cowboy Field, beginning at 6:35 p.m.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Colts roll for fourth straight win
by Bobby Abplanalp
Wyoming Sports.org
The Laramie Colts continued their hot streak, defeating the Greeley Grays 10-4 for their fourth straight win Thursday at Cowboy Field.
Laramie, 20-17, surpasses Greeley for second place in the Mountain Collegiate Baseball League standings, sitting right behind the Cheyenne Grizzlies.
Colts manager Ryan Goodwin has preached consistency to his team all season long, and now it definitely seems to be paying off at the right time.
“Everybody is just stepping up when we need it,” Goodwin said. “Like tonight, Josh Warren is out and he’ll probably be out at least three or four more days with his hamstring (injury), but we’ve got the depth and that’s why you bring in these guys.”
Laramie would get off to a slow start when starting pitcher Alex Alemann allowed an RBI single from Grays first baseman Greg Herbst in the bottom of the first inning.
However, it was all Colts after that, as they would score seven unanswered runs over the next three innings to take a commanding 7-1 lead.
Colts third baseman Eric Krznaric got the scoring started with a RBI sacrifice fly to center field that sent center fielder Lee Orr home. Left fielder Jonathon Olla would step to the plate next and belt an RBI double to score right fielder Brock Guetzke, as Laramie took a 2-1 lead into the third inning.
Laramie continued to pile it on when designated hitter Keith Towne got his first hit with an RBI single that scored catcher Jesse Tierney for a 3-1 advantage.
The Colts would erupt in the fourth inning, getting four hits off of Greeley starting pitcher Troy Brown. Guetzke led off with a single, which set up his score when Olla hit an RBI sacrifice fly to right field. Shortstop Tyler Park and Tierney each had RBI singles.
Grays left fielder Darron Lattomus hit an RBI single in the top of the sixth, sending second baseman Nick Huckaby home to cut the lead to 7-2.
Laramie shortstop Tyler Kipke would answer in the bottom of the sixth with his second home run of the year, as he smacked a solo shot over the right field wall to make it 8-2.
Greeley still would not go away, as Huckaby and Herbst hit RBI singles to cut the lead to 8-4. Alemann was relieved midway through the top of the eighth by closer Ryan Forrest.
On this day, the Colts had an answer for every Grays threat. The final answer came from pinch hitter Kolt Browder in the bottom of the eighth with a two-run home run over the right center field wall to close the door on Greeley for good.
“Earlier this summer with two strikes, he still would have been trying to do too much,” Goodwin said of Browder’s home run. “Right there, he just put a nice and easy swing on that ball and it just went out to right center.”
Laramie had 13 hits on the day, including a perfect 5-for-5 performance from Tierney, who had four singles, a triple and two RBI.
“The last couple wins have all been team, you know,” Tierney said. “Goody (Goodwin) has finally got us in a set rotation, where everybody is playing fairly well. Some guys will have off nights and other guys are picking each other up, which is helping us win. When you score 10-plus runs in four straight games, it’s kind of hard to beat a team.”
Alemann got the win, giving up eight hits, striking our four.
The Colts will go for five in-a-row Friday in Fort Collins, Colo., against the Foxes, beginning at 6:15 p.m.
“With our lineup and our pitching we’re definitely the team to beat,” Tierney said. “If we keep coming out like this, it’s going to be hard to beat us down the stretch.”
Wyoming Sports.org
The Laramie Colts continued their hot streak, defeating the Greeley Grays 10-4 for their fourth straight win Thursday at Cowboy Field.
Laramie, 20-17, surpasses Greeley for second place in the Mountain Collegiate Baseball League standings, sitting right behind the Cheyenne Grizzlies.
Colts manager Ryan Goodwin has preached consistency to his team all season long, and now it definitely seems to be paying off at the right time.
“Everybody is just stepping up when we need it,” Goodwin said. “Like tonight, Josh Warren is out and he’ll probably be out at least three or four more days with his hamstring (injury), but we’ve got the depth and that’s why you bring in these guys.”
Laramie would get off to a slow start when starting pitcher Alex Alemann allowed an RBI single from Grays first baseman Greg Herbst in the bottom of the first inning.
However, it was all Colts after that, as they would score seven unanswered runs over the next three innings to take a commanding 7-1 lead.
Colts third baseman Eric Krznaric got the scoring started with a RBI sacrifice fly to center field that sent center fielder Lee Orr home. Left fielder Jonathon Olla would step to the plate next and belt an RBI double to score right fielder Brock Guetzke, as Laramie took a 2-1 lead into the third inning.
Laramie continued to pile it on when designated hitter Keith Towne got his first hit with an RBI single that scored catcher Jesse Tierney for a 3-1 advantage.
The Colts would erupt in the fourth inning, getting four hits off of Greeley starting pitcher Troy Brown. Guetzke led off with a single, which set up his score when Olla hit an RBI sacrifice fly to right field. Shortstop Tyler Park and Tierney each had RBI singles.
Grays left fielder Darron Lattomus hit an RBI single in the top of the sixth, sending second baseman Nick Huckaby home to cut the lead to 7-2.
Laramie shortstop Tyler Kipke would answer in the bottom of the sixth with his second home run of the year, as he smacked a solo shot over the right field wall to make it 8-2.
Greeley still would not go away, as Huckaby and Herbst hit RBI singles to cut the lead to 8-4. Alemann was relieved midway through the top of the eighth by closer Ryan Forrest.
On this day, the Colts had an answer for every Grays threat. The final answer came from pinch hitter Kolt Browder in the bottom of the eighth with a two-run home run over the right center field wall to close the door on Greeley for good.
“Earlier this summer with two strikes, he still would have been trying to do too much,” Goodwin said of Browder’s home run. “Right there, he just put a nice and easy swing on that ball and it just went out to right center.”
Laramie had 13 hits on the day, including a perfect 5-for-5 performance from Tierney, who had four singles, a triple and two RBI.
“The last couple wins have all been team, you know,” Tierney said. “Goody (Goodwin) has finally got us in a set rotation, where everybody is playing fairly well. Some guys will have off nights and other guys are picking each other up, which is helping us win. When you score 10-plus runs in four straight games, it’s kind of hard to beat a team.”
Alemann got the win, giving up eight hits, striking our four.
The Colts will go for five in-a-row Friday in Fort Collins, Colo., against the Foxes, beginning at 6:15 p.m.
“With our lineup and our pitching we’re definitely the team to beat,” Tierney said. “If we keep coming out like this, it’s going to be hard to beat us down the stretch.”
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Colts rally for third straight win
by Bobby Abplanalp
Wyoming Sports.org
After a sluggish start, one big inning enabled the Laramie Colts to come back and beat the first-place Cheyenne Grizzlies 11-9 in Mountain Collegiate Baseball League action Tuesday at Cowboy.
With the win Laramie, 19-17, has now won three straight and moved into a virtual second-place tie with the Greeley Grays, sitting just one-half of a game back of Cheyenne, 17-14, for first place.
“Offensively, we’re putting together very efficient performances right now,” Colts manager Ryan Goodwin said. “We always seem to have two or three big innings a game, and I think that’s been our key right now. We’re pitching it just enough and playing just enough defense, but we can still get better in those two areas.”
The Grizzlies jumped out to an early 4-0 lead after scoring two runs in the first and second innings, as Colts starting pitcher Andrew Scheid got off to a rough start, walking four and giving up one hit, before he was relieved by Kyle Roliard with two outs remaining in the top of the first.
Cheyenne center fielder Bret Fanning would score off a wild pitch from Roliard and designated hitter Sam Radbil would hit an RBI single that sent second baseman Kaleb Brawner home for the four-run advantage.
However, the Colts would respond in the bottom of the second inning with eight runs. Third baseman Erik DeJong would get things started leading off with a single, as part of a five-hit inning. Laramie sluggers Casey Martin, Lee Orr, Jonathon Olla and Keith Towne would all hit RBI singles off of Grizzlies pitcher Bryce Reid to take an 8-4 lead into the third inning.
Grizzlies first baseman Michael Surina would scamper home off of another wild pitch thrown by Roliard to cut the lead to three in the third inning.
Each team would stay level for the next four innings, with tough defense behind their respective pitchers.
Marco Mejia would step to the mound for the Colts in the eighth inning, but would give up two runs when Brawner hit an RBI double that was misjudged by Olla in left field to score Grizzlies catcher Joe Spring. Brawner would later score as the Colts' lead was cut to one run.
The Colts would answer the Grizzlies run in the bottom of the eighth and load the bases with one out. DeJong's sacrifice fly scored Tyler Kipke, followed by a two-run by Martin for an 11-7 cushion.
Tyler Park had three strikeouts in the ninth inning, but a costly throwing error by Eric Cain allowed two Grizzlies to score to close the cap, but Park got out of the jam for the save.
“It felt good, but it would have felt better if I didn’t walk two,” Park said. “I made a couple of wrong pitches, but other than that it was all right.”
Roliard got the win for the Colts, giving up three runs on eight hits in six innings.
“(Kyle) Roliard came out and he did really good,” Park said. “He came in and shut them (Cheyenne) down. We came out and had a big (second) inning and that helped Roliard out a lot.”
With the shortened regular season, the Colts now only have a few more games until the playoffs.
“All the cards are starting to fall in our direction,” Park said. “It looks like we’re going to do really good, so it’s going to turn around right here.”
The regular season was originally scheduled for 48 games, but then the MCBL voted to reduce it to 42 due to all of the weather cancellations.
Goodwin said that may not be the case now.
“It’s not going to be a straight 42 (games), everyone is going to try and play what they can,” Goodwin added. “Right now, I believe we’ll get at least 45 if not 46 in. The more we keep winning, the better it’s going to be for us.”
Laramie will go for four in a row overall and three straight against the Greeley Grays here Thursday at Cowboy Field, beginning at 6:35 p.m.
These two teams met Monday in Greeley, Colo., with the Colts coming out on top 11-8, but not without some controversy.
Grays players Nick Huckaby and Patrick Roche were both ejected for arguing umpires calls. Huckaby was ejected after he was called out from a close tag at home plate by Colts catcher Jesse Tierney. Roche was ejected after arguing a strikeout.
Greeley Grays manager Dan Zuberbier said the controversial calls went against his team.
“The only thing I'll say about the calls is, it's hard to get back into a game when we get calls like that,” Zuberbier said courtesy of greeleytribune.com. “It's hard to get the momentum going again.”
Goodwin however, disagrees with this statement.
“It’s baseball. Shoot, I didn’t feel we got a call the whole month of June,” Goodwin said. “Honestly, if they believe that’s why they got beat that game, then they’re sort of mistaken and we’ll have our opportunity to prove it on Thursday.”
Wyoming Sports.org
After a sluggish start, one big inning enabled the Laramie Colts to come back and beat the first-place Cheyenne Grizzlies 11-9 in Mountain Collegiate Baseball League action Tuesday at Cowboy.
With the win Laramie, 19-17, has now won three straight and moved into a virtual second-place tie with the Greeley Grays, sitting just one-half of a game back of Cheyenne, 17-14, for first place.
“Offensively, we’re putting together very efficient performances right now,” Colts manager Ryan Goodwin said. “We always seem to have two or three big innings a game, and I think that’s been our key right now. We’re pitching it just enough and playing just enough defense, but we can still get better in those two areas.”
The Grizzlies jumped out to an early 4-0 lead after scoring two runs in the first and second innings, as Colts starting pitcher Andrew Scheid got off to a rough start, walking four and giving up one hit, before he was relieved by Kyle Roliard with two outs remaining in the top of the first.
Cheyenne center fielder Bret Fanning would score off a wild pitch from Roliard and designated hitter Sam Radbil would hit an RBI single that sent second baseman Kaleb Brawner home for the four-run advantage.
However, the Colts would respond in the bottom of the second inning with eight runs. Third baseman Erik DeJong would get things started leading off with a single, as part of a five-hit inning. Laramie sluggers Casey Martin, Lee Orr, Jonathon Olla and Keith Towne would all hit RBI singles off of Grizzlies pitcher Bryce Reid to take an 8-4 lead into the third inning.
Grizzlies first baseman Michael Surina would scamper home off of another wild pitch thrown by Roliard to cut the lead to three in the third inning.
Each team would stay level for the next four innings, with tough defense behind their respective pitchers.
Marco Mejia would step to the mound for the Colts in the eighth inning, but would give up two runs when Brawner hit an RBI double that was misjudged by Olla in left field to score Grizzlies catcher Joe Spring. Brawner would later score as the Colts' lead was cut to one run.
The Colts would answer the Grizzlies run in the bottom of the eighth and load the bases with one out. DeJong's sacrifice fly scored Tyler Kipke, followed by a two-run by Martin for an 11-7 cushion.
Tyler Park had three strikeouts in the ninth inning, but a costly throwing error by Eric Cain allowed two Grizzlies to score to close the cap, but Park got out of the jam for the save.
“It felt good, but it would have felt better if I didn’t walk two,” Park said. “I made a couple of wrong pitches, but other than that it was all right.”
Roliard got the win for the Colts, giving up three runs on eight hits in six innings.
“(Kyle) Roliard came out and he did really good,” Park said. “He came in and shut them (Cheyenne) down. We came out and had a big (second) inning and that helped Roliard out a lot.”
With the shortened regular season, the Colts now only have a few more games until the playoffs.
“All the cards are starting to fall in our direction,” Park said. “It looks like we’re going to do really good, so it’s going to turn around right here.”
The regular season was originally scheduled for 48 games, but then the MCBL voted to reduce it to 42 due to all of the weather cancellations.
Goodwin said that may not be the case now.
“It’s not going to be a straight 42 (games), everyone is going to try and play what they can,” Goodwin added. “Right now, I believe we’ll get at least 45 if not 46 in. The more we keep winning, the better it’s going to be for us.”
Laramie will go for four in a row overall and three straight against the Greeley Grays here Thursday at Cowboy Field, beginning at 6:35 p.m.
These two teams met Monday in Greeley, Colo., with the Colts coming out on top 11-8, but not without some controversy.
Grays players Nick Huckaby and Patrick Roche were both ejected for arguing umpires calls. Huckaby was ejected after he was called out from a close tag at home plate by Colts catcher Jesse Tierney. Roche was ejected after arguing a strikeout.
Greeley Grays manager Dan Zuberbier said the controversial calls went against his team.
“The only thing I'll say about the calls is, it's hard to get back into a game when we get calls like that,” Zuberbier said courtesy of greeleytribune.com. “It's hard to get the momentum going again.”
Goodwin however, disagrees with this statement.
“It’s baseball. Shoot, I didn’t feel we got a call the whole month of June,” Goodwin said. “Honestly, if they believe that’s why they got beat that game, then they’re sort of mistaken and we’ll have our opportunity to prove it on Thursday.”
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Colts rebound to beat Grays
by Bobby Abplanalp
Wyoming Sports.org
Short term memory proved to be the key Friday night for the Laramie Colts, as they rebounded from Thursday’s loss to the Greeley to come back and beat the Grays 15-10 at Cowboy Field.
Laramie, 17-17, inched closer to Greeley, 15-13, in the Mountain Collegiate Baseball League standings. Going into Friday's game, the Grays were tied for first place with the Cheyenne Grizzlies.
Much like their last game, this one was a contest of runs and momentum, with the Colts outlasting the Grays this time.
Both teams got off to a good start, with Greeley scoring the first run of the game off of an RBI single by catcher Nick Stepanovich that sent designated hitter Chris O’Dowd home for a 1-0 lead.
The Colts would respond with an RBI sacrifice fly from third baseman Eric DeJong that scored catcher Jesse Tierney to even things up 1-1 after one inning.
The Grays would retake the lead in the top of the second inning when a wild pitch by Colts starter Kolt Browder got away from Tierney and Greeley short stop Josh Leo scampered home for a 2-1 lead.
However, Laramie would answer in the bottom of the second with three runs off of four hits on Grays starting pitcher Jaden Dillon. Colts center fielder Josh Warren had a two-run single in the inning that sent teammates Lee Orr and Jonathon Olla home and Laramie took a 4-2 lead into the third inning.
The Colts did not stop there, as Olla had an RBI double and shortstop Eric Krznaric hit an RBI sacrifice fly sending first baseman Casey Martin home to increase their lead to 6-2 after three innings.
Now it was time for the Grays to respond, and that they did, with a five-run sixth inning, as O’Dowd hit an RBI single that scored two runs; second baseman Nick Huckaby drilled a double that hit the left field line that sent two more runs in, and left fielder Darron Lattomus scored off a wild pitch thrown by Colts pitcher Ryan Forrest to take a 7-6 lead going into the bottom of the sixth.
The Colts had blown a nine-run lead against the Grays the day before, but this time Laramie would respond.
Martin would hit a two-out double that scored Warren and third baseman Keith Towne to retake the lead. Grays pitcher Josh Lupa walked the next two batters to load the bases for second baseman Tyler Kipke, and he blasted a grand-slam home run over the right field wall for a 12-7 Colts lead after the sixth inning.
“Well, I had already seen two curve balls and he was only throwing a curve ball and a fast ball,” Kipke said of Lupa’s pitching. “It was a full count and I was looking for a fast ball and he left the curve ball up and I was just trying to put a good swing on it and I hit it pretty well.”
“That was an unbelievable hit right there,” Colts manager Ryan Goodwin said of Kipke’s grand slam.” “That kind of took the wind out of their sales against one of their best relievers.”
Laramie would add some more breathing room in the eighth when pinch hitter Brock Guetzke recorded an RBI walk that scored DeJong, and Tierney got his second hit with a two-run single single to increase the Colts lead to 15-7.
Greeley would try and rally in the top of the ninth inning when Leo hit a two-run double, and he would score off of a ground out by right fielder Kyle Eck. That would be as close as the Grays would get and the Colts would hang on for the win.
Browder got the win, allowing four hits and striking our four batters in four innings.
“Kolt Browder had some tendinitis issues and he gave us what he could for four (innings),” Goodwin said. “We got about as much as we could expect from him.”
The Colts will take a day off for the All-Star break and return home Sunday to begin the second half of the season against the rival Fort Collins Foxes at Cowboy Field, beginning at 6:35 p.m.
However, some of the Colts will be busy Saturday representing the Wyoming team in the Wyoming vs. Colorado MCBL All-Star game.
Among the Colts participating in the event are Tierney (catcher), Martin (first base), Towne (first base), DeJong (third base), Eric Cain (short stop), Olla and Warren (outfield), and Kyle Roliard, Alex Alemann, Tyler Park, Travis Lites, and Marco Mejia or Guetzke (pitching).
Wyoming Sports.org
Short term memory proved to be the key Friday night for the Laramie Colts, as they rebounded from Thursday’s loss to the Greeley to come back and beat the Grays 15-10 at Cowboy Field.
Laramie, 17-17, inched closer to Greeley, 15-13, in the Mountain Collegiate Baseball League standings. Going into Friday's game, the Grays were tied for first place with the Cheyenne Grizzlies.
Much like their last game, this one was a contest of runs and momentum, with the Colts outlasting the Grays this time.
Both teams got off to a good start, with Greeley scoring the first run of the game off of an RBI single by catcher Nick Stepanovich that sent designated hitter Chris O’Dowd home for a 1-0 lead.
The Colts would respond with an RBI sacrifice fly from third baseman Eric DeJong that scored catcher Jesse Tierney to even things up 1-1 after one inning.
The Grays would retake the lead in the top of the second inning when a wild pitch by Colts starter Kolt Browder got away from Tierney and Greeley short stop Josh Leo scampered home for a 2-1 lead.
However, Laramie would answer in the bottom of the second with three runs off of four hits on Grays starting pitcher Jaden Dillon. Colts center fielder Josh Warren had a two-run single in the inning that sent teammates Lee Orr and Jonathon Olla home and Laramie took a 4-2 lead into the third inning.
The Colts did not stop there, as Olla had an RBI double and shortstop Eric Krznaric hit an RBI sacrifice fly sending first baseman Casey Martin home to increase their lead to 6-2 after three innings.
Now it was time for the Grays to respond, and that they did, with a five-run sixth inning, as O’Dowd hit an RBI single that scored two runs; second baseman Nick Huckaby drilled a double that hit the left field line that sent two more runs in, and left fielder Darron Lattomus scored off a wild pitch thrown by Colts pitcher Ryan Forrest to take a 7-6 lead going into the bottom of the sixth.
The Colts had blown a nine-run lead against the Grays the day before, but this time Laramie would respond.
Martin would hit a two-out double that scored Warren and third baseman Keith Towne to retake the lead. Grays pitcher Josh Lupa walked the next two batters to load the bases for second baseman Tyler Kipke, and he blasted a grand-slam home run over the right field wall for a 12-7 Colts lead after the sixth inning.
“Well, I had already seen two curve balls and he was only throwing a curve ball and a fast ball,” Kipke said of Lupa’s pitching. “It was a full count and I was looking for a fast ball and he left the curve ball up and I was just trying to put a good swing on it and I hit it pretty well.”
“That was an unbelievable hit right there,” Colts manager Ryan Goodwin said of Kipke’s grand slam.” “That kind of took the wind out of their sales against one of their best relievers.”
Laramie would add some more breathing room in the eighth when pinch hitter Brock Guetzke recorded an RBI walk that scored DeJong, and Tierney got his second hit with a two-run single single to increase the Colts lead to 15-7.
Greeley would try and rally in the top of the ninth inning when Leo hit a two-run double, and he would score off of a ground out by right fielder Kyle Eck. That would be as close as the Grays would get and the Colts would hang on for the win.
Browder got the win, allowing four hits and striking our four batters in four innings.
“Kolt Browder had some tendinitis issues and he gave us what he could for four (innings),” Goodwin said. “We got about as much as we could expect from him.”
The Colts will take a day off for the All-Star break and return home Sunday to begin the second half of the season against the rival Fort Collins Foxes at Cowboy Field, beginning at 6:35 p.m.
However, some of the Colts will be busy Saturday representing the Wyoming team in the Wyoming vs. Colorado MCBL All-Star game.
Among the Colts participating in the event are Tierney (catcher), Martin (first base), Towne (first base), DeJong (third base), Eric Cain (short stop), Olla and Warren (outfield), and Kyle Roliard, Alex Alemann, Tyler Park, Travis Lites, and Marco Mejia or Guetzke (pitching).
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Grays rally from nine down to shock Colts
by Bobby Abplanalp
Wyoming Sports.org
The Laramie Colts appeared to be getting back to their winning ways, but 16 unanswered runs by the first-place Greeley Grays told a different tale, as they came back from a 10-1 deficit to beat the Colts 17-11 Thursday at Cowboy Field.
Laramie, 16-17, continued its inconsistent play and failed to get within a half game of Greeley, 15-12, for first place in the Mountain Collegiate Baseball League standings.
The Colts would strike first blood when first baseman Casey Martin, who was 4-for-6, brought center fielder Josh Warren and third baseman Eric DeJong home with a double for a 2-0 lead after one inning.
Greeley would come back in the top of the second inning, as right fielder Kyle Eck smacked an RBI triple to the right field wall to make it 2-1.
Laramie jumped all over Grays starting pitcher Kyle Mack, erupting for five hits that scored six runs and RBIs to increase its lead to 8-1 after the second inning.
Mack was relieved after the second by Troy Brown, but the Colts continued their hitting onslaught, as they had 18 in the game.
“We hit the ball today, but not as well as we needed too,” Martin said.
DeJong hit his second home run in the last four games, belting a solo shot over the left center field wall, and second baseman Lucas Calderon got his first hit with an RBI double, which upped the Colts lead to 10-1 after three innings.
However, the Grays would rally in the top of the fourth inning, as they started to wear down Colts pitcher Branden Jamison, getting three hits off of him, one of which was a two-run single hit by second baseman Nick Huckaby. An RBI walk and a wild pitch resulted in two more runs for the Grays, which cut Laramie’s lead to 10-5 after four innings.
Marco Mejia relieved Jamison in the top of the fifth inning with runners on first and third base with no outs. Mejia would close out the inning, but not before giving up two runs (which were charged to Jamison) to Eck and Patrick Roche.
Martin would single in the bottom of the fifth, but that would be all the Colts would get, as the momentum shifted to Greeley.
The Grays would keep chipping away and tie things up 10-10 off of a costly error by Mejia, as his throw to third base sailed wide left of DeJong, which allowed two runs two come in. Brock Guetzke would relieve Mejia during the top of the seventh inning, but he struggled like the rest of the Colts pitching staff and the Grays would turn the tables on the Colts for a seven runs in the inning to take a 14-10 lead.
“What hurt today a lot was Blake (Treinen, the Colts starting pitcher) went down with a thumb injury or something in the first inning,” Martin said. “We had to go straight to our bullpen right off the bat. We play a lot of games and it’s hard to get guys healthy and ready to pitch as fast as we needed them to, so that was probably the biggest thing having to go with another guy early.”
Eight walks by Laramie pitching also hurt, Colts manager Ryan Goodwin said.
“I believe seven of the eight walks came after we got the lead and that’s just unacceptable on the mound," Goodwin said.
The wind was taken out of the Colts sails once they blew their nine-run lead and they could not answer the Grays rally in front of a stunned silent home crowd, as Greeley would add three more runs in the ninth inning off of three RBI singles for a 17-10 lead.
“Baseball is about controlling momentum and we had the key error in the fourth inning where we could have got out of the inning with very minimal damage, and the next thing you know, it snowballed,” Goodwin said. “The problem is we have a lot of talented guys that just don’t seem to want to be the guy in the tough situation. When you got to make a play you got to step up and make a play no matter what the circumstances and that has become the most frustrating factor.”
Guetzke would hit an RBI single in the bottom of the ninth inning, but that would be as close as Laramie would get.
The Colts will try again Friday against the Grays at Cowboy Field, beginning at 6:35 p.m.
“Every game counts now, especially against them (Greeley),” Martin said. “If we can take these next two (games against Greeley), then that’s going to be huge. The biggest thing we got to do is just forget about tonight because it’s summer ball and you play every day.”
“If you dwell on this one, then you’re doomed to repeat it,” Goodwin added. “You got to have a short memory.”
Wyoming Sports.org
The Laramie Colts appeared to be getting back to their winning ways, but 16 unanswered runs by the first-place Greeley Grays told a different tale, as they came back from a 10-1 deficit to beat the Colts 17-11 Thursday at Cowboy Field.
Laramie, 16-17, continued its inconsistent play and failed to get within a half game of Greeley, 15-12, for first place in the Mountain Collegiate Baseball League standings.
The Colts would strike first blood when first baseman Casey Martin, who was 4-for-6, brought center fielder Josh Warren and third baseman Eric DeJong home with a double for a 2-0 lead after one inning.
Greeley would come back in the top of the second inning, as right fielder Kyle Eck smacked an RBI triple to the right field wall to make it 2-1.
Laramie jumped all over Grays starting pitcher Kyle Mack, erupting for five hits that scored six runs and RBIs to increase its lead to 8-1 after the second inning.
Mack was relieved after the second by Troy Brown, but the Colts continued their hitting onslaught, as they had 18 in the game.
“We hit the ball today, but not as well as we needed too,” Martin said.
DeJong hit his second home run in the last four games, belting a solo shot over the left center field wall, and second baseman Lucas Calderon got his first hit with an RBI double, which upped the Colts lead to 10-1 after three innings.
However, the Grays would rally in the top of the fourth inning, as they started to wear down Colts pitcher Branden Jamison, getting three hits off of him, one of which was a two-run single hit by second baseman Nick Huckaby. An RBI walk and a wild pitch resulted in two more runs for the Grays, which cut Laramie’s lead to 10-5 after four innings.
Marco Mejia relieved Jamison in the top of the fifth inning with runners on first and third base with no outs. Mejia would close out the inning, but not before giving up two runs (which were charged to Jamison) to Eck and Patrick Roche.
Martin would single in the bottom of the fifth, but that would be all the Colts would get, as the momentum shifted to Greeley.
The Grays would keep chipping away and tie things up 10-10 off of a costly error by Mejia, as his throw to third base sailed wide left of DeJong, which allowed two runs two come in. Brock Guetzke would relieve Mejia during the top of the seventh inning, but he struggled like the rest of the Colts pitching staff and the Grays would turn the tables on the Colts for a seven runs in the inning to take a 14-10 lead.
“What hurt today a lot was Blake (Treinen, the Colts starting pitcher) went down with a thumb injury or something in the first inning,” Martin said. “We had to go straight to our bullpen right off the bat. We play a lot of games and it’s hard to get guys healthy and ready to pitch as fast as we needed them to, so that was probably the biggest thing having to go with another guy early.”
Eight walks by Laramie pitching also hurt, Colts manager Ryan Goodwin said.
“I believe seven of the eight walks came after we got the lead and that’s just unacceptable on the mound," Goodwin said.
The wind was taken out of the Colts sails once they blew their nine-run lead and they could not answer the Grays rally in front of a stunned silent home crowd, as Greeley would add three more runs in the ninth inning off of three RBI singles for a 17-10 lead.
“Baseball is about controlling momentum and we had the key error in the fourth inning where we could have got out of the inning with very minimal damage, and the next thing you know, it snowballed,” Goodwin said. “The problem is we have a lot of talented guys that just don’t seem to want to be the guy in the tough situation. When you got to make a play you got to step up and make a play no matter what the circumstances and that has become the most frustrating factor.”
Guetzke would hit an RBI single in the bottom of the ninth inning, but that would be as close as Laramie would get.
The Colts will try again Friday against the Grays at Cowboy Field, beginning at 6:35 p.m.
“Every game counts now, especially against them (Greeley),” Martin said. “If we can take these next two (games against Greeley), then that’s going to be huge. The biggest thing we got to do is just forget about tonight because it’s summer ball and you play every day.”
“If you dwell on this one, then you’re doomed to repeat it,” Goodwin added. “You got to have a short memory.”
Monday, July 6, 2009
Colts split with Grizzlies
by Bobby Abplanalp
Wyoming Sports.org
Despite yet another rain delay, the Laramie Colts came out with a little fire before splitting a Mountain Collegiate Baseball League doubleheader with the Cheyenne Grizzlies Monday at Cowboy Field.
The first game was delayed for 105 minutes, but the Colts would come out fired up nonetheless and win the first game 10-1, before losing a tough second game in eight innings 5-4.
Laramie, 15-16, fails once again to get over .500 and remains in third place in the MCBL standings behind Cheyenne, 12-11. The 16 losses for the Colts are more than they had all of last season.
After coming off of a tough 4-3 loss in 10 innings to the Fort Collins Foxes on the road Sunday, the Colts came out strong against the Grizzlies.
Laramie third baseman Eric DeJong's two-run home run put the Colts up 3-0 in the first inning and the Colts would get single runs in the next two innings on a RBI single by shortstop Tyler Park in the second and a RBI single by centerfielder Lee Orr in the third. It was the newcomer Orr's first hit as a Colt.
“We’re hitting a lot more balls harder,” DeJong said. “We’re seeing balls and our approaches are better at the plate. We just got to keep going, we can’t slow down now.”
The Colts would increase their lead to 8-0 in the fifth inning, highlighted by a two-run single by right fielder Kolt Browder .
The Grizzlies would get on the board in the top of the sixth with one run, but the Colts answered with a RBI double by Jesse Tierney and a run-scoring triple by first baseman Casey Martin.
Laramie had 13 hits in the first game.
Kyle Roliard got the win, scattering six hits and striking out three.
“We just got on them,” Colts manager Ryan Goodwin said. “I’ve noticed that a lot with the teams in this league if you put up a big inning early, then this year a lot of teams have been folding.”
After Cheyenne scored the first run of the second game, Laramie came back with two runs in the bottom of the third. Despite two nice defensive plays by Laramie second baseman Lucas Calderon and pitcher Alex Alemann, the Grizzlies regained a 3-2 lead in the fifth inning.
Laramie would take their first lead in the bottom of the third inning, when designated hitter Roliard hit an RBI sacrifice fly to left field that sent left fielder Olla home to make the score 2-1 for the Colts.
Laramie regained the lead again with two runs in the bottom of the fifth, but Cheyenne tide the game at 4-4 off of closer Marco Mejia in the seventh.
The Grizzlies then won the game off of Ryan Forrest in the eighth on a single, error and then a wild pitch.
The Colts had just four hits in the second game.
“That was a good fun baseball game right there,” Goodwin said. “It’s kind of a playoff style in game two. I kind of felt like it was something where ‘who is going to make the critical mistake,’ and unfortunately Ryan (Forrest) hung on that change up (pitch) a tad bit too long and we just weren’t able to answer.”
“I felt we played hard all night,” DeJong added. “We caught breaks and they (Cheyenne) caught breaks, but the thing is we got to do whatever we can toward the end of these games to really close the deal. We need to start winning these doubleheaders in order to be in better shape as far as the standings.”
The Colts did not gain any ground in the MCBL standings, but they are confident that they can still repeat as MCBL regular-season champions.
“Baseball is a game about whoever is clicking at the end,” DeJong said. “We’re playing hard right now and I’m confident we’ll finish off strong. Everyone in this league is close, but it’s toward the end of the season for whoever is playing the best baseball.”
“We got Greeley coming up three times later this week and we’re going to throw everything we got at them,” added Goodwin. “We know that’s the team we got to catch. If we take care of business against them, then there is no reason that we can’t come back and win this whole thing.”
The Colts will be in action again Wednesday against the Fort Collins Foxes, beginning at 6:15 p.m., in Fort Collins, Colo.
On a side note, a controversial decision was made Monday by the MCBL, which cut the 48-game regular season down to 42, due to all of the rain outs. Goodwin is very disappointed by the decision.
“I’m not very happy about it because we’re the one team that got stuck where everyone kept rescheduling us when our pitching was down and they (Cheyenne, Greeley and Fort Collins) took advantage of it,” Goodwin said. “The fact is we went out and scheduled our games and we went and played, meanwhile everyone else was playing exhibition games, and now all of a sudden,‘oh, we can’t make up all our games.’
“It’s kind of frustrating on my end because we promised these guys and their coaches 48 games when we go to recruit them. Next year, when they go back and tell their coaches, ‘hey, here is what happened out there,’ if I’m a coach at a college, I don’t want to send a guy back to a league that’s going to pull shenanigans like that personally, but unfortunately, the three other clubs don’t see it that way.”
Wyoming Sports.org
Despite yet another rain delay, the Laramie Colts came out with a little fire before splitting a Mountain Collegiate Baseball League doubleheader with the Cheyenne Grizzlies Monday at Cowboy Field.
The first game was delayed for 105 minutes, but the Colts would come out fired up nonetheless and win the first game 10-1, before losing a tough second game in eight innings 5-4.
Laramie, 15-16, fails once again to get over .500 and remains in third place in the MCBL standings behind Cheyenne, 12-11. The 16 losses for the Colts are more than they had all of last season.
After coming off of a tough 4-3 loss in 10 innings to the Fort Collins Foxes on the road Sunday, the Colts came out strong against the Grizzlies.
Laramie third baseman Eric DeJong's two-run home run put the Colts up 3-0 in the first inning and the Colts would get single runs in the next two innings on a RBI single by shortstop Tyler Park in the second and a RBI single by centerfielder Lee Orr in the third. It was the newcomer Orr's first hit as a Colt.
“We’re hitting a lot more balls harder,” DeJong said. “We’re seeing balls and our approaches are better at the plate. We just got to keep going, we can’t slow down now.”
The Colts would increase their lead to 8-0 in the fifth inning, highlighted by a two-run single by right fielder Kolt Browder .
The Grizzlies would get on the board in the top of the sixth with one run, but the Colts answered with a RBI double by Jesse Tierney and a run-scoring triple by first baseman Casey Martin.
Laramie had 13 hits in the first game.
Kyle Roliard got the win, scattering six hits and striking out three.
“We just got on them,” Colts manager Ryan Goodwin said. “I’ve noticed that a lot with the teams in this league if you put up a big inning early, then this year a lot of teams have been folding.”
After Cheyenne scored the first run of the second game, Laramie came back with two runs in the bottom of the third. Despite two nice defensive plays by Laramie second baseman Lucas Calderon and pitcher Alex Alemann, the Grizzlies regained a 3-2 lead in the fifth inning.
Laramie would take their first lead in the bottom of the third inning, when designated hitter Roliard hit an RBI sacrifice fly to left field that sent left fielder Olla home to make the score 2-1 for the Colts.
Laramie regained the lead again with two runs in the bottom of the fifth, but Cheyenne tide the game at 4-4 off of closer Marco Mejia in the seventh.
The Grizzlies then won the game off of Ryan Forrest in the eighth on a single, error and then a wild pitch.
The Colts had just four hits in the second game.
“That was a good fun baseball game right there,” Goodwin said. “It’s kind of a playoff style in game two. I kind of felt like it was something where ‘who is going to make the critical mistake,’ and unfortunately Ryan (Forrest) hung on that change up (pitch) a tad bit too long and we just weren’t able to answer.”
“I felt we played hard all night,” DeJong added. “We caught breaks and they (Cheyenne) caught breaks, but the thing is we got to do whatever we can toward the end of these games to really close the deal. We need to start winning these doubleheaders in order to be in better shape as far as the standings.”
The Colts did not gain any ground in the MCBL standings, but they are confident that they can still repeat as MCBL regular-season champions.
“Baseball is a game about whoever is clicking at the end,” DeJong said. “We’re playing hard right now and I’m confident we’ll finish off strong. Everyone in this league is close, but it’s toward the end of the season for whoever is playing the best baseball.”
“We got Greeley coming up three times later this week and we’re going to throw everything we got at them,” added Goodwin. “We know that’s the team we got to catch. If we take care of business against them, then there is no reason that we can’t come back and win this whole thing.”
The Colts will be in action again Wednesday against the Fort Collins Foxes, beginning at 6:15 p.m., in Fort Collins, Colo.
On a side note, a controversial decision was made Monday by the MCBL, which cut the 48-game regular season down to 42, due to all of the rain outs. Goodwin is very disappointed by the decision.
“I’m not very happy about it because we’re the one team that got stuck where everyone kept rescheduling us when our pitching was down and they (Cheyenne, Greeley and Fort Collins) took advantage of it,” Goodwin said. “The fact is we went out and scheduled our games and we went and played, meanwhile everyone else was playing exhibition games, and now all of a sudden,‘oh, we can’t make up all our games.’
“It’s kind of frustrating on my end because we promised these guys and their coaches 48 games when we go to recruit them. Next year, when they go back and tell their coaches, ‘hey, here is what happened out there,’ if I’m a coach at a college, I don’t want to send a guy back to a league that’s going to pull shenanigans like that personally, but unfortunately, the three other clubs don’t see it that way.”
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