Chiefs show grit in games against Powell and Buffalo

Playing doubleheaders against Powell and Buffalo, the American Legion Post 44 Worland Chiefs Class C played some of their best baseball of the season last week.

On June 19, Worland played a road game doubleheader against Powell.

Powell won Game 1 13-7, but the Chiefs were winning 7-6 going into the bottom of the fourth inning. After a pitching change to start the bottom of the inning, the Chiefs made too many mistakes, which Powell capitalized on.

"In Game 1, Kyston Rollema started and pitched a tough game for us," said Worland Chiefs coach Cory Davis. "We were winning 7-6 heading into the bottom of the fourth. We did so many good things, and we were in that game. The kids hit well, and outside that one inning, the boys fielded well."

Leading the way for Worland in Game 1 vs. Powell: Krew Neighbors had two hits and an RBI, Cannon Tidemann had two hits and an RBI, Zach Davis had an RBI double, Charlie Turner an RBI, Dallon Lara an RBI single, Ryu Moreno had two hits and Danner Glanz a singe.

In Game 2, Worland fell behind 6-0 after the first inning. While Worland wouldn't score until the third, Dallon Lara and Danner Glanz came in relief and held Powell in check for the most part.

"We lost, but it was a fun game. They were laughing, having fun, talking to each other, it was a fun environment. It was the best team baseball we've played. We were down 6-0 after the first inning. Dallon Lara came in to pitch for us after that, and he looked like Gregg Maddux out there. He threw three and a third innings, gave up three runs and had three strikeouts (Ks). He kept us in that game.

"We started to slowly chip away. After Dallon, I brought in Danner, and he pitched two innings, gave up a run and had two Ks. Both Dallon and Danner were amazing and had low pitch totals. They threw a lot of strikes," said Davis.

Worland had clawed back into the game after the 6-0 first-inning hole. Powell led 8-5, and the game was near the time limit. The Chiefs needed to get quick outs to have one more chance at the plate. They did just that as they turned a double play in time to play one more inning.  

Ultimately, Powell won 8-5, but Worland's ability to fight back in the game was a positive step forward in the team's growth.

"We had a minute left in the game, and if we didn't end it, the game was over. We turned a double play and got us one more chance to get the game. We had base runners and were hitting the ball, but Powell ended the game with a double play," said Davis.

"The first inning for us at the plate was three up, three down. The second inning, three up, three down. We scored three runs with two outs. That's a sign of a good ball club that can score with two outs," said Davis. "You hate to lose, but the kids had fun, I had fun, and we erased those nuclear innings and made them earn it."

Getting in the box score for Worland were Zach Davis with an RBI single, Neighbors with an RBI single, Glanz with a single and Myles Baugh scored two runs.

After the Powell game, Worland hosted Buffalo on June 22 at Newell Sargent Park.

A bad inning hurt the Chiefs' chances at victory in Game 1, losing 21-11.

"We had multiple bad innings, but it was one nuclear inning that took us out of it. It was 14-11 heading into the fifth inning. Buffalo hit the ball really well in that game. It didn't help we had seven errors and five wild pitches," said Davis.

In Game 2, the Chiefs fell behind 3-0 after the top of the first. However, the Chiefs answered Buffalo's three runs with five of their own. From that point on, Worland never trailed.

Mason Tigner picked up the win, throwing a complete game and was dominant in the victory.

"Mason Tigner pitched a six-inning complete game and threw 92 pitches. That was a lot of pitches, but every time I checked on him, he said he was good. He dominated the game. It was so cool because he wasn't phased by anything.

"Buffalo jumped out 3-0 in the first inning. They were all good hits and one wild pitch. We responded by scoring five and led the rest of the way. They could not figure out Mason. You'd never know he was 13 years old. He was calm, cool and collected," said Davis.

Some of the highlights for Worland were Braylon Kidgell three runs, Zach Davis singled, Neighbors singled, Moreno singled and Baugh singled.

This week, the Chiefs have two home games on schedule. On Tuesday, they played Thermopolis, and today, they play Riverton at 1 and 3 p.m.

While last week was a good week for Worland, cutting down on errors is something they focused on in practice this week.

"We've done a lot of work with groundballs and fly balls. We've also worked on our communication in the field. For hitting, the outside pitch has been a challenge. If the first pitch is on the outside, it's okay to lay off of it. But when it's the second or third one, we need to put a bat on it. The umpire isn't going to take it easy on them.

"We've worked on adjustments like with their hands or scooting up a little bit and ways to combat those outside pitches. We're fine-tuning things. Last year, we were still working on the fundamentals of throwing, catching and swinging mechanics. This year, we're working on secondary leads, specific scenarios and other things that come with growing your baseball IQ. It's cool that we're getting into the intricacies of baseball," said Davis.