GREEN RIVER — The Green River Knights’ postseason run came to a heartbreaking end Sunday evening.
After erasing a three-run deficit in the seventh inning to force extra innings, the Knights fell 6-5 to the Lovell Mustangs in the semifinals of the Wyoming American Legion Division II State Tournament. Lovell scored the winning run in the bottom of the eighth, ending Green River’s season with a fourth-place finish.
Green River, which had battled through the loser’s bracket with back-to-back elimination-game victories, finished its tournament run one win shy of playing for the state championship.
The Mustangs retired the Knights in order in the top of the first inning before Green River’s defense answered with a scoreless frame of its own, sending the game to the second tied 0-0.
Davy Puckett drew a two-out walk in the second, but Green River was unable to advance the runner. The Knights’ defense continued to shine in the bottom half of the inning, retiring Lovell in order again as Manuel Munoz recorded his first two strikeouts of the game.
Green River broke through in the third.
Back-to-back Lovell errors opened the door before Brylan Ginestar laid down a bunt that allowed Sam Dockter to score, giving the Knights a 1-0 lead. Although the inning ended with a fielder’s choice and a double play, Green River carried the advantage into the bottom of the third.
Lovell threatened in the third with an error and a single putting two runners aboard, but the Knights escaped the inning without allowing a run.
The game changed in the fourth.
After Green River went down in order, the Mustangs strung together five singles and capitalized on a Green River error to score four runs. Jaxen Baxendale drove in the first two runs of the inning, while Easton Morgan and Aaiden Walker each added RBIs as Lovell surged in front 4-1.
Travin Brown doubled in the fifth for the Knights, but Green River struggled to generate offense against Lovell’s pitching. The Knights managed just three hits throughout the game, though they continued to pressure the Mustangs by taking advantage of walks and defensive miscues.
Trailing 4-1 entering the seventh inning, Green River was down to its final three outs.
After Lovell recorded the first out, Puckett reached on an error before Brown worked a five-pitch walk. Sam Dockter followed with a four-pitch walk to load the bases.
Ginestar put the ball in play, but the second baseman recorded the out while keeping all three runners in place, leaving the Knights down to their final out.
Oliver Akin then delivered the biggest hit of Green River’s season.
After working the count to 3-1, Akin ripped a double into the gap in left-center field, clearing the bases with a three-run double that tied the game at 4-4.
The Knights weren’t finished.
Corwin Paoli followed with a single to center field, bringing Akin home with the go-ahead run as Green River completed an improbable four-run rally to take a 5-4 lead.
Needing just three outs to advance, the Knights turned to incoming freshman Evan Vendetti to close out the game.
Lovell answered in the bottom of the seventh, using two Green River errors to tie the score and force extra innings.
The Knights threatened in the eighth after an error and a walk put two runners aboard with two outs, but they were unable to push across the go-ahead run.
In the bottom of the eighth, another error and a walk gave Lovell runners on first and second with no outs. Kannon Owens followed with a bunt single to load the bases, and moments later a wild pitch allowed Easton Morgan to score the winning run, lifting the Mustangs to a 6-5 victory.
Despite the loss, Green River’s postseason run showcased the resilience of a young roster. The Knights, who were granted a berth in the state tournament as the host team, battled into the semifinals and twice survived elimination before finishing fourth in the state.
Akin led Green River offensively, going 1-for-2 with a three-run double, one run scored and one walk. The Knights finished with three hits and five walks while manufacturing five runs through aggressive baserunning and capitalizing on Lovell’s mistakes.
Although the season ended one game short of the championship round, Green River’s performance at the Division II State Tournament provided a glimpse of a promising future for a roster that will return much of its core next season, including Landon Smart, who was named first-team All-State!
