CHEYENNE — The Rock Springs Lady Tigers will begin play at the Wyoming 4A State Softball Tournament on Thursday afternoon, opening against Natrona County at 4 p.m. on the South Field at the Cheyenne Junior League Fields.
Rock Springs enters the tournament after battling through the elimination bracket at the South Regional Tournament last weekend to secure the No. 3 seed from the South.
TRN Media will broadcast all Rock Springs games at state with audio-only livestream coverage featuring Keith Trujillo on play-by-play. Streams can be found on SweetwaterNOW’s Facebook page.
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The Lady Tigers open against Natrona County in the first round, with the winner advancing to Friday’s quarterfinals against either Cheyenne East or Cody at 10 a.m. on Central Field. The loser of Thursday’s opener would still remain alive in the double-elimination format and would face the loser of East and Cody at noon Friday on Central Field.
The tournament’s double-elimination format places major importance on staying undefeated early. Teams that reach the championship round without a loss can win the state title in four total victories. A semifinal loss would force a team into the consolation bracket, where it would need five wins overall, including two championship-game victories, to claim the title. Teams that lose in either the opening round or quarterfinals face the longest road, needing six wins overall and two championship-game victories to win state.
Unlike many Wyoming postseason formats, teams remain alive after one loss, but a second loss eliminates them from the tournament. That means a team can reach the championship round undefeated and still have another opportunity if it loses the first title game. The team coming from the consolation bracket must defeat the undefeated team twice in the championship round to win the state title.
Rock Springs enters the state tournament built around one of the strongest pitching and defensive units in Wyoming.
The Lady Tigers are tied for third in the state in opponent runs allowed per game at 5.8 and own the top team ERA in Wyoming at 4.436. They also rank second in strikeouts per game at 6.9, trailing only Cheyenne East.
Leading the pitching staff is Rilynn Wester, who enters state with a state-leading 159 strikeouts this season after recording 32 strikeouts during regional play last weekend.
Rock Springs also features offensive firepower led by junior catcher Tarin Anderson.
Anderson enters the tournament fourth in Wyoming in RBIs with 44 and has collected 38 hits this season while batting .400. She also ranks third statewide in home runs with seven and is tied for eighth in stolen bases with 20.
Rachael Wallendorff also ranks among the state leaders on the bases, sitting 10th in stolen bases with 17.
The Lady Tigers enter the tournament at 17-15 overall.
