TORRINGTON — The Rock Springs Stallions came close to ending their June skid in the opener before Torrington rallied late, and the Tigers completed a conference sweep Friday with an 8-2 victory in the nightcap.
The losses dropped Rock Springs to 8-25 overall and extended the Stallions’ losing streak to 10 games. Torrington capitalized on timely hitting, aggressive baserunning and defensive miscues to earn the pair of conference wins.
The opener provided the most drama of the day.
Rock Springs built an early 5-2 lead in the second inning after Kennan Green delivered a three-run single and the Stallions took advantage of patient at-bats. After Torrington answered to tie the game in the bottom half of the inning, Lincoln Young’s RBI single in the third pushed Rock Springs back in front, 6-5.
The Tigers regained control in the bottom of the third, using a pair of Stallions errors and aggressive play on the bases to move ahead 8-6.
Rock Springs refused to go away.
Trailing by three entering the seventh, Damian Valerio launched a grand slam, his second this week, to center field to give the Stallions a 10-9 advantage and put them within three outs of snapping their losing streak.
But Torrington had one more response.
With the Tigers down to their final opportunity in the bottom of the seventh, Tanner McCarty delivered a two-run double to complete the comeback and hand Torrington an 11-10 victory.
Valerio finished 2-for-5 and drove in six runs for Rock Springs, highlighted by the go-ahead grand slam. Karter Duran collected three hits and drove in two runs, while Arlo Braly added two hits. Kennan Green and Lincoln Young each finished with two RBIs.
Torrington piled up 13 hits in the win. McCarty drove in four runs, while Colter Lewis recorded three hits. Jayson Freeburg, Kash Lenzen and Taylor Yates each added multiple-hit performances.
The second game slipped away much earlier.
After Noah Hemphil’s RBI single tied the score at 1-1 in the top of the second inning, Torrington erupted for 20 runs in the bottom half to seize complete control of the contest.
The Tigers sent a parade of hitters to the plate during the inning, collecting 13 hits as they built a 21-1 advantage.
Rock Springs managed two more runs but could not recover in a 21-3 defeat.
Damian Valerio, Lincoln Young and Hemphil each recorded a hit for the Stallions. Young and Hemphil drove in runs in the loss.
Douglas finished with 13 hits in the second game. Tripp Crawford and Jayson Freeburg each collected three hits, while Jakob Williams, Noah Ohnstad, Crawford and Kash Lenzen drove in three runs apiece.
Despite the disappointing finish, the Stallions showed offensive potential in the opener, scoring 10 runs and nearly rallying for their first victory since late May.
Rock Springs will look to regroup Monday when it travels to Cheyenne to face the Cheyenne Post 6 Eagles in another conference doubleheader.
