Junior Babe team clinches state title

Sonja Karp
NLJ Sports Reporter
 
The Senior Babe Ruth Longhorn baseball team became state champs a week ago, and the Junior Babe Stampede team proved they were not about to be outdone. 
Last weekend the younger crew showed up and showed out at the state tournament in Worland by sweeping the competition, earning a trip to the Pacific Northwest
Regional Tournament in Camas, Wash., July 21-28.
A successful season had the Stampede going into the tournament as the clear favorite. However they had to prove they were entitled to the rank as the other teams were waiting for the opportunity to be the upset
and give themselves the chance to play for the title.
Newcastle began tournament action with a contest against Buffalo. A slow start was cause for some concern as the team fell behind 1-3 in the bottom of the third. Fortunately, the boys quickly shrugged off the sluggishness and cruised to an 11-5 win over the Johnson County squad.
Next up for the Stampede was a matchup against Gillette. The contest was a battle for the first five innings of play, leaving fans on the edge of the seats. Newcastle was able to take a slim 5-4 lead at the end of the fifth which they held until the final inning.
In the seventh, the Stampede decided to quit toying with their prey and racked up 11 runs to take the commanding 16-4 victory, setting themselves up to play for the championship on Sunday.
Just like the Longhorns the week before, the Stampede was pitted against Lander in the title game. At the end of the first inning, the score remained at zero. Newcastle cracked the goose egg and got on the board first with a run in the second. Once establishing the lead, the Stampede never relinquished it, dominating Lander throughout. The contest was called by way of the mercy rule after the fifth inning with Newcastle taking the 11-1 victory.
As the Wyoming State Champions, the Stampede punched their ticket to the Pacific Northwest Regional Tournament in Washington at the end of July.
Not only was the team crowned the champs, there was individual kudos earned by Newcastle as well with Keyan Mefford being named the Most Valuable Player of the championship game.
As the squad prepares for some tough competition at the Regional Tourney, they will also be undertaking some fundraisers to help foot the bill. One of those will be a meet and greet fundraiser with the team at the Pizza Barn this Friday, July 12, from 4 to 8:30 pm.