EVANSTON — The Evanston Outlaws Post 41 American Legion Baseball team picked up two AA West Conference home victories on Tuesday, June 17, over the Rock Springs Sand Puppies to rise to 2-0 in the division. The team also went 2-1 in Laramie on Friday and Saturday, June 21-22, to up their seasonal standing to 14-13, including an extra-innings thriller over the Torrington Tigers, 2-1, during their last game played. The Outlaws were 13-13 going into the contest. Games were also scheduled for Sunday, June 23, at Cowboy Field on the University of Wyoming campus but were canceled due to snow on Sunday morning. Evanston was scheduled to play the Laramie Rangers and potentially a team from Dickinson, North Dakota, prior to the final day of the Dooley Oil Classic in the Gem City.

Evanston had little trouble at home against Rock Springs, winning both games of a doubleheader in convincing fashion, 11-1 and 9-1.

Evanston led wire-to-wire in the first game against the Sand Puppies, when Gus Allred doubled to knock in a run in the bottom of the first. The Outlaws added a pair of runs during the second inning before Rock Springs scored in the top of the third to make it a 3-1 affair.

Post 41 put the game away in the fifth inning when the team exploded for eight runs behind RBIs for Derf Periman, Ryan Fisher, Kendall Cummings and Allred. Clayton Moyles and Reid Gross also had multiple hits in a 14-hit barrage for Evanston.

Fisher picked up the victory on the mound ,allowing one run on four hits over five innings, while striking out six without a walk.

The second game in the twin bill belonged to Seth Lloyd, who went 4-4 at the plate and also pitched his team to victory, surrendering just one run on one hit through seven innings, while striking out four. The Outlaws scattered nine hits during the game. Derf Periman had two hits in three at-bats.

The team then traveled to Laramie for games on Friday and Saturday, beginning with a matchup with the Cheyenne Hawks.

Evanston took a 3-1 lead in the bottom of the second inning but then witnessed the Hawks’ six-run onslaught in the top of the third to capture a 7-3 advantage. According to Outlaw skipper Jason Lloyd, the conditions were wet, windy and chilly and the Outlaws were their own worst enemy against the Hawks, committing seven errors in the field, many of which led to runs for the Cheyenne squad. Evanston had 10 hits compared to six for the Hawks. Derf and Casey Periman, along with Gross, all had multiple hits for the Outlaws but the team’s rally fell short as Cheyenne claimed a 10-8 victory to open up tournament action. Fisher started on the mound for Evanston and was relieved by Casey Periman.

The Outlaws bounced back on Saturday morning, claiming a 9-0 victory over Spearfish, South Dakota, with Allred pitching the shutout for Post 41. Allred allowed just two hits and no runs over the course of five innings when the game was called. Jagger Mitchell, Gross, Lloyd and Allred all collected RBIs to lead the Outlaws offense.

The Outlaws and Torrington Tigers played two extra innings before the scheduled seven-inning contest was decided. The pitching was strong for both teams as the Outlaws struck out 10 and the Tigers sat down five. Fisher earned the win for Evanston with Mitchell coming out of the bull pen in relief. Lloyd actually started the game and went five innings, but his manager, who happens to also be his father, pulled the younger Lloyd, who had allowed just two hits through five innings.

“Torrington has some big kids. We knew we had conference games coming up against Casper on Tuesday where we will need Seth, so we limited him to 65 pitches,” the head coach told the Herald.

“I did get tossed from that game,” Lloyd shared, after disputing what he believed were some bad calls.

“There are times when you have to do that to show your kids you’ve got their backs,” Lloyd added.

Evanston led 1-0 after scoring in the top of the fifth only to witness Torrington knot things up in the bottom of the sixth at 1-1. That score would hold true until the ninth inning.

“Cris Periman scored on a ground out by Gus (Allred) and then Ryan Fisher came on and put down the side and we won the game, 2-1,” Lloyd said.

The Outlaws were scheduled to play Laramie on Sunday morning and potentially a game against Dickinson, North Dakota, but due to snow in the Laramie area on Sunday morning, the subsequent games were canceled.

The Outlaws will host the Casper Drillers in a conference doubleheader this evening, with games scheduled for 6:30 and 8 p.m.