Laramie Rallies Past Cody and Advances to Championship Game

The Laramie 11-12 All-Stars will play for a state championship after rallying to beat Cody 11-6 Friday at the State Tournament in Laramie.

Trailing 6-4, Laramie scored seven times in the final two innings. Billy Jenkin’s three-run home run to center field in the top of the fifth gave the 11-12 All-Stars the lead for good. Three RBI base hits in the sixth provided a five-run cushion and the final margin.

Laramie manager Conrad Chavez said it was all about grit and determination.

"They showed it this morning. For Billy Jenkin to have the at-bat he did and hit that home run was absolutely huge. We knew we had a chance to win after that."

Cody had scored three times in the fourth for a 6-4 lead.

Mahlon Morris came on and gave up only two hits with eight strikeouts over the final three innings. He was the winning pitcher.

Chavez said, "Mahlon was gigantic. This game was funny, but we knew there's no tomorrow if you don't win today. We trust the kid, and he came in and got the job done."

Jaedyn Brown led the offense with four hits. Brandon Chavez added three hits, including a home run and drove in three.

Laramie advances to face Gillette in the state championship game Saturday at 10 a.m. In order to win the title, Laramie has to beat Gillette twice.

Chavez knows it will be tough to do, but they're going to go after it.

"Little League pitching rules are tough to deal with. Playing twice Thursday has made it difficult, but we're going to go with our best options. I don't care who it is, Gillette or someone else, we've got to worry about ourselves. There's a good chance we're going to give up some runs, so we've got to put up some and see where it takes us."

The 11-12 All-Stars are 0-3 against Gillette this postseason.