Just 24 hours removed from a high-scoring 16-10 defeat against the Cody Cubs, the Powell Pioneers once again fell to its cross-county rivals, this time 20-5.

Despite the wide final margin, the Pioneers kept close for a while. Strong plate discipline from Powell and the Cubs’ defensive miscues allowed the Pioneers to cross the plate five times in the first three innings.

In recent weeks, the Pioneers’ bats have produced efficiently.

“I think our confidence is there at the plate,” head coach Joe Cates said. “Our at-bats have been really good. I think our plate approach is good; we’re right where we need to be for that.”

Heading into the fourth inning at Ed Lynn Memorial Field, Powell trailed by just one run, but that deficit quickly expanded.

Cody’s offense exploded in that frame, tallying 14 runs and creating an insurmountable hill for the Pioneers to climb. The Cubs hit three home runs — one of which was a grand slam — and drew six walks in the fourth.

Cates said the bullpen’s lack of command paved the way for the forgettable inning.

“Just inability to throw strikes,” Cates said. “We just have to get them in the bullpen again and ahead of hitters. It’s a completely different game when you can get ahead of hitters and they’re not sitting on 3-0 or 2-0 fastballs.”

Following the top of the fourth, there was no coming back for Powell, which lost by 15.

After its third loss in a row, Powell is now 9-15 overall. Only one more doubleheader — on Friday against the Lovell Mustangs — remains on the schedule before the Pioneers begin the postseason. Game one is set to begin at 5 p.m. in Cowley and the second is slated for 7 p.m.

With a three-day gap between the Cody loss and the upcoming doubleheader, Cates plans on fixing some of the recent issues on the mound.

“Strikes: That’s going to be our next three weeks of practice,” the coach said. “Just bullpens and flat grounds every single day. You’ve got to get ahead of hitters, ‘cause without that, our defense falls on our heels and our at-bats do the same thing.”

Cody     2 2 2  14 0 X X  R20 H13 E6

Powell  0 1 4   0 0 X X   R5 H4 E3

Pioneers B throttles Riverton

The Powell Pioneers B team continued its recent hot streak with two blowout wins over Riverton on Monday.

In the first game, Powell cruised to an 18-6 win. The Pioneers scored eight runs in the sixth inning and logged 14 hits total, helping them win in mercy-rule fashion.

Despite falling behind 1-0 in the second game, the Pioneers showed more of their dominance. Between the second and fifth innings, Powell scored 16 runs, which ultimately allowed them to again mercy rule the Raiders, this time 16-2.

Pitching stood out in the second game, with Dalton Worstell, Kolt Flores and Ethan Welch consistently limiting opposing hitters’ damage.

The Pioneers play their final doubleheader on Wednesday in Sheridan, with game one starting at 4 p.m. After that, the state tournament — also in Sheridan — begins on Monday, where the Pioneers will be one of just eight teams competing.