The Powell Pioneers proved their valor against some of the top ‘AA’ teams from around Wyoming and the surrounding region, placing second at the Kirby Drube Memorial Tournament in Gillette this past weekend.

Powell defeated Jackson 4-3, Gillette 3-2 and Bozeman 13-4 on Saturday and Sunday before a difficult Monday saw the Pioneers fall 7-6 to Westco and 10-1 to Sheridan to end the weekend tournament.

“I was pretty happy with the weekend,” manager Jason Borders said. “I don’t think anybody expected us to go in there and fight for a championship.”

POWELL 4, JACKSON 3

Kicking off the weekend the Pioneers (13-7) started against the Giants (7-11) and were looking to get back in the win column.

Powell got on the board early. Brock Johnson led off with a single and Jhett Schwahn was hit by a pitch to give Powell two on with no outs in the bottom of the first.

Cade Queen flew out but Johnson advanced to third after tagging up.

Schwahn stole second, before Trey Stenerson hit a single and brought in Johnson to make it 1-0.

Both of those runners stole to advance, before a ground out by Dalton Worstell scored Schwahn to make it 2-0.

Cole Fauskee capped off the scoring, hitting a single to score Stenerson to make it 3-0 after the first.

Offense was hard to come by for either team over the next innings, before Powell got its final run in the fourth inning.

Johnson was hit by a pitch and eventually stole second, before an error on Schwahn’s hit allowed Johnson to score from second and make it 4-0.

Aiden Greenwald continued his strong outing, before a scare came late in the final inning that gave Jackson some hope.

Three of the six Giants’ hits came in the top of the seventh, allowing three runs to score and tighten the scoreline to 4-3.

“We had it under control. I wasn’t even worried when it got to 4-3,” Borders said.

Greenwald had a strong day finishing with 12 strikeouts in a complete game on the mound, walking none despite the late surge from Jackson.

“He (Greenwald) threw well the whole day. His stuff was working and they were struggling with it,” Borders said.

Fauskee, Worstell and Stenerson each had an RBI.

POWELL 3, GILLETTE 2

After the win in the afternoon the Pioneers had a little rest before taking on the host Roughriders (21-11) in the night game on Saturday.

“It was a big game under the lights,” Borders said. “Brock against their best kid (on the mound) — the tournament is named after his (Mason Drube’s) dad.”

Neither team got any offense going over the first three innings, until the hosts got on the board in the bottom of the fourth.

Gillette led off with a single, before a stolen base coupled with a double helped score a run and made it 1-0.

A batter was hit, before an error trying to catch a runner stealing third allowed for a run to score and made it 2-0 after the fourth.

Powell responded in the top of the fifth, finding a way to take the lead.

Jacob Gibson walked to lead off and Jordan Loera was hit by a pitch to give Powell two on with no outs.

Both runners advanced on a wild pitch, before a Johnson single scored both and made it 2-2.

Schwahn was walked before both eventually advanced on steals to give Powell two runners in scoring position.

A dropped third strike during Stenerson’s at bat allowed Johnson to score, and the Pioneers held a 3-2 lead.

“We got the runs we needed. It wasn’t pretty but it was a dogfight the whole time,” Borders said. “It was a big game that we haven’t had yet this year. It was good for us to play in that one and win that one.”

Powell held off the Roughriders, not allowing many runners on base.

Johnson got the win on the mound, getting all but the final out due to pitch count. He finished with 13 strikeouts, walking only three while giving up two hits.

He also led with two RBIs for the Pioneers.

POWELL 13, BOZEMAN 4

With only one game on Sunday the Pioneers turned their focus solely on the Bucks (13-14) and came out firing.

Johnson led off with a single, then stole second before Schwahn drove him in on a single to make it 1-0.

Queen was walked, before Stenerson hit a single and scored Schwahn.

Fauskee was walked, loading the bases for Greenwald. He hit a single, bringing in a pair of runs and making it 4-0.

One more run scored in the first when Greenwald was caught stealing second, but that allowed for Fauskee to steal home and make it 5-0.

“They threw one of their better guys at us and we knocked him out early,” Borders said. 

Bozeman answered with one in the bottom of the first, scoring on a pair of hits and making it 5-1.

Powell’s strong early start continued, when Ethan Welch and Johnson were walked to lead off and Schwahn singled to load the bases.

Queen walked to score one, before Stenerson hit a double and scored a pair to make it 8-1 before three straight outs stopped Powell’s scoring.

Another pair of hits in the bottom of the second allowed for one run to score for the Bucks and make it 8-2.

Bozeman scored two in the bottom of the third after a series of hits and walks, making it 8-4.

Powell answered in the top of the fourth, with Queen hitting a one-out single.

Stenerson followed with another single, which coupled with an error, gave Powell runners at second and third.

Worstell singled to score one, before Fauskee singled to score another and make it 10-4 after the fourth.

A lead off walk by Welch mixed in with three straight singles by Schwahn, Queen and Stenerson allowed for one run to score in the top of the fifth, making it 11-4.

Powell put the game away in the top of the seventh, when Johnson singled with one out, before Queen hit a home run with two outs, putting an exclamation point on a 13-4 win.

“They (Bozeman) played well the whole tournament, we just hit the ball well, pitched it well against them and played good defense,” Borders said.

Queen pitched six innings, striking out seven and walking two while giving up seven hits. Loera came in to close the game and got two strikeouts.

Stenerson went 5-5 at the plate with four RBIs, while Queen went 3-3 at the plate with three RBIs. Greenwald had two RBIs while Worstell and Fauskee each had one.

WESTCO 7, POWELL 6

Heading into the final day the Pioneers were the only undefeated team, hoping to continue that streak with an early win against the Zephyrs (6-6) from Scottsbluff, Nebraska.

Powell once again started strong, after a lead off single from Johnson, who stole second and advanced to third on an error before Queen drove him in on a single to make it 1-0.

Queen advanced to second after an errant pickoff attempt, and then was brought in on a Stenerson double to make it 2-0 after the top of the first.

Westco had a response, scoring through a variety of hits, a walk and an error in the bottom half of the inning to give the Zephyrs a 4-2 lead after the first.

Powell got one back in the top of the third, when Queen walked and advanced on a single by Stenerson with one out.

Worstell hit a grounder which saw Stenerson out at second but allowed Queen to score and make it 4-3.

Another set of hits, a walk and a fielder’s choice going home that did not get a runner allowed the Zephyrs to score two more in the bottom of the third and make it 6-3.

Powell didn’t get a run back until the top of the fourth, after Schwahn walked, advancing on an errant pickoff attempt all the way to third base, Queen singled to bring him in to make it 6-4.

An error, steal and wild pitch put a runner in scoring position for the Zephyrs, before a fly out allowed him to score what would prove to be the winning run and make it 7-4.

Powell got one back in the top of the sixth, after Gibson singled and advanced on a ground out by Greenwald.

He scored after an error to make it 7-5.

In the top of the seventh Stenerson reached on an error and Worstell was walked to give Powell two on with no outs.

Both runners advanced on steals, as Stenerson scored on a ground out and Worstell advanced to third with the score at 7-6.

Gibson walked, before a fielder’s choice on a squeeze bunt put Worstell out at home, and a fly out ended the game.

“We were supposed to read it and we didn’t do it the way we were supposed to,” Borders said. “We just didn’t read it well. It’s one thing we haven’t had to do a lot, it was the right time to use it.”

Queen went 2-3 with two RBIs at the plate, white Stenerson, Worstell and Fauskee each recorded an RBI.

SHERIDAN 10, POWELL 1

Heading into the final game which essentially served as a championship contest, the Pioneers matched up with the Troopers (14-10) for the third time this season.

Sheridan got the scoring started early in the top of the second, after a hit batter and a pair of hits allowed for one to score and make it 1-0.

The Troopers kept scoring in the third, when a single followed by a triple with an error allowed two runs to score and make it 3-0.

Another triple in the top of the fourth along with a passed ball allowed for another run to score and make it 4-0.

Powell got its run in the bottom of the fourth, when Queen was hit by a pitch and Stenerson was walked to put two on with one out.

Worstell hit into an error, and Queen scored to make it 4-1.

An explosion in the top of the fifth through four hits, a hit batter, an error and a series of ground outs that advanced runners allowed Sheridan to score six and make it 10-1.

Powell was unable to answer, and the game was called after the fifth.

The Pioneers were held without a hit in the game, as the Troopers outhit Powell 11-0 and had one error compared to four by the Pioneers.

“We hit balls but got nothing out of it. We came out flat Monday … It was just baseball,” Borders said. 

Powell ended the tournament 3-2 while Sheridan finished 4-1, with the Pioneers earning a second place finish after a head-to-head win over Bozeman which also finished 3-2.

HOME GAMES

The Pioneers will stay at home to kick off the month of June, welcoming in a pair of opponents from Billings on Saturday and Sunday to Powell.

Powell will host the Blue Jays (6-12) first on Saturday at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m., a team the Pioneers defeated twice in April.

Powell will then take on the Cardinals (19-3) on Sunday at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m., a team that defeated the Pioneers both times in Billings in April.

“I’m looking for consistency,” Borders said. “I don’t want a let down after that tournament … We’ll be missing Trey but it’ll be the next man up. We will tweak the lineup a little bit.”