Zephyrs pick up victory against Casper

BY: Jeff Fielder, Star-Herald Sports Editor

Published: Tuesday, June 9, 2009 12:21 AM CDT

CHEYENNE, Wyo. - A superb pitching performance by Chase Wickard, combined with some solid hitting, helped the WESTCO Zephyrs earn a 10-2 win over Casper, Wyo., on Monday evening.

The victory came right after WESTCO's 22-1 setback against a powerful Cheyenne Post 6 squad.

Wickard helped the Zephyrs bounce back in a big way, striking out nine and walking just one in a complete-game performance. Both of Casper's runs were unearned.

``Wickard did a really great job,'' Zephyrs coach Mark Moran said. ``He pitched probably as well as he's ever pitched for us. It was great to get such a quality start from him.''

WESTCO also excelled at the plate, especially in the third inning, when the Zephyrs erupted for seven runs to take complete control of the contest. WESTCO opened the game with a run in the first inning, followed by two more runs in the second inning.

Zac Rada was among the standouts at the plate, as he recorded two extra-base hits. Dusty Huddleston also registered two hits.

``It was really nice having such a big third inning,'' Moran said. ``Overall, I thought we swung the bat a lot better throughout the order.''

Moran said he was proud to see his players bounce back strongly against Casper after falling against Cheyenne.

``Overall, we played a much better game against a pretty good Casper team,'' Moran said. ``I thought it showed some of the character of our team by playing so much better in the second game.''

Against Cheyenne, which is now 19-2 for the season, the Zephyrs fell behind 4-0 after the first inning and 12-0 after just two innings. Cheyenne added six more runs in the third inning and four in the fourth. For the game, Cheyenne recorded 20 hits compared to three for WESTCO.

``We didn't play all that poorly; Cheyenne just hit the ball all over the place, and we couldn't find a way to slow them down,'' Moran said. ``They're as good as we've seen.''

Although Cheyenne coasted to the victory, Moran said the game was a good learning experience for his squad.

``We hopefully learned some things by playing against a really good team,'' Moran said. ``But once the game is over, you need to start thinking about the next one. That's what our guys did.''

The Zephyrs will be back in action today against the Buckley Bombers. The juniors game will begin at 5 p.m., and the seniors contest will start at about 7:30.