Blazer defeats Buffalo, Newcastle

THS locks up No. 2 seed for state

Andrew Towne
Posted 5/9/23

TORRINGTON – By the end of the game on Saturday afternoon, it was clear Torrington had played three games in the span of five days.

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Blazer defeats Buffalo, Newcastle

THS locks up No. 2 seed for state

Posted

TORRINGTON – By the end of the game on Saturday afternoon, it was clear Torrington had played three games in the span of five days.

The result was three wins.

On the heels of Tuesday’s home win over Rawlins, Torrington made the drive north Newcastle on Thursday only to find themselves in a close battle with the Dogies.

It took a shootout for the Blazers to pull out a 4-3 shootout victory over Newcastle.

“We got off the bus so slow,” coach Gabe Bartlett said.

Torrington was down 1-0 at halftime.

Over the final 40 minutes, Elijah Hatch scored twice, and Anthony Arnusch connected on a penalty kick to give the Blazers a 3-1 lead.

However, Newcastle wasn’t going to go away.

The Dogies scored two goals to send the match into a shootout.

“I’m not sure if we decided to shut it down or not, but they scored two quick goals and sent it to PKs,” Bartlett said.

In the shootout, Hatch, Arnusch and Juan Carlos Stevens connected on the penalty kicks to give Torrington a 3-1 advantage to secure the victory.

The next day, the Blazers returned home for the final home match of the season.

Torrington picked up a 1-0 victory over the Buffalo Bison.

“Both teams looked like they had played three games in a week,” Bartlett said. “It was a little slow and sluggish.”

The game’s lone score came in the 31st minute courtesy of Greysen Shields.

“We happened to get one in and rode it out,” Bartlett said.

Torrington had a few chances during the second half but couldn’t find the back of the net. During the final 10 minutes, the Blazers went on the defensive, trying to keep Buffalo out of the goal.

“It was a good win,” Bartlett said. “It solidifies us to go into state.”

The wins over Buffalo and Newcastle have locked up the No. 2 seed for the Class 3A State Championships May 18-20 which will be held in Green River and Rock Springs. Torrington holds a nine-point advantage over the current No. 3 seed Buffalo and 10-point lead over Rawlins and Douglas.

Torrington (7-4 overall and 6-3 in the 3A East) heads to Rawlins (3-6 and 3-4) on Thursday, May 11. Kickoff is scheduled for 5 p.m.

“This break here in between games is going to really help us,” Bartlett said. “We are sore. We are beat up. When you play three times in a week, you don’t get a lot of practice and time to recover.”