Laramie High School Sports Round-up Sept. 30, 2021

The Laramie high school sports weekend was highlighted by the end of the prep tennis season with good results at last weekend's state championships.

LHS brought home one trophy and had eight all-state players in the 2021 season.

The Plainsmen placed third in the boys’ team standings with 31 points. Laramie had a pair of runner-up finishes in doubles and a third-place finish in singles.

The No. 2 doubles team of Declan O’Connor and Kyler Russow fell in the final match to a team from Kelly Walsh, 4-6, 6-7. The No. 3 doubles tandem of Gavin Baker and Gage Hepworth also took second place with a loss in the title match against a team from Cheyenne Central, 3-6, 4-6.

Freshman Paulo Mellizo won the consolation bracket at No. 2 singles. He lost in the semifinals but battled back for a 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 victory over Nikolas Lock from Cheyenne South.

Also placing was senior Samuel Johnson-Noya, who went 3-2 in the tournament at No. 1 singles. He splits fifth and sixth place.

Those six players all earned all-state honors for the first time in their high school careers. That award is based on your finish at the state tournament, according to guidelines from the Wyoming Coaches Association.

The Laramie girls placed sixth with 19.5 team points. Ruby Dorrell and Morgan Moore combined at No. 1 doubles and placed second. They fell in the championship match to a team from Kelly Walsh, 3-6, 1-6. Dorrell and Moore also earned their first all-state awards.

The next best finish for the LHS girls was from Abby Kersey and Cassy Wulff, who finished fourth at No. 2 doubles.

Laramie Swimming

The Lady Plainsmen swimming and diving team won both the Kelly Walsh Quad duals and the Sheridan Invite last weekend.

Laramie won all three of their duals last Friday in Casper. They beat Natrona County, 163-3; Kelly Walsh, 118-67; and Jackson, 137-44. LHS won six events, which included two for senior Anna Roesler. She placed first in the 200 and 500 freestyle.

Last Saturday, Laramie scored 586 points for the victory at the Sheridan Invite. They were 98.5 points ahead of runner-up Cheyenne Central.

The Lady Plainsmen won six events again, two apiece for Roesler and junior Ashlyn Mathes.

Laramie will host Rawlins for their Senior Night on Friday at 4 p.m.

Head coach Tom Hudson knows they have a large group to honor.

“I don’t know if I have ever had a senior class this large. We have 15 girls that have finished this season, and not all have been with us all four years, but most of them have. Man, what a great group they’ve been. They have won all three state meets they’ve been a part of, and it’s just a strong group of girls.”

Saturday, Laramie will host Cheyenne Central, Evanston, and Green River for dual meets at 8 a.m.

Laramie Cross Country

Laramie ran at the big Rapid City Invitational last Friday, and both teams placed fourth in the standings.

The meet was highlighted by sophomore Addison Forry, who took second place in the girls’ varsity race by less than one second. Her time was 18:21.69. Sophomore Dominic Eberle paced the Plainsmen with an 11th place finish.

Laramie goes to the Thornton Invite in Thornton, CO for a meet on Friday, Oct. 1. They will see two other top Wyoming teams, Cheyenne Central and Sheridan, at that competition.

Laramie Volleyball

For the first time this season, LHS did not win every match they played. The Lady Plainsmen took second in the Gold Bracket at the Casper Invitational.

After a 3-0 record in pool play with wins over 3A Douglas, Riverton, and Sheridan. Laramie defeated Rock Springs in three sets and Natrona County in three sets to reach the title match. LHS lost to second-ranked Kelly Walsh, 23-25, 25-18, 6-15, in the championship.

The loss snapped Laramie’s 42-match win streak.

LHS bounced back on Tuesday night with a conference quadrant sweep at Cheyenne South. The scores were 25-14, 25-9, 25-14.

Laramie is 19-1 on the season and 3-0 in conference matches. They have two cross-quadrant games in Gillette this weekend. They play at Campbell County on Friday at 6 p.m. and at Thunder Basin on Saturday at 10 a.m.

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