Imperial defeats Ogallala 7-2 in Junior Legion Baseball on June 19th, 2025

(Photo Credit: "Baseball Glove" from "Images in Media from Wix" on Wix.com)

By: Evan Troxel

The Imperial Horns Pinnacle Bank Junior Legion Baseball team defeated the Ogallala Adams Insurance Advisors Juniors 7-2 on Thursday afternoon, June 19th, 2025, at the Ogallala American Legion Field in Ogallala, Nebraska.

Imperial led the entire game and never trailed.

The "Horns" (as in Longhorns) led 1-0 after one inning, 2-0 after three innings and 4-1 after four innings. Ogallala trailed 5-1 after five innings and they also trailed 7-1 after 5 1/2 innings.

Imperial allowed Ogallala to score one more run in the bottom of the sixth inning as the game had a 1 hour and 45 minute time to be played in as there were 1 1/2 Senior Legion games yet to be played in Ogallala on Thursday night after the Junior Legion game.

Because the Junior Legion game started in the late afternoon at 4:30 p.m. Mountain Time, parents, coaches and players of the Senior Legion teams probably didn't want to be at the American Legion Field in Ogallala until like 11:59 p.m. on Thursday because many people had to go to work early on Friday morning (today), which is partly why the time limit for the Junior Legion game was enforced.

Otherwise, Imperial and Ogallala at the Junior Legion level (under normal circumstances) would have played a seventh inning on Thursday.

Imperial and Ogallala agreed to finish a game at the Senior Legion level that started in Imperial on Thursday, June 12th, 2025, that was stopped due to severe weather after three innings that needed to be completed, so Imperial agreed to finish that game in Ogallala instead of in Imperial.

After that game, Ogallala was the designated home team (and not the road team) for a second Senior Legion game between Imperial and Ogallala on Thursday night.

Imperial's Conner Stromberger pitched three innings giving up zero runs and just two hits, one walk and one hit batter and he struck out six (of which, five officially counted as outs).

Brextin Moreno also pitched well for three innings and gave up two runs, two hits, two walks and he struck out five.

Ogallala's Keegan Florom started the game and pitched four innings giving up four runs, three hits, two walks, three hit batters and four strikeouts.

Levi Nolt pitched in relief and threw two innings giving up three runs, three hits, one walk, two hit batters and three strikeouts.

Florom and Nolt each recorded two balks.

Imperial recorded six hits, left eight people on-base and committed one defensive error.

Imperial's one defensive error came on an uncaught third strike in the bottom of the third inning in which the Imperial catcher Brextin Moreno simply could not pick up the baseball and throw to first base to try to put out Ogallala's Jayden Cartwright after a strikeout that wasn't officially an out yet.

Ogallala recorded four hits, left six people on-base and committed five defensive errors.

To start the game, Imperial's Brextin Moreno got hit by a pitch, advanced to second on a balk, advanced to third on a fielding error by Ogallala's pitcher Keegan Florom (as he couldn't pick up the baseball) before a throw to first base to try to put Evan O'Neil out on a ground ball and then Moreno scored on a crazy four tag three groundout double play in which the second baseman tagged the baserunner going to second base and then threw to first base!

Imperial left runners on the corners.

So Imperial led one to nothing after half an inning.

In the top of the second inning, Ogallala's third baseman Levi Nolt started a 5-4-3 double play! Imperial then got two people on-base (to first and second base), and Imperial's Destry Oxford hit a ground ball to shortstop, but the baserunner Sawyer Sauder kicked the ball before it got to the shortstop, thus ending the top half of the inning.

Ogallala had the bases loaded with one out, but could not score in the bottom of the second after back-to-back strikeouts by starting pitcher Conner Stromberger.

Imperial's Evan O'Neil singled and later scored because of a bad throw by the Ogallala catcher to third base and also a fielding error by the left fielder. Ogallala's Keegan Florom got two strikeouts in the top of the third.

So Imperial led 2-0 after 2 1/2 innings.

The uncaught third strike happened in the bottom of the third (as previously mentioned), and Dietrich Pursley and Oliver Ballesteros scored runs for Imperial in the top of the fourth, to give Imperial a 4-0 lead after 3 1/2 innings.

In the bottom of the fourth, Ogallala's Levi Nolt walked, he stole second, advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt by Preston Runge and scored on a passed ball.

Imperial led 4-1 after four innings.

Conner Stromberger scored for Imperial in the top of the fifth inning on a balk by Levi Nolt, but Imperial left two people in scoring position in the fifth inning.

Imperial led 5-1 after 4 1/2 and 5 innings.

Brextin Moreno and Destry Oxford scored for Imperial in the top of the sixth (with Oxford scoring on an RBI groundout by Canton Skomp to the Ogallala first baseman) and Imperial left a runner on third base as Ogallala's Levi Nolt struck out the last two hitter he faced to end the top of the sixth inning.

Ogallala's Luke Minster tripled and then Evan Heilman scored for Minster on Keegan Florom's single to the shortstop.

Ogallala left runners on second and third to end the bottom of the sixth (and the game) and Brextin Moreno struck out swinging the last three hitters he faced.

Imperial's Brexton Moreno scored two runs.

Destry Oxford went 2 for 3 (I guess, I think, in four plate appearances) with two singles and two RBI's.

Evan O'Neil went 2 for 4 with a single and a double.

Conner Stromberger and Dietrich Pursley also had a single in the game.

Ogallala's Keegan Florom had two singles while Jonah Saner (single) and Luke Minster (triple) each had one hit. Florom had the only RBI for Ogallala.

Imperial is now 5-6 while Ogallala is now 2-9 on the season.

Imperial's next game is on Sunday, June 22nd, at Holdrege.

Ogallala's next game is on Monday, June 23rd, at Broken Bow at 5:30 p.m. Central Time.

Ogallala's next home game for Junior Legion Baseball will be at 11:00 a.m. Mountain Time on Sunday, June 29th, against Gering.