PINEDALE – Rain turned into a downpour before it started freezing into snow Friday for Pinedale's home football game against Greybull.

The weather didn't affect the Wranglers much early on. Pinedale jumped out to a 14-0 lead, but Greybull scored the next 24 points to come back and win the game.

"We have to limit fumbles and turnovers," Pinedale Head Coach Mitch Espeland said. "In order to be a great team, those are the mistakes we must cut down on."

Early in the game, however, the Wranglers were the ones turning turnovers into points. After being forced to punt on its second possession, the Wranglers caught a break when their punt bounced off the return man's shoulder pads and Pinedale recovered the ball at midfield. Tyler VanEtten ran 25 yards to set up a first-and-goal and on the next play he broke a tackle at the line of scrimmage, bounced to the outside and got around Greybull's corner to score a touchdown.

Pinedale's defense forced Greybull to go three-and-out on the ensuing possession. Greybull punted, but before Pinedale's returner could catch the kick, he was tackled. The personal foul gave Pinedale the ball at Greybull's 32 yardline.

Josef McCulloch broke free for a 20-yard run. Then, as the snow flurried, Wyatt Phelps scored from a yard out on a quarterback sneak.

"Our offense took advantage of some Greybull mistakes to put us on the board," Espeland said.

After that, however, some bounces started going Greybull's way.

The Buffs scored twice in the second quarter to cut the lead to 14-12.

In the third quarter, Pinedale's defense stepped in to keep the Wranglers ahead. "Our defense played really well in the third quarter," Espeland said. "Unfortunately, offensive fumbles and turnovers on special teams gave Greybull too many opportunities." 

Greybull took the lead with a sustained drive in the fourth quarter that ended with its third touchdown. On Pinedale's ensuing possession, the Wranglers were unable to move the ball much. With just over three minutes left in the game, and facing a fourth-and-10 at their own 40, Pinedale elected to punt the ball. Greybull, however, blocked the kick and began its drive at Pinedale's 25. McCulloch made a big tackle for a loss to bring up fourth-and-15, but a Greybull completed a pass all the way down to Pinedale's 1-yard line. Greybull scored on the next play to take a 24-14 lead.

Two pass interference calls against Greybull helped Pinedale get inside Greybull's 10-yard line. The game effectively ended, however, when Pinedale accidentally spiked the ball, attempting to kill the clock with four seconds left, on fourth down.

Pinedale and Greybull are now both 2-2 overall. Pinedale is also 2-1 in the 2A West Conference while Greybull is 1-1.

At 7 p.m. tonight, Pinedale will welcome Mountain View to town for its Homecoming game. Mountain View leads the 2A West Conference with a 2-0 league mark and 3-1 overall record.