On Tuesday, March 19, in a non-conference game, the Lady Panthers brought home an 11-3 victory against the Kankakee Kays.
The Panthers scored 11 runs, on 13 hits, while committing 4 errors in the 7-inning contest. Kankakee had 3 runs, on 6 hits, with no errors. Ava Peterson, who was credited with the win, walked one, while striking out 8.
According to Coach Josh Carlile, “We were able to overcome a slow start and make solid contact with the bats. I feel like we got better as the game went on, which will help us throughout the season. Ava Peterson pitched a nice game.”
Then, the team traveled to the Tennessee Southern Warrior Classic in Murfreesboro for weekend play. In the first game on Friday, March 22, against the Camden Central Lions, the Panthers increased their victory record with a 7-4 win in six innings. Winning pitcher Alyssa Dralle allowed 4 runs, on 11 hits, along with 3 strikeouts. She is now 3-0 on the season.
“We played a solid game here in Tennessee. I was happy with every part of our game, but especially our play late in the game. We were able to make adjustments and capitalize late to pick-up the win. Ava Peterson had a big day at the plate, with 3 hits and 3 RBIs. Jaz Manau also added a home run,” Coach Carlile remarked.
Facing the LaVergne Wolverines in their second game of the day, the Panthers blew away the Wolverines with an 18-1 win. Manteno scored 18 runs on 11 hits, and recorded no errors, while the Wolverines were kept to 1 run, on 3 hits, but committed 5 costly errors.
According to Coach Carlile, “This game was played in miserable and wet conditions. Our girls battled the elements and came away with a big victory. Macy Iwanus picked up the win with an outstanding performance in the circle, while still managing wet conditions.
Currently the Panthers are 5-0 overall and face their first conference contest against Peotone on Monday, March 25.
Update: As of press time, complete stats for the Saturday games were unavailable, but the Panthers added two more to their win column on Saturday, including a 4-3 victory over the defending back-to-back Tennessee State Champs.