The Panthers put together a strong performance on senior night, using timely hitting and dominant pitching to defeat Vandalia 7-3.
Pana struck first in the opening inning when Bella Bennett delivered a two-run double to give the Panthers an early 2-0 lead. They broke things open in the third inning, starting with Addasyn Casner driving in a run on a single. Later in the inning, Bennett came through again with another double, bringing home two more runs to extend the lead to 5-0.
Vandalia got on the board in the fourth when K. Sefton doubled to score a run, but Pana answered right back. In the bottom half, Jolianna Morrison ripped an RBI double, and Bri Mathis followed with a run-scoring single to push the lead to 7-1.
Vandalia continued to battle late. In the sixth inning, aggressive baserunning led to a run scoring on a wild pitch. In the seventh, K. Yarbrough added an RBI single to cut the deficit to 7-3, but that was as close as they would get.
Big Performers:
- Bella Bennett (Pana): 2 doubles, 4 RBIs
- Joey Laker (Pana): Complete game, 3 runs allowed, 11 strikeouts
- Jolianna Morrison (Pana): 2 hits, RBI
- Bri Mathis (Pana): RBI single
- K. Sefton (Vandalia): 2 hits, RBI
- K. Yarbrough (Vandalia): RBI single