Panthers vs. Rebels
May 13, 1997

W 20-19

The Panthers play the Rebels in the first game of the tournament and play hard to earn a 20-19 win!

The Rebels were the visiting team on this perfect night for softball! Their leadoff hitter slapped a ground ball to Kelly at first base, who made the unassisted putout. The next two batters got hits and then Kelly did a repeat performance by fielding a grounder and getting the putout at first! Good defense Kelly! The next Rebel knocked a base hit, driving in two runs. Their next batter struck out, so the Panthers headed to the bottom of the first down 2-0.

In the bottom of the first inning, Olivia, Justina and Marissa started us with singles. Kelly came to the plate as the cleanup hitter and slapped a hit to drive in Olivia. Brittany forced Marissa at third base and then Melanie got a hit to knock in Kelly. Rene came to the plate with bases loaded. What did Rene do? She smashed a grand slam home run to center field!! Panthers led 5-2 after one inning.

In the second inning, the Rebels got lots of hits and scored 5 runs. The defensive highlight was Olivia getting a forceout at third base! In the bottom of the inning, the Panthers continued their exciting hitting! Lisa got a nice hit to start us off. Then Maudie smashed a triple down the right field line to score Lisa. Ellen Ann hit a beautiful double to score Maudie, and Kristen got a hit to score Ellen Ann. Back to the top of the order! Olivia forced Kristen at second and then Justina and Marissa got hits to load the bases. Kelly stepped to the plate and lifted a long fly ball to left field, way over the fielders' heads! Super homerun, Kelly! Panthers led 10-7 after 2 innings.

In the third inning, the Rebels kept up the scoring. But with four runs in and two strikeouts, Kelly fielded a grounder at pitcher and fired to Marissa at first base for the final out. In the bottom of the third inning, the Panthers kept up the hitting! Brittany ripped a fifth-pitch double down the third base line. Then Melanie drove in Brittany, and Rene followed with a hit. Lisa came to the plate with ducks on the pond! Lisa smashed a triple and almost got a home run! Maudie and Ellen Ann got hits, and then Olivia drove in the fifth run on a fielder's choice. Panthers go to the fourth inning leading the Rebels 15-11.

In a wild fourth inning, the Rebels scored 5 runs! Olivia played a solid inning at pitcher, including a nice forceout at home with the bases loaded! In the bottom of the fourth inning, the Panthers kept up the hitting! Justina got another hit to go 3 for 3. Ditto for Marissa as she hit a hard line drive to center field! Kelly forced Justina at third base and then Brittany got a hit to drive in Marissa. Melanie got her third hit of the day and Rene stepped to the plate with the bases loaded. Rene smacked another long hit, a double driving in two runs, giving her 5 runs batted in for the game!! Wow!! Then Lisa, Maudie, and Ellen Ann got hits to finish the scoring. Panthers led 20-16 after 4 innings.

In the last inning, the first 3 Rebels got hits. The next batter hit the ball to Olivia at pitcher, who pounced on the ball and raced to home plate to make the forceout. Two more Rebels got hits to drive in two runs. The bases were loaded and there was one out. The next Rebel hit a pop fly between Marissa and Olivia. They were unable to catch it, but the ball bounced to Ellen Ann at shortstop. In the blink of an eye, Ellen Ann was on her way to make the forceout at home. No way someone can make that play -- but Ellen Ann is so quick and was so determined that she made the out! Everyone was so excited!! That was clearly the defensive highlight of the game! A couple batters later, a Rebel player struck out. Four runs had scored to bring the score to 20-19. There was no need for the Panthers to bat again -- the ump called "Ballgame!" and the Panthers won 20-19 !!

Coach Rodney said there was no game ball to pass out, but he did point out the great plays. All the girls hit the ball well!! And there was some excellent defense, especially by Kelly and Olivia. Coach Rodney didn't have a game ball but he declared Rene to be our Panther of the Day !! Rene had three hits, including a grand slam home run, and drove in 5 runs!

-- Velvet