The Alba-Golden Lady Panthers continue to put together quality wins early in the second half of district play.  Last Tuesday they dispatched the visiting Detroit Lady Eagles, 8-2, and improved the district record to five wins and a single loss. 

With Adielyn Smith building an MVP season from the circle, the Lady Panthers are finding ways to get runners on base and bring them home. 

Smith recorded 15 strike-outs against the Lady Eagles, giving up six hits and six free passes. Smith began the game locked-in on the strike zone. She faced only seven Detroit hitters in the first two innings, recording six strike-outs to start the game. 

Her consistency began to falter just a bit in the third, when she had to work out of a bases-loaded jam. She ended the inning with two strike-outs. 

In the bottom of the third, the Lady Panthers gave Smith some breathing space. They put up four runs (two earned). 

The rally started when Erin Langston reached on an error. She scored three batters later as Kayleigh Logan hammered a triple to right-center field. Logan came home when Bailee Bishop followed and laced a single into center. Megan Wallace reached on a single and both baserunners scored on a fielding error by the Detroit left-fielder.

The Lady Panthers added a run in the fourth. In a nice piece of hitting, Alyssa Murdock lined a 2-strike pitch into right for a single. She scored on Kendra Jones’ double.   

Smith’s opposite number, pitcher Erin Maynard, led off the fifth with a wallop over the left-field fence to get Detroit on the board. Detroit stranded two runners in the inning as Smith once again struck out the side. 

Detroit closed the score to 5-2 in the sixth on a sequence which included a free pass, a passed ball, a wild pitch and an RBI-single. 

In the bottom half of the sixth, two Detroit fielding errors on fly balls gifted the Lady Panthers three more runs.

Alba-Golden made three solid defensive plays in the seventh to end the game. Megan Wallace rifled a throw to first after fielding a slow roller in front of the plate. In right field, Bailee Bishop made a nice adjustment to a scorched line-drive for the second out. For the final out, shortstop Kalli Trimble made a snap throw to second baseman Piper Hallman for a force out.  

It was far from a perfect game for Alba-Golden. The Lady Panthers committed one fielding error and one mental miscue on a missed cut-off from the outfield. However, they continue to find ways to bring runners home and have a capable defense on which hurler Smith can depend.  

The Lady Panthers end their district schedule Tuesday, April 16 when they host Sulphur Bluff.