There is no joy in a baseball game with the score 28-0. It is tough to celebrate a sport when a rout is on.

The Alba-Golden Panthers recorded a district win last Tuesday in Fruitvale by that huge margin. The Panthers took advantage of seven free passes and four timely hits in the first three innings to take an 8-0 lead.

Easton Campbell smashed two doubles and finished 3 for 3 with five RBIs. Ayden Blalock also recorded runs batted in with a bases-loaded single through the left side in the third inning. Tucker Samples led off the third with a clean double to left field.

In the top of the fourth, the Fruitvale starter lost his control, giving up five consecutive free passes, which included hitting two batters. The Bobcats then rotated through their line-up searching for strikes. They rarely found one, giving up 17 walks or hit batsmen in an inning which saw five Bobcats on the mound.

Alba-Golden’s Easton Campbell had no such trouble. He faced 14 hitters in four innings, striking out 11. His control and velocity were excellent. He gave up just one hit, a single in the bottom of the fourth, and surrendered only one free pass. 

The Panthers opened their district campaign just where they left off last year – on the winning side of the ledger. After a return match-up with Fruitvale, the Panthers faced North Hopkins at home Tuesday, March 12 and travel to Hopkins County on Friday, March 15.