Lady Panthers cruise in first round

By: LANCE REED

Sports Editor

The Pine Prairie Lady Panthers wasted no time in crushing the Dunham Lady Dragons Tuesday night. The 16-1 victory came in three innings and pushed Pine Prairie into the second round of the playoffs. The third ranked local girls will have to travel to Fisher High School in Lafitte tomorrow. The Lady Gators upset the Lady Knights of Episcopal Tuesday night 9-8 in nine innings. Fisher is the 19th seed in the playoffs.

The Lady Panthers scored 11 runs in the first inning, two runs in the second inning and three runs in the third inning to amass the 16 runs and force the 15-run mercy rule. Chelsey Fontenot got the win in the circle. She fanned seven batters and allowed just two hits.

The Lady Panthers offense was headed by senior catcher Kayla Johnson. The young lady was 3-4 at the plate. She drove in five runs and hit a home run in the first inning. Senior shortstop Alex Deville also had a great day at the plate. She was 2-3 with a double and two runs batted in. Ashley Marcantel hit perfect on the day. She was 2-2 with a pair of doubles and four runs batted in.

The Lady Panthers are looking to make the trip back to Sulphur this year after back-to-back years of coming up short. The last time they were at Frash Park, the Lady Panthers won the Class 2A championship.