The Lady Panthers of Jackson County rolled on last week, continuing undefeated in region play while dropping two games in non-region tournament play that leaves them with a 13-7-1 record overall.
Next up is more tournament play, as Jackson County continues in the North Fall Classic this week.
The Lady Panthers traveled to Lawrenceville last Tuesday to face Mountain View. After a solid defensive game, Jackson County held a commanding 7-0 lead until the bottom of the seventh.
That’s when the Lady Bears got a two-run homer, and followed it with four more runs. The Lady Panthers held their ground and stopped the rally to record the 7-6 victory.
Haley Shinall picked up the win from the mound.
Next was another road trip, this time to Hart County to face the Lady Bulldogs on Thursday.
It was a tight game that saw the Lady Panthers chip away steadily at Hart County throughout. Madison Whitmire, Erica Parker, and Andrea Ledford picked up hits while Macey Latty, Victoria Fontana, Haley Shinall and Jessika Laird all found ways to get on base. In the end, Jackson County came away with a 4-3 win, with Shinall recording the win from the mound.
Next up, the Lady Panthers traveled to North Oconee to take part in the Veterans Memorial Park tournament over the weekend.
Jackson County started their tournament with a pairing against Parkview. The Lady Panthers hit well, and came away with a 4-3 win.
“I think they took us lightly and didn’t expect us to defeat them,” said coach Lisa Robinson. “We are very proud of the girls for playing both smart and hard throughout the game.”
Shinall picked up the win from the mound.
Next was a Friday night game against North Oconee that saw the Lady Panthers’ seven-game win streak brought to an end, as Jackson County lost 5-1.
“We ran out of gas and didn’t show up,” Robinson said.
It was more of the same the next morning, as Jackson County found themselves on the short end of a 9-1 score against Lovett.
“We didn’t show up at all in this game,” Robinson said. “Lovett did not outplay us, we outplayed ourselves. We made eight defensive errors and struggled at the plate. This was atypical to the way we normally play.”
Haley Shinall started the game, and recorded the loss. Drake Vissering came in to close.
The Lady Panthers took the next game against Social Circle and turned their weekend around. At one point, the Lady Redskins led 2-0, but Jackson County came back, steadily placing runners in scoring position, and came away with a 3-2 victory.
“After some soul searching and a gut check, we came into this game with a fresh approach and the will to win,” Robinson said. “The Panthers bounced back as a team
and cheered one another on throughout the game.”
Haley Shinall recorded the win from the mound.
For more on this story, see Wednesday's edition of The Jackson Herald or The Braselton News.
