Putting on an offensive showcase, Daviess County was able to grab its first district win of the season over Owensboro 16-1.
The Lady Panthers wasted no time getting going offensively, putting runners on the corners with a leadoff walk and double from senior Hattie Newman. This led to an RBI single from senior Millie Roberts, which opened up the scoring on the day.
A sacrifice fly from junior Jessie Daniels followed to make it 2-0, before a wild pitch turned dropped third strike allowed two runs to cross home two batters later. Eighth grader Annie Newman kept things going with a two-run double, giving Daviess County a 6-0 lead with one out.
Following a hit by pitch, a triple from junior Kayley Payne plated two more runs. After a pop out, Roberts came through with her second double of the inning to give the Lady Panthers a 9-0 lead after the first inning.
After junior Raylee Roby held the Lady Devils hitless for the second straight inning, Daviess County went right back to work offensively. The Lady Panthers went off for seven runs in the inning, getting a three-run homer from Hattie Newman and a two-run blast from Daniels to put them up 16-0.
Taking advantage of a Daviess County error, Owensboro was able to get its first hit of the game from freshman Addison Hill and made it a 16-1 game. However, this was all the Lady Devils could muster offensively, as Roby closed the inning out to secure the three-inning victory.
Battling some decent field conditions until a drizzle threw a wrench into things, Daviess County stayed focused and took control of the game early and never looked back
“I told the girls we control what we can control,” Head Coach John Biggs said. “What you can control is your effort and how you approach things. You can’t control the weather. So I thought we showed some grit and determination in that. We set the tone early.”
Roby had a strong outing in the circle, going all three innings while allowing one run on one hit, while walking two and striking out five to earn her second win of the season.
Payne, Hattie Newman and Daniels led the way with three RBIs each, while Roberts and Annie Newman both had two each and Vergason had one as well. Payne, Hattie Newman, Roberts, and Vergason all had two hits as well, while Hill was the only player with a hit and RBI for Owensboro.
Getting production and contributions from a barrage of players on their roster, the Lady Panthers and Biggs have been able to lay down a foundation to have a deep team throughout the season.
“When players know that, their effort at practice is much [higher],” Biggs said. “They’re going to be engaged at practice. I think that has all built an unbelievable team chemistry this year. Our seniors are showing some really good leadership and the whole group all the way down. It’s been good so far.”
Not to mention the tough schedule that Daviess County has played, that has put them at 6-1 and has them hoping it will pay off as the season progresses. Biggs said their schedule won’t let up any time soon either, but that they are focused on growing and then the success will hopefully follow.
“I got to looking at what we’ve got coming when we get back from spring break and I was like God what did I schedule,” Biggs said. “So we’re going to be ready and that’s what we gear everything for. We gear everything for being prepared once district starts, but putting ourselves in the best situation we can when it comes around for seeding in the district tournament.”
The Lady Panthers have a week-long break as far as games go, with their next matchup coming against Boonville in the Southern Slam tournament at 7 p.m. on April 8. For Owensboro, they fall to 2-5 overall and 0-2 in district play, looking to turn things around in its next matchup with Apollo on Friday at 5:30 p.m.
