PETAL – It didn’t take much for Petal to make a statement.
The Lady Panthers used a 10-run inning to mercy-rule Madison Central 12-0 on Monday.
Just over two weeks ago, Petal had to overcome a 6-0 deficit before narrowly defeating the Lady Jaguars.
“The last time we played (Madison Central), we were down six to start the game, but we came back and won 12-11,” Petal coach Shelly Flood said. “We talked about this being what we wanted to do today. We wanted to make a statement.”
For Petal (10-3), which is ranked No. 4 in Class 7A, the victory is a sign of the team’s maturity as the Lady Panthers return seven starters from last year.
“The difference this year is that there is no intimidation,” Flood said. “We won state the year before but last year was a younger team, but the difference this year is that they are hungry to win and they believe they are as good as anybody we are playing.”
A perfect illustration of Petal’s newfound confidence came in the first inning after starting pitcher Mallory Johnson walked a batter to start the game. A fielder’s choice and a wild pitch moved the runner to third base with one out. After Johnson made a quick out on a comebacker, first baseman Layla Brock threw the runner out at home to end the inning.
“Last year, we lost a lot of one-run ball games,” Flood said. “As a whole, we didn’t have a lot of fight in us. I think this year’s team believes in themselves, and they don’t give up.”
Despite the first inning, Johnson stayed efficient as she kept Madison Central (3-6) hitless while only walking a pair of batters and striking out two.
“The leaf she has turned over since last year has been fun to watch,” Flood said. “The confidence level in the circle has been top notch. She has done some really good things. I’m excited for her.”
Ten of Petal’s 12 runs came in the third inning as a pair of errors and an infield single loaded the bases with no outs. Morgan Taylor kickstarted the rally with a three-run RBI triple, which was followed by back-to-back RBI singles by Kennedy Ray and Taylor Foster.
From there, Madison Central’s defense began to crumble, as three more runs were plated by infield errors, which also set up an infield RBI single for Brock. However, part of the inning’s success was Petal’s speed around the bases.
“We said from the beginning that we are going to have some aggressive base running,” Flood said. “I’ve run the girls into some outs a couple of times, but we are going to keep doing that. We are going to do what’s working for us. They are doing a good job around the bases.”
Petal closed out the game in the fourth inning after the Lady Jaguars committed their eighth error to score a run, which was quickly followed by an RBI single by Brock to end the game.
Brock led the team in the lineup as she went 3-for-3 while five other Lady Panthers collected a hit.
“We have a lot of kids that are just hungry to keep growing,” Flood said. “We are getting things done from the top to the bottom. There is not a weak spot in our lineup.”
Petal opens district play next Tuesday as the Lady Panthers host Northwest Rankin.
Follow @PineBeltSPORTS on Twitter and Facebook.
