Trojans trounce Hibriten

Losing will drive a man to do some strange things. In the case of Hibriten softball coach Jim Blanton, that means rooting for a fierce conference rival.

“Right now, we've got to become the biggest Fred T. Foard fans in the world,” he said. “And that's really something I don't want to be. I would have preferred it not happen this way, but it did.”

The dilemma arose out of Hibriten's 11-1 loss to Bandys Tuesday, a game in which a Panther win would have secured the top 2-A seed out of the Catawba Valley Athletic Conference for the postseason. With the loss, however, the Panthers will need some help. Only a Hibriten win over Hickory Thursday, coupled with a Bandys loss to Fred T. Foard, would lock up a home playoff game in Lenoir. Otherwise, the seeding could come down to the conference tournament.

“We were really fortunate to have as much success today as we did,” Bandys coach Mike Carpenter said. “Hibriten is a team that we always dread to play because of what they can do. So I thought we got a really good effort from everybody today.”

For four innings Tuesday, Hibriten looked to be marching toward a victory parade. Panther pitcher Ashlyn Pope escaped a couple of early jams, and second baseman Bailey Goble scored on a Sarah Bentley single to give Hibriten a 1-0 lead. Pope settled down, cruising through the third and fourth without any problems.

In the top of the fifth inning, though, it all came undone. The Trojans collected five hits and four walks to put seven runs on the board, effectively postponing any Hibriten celebration for another day. Bandys' Liz Goodwin and Kallie Punch delivered the key blows, with RBI singles to extend the rally.

“We played four really good innings,” Blanton said. “We had that lead going into the fifth, and then it just fell apart.”

Goble (with a double) and Hannah Crowe (with a triple) had the only extra-base hits for Hibriten on the day. The Panthers tallied just five hits as a team.

“We didn't hit the ball well,” Blanton said. “You're not going to win many games scoring only one run. It's just not going to happen.”

Bandys' Carlee Carpenter went the whole way on the mound, striking out three and walking none in her seven innings of work.

Hibriten hosts Hickory on Thursday.