INMAN, S.C. – It was a high stakes affair on Wednesday as the Palmetto Mustangs and Chapman Panthers clashed in the 3A softball District III final. An outstanding pitching performance and two big innings powered Chapman to a 7-0 shutout victory over the Mustangs, winning the district title and a berth in the Upper State playoffs.
In the opening frame, Chapman’s Reagan Garrett worked around a two-on, one-out jam by sitting down the next two batters down on strikes with six pitches. The Panthers capitalized in their first at bat when Autumn Fisher launched a solo home run – her third in the last two games – to straightaway center for a 1-0 lead. “I just wanted to go up there and get a base hit, but it ended up being more than that,” said Fisher. “That’s always good to do that. I go up there pretending that it’s practice and trying to not think anything of it. It feels great, but we definitely have some more competitors coming up (in the Upper State)." After Krislyn Wilder drew a free pass, Garrett smacked a single back up the middle to center that scored Wilder. Three batters later, a Rylan Ivey two-out base hit plated Garrett for a three-run advantage. Hailey Coley opened the second with an opposite field double to left. Three batters later, courtesy runner Abbie Skipper later scored on a Sarah Byrd RBI single. Next up was Garrett, who sent a two-run blast to left-center and staked the Panthers to a 6-0 lead. Garrett worked around a leadoff single in the third by inducing a fly out to center and two more strikeouts. The right-hander scattered six hits and notched five strikeouts in a complete game effort. “I knew that since I already faced them once, I had to make sure everything was moving and locating (in the strike zone),” Garrett stated. “Their pitcher kept going away, so I had a feeling they were coming back in just based on the way they were moving back and forth. I just knew that was my pitch (to hit).” “(Reagan) shows grit, keeps calm, and is out there to do her job,” Chapman head coach Casey Green remarked. “She trusts her defense and works for them to put the ball in play because she knows her defense will ultimately end up making the play.” The Panthers added another run in the fourth when Fisher reached on a fielder’s choice and sprinted home on a Wilder base knock. Palmetto advanced a runner to third in the final frame, but a pair of fly outs secured the win for Chapman. Hannah Lawter tossed five innings in relief for Palmetto, yielding a run on two hits. “I've told (our team) all along that if we hit the ball and make the routine plays, we’re going to be fine,” Green added. Garrett led the way at the plate by recording two hits in three at-bats, recording three Rbi and two runs scored. Coley went 2-for-2 with a walk, double, and run scored, while Fisher also scored twice. Chapman (20-5) returns to action on Friday with a home game against Wren. The start time is slated for 6 PM. Comments are closed.
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