PINCKNEYVILLE SOFTBALL: Lady Panthers Edge Past Wesclin
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[ An errant return throw from the catcher to pitcher turned out to be the difference Monday afternoon as Pinckneyville Community High School's Girls Softball team edged past Trenton-Wesclin 3-2 in eight innings at Hale Field.
The Lady Panthers, off to a 3-0 start, are idle until a home game with Freeburg Thursday and Saturday's round robin tournament at Johnston City.
Wesclin is 0-1.
"This was a nice win for us," PCHS coach Greg Hale said.
"I would hate to get beat the way they did. Its already a good attribute of our team to find ways to win-even when we don't play well. We just didn't hit the ball as well as we did Saturday."
In the first inning, the Lady Panthers jumped ahead with a single tally.
Maddy Keith stroked an RBI single to score Mo Ramsey, who started the inning by reaching after a Wesclin error.
With the score tied at 1-1, PCHS added another tally in the third.
Emily Miller legged out a bunt single and moved up on Nicole Cheek's sacrfice. With two out, Miller scored when Emily Chapman's line drive to rightfield was dropped for another error.
Pinckneyville won the game in the eighth and did so in strange-and dramatic-fashion.
Cheek walked to start things and moved up to third base when Mandy Kellerman's shot to shortstop was bobbled. After Chapman was intentionally walked, Keith took the first two pitches.
As Wesclin's catcher threw back to the pitcher after the second toss, the ball deflected off the pitchers glove and Cheek raced home with the winning run.
"What a freak play," Hale admitted.
Miller, Keith and Dani Jenkel managed the lone PCHS hits.
Chapman (2-0) pitched the final three innings and gained another mound victory, whiffing three.
Sarah Malanowski and Kelsey Cicardi teamed up for the first four innings, giving four hits and striking out six.
Pinckneyville (1-0) took the junior varsity game over T-W, 9-1.
PCHS 3, Wesclin 2
T-W 001 010 00-2 4 5
PCHS 101 000 01-3 3 1
Malanowski, K. Cicardi (4), Chapman (5) and Cheek. Gilomer, Fuhler (5) and Schulte. WP-Chapman, 2-0. LP-Fuhler. TOP HITTERS-PCHS: Miller 1-3, Keith 1-4 (RBI), Jenkel 1-3. T-W: Ford 2-4.
<element id="paragraph-1" type="body"></element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[ <element id="paragraph-1" type="body"></element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[</group>