SOFTBALL: Lady Panthers off to 4-0 start
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[The Lady Panthers survived a couple of scares over the weekend to remain unbeaten in 2011, picking up a ten-inning win at Okawville on Friday before victories over Breese Mater Dei and Red Bud on Saturday in Pinckneyville.
PCHS entered the tenth inning on Friday tied with the Lady Rockets at 2-2, but the Panthers' bats exploded for four hits and five runs in the top half of the frame to get Emily Chapman her first victory of the season. Sara Malanowski plated two in the inning with an RBI triple.
"We started slow but finally started hitting in the tenth inning," said PCHS head coach Mike Cheek.
Chapman went the distance, striking out 10 and walking five with both runs against her going unearned. At the plate, Taylor Cheek was 2-for-5 with an RBI and a run scored, Maddy Keith picked up multiple hits as well, going 2-for-6 with an RBI. Chapman, Dani Jenkel, and Mo Ramsey also picked up hits.
<u>PCHS comes back on Mater Dei, holds off Red Bud</u>
PINCKNEYVILLE - Down 5-2 entering the top of the fifth inning, Pinckneyville got two runs in the fifth and two more in the sixth before shutting Mater Dei down in the seventh for a 6-5 victory on Saturday morning.
Malanowski (2-0) pitched all seven innings for PCHS, striking out five and walking two while surrendering six hits, but held Mater Dei scoreless for the last four innings of the game.
Chapman was 3-for-4 at the dish with an RBI and 2 runs scored, Ramsey was 2-for-3 with 3 runs. Keith and Taylor Kuhnert accounted for the other hits for the Lady Panthers.
In their second game on Saturday, Pinckneyville took the lead early and held on throughout, topping Red Bud 12-9 for their fourth straight win to start the season.
"We took the lead at the beginning of the game and stayed in front," M. Cheek said. "We hit the ball very well."
Three Lady Panthers had three hits in the game: Keith (3-4, 2 2B, 2 R, 3 RBI), Chapman (3-3, 2 2B, R, RBI) and T. Cheek (3-4, HR, 3 R, 2 RBI). Malanowski added her second home run of the season and also picked up the save in the pitcher's circle with her 2 innings of work, allowing four runs, but none earned.
Chapman (2-0) got the win throwing the first five innings before giving way to Malanowski. Chapman was less than 24 hours removed from her ten-inning victory over Okawville on Friday.
Pinckneyville (4-0) hosts Wesclin on Monday (4:30 p.m.) and Hamilton County on Wednesday (4:30 p.m.).