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The North Hopkins Lady Panthers listen to head coach Phillip Mathis during recent action. The Lady Panthers lost their Wednesday road game to the Bland Lady Tigers 6-1, dropping to 4-1 in district and 9-4-1 overall. Photo by DJ Spencer
NH suffers first district loss
MERIT — The North Hopkins Lady Panthers saw their seven-game winning streak come to a bitter end Wednesday, as they fell 6-1 to the Bland Lady Tigers on the road. Despite taking an initial lead, they weren’t able to sustain it, as Bland handed North Hopkins their first district loss of the season.
The first inning would be scoreless, as both defenses played well. The Lady Panthers took the lead in the second inning when Taryn Loyd scored a run, giving them a 1-0 lead.
The Lady Tigers pulled ahead in the third inning with a pair of runs, taking a 2-1 lead. Bland then added another run in the third inning, extending their lead to 3-1.
After the fourth and fifth inning saw no scoring, the Lady Tigers put up three more runs in the sixth inning, increasing their lead to 6-1. The Lady Panthers were then held scoreless in the seventh inning, as Bland handed them a 6-1 upset loss.
As a team, the Lady Panthers batted 8 for 27 (.296) from the plate. Daylee Fite, Evie Fuentes-Perry, and Fern Hernandez led with two hits each, while Lucy Hernandez and Kenzie Phillips added one hit each. Loyd scored the Lady Panthers’ lone run.
Fite suffered the loss in the circle. Over six innings, she struck out 10 batters, conceding 11 hits, six earned runs, and three walks.
With the loss, the Lady Panthers dropped to 4-1 in district and 9-4-1 overall. They resumed action Thursday, welcoming the Cumby Lady Trojans to Ruth Long Field.