The North Platte Panthers got their first two game winning streak of the baseball season with big wins over North Andrew and DeKalb.
The Panthers thumped the Cardinals 17-2 on Tuesday, May 4, on the road. The Panthers got on the board early with four runs in the top of the first inning before North Andrew came back with a run in the bottom half of the inning.
North Platte’s Ryan York went deep twice for the Panthers and drove in three runs versus DeKalb.
North Platte got the run back in the top of the second inning but added four more runs in the top of the third inning and took a 9-1 lead into the bottom of the third inning.
The Cardinals responded with a run in the bottom of the third inning but wouldn’t score again. The Panthers put the game away with five runs in the fourth inning and three more in the fifth inning.
Despite scoring 17 runs the Panthers had only seven hits and eight RBI. North Andrew committed seven errors in the game and walked 11 North Platte batters.
Kaden Mullendore had three hits, a walk and a run driven in. Jaxson Carpenter, Chance Garber, and Creek Johnson each had two RBI. Johnson pitched all five innings giving up two runs on four hits with 10 strikeouts.
North Platte came back the next day and beat DeKalb on the road 14-1. North Platte scored two runs in the top of the first inning and the Tigers came back with a run in the bottom half of the inning but it would be the last time DeKalb would score.
The Panthers broke the game open with five runs in the top of the third inning and put the game away with four runs in the top of the sixth inning.
Landon Bartlett started the game giving up one run on four hits with five strikeouts.
The Panthers hit five home runs in the game including two by Ryan York who also drove in three runs. Mullendore went deep and drove in four runs. Chance Garber and Riley Hyde also went deep and drove in three runs for the Panthers.
The Panthers’ streak ended with a 14-4 loss to Mid-Buchanan on Thursday, May 6. Hyde led the way with two hits and three RBI. Bartlett had two hits, a walk and a run driven in.
The Panthers followed that loss with a 15-5 loss to Lathrop on the road in six innings.
The Mules put up five runs in the bottom of the first inning and added two more in the third inning before North Platte got a scratch across in the fifth inning. North Platte scored four runs in the top of the sixth inning to cut into the Mules’ lead 8-5. The Lathrop bats woke back up in the bottom of the sixth inning for seven runs.
Garber led the way for the offense that managed to get only four hits. The freshman had two of the hits and drove in a run. Johnson, Matrix Large and York each had an RBI.