Panthers take two from Tellico
Team narrowly misses perfect week as rain spoils rally vs. Rebels
By JARED PUTNAM Union Sentinel Editor

Sentinel photo/Jared Putnam Panthers catcher Cody Shook tags out a Fannin County runner as he slides across the plate, and keeps his eyes on the remaining baserunner to prevent him from advancing to third.

The Panthers picked up a pair of wins over the weekend, travelling to Tellico Plains, Tennessee to take both games of a double header, 3-1 and 3-2 respectively.

"It probably wasn't the best games ever played" Panthers Head Coach Robby Roxbury said jokingly, "but we came out and did what we had to do to win. We jumped on them early and never really looked back. We had some fairly solid hits, and the defense and pitching were pretty solid and pretty sound. It was nice to pick up two victories."

The coach described junior Eric Seabolt's pitching performance as "lights out," as the Panthers opponents were able to muster little more than a couple of swinging bunts against him. "In all reality I think he threw a one-hitter," Coach Roxbury said. "He just looked great."

Union also battled the Fannin County Rebels, in a game in which the Panthers fell behind, then got hot and rallied, but were cooled off by a rain delay.

Sentinel photo/Jared Putnam Cody Adams hops over the catcher's foot to beat the ball home.

"It was just a brutal first inning," Coach Roxbury said, referring to an opening frame in which the Rebels established a 7-0 lead. "We just couldn't stop the bleeding. It wasn't a pretty sight."

The Panthers got two of those back in the top of the second inning, but the Rebels added another to lead 8-2 going into the fourth inning, when the Panthers bats caught fire.

"I have to give [my guys] credit because I was pretty ill," the coach said. "But they are pretty resilient and they were fighting yesterday. That's what we have been talking about."

Union scored 5 runs in the inning to trim the lead to 8-7, where it stayed through a short rain delay. When the action resumed, the Panthers seemed to have lost their momentum. The Rebels would add one more run, holding on for a 9-7 win.

The game was filled with close plays, but most of them did not go the Panthers' way. "We had a good shot, we just couldn't catch a break," Coach Roxbury said, "and maybe we didn't deserve a break."

Sentinel photos/Jared Putnam Jace Emerine throws out the runner.

But the coach said he still likes the team's chances overall. "We have played everybody one time through, and I think we are realizing how good we actually are," Coach Roxbury said. "We're not out of this thing at all. We just have to keep digging."

Sentinel photo/Jared Putnam Left: Junior Eric Seabolt fires the pitch against Fannin.