Lady Panthers keep churning

ANAHUAC – The Lady Panthers have been on their A-game so far this season, reeling off several wins, and this week, they notched a couple more victories before dropping their first game of the season to a bigger school. 

 The Lady Panthers faced off against the Tarkington Longhorns last Tuesday, prevailing in an “against all odds” scenario.  

You’ll notice Anahuac won 12-8 when reviewing the game stats. If you delve deeper into how that score was achieved, you might find yourself exclaiming, “Wow,” upon hearing the details.  

After four innings, the Lady Horns were ahead with eight runs. Unfortunately for the Tarkington fans who traveled to watch the game, that was all the runs their team would score that night. 

In the sixth inning, the Lady Panthers stepped up to bat and demonstrated that the game was far from over by scoring eight runs. For context, nearly the entire batting lineup scored in just one inning. 

“We didn’t look good early on by any means, but the mark of a great team is finding ways to win tough games. That’s what we did tonight. I was proud of our kids who never gave up and kept fighting to secure the win,” Anahuac Head Softball Coach Jackson Gore said. 

For the second week in a row, Anahuac was to host a three-day tournament starting last Thursday. The tournament did happen, but the weather greatly impacted the schedule. By the end of the weekend, Anahuac would have two more games in the record books. 

Friday saw temperatures low enough to make you double-check your location to see if you blacked out and woke up in Canada. Even still, parents and their athletes showed up to watch and play. 

Appropriate for the occasion, Coldspring-Oakhurst and Anahuac would meet on the diamond to see who the ice queen would be. 

Kaitlynn McDaniel stood in the circle and pitched four straight scoreless innings, only giving up three runs overall in a powerful performance. 

With a tie score of three each, the Lady Panthers would leave the field victorious after six innings, 4-3. 

Even after it began to pour rain on Saturday, in addition to unseasonably low temperatures, the troops marched forward. Like softball juggernauts, fans, parents and players showed up bright and early. 

The Lady Panthers would play their last game of the weekend, resulting in their first loss. Nederland, a 5A school overshadowing Anahuac’s 3A ranking, found a group of cold and turf-weary Panthers. The contest would result in a 9-0 loss for the Lady Panthers. 

After this long week of high spirits and low mercury, Gore had high praise for his Lady Panther popsicles. 

“My kids did a fantastic job with the schedule changes and playing at different times than were previously scheduled. We played some quality opponents this week and responded well to the competition,” Gore said. “I was very proud of the grit we showed!” 

District games start on Wednesday when the ladies travel to their coach’s hometown, Kirbyville. “We kick off the district season in a place that will always be special to me. Even though it’s where I am from, it’s a business trip, and we only have one goal in mind. That being, we come back to Anahuac with a win,” Gore said. 

Some stand-out players on the week were: 

Jayda Granger and  Kaitlynn McDaniel 

Granger was 5 of 8 with an average of .625. 

On defense, she made six outs. 

McDaniel was two for three at the plate on Friday with a home run. 

She pitched six innings and struck out batters five times. 

Season record: 

7-1-1 

Overall, Team Batting Average: 

.288 

On Base Percentage: 

.415 

Five stolen bases