Panther softball stands in second in the Mountain Seven Conference.
On their first week back from Spring Break, Bobby Bishop’s team had two home games on the schedule, an M7C matchup with East Henderson and a non-conference meeting with Madison. With wins in both, Franklin improved to 12-3 overall and 6-1 in the conference, setting up a massive game with 6-0 Tuscola April 18.
On Thursday, April 13, the Panthers welcomed East to Macon Middle School for the teams’ last M7C meeting of the year. In a rematch of Franklin’s 13-3 victory in East Flat Rock March 10, junior pitcher/third baseman Meyaeh Tran held the Eagles in check early, allowing just one single through the first two innings.
In the bottom of the second, East gave Franklin’s offense their first real chance, hitting junior catcher Avery Moffitt with a pitch and watching her advance on a Tran groundout. Moffitt came home on a single from junior first baseman Bree Carver moments later.
The Eagles looked ready to answer in the top of the third, getting two singles and a double to put runners on second and third with two outs. Tran soon snuffed out the danger however, coaxing the next batter into a fly ball out.
In the bottom of the inning, senior shortstop Tori Ensley sparked Franklin’s bats, ripping a double and advancing to third on a single by freshman Ashlynn McConnell. Still with one out in the inning, Ensley tagged up on a fly ball out to make it 2-0.
In the bottom of the fourth, the Panthers grew red-hot, getting three straight one-out singles by senior second baseman Tessa Dehart, junior left fielder Delaney Stiles and junior right fielder McKinleigh Cochran. With the bases loaded, Dehart came home on a costly error by East, with Stiles scoring moments later on a groundout by McConnell. With runners on second and third, freshman pitcher/third baseman Kendall Rumans smacked a two-run single to put Franklin up 6-0.
East’s defense continued to struggle in the fifth, allowing Tran to advance to third on a first-pitch leadoff single and a two-base error. Another error brought Tran home to make it a 7-0 ballgame.
The Panther offense heated up again in the sixth, as Ensley beat the throw for a leadoff single and advanced to second on a McConnell sac fly. From there, a Rumans single, a Moffitt double, a Tran base on balls and an error put Franklin ahead 10-0, ending the game by way of the 10-run “mercy rule.”
Tran pitched all six innings for the Panthers, posting two strikeouts and allowing eight hits with zero walks. Moffitt led Franklin at the plate, going 2 for 2 with the sixth-inning double, an RBI, two runs scored, a base on balls and a hit-by-pitch. Carver went 3 for 4 with three RBIs, while Rumans went 2 for 3 with four RBIs and a run scored.
After completing the season sweep over East, on Thursday, April 13 the Panthers returned to Macon Middle School to host the Madison Patriots. In a rematch of their season-opening 13-5 win in Marshall, Rumans got the start on the mound for Franklin, tossing two strikeouts in the top of the first.
In the bottom of the inning, Ensley drew a leadoff walk, stole second and eventually made her way to third on a Rumans single. After a Moffitt strikeout on the next at-bat, the senior attempted a daring move, sprinting for home while Madison’s infielders threw around the horn. Seeing the attempted steal, the Patriots threw back to their catcher to trap Ensley in a rundown, but Ensley avoided the tag and slid back into third safely. This savvy baserunning paid off in a big way moments later, as a fielding error on a Tran groundball brought the senior home, capping a wild series of events.
Ensley put her mark on the game once again in the third, leading off the inning with a solo home run to left field to double Franklin’s lead.
In the bottom of the fourth, Madison spotted the Panthers two free bases, walking Dehart and allowing Stiles to reach first on an error. After a wild pitch moved both runners into scoring position, junior right fielder Laura Holland brought Dehart home with a single to go up 3-0.
Madison answered in the top of the fifth, posting a single, a walk and a groundball out to bring the lead runner home and cut Franklin’s lead to 3-1. In the top of the sixth, they cut Franklin’s lead even further, posting a walk, a groundball out to advance the runner, a wild pitch and an RBI single to make it a 3-2 ballgame.
Dehart soon stymied Madison’s momentum however, leading off the bottom of the inning with a double and scoring moments later on a Stiles single. On the next at-bat, Holland smacked Franklin’s second double of the inning, bringing Ensley to the plate with runners on second and third. Fearing an Ensley base hit might put the game out of reach, Madison issued the senior an intentional walk, loading the bases for a McConnell single to make it 5-2. With the bases still loaded, Rumans put the Patriots away, singling and advancing all the way to third on a two-base error. All three baserunners scored on the play to take a commanding 8-2 lead.
The Patriots refused to go quietly in the seventh, using a first-pitch leadoff single, a walk and a fielding error to cut Franklin’s lead to 8-3. As the lead runner broke for home however, Ensley made the play of the game on defense, recovering the ball in shallow left several yards from her normal spot and uncorking a missile to third to beat the trail runner by half a step. Rumans struck out the final batter on a 3-2 count to cement an 8-3 Panther victory.
“At the beginning we obviously didn’t hit that great, but towards the end we picked it up because we knew they’d started picking it up, so we had to match that energy,” said Ensley after the game. “We really stepped it up, our bottom of the lineup went through and got some big hits, and then the top of the lineup went through and followed, so that was great. Our defense was very consistent throughout the whole thing, and they’ve been consistent all year, so [we expected] that.”
In addition to her usual airtight defense, Ensley reached base on all four of her plate appearances in the game, including the third-inning home run, a base on balls and two intentional walks. Holland went 2 for 3 with the sixth-inning double, while Rumans and McConnell both finished 2 for 4. Rumans looked sharp on the mound once again, hurling seven innings of four-hit, three-run, eight-strikeout ball.
After dispatching Madison, the Panthers turned their attention to the biggest game of the year so far, a battle for control of the M7C at home vs. Tuscola April 18. Just half a game back from the Mountaineers with a 6-1 record in the conference, Franklin attempted to pay back their 5-0 loss in Waynesville March 15. That game remains the team’s most recent loss, having won eight in a row.
“We’ve just got to hit the ball,” said Bishop of the showdown with the 6-0 Mounties. “Over there, we didn’t do nothing. They didn’t really do a whole lot either; they scored five runs and only had three hits. We made two errors in an inning that would have been the second and third outs – they wouldn’t have scored a run. After that, they got two of their three hits back-to-back in the gap with all them runners on, and scored a bunch of runs. … I don’t know what it was, but it was just one of them days, so I’m hoping we’re gonna be up and ready for this one.”