Five games into the season, Panther softball remains undefeated.
After beating T.C. Roberson and Smoky Mountain to start the season, on the week of March 11 Franklin faced a busy slate of games. In blowout wins over Murphy and conference foes Tuscola and East Henderson, they improved to 5-0 for the season and 3-0 in the Mountain Seven.
On Monday, March 11, the Panthers traveled to Murphy for the Bulldogs’ season opener. There, the game sat tied 3-3 through four innings, until Franklin scored the final five runs for an 8-3 win.
“They were a good team. They pitched like three different pitchers, and actually brought the starter back in at the end,” said head coach Bobby Bishop of the Bulldogs. “These first couple games … we’ve left a lot of runners on, but we hit the ball well. Kendall pitched good, and we probably could have scored 12 easily if we just get one or two more hits.”
After being held scoreless through the first three innings, Franklin suddenly kickstarted their offense in Murphy, scoring multiple runs in innings 4, 5 and 6. Senior Avery Moffitt hit a home run in the game, while sophomore Ashlyn McConnell recorded two hits including a triple. Sophomore Kendall Rumans doubled twice, while senior Olivia Birchard led the team with three hits in four at-bats. On the mound, Rumans struck out 12 and allowed just three hits in seven innings.
After dispatching Murphy, the next night the team hosted East Henderson in Franklin for a Mountain Seven clash. There, the Panthers got on the board early, as McConnell led off the first inning with a single then scored on a two-run home run by Rumans. Moffitt and Birchard then kept the line moving with first-pitch singles, both scoring on a third-straight single by Meyaeh Tran to make it 4-0.
Franklin’s bats stayed red-hot in the top of the second, extending their lead with a double from McConnell and a first-pitch RBI single from Rumans. Rumans scored moments later on a Moffitt home run, which put Franklin up 7-0.
The third and fourth innings looked roughly the same, with East struggling to record outs. Down 17-0 after the fourth, East’s coach elected to end the game.
Unsurprisingly, Moffitt and Rumans led all Panthers at the plate, posting three hits, two home runs and six RBIs apiece. McConnell led the team with four hits including two doubles, while Tran posted five strikeouts in four innings on the mound.
After dismantling East, two nights later the team returned to Macon Middle School to face Tuscola. There, the Mountaineers came out firing in the first, turning five singles, a steal and a passed ball into a commanding 5-0 lead. Rumans answered in the bottom of the inning, belting a solo home run to make it 5-1.
Franklin stayed hot in the bottom of the second, loading the bases with two hit batters and a first-pitch leadoff single from Tran. McConnell then cashed in with two outs, smacking a 3-RBI double and scoring herself on a game-tying RBI double by Rumans.
The Panthers blew the game open in the fourth, taking the lead on a first-pitch leadoff single from Jozy Dehart, a well-placed sacrifice bunt from Layla Maloy and an RBI single from McConnell. Rumans then brought McConnell home with her second home run of the game to make it 8-5.
After Rumans’ shot to left field, Tuscola brought a new pitcher to the mound, but Franklin quickly scored again on singles from Birchard and Tran. With Tran on first, senior Delaney Stiles smashed Franklin’s second home run of the inning, clearing the left field wall to put her team up 11-5.
Tuscola answered in the top of the fifth, cutting their deficit to 11-8 with a single, a double, an error, a steal, two wild pitches and a passed ball. Playing at second base, Dehart forced three impressive outs in quick succession to stop the bleeding.
The comeback attempt was short-lived for the Mounties, as Franklin loaded the bases in the bottom of the inning with a Rumans walk and singles from Maloy and McConnell. They extended their lead to 16-8 with three straight singles from Moffitt, Birchard and Tran.
The Mounties took their last gasp in the sixth, cutting their deficit to 16-10 with two singles, a walk and an error. In the bottom of the inning Franklin further ran up the score, going up 19-10 on a double from Maloy, a single from Rumans and a three-run homer from Moffitt. Birchard then kept the line moving with a double, scoring moments later on a Tran single to make it 20-10 and end the game via the 10-run “mercy” rule.
“We had an inning or two there where we made a couple of boo-boos, but as far as hitting the ball, I can’t ask them to do [any better],” said Bishop. “They just stroked it all night long, and even some of the girls in the bottom of the lineup … I think we bunted two or three runners over to second base, and every one of them scored on the next hit. I told them, ‘Just don’t be discouraged if you’re asked to bunt. You’re gonna get to hit sooner or later, but if you’re up to bunt, lay it down, move the runner up and we’ll go from there.”
Between two bunts and 15 other hits including four home runs and seven doubles, Franklin’s offensive firepower was on full display against Tuscola. Rumans in particular terrorized Mountie pitchers, racking up two home runs, a double and two walks in five plate appearances.
The Panthers have now scored 59 runs and knocked 31 extra-base hits through five games, including four home runs from Rumans, six from Moffitt and one from Stiles. They attempted to improve to 6-0 at Pisgah after press time March 19.