Clay County High School baseball hit the diamond this week hammer down.

There was no dumpster diving for hits in any of the games, win or lose. Nicholas was first up to get the bitter taste of losing.  The Panthers scattered nine hits and scored four runs in the game.  Corey Elswick had the hot bat hitting 4 for 4 from the box.  The kick in the pants was the Panthers got on the boards first with two runs in the first inning, taking Nicholas off their game. Before the cob webs were cleared, the Panthers scored two more runs and the Grizzlies couldn’t recover.  It was a close game.  Matt Boggs was on the hill for the Panthers and did an excellent job of shutting the Grizzlies down.  Final score was Panthers 4, Grizzlies 3.

For the next two games, the Panthers kept close but couldn’t pull off a win.  The Panthers lost to the Raiders of Roane 1-2 and then again to Poca with a final score of 3-9.  Then, Sherman came to town and with the Panthers trying to get the loser taste out of their mouths, this game would be sweet revenge.  The last time they met it was all Sherman – the Panthers went down in flames as Sherman picked them apart.

It was time to unwrap the Christmas presents and open the game of baseball, which is exactly what the Panthers did.  They brought out some fresh bats and started swinging for the fences.  It was a Logan Vance and Cory Elswick swingathon as each of them accepted pitching donations.  Logan Vance had the big stick hitting 4 for 4 and scored 3 runs.  Caleb Wynn also scored twice.  The Panthers had six on the board before Sherman knew what hit them.  The game settled down a little after the second inning with Sherman getting a second wind.  The Panthers scored two more runs in the game before the bats went silent for the night.  The final score was Panthers 8, Sherman 6.  It was a Wynn, Hosey, Krajeski combination on the mound to take down the mighty Sherman.

Simply put, the Panthers played good ball with few mistakes and came out with some big wins this week and lost by narrow margins.  The Panthers will be playing each evening this week, depending on the weather, so check your schedules.  Go Panthers!