BASEBALL: Mistakes hold back Panthers in loss to Wildcats
Base running mistakes and some errors in the field kept Pinckneyville from having a shot at snapping their losing streak on Tuesday, as Anna-Jonesboro held off the Panthers 10-5 in SIRR Mississippi Division baseball to extend PCHS's skid to four games.
The Panthers had at least one base runner in every inning and racked up ten hits, but shot themselves in the foot on more than one occasion to cut their own rallies short.
"We've been in so many games where we've had a chance to win and there just seems to be something that comes up and gets in our way," said PCHS head baseball coach Gabe Shepard. "One game we don't hit, one game we don't field, one game we don't run the bases, one game we don't pitch well. It's a never-ending thing, we just can't put everything together. There were a couple big plays on the bases that really hurt us today. Maybe it's one of those things where we'll peak at the end of the year, that's kind of what I keep hoping for."
An error led to two unearned runs against Panther starter Trent Hicks in the top of the first inning, but the right-hander got them back in the bottom of the inning when he doubled home Tyler Rulevish and Nolan Luke to tie the game at 2-2.
The Wildcats went back on top in the top of the third after three hits and another PCHS error, and tacked on two more in the fourth on three singles and a pair of walks to lead 6-2.
It was 7-2 A-J when the Panthers got back in it with a three-spot in the bottom of the fifth when Hicks and Clayton Houghland both doubled, but a base running mistake in the sixth snuffed out a potential game-changing rally, and PCHS couldn't add to their total from then on.
Hicks' numbers were not indicative of how well he actually threw the ball, as he allowed four earned runs on ten hits and three walks with five strikeouts. Hayden Carter finished off the game with two innings of work and gave up three earned runs on three hits and a walk with one K.
"Trent Hicks pitched well enough to win, there's no doubt he should have gotten a win," Shepard said. :He was pounding the strike zone, they were hitting balls at people, we just weren't making plays behind him."
The Panthers (7-11, 2-4) have some work to do in the conference race after losses this week to A-J and Du Quoin. They'll get a chance to get themselves back in the conversation this Thursday at Nashville.