Panthers Beat Oilmen in High Scoring Thriller

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Contact: Nick Kane

Highland High School

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Whiting, IN- “We are headed in the right direction right now.” Those were the words of head coach Deandre Gilmore after the Panthers impressive win. 

Beau Polickey got the start for the Panthers. Polickey went 4.2 innings and allowed four runs on nine hits. 

The Panthers got off to a comfortable lead through the first three innings. The Panthers got off to a strong start, taking an early lead with a 5-0 advantage in the third inning. J. Lamb was in fine form, driving in the first run with a single that brought D. Noble home. G. Vilecki followed suit with a single, adding another run to the Panthers' tally. A defensive error by the Oilmen allowed D. Noble to reach base and brought home yet another run. J. Cummings then stepped up with a crucial double, driving in B. Fisher and extending the lead to 4-0. J. Scumaci followed with a groundout that brought in another run, and J. Lamb's second single of the inning brought the score to 6-0 in favor of the Panthers.

The Oilmen fought back in the following innings, with B. Stressler hitting a homer in the fourth inning, and K. Denty's sacrifice fly in the same inning brought the score to 6-3. R. Seymour's single in the fourth inning closed the gap even further, making it 6-4.

The Panthers continued to show their offensive prowess in the fifth inning, as J. Lamb struck again with a double, driving in two more runs and extending the lead to 8-4.

Both teams continued to trade blows in the sixth inning. The Oilmen managed to add a run, while the Panthers capitalized on an error, allowing J. Outlaw to score. The score was now 9-5 in favor of the Panthers.

The game remained intense in the late innings, with the Oilmen refusing to back down. They scored four runs in the sixth inning, thanks to hits from L. Anderson, B. Phillips, and C. Schmitke, bringing the score to a tense 9-9 tie.

In the eighth inning, the Panthers managed to take a slim 10-9 lead with a sacrifice fly by J. Ballard, scoring J. Outlaw. The game headed into the ninth inning with the Panthers holding on to a one-run lead.

With the pressure on, J. Scumaci delivered for the Panthers, hitting a clutch single that brought home J. Cummings, pushing their lead to 11-9.

However, the Oilmen weren't done yet. In the bottom of the ninth inning, they managed to add one more run, closing the gap to 11-10.

Ultimately, the Panthers' offense and strong pitching, particularly from Adan Vega, who closed the game with an impressive 3.1 innings pitched and only allowing one hit on two runs, secured the thrilling 11-10 victory.

Josh Lamb was undoubtedly the standout performer, going 3-5 at the plate with an impressive four RBIs, playing a crucial role in leading the Indiana Panthers to their hard-fought win over the Northwest Indiana Oilmen.