The Frankfort High Lady Panthers have taken a lot of lumps this softball season, with coach Angie Hutcherson fielding one of the youngest varsity teams you’ll find anywhere.
So it was extra nice for Frankfort to break a long losing skid with a 15-5 victory over the Burgin Bulldogs Wednesday night at Capitol View Park.
The Lady Panthers cranked out 12 hits, took advantage of several Burgin errors, and rode the five-hit pitching of Renee Dunn to the victory – their fourth win of the season.
“It was good to have one like this,” Hutcherson said. “It’s been a long time in coming. We needed this one tonight.”
This wasn’t an easy game to get motivated for considering that the Bulldogs are even younger than the Lady Panthers. Plus, Frankfort beat Burgin “something like 28-3” earlier this season, Hutcherson noted.
“It was kind of hard,” Hutcherson said of the emotional side of things for her bunch. “It was a little hard to get up for this game because of the way we beat them earlier.
“But they are much improved,” she added of the Bulldogs. “Their A.D. (athletics director) is coaching them now, and he’s got like 19 middle schoolers, so they’re up and coming. They’ve really improved.”
Hutcherson said she tried to warn her team they could lose this game, but her motivational task was complicated when the Lady Panthers scored nine runs in the first inning.
Burgin hung in there, thanks in large part to relief pitcher Kae-Lynn Bradshaw, who came in to pitch during the first inning.
Bradshaw and the Bulldogs limited FHS to just one run in the second, one in the third and four in the fourth.
Burgin scored a run in the third and closed with four in the fifth inning.
The game ended after five due to the mercy rule.
Dunn pitched a consistently good game for Frankfort. She had a two-hitter going through four innings and then gave up three hits in Burgin’s four-run fifth.
Dunn struck out three and walked four.
“I thought she did pretty well,” Hutcherson said of Dunn. “She stayed focused pretty good.”
The Lady Panthers scored their nine first-inning runs thanks to four hits, three walks and three Burgin errors.
Shelby Aldridge led a balanced FHS offense with a triple and two singles. Macy Hutcherson had two singles – both in the first inning. Sheree Brown hit a double, and BriAnna Burbridge, Peyton Monroe, Aubrey Penn and Hannah Davis hit a single apiece.
“We were a little sluggish, but I played people out of position, mixed it up, tried to get them some experience,’’ Angie Hutcherson said.
The Lady Panthers will celebrate senior night tonight before their game with Lexington Christian. The senior night ceremony will start at 5:30 and game time is around 5:45.
FHS is honoring seniors Sheree Brown, Aubrey Penn and Shelby Aldridge.
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