GREENVILLE, Ill. - The baseball team dropped a pair of games to Westminster on Friday night at Robert E. Smith Field. The Panthers rallied in game one before falling 10-7, and the team held an eighth inning lead before allowing game two to slip out of their grasp 2-1. Between games, the Panthers honored seniors Austin Lawrence, Parker Lutz, Mark Islas, and Parker Panich for their years of commitment to the Panther baseball program.
In game one, Westminster built a 3-0 lead by the second inning with a run in the top of the first and two in the top of the second.
After a three-run sixth, the Blue Jays were up 6-0.
In the bottom of the seventh, the Panthers scored a run when Tanner Gerdes reached on an error, stole second, and went to third on a throwing error by the catcher. With Gerdes on third and nobody out, Parker Panich hit into a groundout to first base that allowed Gerdes to cross home plate safely.
Westminster and Greenville each scored twice in the eighth inning.
In GU's half of the eighth, they received their first hit of the game when Aaron Klar singled to the shortstop and Landon Mokris later drilled a two-run homer.
The Blue Jays made the score 10-3, but the Panthers would not surrender and plated four in the bottom of the ninth.
In GU's four-run ninth, Drew Frey and Mokris each had two run doubles.
Mokris finished the game 2-for-3 with four RBI and a run scored.
Jaxen Gibson pitched five and one-third innings, allowing five runs, three earned, on nine hits. He struck out three and walked two.
Hunter Cullum relieved Gibson and went one and two-thirds innings, only permitted an unearned run.
Caleb Babb ended the game on the mound for GU with two innings. Babb gave up four runs on six hits and two walks.
In game two, the Panthers received a stellar outing from pitcher Lucas Teel who only gave up two hits and two walks in five innings with nine strikeouts.
Braden Maltbie performed admirably in relief, entering with two runners on in the sixth inning and eventually putting himself in a situation with the bases loaded and nobody out. He enticed a pop out and two strikeouts to and the inning.
Craig Oertel allowed two runs on two hits as he was tagged with the loss after the Blue Jays two run eighth.
Chad Plath pitched a scoreless inning with two walks and a strikeout.
Mokris again had multiple hits with a 3-for-4 performance.
Gerdes drove in Dustin Sutton in the sixth for the Panthers only run.
The Panthers (8-27, 8-18 SLIAC) conclude their regular season with a doubleheader against Westminster on Saturday at 3 p.m.
