Siloam Springs softball off to tough start
Siloam Springs was one run away from being mercy-ruled for the third straight softball game to start the 2017 season Friday, when the Lady Panthers’ bats came alive. The Lady Panthers scored five runs in the bottom of the seventh inning and had the tying run at the plate, but ultimately it wasn’t enough to rally past Gentry, which held on for a 13-10 victory at La-Z-Boy Softball Park. Siloam Springs (0-3) fell behind 7-2 early and it was 13-4 heading into the sixth inning. The Lady Panthers got one run back in the sixth and took advantage of three Gentry errors to stage its seventh-inning rally. Gentry pitcher Alyssa Kelton, who had pitched three games earlier in the week and started Friday’s game, was able to get a strikeout and a pop fly to end the game. Siloam Springs, which lost its opener 15-0 in three innings at Rogers Heritage on Tuesday and was beat 12-1 at home by Fayetteville on Thursday, was much more competitive Friday against Gentry. “Part of our thing is we’ve just got a lot of young kids filling spots, and they’re starting to get used to it,” said Siloam Springs head coach Scott Wright. “Every game they’ve gotten a little bit better. We know as each game goes on that they’re going to get more confident and they’re going to start playing. They’re just going to get better and better and better. We’ve improved every single game, and I suspect that will continue to happen.” Kelton had an RBI double for Gentry (3-1) in the top of the first and April Harris, Alexis Droddy and Makensi Sweeten all had RBI walks in the second inning off Siloam Springs starter Rachel Mann, while Brooke Boston had a sacrifice fly to score another run. Mann (0-1), who got the start, was replaced in the second by Siloam Springs’ top pitcher, Crissa Spry. Siloam Springs got a pair of runs back in the second. Miranda Guntharp tripled and scored on Danielle Boyster’s groundout, and Kenlie Noel drove in another run with an RBI double. Down 8-2, the Lady Panthers scored two more times to make it 8-4, but Gentry pushed ahead 13-4 in the fifth. Boston and Kelton had RBIs, while Droddy had a two-run double. Spry, Noel, Guntharp and Smith each had two hits for the Lady Panthers. Hannah Evans had three RBIs, including a two-run double in the seventh to cut the lead to 13-10.