Lady Panthers’ softball finishes second in Salem Tournament

The Mountain Grove Lady Panthers’ softball team had a busy week of six games that ended in them winning second place in the Salem Tournament.
They fell to a good Ava team in the finals, 6-2, after the Lady Bears scored five runs in the third inning. Mountain Grove’s defense made seven errors in the loss.
Both Hannah Dowden and Leah Broome scored their team’s lone runs.
Dowden tossed six innings on the mound and gave up one earned run on eight hits with four strikeouts.
Against host Salem, the Lady Panthers held on late for a 6-5 win in spite of their six defensive errors.
Gabby Miller had three hits, one RBI and scored twice; both Payton O’Connor and Broome had one RBI; while Chloe Slagle scored twice.
Dowden allowed no earned runs in six innings and gave up seven hits with four strikeouts and two walks.
Mountain Grove also crushed Potosi, 11-0, as Lyla Golden hit a three-run home run in the win.
She finished with three hits, three RBIs and three runs scored.
Aubrey Owens had one RBI and scored twice; Briley Curtiss, Miller and Dowden had one RBI and one run scored; and O’Connor scored twice.
Dowden tossed six shutout innings and gave up three hits with two strikeouts.
Aubrie Gerla, Miller and Dowden each were All-Tournament selections.
Earlier in the week, Gerla hit a two-RBI single to walk-off her team as a winner, a 7-6 victory over Wright County foe Hartville.
Gerla had two RBIs and one run scored; Broome added two RBIs; Curtiss had one RBI and scored twice; Dowden had one RBI and scored one run; and Golden scored twice.
Dowden gave up one earned run on 10 hits with eight strikeouts in seven innings on the mound.
Hartville’s offense was led by Saige Petty and Kensie Dugger having one RBI and one run scored; while Gensen Culver and Peyton Dudley had one RBI.
Petty tossed six and a third innings and gave up three earned runs on nine hits with three strikeouts and five walks.
One day earlier, the Lady Panthers picked up a South Central Association (SCA) Conference win over Willow Springs, 8-6, as they scored two runs in their final at-bat.
O’Connor had two RBIs and one run scored; Owens and Slagle had one RBI and one run scored; while Miller tallied three hits and scored twice.
Dowden tossed seven innings and gave up one earned run on six hits with five strikeouts and one walk. Mountain Grove’s defense had 10 errors in the win.
The Lady Panthers did fall to Salem in an SCA match-up, 13-1. Owens scored the lone run.
Dowden tossed four innings and gave up three earned runs on eight hits with four strikeouts and one walk. O’Connor tossed one inning and gave up four earned runs on two hits with two strikeouts and three walks.
Mountain Grove is now 13-9 on the season.