Charles City trounces Franklin in Tri-Rivers

Seven first inning runs enabled Charles City’s host Lady Panthers to take control. And when Franklin’s Broncos closed the gap in the middle frames, the hosts reasserted dominance on the way to a 14-6 triumph.

Last Thursday’s contest handed Charles City its first Tri-Rivers District softball win of the season and raised the Lady Panthers’ overall record to 2-3. Charles City is 1-2 in district play.

“I’m incredibly proud of my girls,” winning coach Kathryn Costley said afterward. “We’ve allowed the other team to get ahead of us in the past, but we jumped on them today and got the game established.”

Pitcher Amanda Adkins helped her own cause with a two-run double to put the hosts in front to stay in the home half of the first. Adkins made it 3-0, scoring on a throwing error. Stefanie Burch’s double and singles from Hilary Wynn and Jasmine Binford highlighted the seven-run frame.

Heading into the bottom of the fifth, Franklin had reduced the margin to 7-4, but Binford drove in Burch (walk) and later scored on an error to bump the lead up to 9-4. The hosts then loaded the bases before Adkins looped a single to shallow right field to drive in Felicia Adkins for a 10-4 lead.

Two more runs scored on Binford’s single to right in the sixth. Binford then scored ahead of Raven Allen who circled the bases after stroking a line drive into the left-center field gap.

“We had good base running, good defense, and Amanda was outstanding in pitching today,” Costley said. “Our team was very relaxed, and they had a good time out there today.”

In the second inning, Charles City held a 4-0 lead over Franklin’s visiting Broncos, but the Panthers had yet to manage a hit. Accounting for the hosts’ good fortune were eight walks and a pair of errors.

Franklin starter Byron Parham walked the first five Panthers he faced, forcing in two runs in the bottom of the first inning. Charles City never relinquished its lead on the way to a 15-5 victory in a contest shortened to five innings by the district’s 10-run slaughter rule.

Last Thursday’s outcome evened Charles City’s Tri-Rivers District baseball record at 2-2 and overall mark at 5-5.

“It’s kind of tough to hit when you’re getting more balls than strikes,” Panther coach Irving Bradby said afterward. “I told our guys we’ll just have to be more aggressive in the box.”

Parham continued issuing free passes in the Panther second, walking Brian Wyatt and Robert Adkins. An error on Dominique Williams’ grounder to short scored Wyatt, and Adkins later scored on a wild pitch to make it a 4-0 affair.

Roger Williams stroked Charles City’s first hit, a RBI single lined into left field. He later scored on a fielder’s choice to up the hosts’ advantage to 6-0.

Franklin got a run back in the third, but the Panthers pushed across three more in the home half on Williams’ two-run double and Devin Holmes’ RBI single.

A three-run Bronco fourth pulled the visitors within five at 9-4, but Charles City answered with a four-run frame and closed out the game as Gregory Cotman scored on a wild pitch in the fifth.

Adkins got the win on the mound with relief help from Williams and Jeremy Abbott.

“This was the first game we’ve played this week, so I gave our pitchers a chance to get in a few innings apiece,” Bradby said.