MAXWELL, CA (MPG) – After taking the first game of its pivotal series against Mid-Valley League rival Hamilton City on May 6, the Panthers shutout Willows in a non-conference game the following day, but upon returning home, dropped the regular season finale to the Braves on May 9.
On the road in its first game last week, Maxwell got a gem on the mound from pitcher Massey Baker, as the senior fanned 11 and scattered just four hits in a complete game performance where the Panthers prevailed 5-1.
Maxwell made the Braves pay for some sloppy play in the field as it saw Colt Montgomery finish 2 for 4 with a pair of RBI and two runs scored, Brody Jones picked up a pair of knocks and Vincent Orozco double.
Heading north to face Willows, a team with just three wins on the season, the Panthers cruised to a 6-0 shutout victory behind a complete game from Wyatt Roach who struck out 11, yielded just three hits and did not issue a walk.
Baker went 2 for 3 with a double, Yahir Alcaraz chipped in with a two-bagger as well, while Jones, Alex Krug and Ian Lepe each finished with a hit.
However, the momentum of the two wins didn’t carry over to the second contest with Hamilton as Maxwell fell 3-7 to the Braves last Friday.
It was a gut-wrenching loss in that the Panthers surrendered four runs in the top of the seventh and although they got two of them back in the home half of the frame, could draw no closer.
This time around, Maxwell managed just four hits against Hamilton’s freshman pitcher Daniel Leal, but also spotted the Braves 11 baserunners with free passes.
Lucas Bowen doubled with Baker, Jones and Levi Velasquez accounting for the Panthers’ other three hits.
With the loss, the Panthers (18-6, 7-3) finished the regular season tied for second in the MVL with Hamilton City, a game behind Biggs.
This week Maxwell, the Northern Section Division VI No. 1 ranked team, received its playoff seeding, which was announced after the Pioneer Review’s print deadline.