A Grizzly baseball player gets ready to swing away. The Panthers crept by the Grizzlies 8-7.

Panthers scrape past Grizzlies
Beverly Congdon | 4/16/08 | Baseball

Cross-town rivals Porterville High and Granite Hills High battled out their first game against each other, and kept the audience on the edge on their seats till the last pitch was thrown last Friday, April 11. 

The Porterville high school Panthers opened up the first inning strong, but their grasp on the score slipped as the game came to a close end.  The Grizzlies came back after a six run deficit in the second inning, barely missing a victory. 

The final score was 8-7 in favor of the Panthers.  The Grizzlies new record in league is now 1-5. 

With the Panthers first at bats, the Grizzlies' morale was tested. With two runners on base and no outs, the Panthers' starting pitcher Thomas Martin blasted a shot over the fence for a three runs.

The Grizzlies didn't allow the Panthers to push any farther ahead.  

Starting pitcher Jason Tredway struck out the next batter; catcher Steven Dummar and third basemen Tomas Valdez each earned themselves put-outs to secure the next two outs, to keep the score at 3-0.  

The Grizzlies' first batter, second basemen AJ Castillo, earned a single by hitting the ball to the right field.   He proceeded to steal second and then third with the help of a sacrifice bunt by Alex Lamb.  Dummar and Ernie Rodriguez were walked, loading the bases with Grizzlies. 

However the Grizzlies could not take advantage of the loaded bases to put them on the scoreboard.  

Top of the second the Panthers once again scored three runs to put the Grizzlies six runs behind.  At the bottom of the second, the Grizzlies again could not put any runs on the scoreboard. 

The game was starting to look like an easy win for the Panthers. 

The Grizzlies’ strong performance in the third inning started to diminish the Panthers' hope for a win.  Top of the third, Porterville went three up, three down. Bottom of the third, Tyler McFadden was walked and thereafter moved to second base due to a single by Dummar.  Rodriguez slammed a triple to the left field to earn two RBI's.  This caused the Panthers to change their pitcher to Alex Shew.

Valdez hit a sacrifice fly to score Rodriguez. 

The Grizzlies had cut down their deficit by three—final score of the third inning 6-3, Panthers. 

Top of the forth inning the Grizzlies shut out the Panthers once again.  Only one Panther got on base, and no runs were added to their score.  At the bottom of the forth the Grizzlies began to catch up to the Panthers.  With two runners on base, Dummar hit a single and brought the two runners home.  After his single, Dummar attempted to steal second base but was called out.

The Grizzlies were now trailing the Panthers 6-5. 

The top of the fifth, the Panthers hit three doubles, which earned them two more runs, making eight runs in total.  The Grizzlies did not allow any more damage.  Bottom of the fifth Rodriguez was walked, and preceded to steal second and third base.  Valdez hit a double to bring Rodriguez home.  Valdez then proceeded to steal third, and on an error made it across home plate safely.  The Grizzlies were still behind by one run; the final score of the fifth inning was 8-7. 
Top of the sixth the Panthers failed to gain a bigger lead. The Grizzlies sent all three batters back to the dugout.  Bottom of the sixth Lamb slammed one right before the left field fence to get a double. 

The Grizzly fans got their hopes up when Dummar hit what appeared to be a two run home run, but was foul.  The score remained 7-8. 

The top of the seventh inning the Grizzlies did not allow any Panthers on base. 

The bottom of the seventh was their last chance to redeem their selves. 

With two outs and the pressure on, Kyle Forbes hit a double on his very first pitch. However, no Grizzlies were able to bring him home to make it to overtime.  The Panthers scraped past the Grizzlies with a 7-8 victory. 

Valdez, Rodriguez and Dummar each secured two RBI’s.