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Pirates dominate Panthers on senior night
Mustangs take 2-run win over Panthers
KendrickJones
Kendrick Jones ducks out of the way of a pitch from South Effingham’s Matt Zettler. Jones went 1-for-3. - photo by Pat Donahue / Special to the Courier
The black and gold balloons lined the stands and posters were pinned up at the concessions stand as the Liberty County Panthers went into their last home game of the season Thursday night against the McIntosh County Academy Pirates.
In a reversal of fortune, however, the Pirates burst the seniors’ bubble, defeating the Panthers 4-12. Ironically it was the same score the Panthers had defeated the Pirates by when they met back in February.
Disappointed with the loss, head coach Steve Cotrell had his players quickly clear out the dugout with not much to say.
Friday night, the Panthers played better. But the South Effingham Mustangs (18-5 overall, 8-0 in the region) showed why they are number 1 in the 3S-AAA region. They squeezed out a 3-5 win over the number 2 Liberty County Panthers.
It appears that Cotrell’s worry that his players are their own worst enemies now is holding steadfast. Although it doesn’t alter their second place standing (10-10 overall, 6-4 in the region) having 6 losses in the last 7 games doesn’t build confidence in a team struggling to find their zone.
Friday Aaron Hoffer went 1 for 1 and Aaron Pringle went 1 for 2 with 2 RBIs.  
The Panthers added a game to their schedule and traveled to Hazelhurst Saturday afternoon to take on Jeff Davis in another non-regional game. They will host Thomson (6-3 in 3N-AAA) on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. as the sub-region northern team takes their shot against the Panthers for a place at state.
The Panthers will then hit the road for post season, region playoffs.
Seniors honored Thursday night were:
Henry Barrett
Ethan Pringle
Brad Harris
Skyler Hoffer
Kendrick Jones
Josh Rubio
Paul Davis
Byron Calahan
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