Whatever it is the members

of the Starr's Mill varsity baseball team

are doing to keep themselves extremely hot at the plate, coaches and fans are

hoping that they keep it up. The Panthers continued hitting the cover off the

ball Wednesday night as they easily defeated Jonesboro 11-1 and 13-0 in the

second round of the AAAAA state baseball playoffs.

Game one saw Nick Terry take

the mound for Starr's Mill and go the distance.

It was a shortened distance because of the mercy rule. Starr's Mill took

a 10-run lead in the bottom of the fifth inning which ended the game. The Panthers

got four runs in the first inning as Andy Kragor and Carter Scurry each drove

in one run and Kory Ison drove in two with a long single. Andy Meyers added

another run with an RBI double and then scored on an error.

Jonesboro got on the board

in the third inning, but Starr's Mill got

the run back when Andrew Robinson hit an RBI double. Danny Hartpence and Kragor

each drove in runs in the fourth inning. In the fifth inning, Joey Lewis took

a walk, which walked in the 10th run, and Kragor hit a single to drive in the

final run. Kragor finished the day with three RBIs and Terry pitched a complete

game two-hitter with three walks and one strikeout.

In game two, Starr's Mill led off the game. Though they got no runs in

the first inning, they got four in the second, three of which came with two

outs. Meyers drove in two runs, while Lewis and Robinson each added one. The

Panthers got three more runs in the third with Robinson hitting another RBI

single and Kyle McCreary driving in one with a sacrifice fly. Tamed in the

fourth, Starr's Mill got another run off an error in the fifth before

going down quietly in the sixth. The seventh inning featured a five run explosion,

including a two run home run from McCreary, an RBI single from Daniel Gwaltney,

who also pitched a scoreless seventh inning, and RBIs from Scurry and Philip

Shell. Andrew Robinson started the game for the Panthers and pitched six scoreless

innings, giving up three hits and earning three strikeouts.

Since the state playoffs began,

Starr's Mil has outscored their opponents,

41-6. They have pitched two shutouts and both Terry and Robinson have earned

two wins a piece. The win over Jonesboro was also impressive because the Cardinals

made the second round of the playoffs by upsetting Effingham County, the previously

top ranked team in the state.

Now, Starr's Mill waits to see who they will face in the state quarterfinals

on Tuesday. If Parkview wins the deciding third match against Wheeler, Starr's

Mill travels to the Big Orange Jungle next Tuesday, but if Wheeler wins, Starr's

Mill likely gets another series at home. Parkview and Wheeler met for the rubber

match after the paper went to press on Thursday.

Visit www.thecitizennews.com for updates.