One step closer

SULPHUR -- Behind a masterful job on the mound from senior pitcher Karli Ortego, the No. 2 seed Pine Prairie Lady Panthers brought down the No. 7 seed Kaplan Lady Pirates 2-0 here Friday afternoon in the Class 3A quarterfinals.
Ortego threw lights out, striking out 14 and limiting Kaplan to only two hits the entire game, while giving the Pine Prairie offense a chance to put up enough runs to secure the win.
With that win, the Lady Panthers move on to the semi-finals at the All State/Sugar Bowl LHSAA State Softball Tournament to face the No. 11 seed Jena. The Lady Giants blew out Sterlington 10-0 on Friday to advance. Game time was scheduled for 2 p.m. yesterday.
A win over Jena would put Pine Prairie in the championship game which was scheduled for 7 p.m. last night.
“It was definitely a pitcher’s duel today,” stated Pine Prairie head coach Woody Harvey after the game. “Karli did a tremendous job on the mound for us. She kept them off balance all game long.”
“We were able to get the two timely hits to put the runs on the board,” he continued. “Tomorrow is another day. We are just going to go back and rest and come back with the same mind set that got us to this point and make adjustments when needed.”
After the first three innings of play, it did not look as if either team would be able to put points on the board. Both Ortego and Kaplan starting pitcher Carina Chargois were mowing down opposing batters at a torrid pace.
Ortego struck out the first two Lady Pirate batters in the top of the first inning and then got catcher Jayden Baudoin to fly out to left field.
Chargois returned the favor in the bottom of the first inning. After allowing a lead off base hit to Jacie McFarlain, Chargois struck out three of the next four Pine Prairie batters to end the inning.
Both hurlers struck out the side in the second inning, adding to their strike out totals.
After getting the first two batters out in the top of the third on strike outs, Ortego put her first runner on the bag, hitting the No. 9 hitter in the Kaplan line-up, Kinley Duhon. However, Ortego induced Merly Guidry to hit a ground ball right back at her for the third out.
McFarlain drew a one out walk in the bottom half of the inning, but the Lady Panthers were not able to capitalize on the opportunity, as Chargois struck out the next two Pine Prairie batters.
Routine ground balls were in order for the top of the fourth, as Ortego retired all three Kaplan batters on ground outs.
Even though the Lady Panthers had not really gotten to Chargois the entire game, the Lady Pirate pitcher showed signs of running out of gas in the bottom of the fourth. For the first time in the game, Chargois did not record a strike out and Pine Prairie began to put the ball in play.
With Ortego cruising along and getting Kaplan up and down in order in the top of the fifth, it was now time for the patience of the Lady Panther offense to pay off.
Shortstop Allie Fontenot led off with a sharply hit double into the left field gap. Kaitlin Robinson followed with a picture perfect sacrifice bunt, moving Fontenot over to third base.
Now, with a runner in scoring position, Pine Prairie needed a big hit to finally break through and put some points on the board and boy did they get that big hit. On a 1-2 count, McFarlain belted an inside fast ball over the left field wall for a two-run home run, giving all the cushion needed for Ortego and the Lady Panther defense.
“She (Chargois) really had our girls guessing up until that point,” said Harvey. “We were starting to doubt ourselves at the plate, but I had a lot of confidence in our hitters. I keep telling them to bide your time and keep making adjustments. And, it finally paid off.”
With that lead, the Pine Prairie defense behind the brilliant performance of Ortego on the mound finished the game off. Kaplan did threaten in the top of the sixth with back-to-back two out singles, but could not push any runs across when it counted.
McFarlain led the way at the plate, going 2-for-2 with two RBI’s and a run scored. Fontenot was 1-for-2 with a double and a run scored and Tori Johnson was 1-for-3.