Panthers fall in 2nd round

SHERIDAN – Up 4-0 after four innings in the second round of the 6A State Tournament in Sheridan, the Benton Panthers would fall 8-4 to the Greenwood Bulldogs to end their season.
Benton senior Colten Nix hit a 3-run home run to give the Panthers (22-6) a 3-0 lead after three innings, and senior Kyler Nitschke hit an RBI double to put Benton up 4-0 after four, but walks and errors came back to bite the Panthers and end their season prematurely.
“We still had a chance to clean up the walks,” Benton Coach Mark Balisterri said. “We had the defense set up where we wanted it. We got the ball we wanted; we just didn’t make the plays. Bottom line is you have to play defense to win championships and we didn’t make the plays we needed to make.”