Panthers Record Gutsy 10-5 Road Win in Welland

The Kitchener Panthers picked up their third consecutive win to improve to 11-7 on the season after a gutsy come from behind win over the first place Welland Jackfish on Thursday night. With the win, The Panthers have improved to 2-1 against the Jackfish and have moved into 3rd place in the league.

The offence has scored 174 runs through 18 games which is tied for 1st in the league and the team’s run differential of +53 stands alone as tops in the league.

After falling behind 5-0 through 2 innings, the Panthers Offence showed why they can never be counted out of a game as they scored 10 unanswered runs on route to a 10-5 victory.

Yamichel Perez took to the mound as the starter for the contest on short notice and delivered a valiant effort to earn the win. After a rocky start which saw the Jackfish score 5 runs, only 2 of which were earned, Perez was able to settle in and not allow a run over the next 5 innings. His final line on the day was 7 innings pitched, 2 earned runs and 8 strikeouts.

Setup man, Brady Schnarr, was called upon to once again throw a quiet 8th inning as he retired the side in order. He currently holds a 1.08 ERA through 8 appearances this season and is averaging a K per inning pitched.

In the 9th, the Panthers turned to reigning IBL pitcher of the week, Jordan Bahnuk, to lock things down. He delivered another strong performance, recording 2 strikeouts and allowing 0 runs. On the season, Bahnuk has recorded 13 strikeouts in 6.1 innings of work.

Offensively, The Panthers were led by Jett Jarvis who once again was a menace in the 9 hole as he went 2 for 3 with 3 RBI, 2 walks, 2 stolen bases and 2 runs scored.

Jarvis was one of 6 Panthers to record multi hit games as Liam Wilson, Raul Gonzalez, Elliot Curtis, Stephen Whalen and Marcel Lacasse all had a pair of hits each.

On a day that featured heavy highway traffic preventing the Panthers from arriving in time for batting practice, an early 5 run deficit and multiple ejections in the heated contest, the Panthers could have very well rolled over and accepted a common mid week IBL road loss. Instead, the Panthers showed plenty of character and strong depth up and down the roster to pull out the gutsy victory.

Looking Ahead

The Panthers will enter the Canada Day long weekend riding a three game win streak and plenty of momentum as they are scheduled to visit Brantford for an afternoon contest on Saturday before heading up to Barrie for a Sunday afternoon matchup with the second place Baycats.