After strong performances in their first two tournaments of the season, the Blanco Panthers traveled south to Dilley for the Wolves’ annual baseball tournament. Although the Panthers opened the tournament with a convincing win over Jourdanton, Blanco struggled in their next three games to finish 4th over all.

In their first game, the Panthers dominated the Jourdanton Indians winning 14 to 4 behind a strong pitching performance from senior Blake West, who improved to 2 and 1 on the year. At the plate, Corey Dowlearn provided the offensive spark for the Panthers, going 3 for 3 with 2 runs and 4 RBI’s. As a team, Blanco tallied 14 hits while playing outstanding defense, committing no errors.

The Panthers’ second game would see them struggle early against the Aggies from Poteet before tying the game with just minutes to play under the time limit. However, the momentum gained in tying the game disappeared in the game’s final inning, as Poteet scratched across one run to win 8 to 7. Junior Clint Dreyer suffered his first loss of the season to fall to 3 and 1. Offensively, freshman Sam Isenberg went 1 for 2 with a run, double, and an RBI as Blanco was out hit 10 to 8 while committing 3 errors in the loss.

Blanco’s next game was even worse defensively for the Panthers, as 9 errors would lead to 10 unearned runs and another loss at the hands of Carrizo Springs. The 10 to 8 defeat saw the Panthers out hit their opponent 8 to 5, while leading at three different times in the game. Kaleb Specht was credited with his first loss of the year on the mound in relief, while Tyler Tredaway provided much of the Panthers’ offense with a 2 for 3 performance, scoring 3 runs and adding a stolen base.

Finally, the tournament came to an end for the Panthers with another defeat, this time to the Lytle Pirates. Blanco showed improvement with a strong start behind solid pitching from Sam Isenberg. However, Lytle pulled ahead late giving the Panthers their 5th loss of the year. Tredaway was tagged for the loss in relief of Isenberg on the mound. At the plate, John Pepper went 1 for 2 with 3 RBI’s, while Blanco’s defense showed improvement committing only one error.

Although Blanco finished 4th at the tournament, the Panthers still managed to get three all-tournament selections with Tyler Tredaway getting the “Hustle Award” and John Pepper and Clint Dreyer also being named to the all-tournament team. For Tredaway and Pepper, this was their 3rd all-tournament selection for the year, while Dreyer has been named for the past two tournaments.

For the year, Blanco is 9 and 5 after completing the tournament stretch of their season.

The Panthers returned home over spring break to host four games against the Marion Bulldogs on Monday, March 15. They will face the Pawhuska Huskies from Oklahoma on Thursday, March 18 at 6:00 p.m. and then a double header on Saturday against the San Antonio Wolverines beginning at 11:00 a.m.