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PEKIN — It felt like deja-vu for the Pekin baseball team earlier this month.
The Panthers were exiting the dugout after a thrilling battle with conference rival Hillcrest Academy. For the second time in the last three meetings between the teams, the Panthers needed one more hit against the Ravens.
While many of the names remained the same, the second game of this season's Southeast Iowa Superconference north division doubleheader between the teams was much different than last July's Class 1A substate final in Fairfield. On that night, the Ravens needed just one run in the opening inning to secure a 1-0 win over the Panthers despite one hit allowed by Nolan Glick and Henry Adam.
Two weeks ago, the Ravens responded on the verge of suffering a second straight run-rule loss to the Panthers scoring 15 runs in the final three innings to rally for an 18-16 win, splitting the doubleheader while preventing Pekin from making a perfect run through conference play this season. As was the case in Fairfield, however, the Panthers had a chance to tie or even win the game with a late bases-loaded threat before Zandrik Allison flew out to right in the bottom of the seventh needing a hit to bring the potential tying and winning runs home.
"That's the thing. Hillcrest always comes ready," Pekin head baseball coach Aaron Deutsch said. "(Hillcrest Academy head baseball coach) Danny (Hershberger) coaches a good program over there and he had those guys ready to play. We just need to keep playing our game, continue doing what we need to do and keep trying to push runs across. We can't let up. The moment you let up, something bad is bound to happen."
The Panthers were reminded that lesson again exactly one week later by Mediapolis. Four walks, three hits and a key fielding error by Pekin aided a seventh-inning surge by the Bulldogs scoring seven runs in the final inning to secure an 11-10 win handing Pekin just its third loss of the season.
"We played out of our minds and got ahead, then we got complacent and we threw it away," Adam said. "Coming into this season, the two games with Hillcrest Academy were the two we wanted the most. We wanted to stomp them in both games. We did that in the first game. We were doing it in the second game.
"It's just hard when you think you've got a game and the other teams tacks on some runs. Suddenly, we start walking a couple of batters and they get a couple of hits. Things just start to add up."
The Panthers are hoping those are lessons that can be learned as Pekin heads into Class 1A postseason play hoping to earn a trip to state for the second time in program history. As they almost did last season, Glick and Adam are looking to lead the Panthers on a deep postseason run from the mound entering this week with a combined 6-1 record in 10 combined starts with two saves for Glick and a team-leading 0.24 ERA in a team-leading 29.2 innings pitched for Adam, giving Pekin a one-two pitching punch that has been nearly perfect this season.
"We expect that in every single game," Adam said. "We have a high level of expectation for ourselves and our team, but we know that anything can happen in baseball."
Monday's battle for the outright SEISC north title against Highland could be the first of four straight home games for Pekin with the Panthers positioned as the top seed in Class 1A, District 14. Should Pekin (14-3) take care of business at home against Lone Tree (1-17), the Panthers could get a chance at revenge against the Ravens in the district semifinals with Hillcrest Academy (9-9) facing Keota (8-7) in the first game of Friday's district doubleheader.
"The kids hate losing. You can see it in their eyes. You can see it in their faces," Deutsch said. "You just have to focus on the little things and focus on what you have to build on. We told the kids to reflect and think about where you can get better. That's the only way we're going to come out on top."
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The Panthers were exiting the dugout after a thrilling battle with conference rival Hillcrest Academy. For the second time in the last three meetings between the teams, the Panthers needed one more hit against the Ravens.
While many of the names remained the same, the second game of this season's Southeast Iowa Superconference north division doubleheader between the teams was much different than last July's Class 1A substate final in Fairfield. On that night, the Ravens needed just one run in the opening inning to secure a 1-0 win over the Panthers despite one hit allowed by Nolan Glick and Henry Adam.
Two weeks ago, the Ravens responded on the verge of suffering a second straight run-rule loss to the Panthers scoring 15 runs in the final three innings to rally for an 18-16 win, splitting the doubleheader while preventing Pekin from making a perfect run through conference play this season. As was the case in Fairfield, however, the Panthers had a chance to tie or even win the game with a late bases-loaded threat before Zandrik Allison flew out to right in the bottom of the seventh needing a hit to bring the potential tying and winning runs home.
"That's the thing. Hillcrest always comes ready," Pekin head baseball coach Aaron Deutsch said. "(Hillcrest Academy head baseball coach) Danny (Hershberger) coaches a good program over there and he had those guys ready to play. We just need to keep playing our game, continue doing what we need to do and keep trying to push runs across. We can't let up. The moment you let up, something bad is bound to happen."
The Panthers were reminded that lesson again exactly one week later by Mediapolis. Four walks, three hits and a key fielding error by Pekin aided a seventh-inning surge by the Bulldogs scoring seven runs in the final inning to secure an 11-10 win handing Pekin just its third loss of the season.
"We played out of our minds and got ahead, then we got complacent and we threw it away," Adam said. "Coming into this season, the two games with Hillcrest Academy were the two we wanted the most. We wanted to stomp them in both games. We did that in the first game. We were doing it in the second game.
"It's just hard when you think you've got a game and the other teams tacks on some runs. Suddenly, we start walking a couple of batters and they get a couple of hits. Things just start to add up."
The Panthers are hoping those are lessons that can be learned as Pekin heads into Class 1A postseason play hoping to earn a trip to state for the second time in program history. As they almost did last season, Glick and Adam are looking to lead the Panthers on a deep postseason run from the mound entering this week with a combined 6-1 record in 10 combined starts with two saves for Glick and a team-leading 0.24 ERA in a team-leading 29.2 innings pitched for Adam, giving Pekin a one-two pitching punch that has been nearly perfect this season.
"We expect that in every single game," Adam said. "We have a high level of expectation for ourselves and our team, but we know that anything can happen in baseball."
Monday's battle for the outright SEISC north title against Highland could be the first of four straight home games for Pekin with the Panthers positioned as the top seed in Class 1A, District 14. Should Pekin (14-3) take care of business at home against Lone Tree (1-17), the Panthers could get a chance at revenge against the Ravens in the district semifinals with Hillcrest Academy (9-9) facing Keota (8-7) in the first game of Friday's district doubleheader.
"The kids hate losing. You can see it in their eyes. You can see it in their faces," Deutsch said. "You just have to focus on the little things and focus on what you have to build on. We told the kids to reflect and think about where you can get better. That's the only way we're going to come out on top."
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