Latta outlasts No. 3 Oktaha in wild regional battle

Apr. 25—OKTAHA — It all came together for the eighth-ranked Latta High School softball team Tuesday at the Class 4A Regional Tournament in Oktaha.

The Lady Panthers opened the tournament with a 9-3 first-round victory over No. 9 Henryetta and then powered past No. 3 Oktaha 27-23 in a wild regional championship contest.

Latta improved to 22-12 on the year and punched its ticket to next week's Class 4A State Tournament, scheduled to begin Tuesday at Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City.

"It was definitely an exciting day. I can't say enough about the energy we had all day from our team and all of our fans who made the two-hour trip to Oktaha," Latta head coach Jeremy Bates told The Ada News. "It truly was a huge factor in our success."

The back-and-forth championship contest against the defending state champion Lady Tigers was one for the ages. It featured an incredible 19 combined home runs — 10 by Latta and nine by Oktaha. The teams also combined for 48 total hits — the Lady Panthers piled up 27 and the hosts finished with 21.

"Game 2 was your typical back-and-forth battle between two of the top teams in the state. All those home runs made for an emotional roller coaster of a ride for everyone," Bates admitted. "Going 2-0 on the road and defeating the defending state champion shows we are a team on a mission and ready to make a run for that championship trophy next Tuesday at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium."

Latta 27, Oktaha 23

The game included five lead changes.

Latta surged ahead for good with an eight-run outburst in the bottom of the sixth inning that put the Lady Panthers ahead 27-22.

The Lady Tigers got a one-out, solo home run from Hadley Branan in the top of the seventh before Latta closed the door on the title win.

Jaycie Prine had a monster day for Latta at the plate. She crushed four home runs — a solo shot in the bottom of the second, a two-run homer in the bottom of the third, a three-run blast in the bottom of the fourth and another three-run bomb in the bottom of the sixth. Prine finished 5-of-6 with nine RBIs and four runs scored.

Six different Latta players cracked home runs.

Talise Parnell went 4-for-5 with two home runs, two RBIs and four runs scored. Savannah Senkel finished 4-for-5 with a home run, four RBIs and three runs scored. Audrey Forshay ended up 3-for-5 with a home run, two RBIs and three runs scored and Laraby Jennings went 2-for-5 with a home run and three RBIs.

Kate Williams finished 2-for-3 with two walks, two RBIs and three runs scored for Latta and pinch-hitter Lilli Hudson went 2-for-3 with a walk, an RBI and three runs scored for the locals. Rylee Jones finished 2-for-4 with two walks, a home run, three RBIs and three runs scored and Kymber Davis added two hits and walked twice for the Lady Panthers.

Hannah Foct and Brynna Rodden had three home runs apiece for the high-octane Oktaha club. Rodden finished 3-for-4 with a walk, five RBIs and four runs scored and Rodden went 2-for-4 with nine RBIs, a walk and three runs scored.

Kirsten Berry finished 3-for-5 with a home run, three RBIs and two runs scored for the hosts and Peyton Bryan went 3-for-5 with three runs scored. Aubree Davis also belted a home run and finished 2-for-4 with two RBIs and two runs scored for Oktaha.

Latta 9, Henryetta 3

Talise Parnell and Kymber Davis both hit two home runs apiece to help Latta drop Henryetta in the first round.

The Lady Panthers scored four runs in the top of the first inning and three runs in the second to forge an early 7-0 advantage.

"We jumped out early on Henryetta with Jaycie Prine, Talise Parnell and Kymber Davis combining for eight of our 14 hits. Our defense was solid and Taryn Cotanny did a great job keeping their big bats off balance the whole game from the circle."

Parnell finished 2-for-4 with four RBIs and two runs scored and Davis went 3-for-4 with three RBIs and two runs scored.

Jaycie Prine went 3-for-4 with two doubles and three runs scored for Latta and Kate Williams ended up 2-for-4 in a LHS 14-hit offense.

Shelby Kilhoffer finished 1-for-3 with a double and two RBIs. The Lady Knights finished with six hits by six different players.