Panthers’ softball team learning on the fly with each game

Published 3:52 pm Friday, April 4, 2025

By Jason O. Boyd

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YEATESVILLE, N.C. — Northside’s softball team has made several different changes since advancing to the Class 1A state championship last season.

Replacing the bulk of the starting lineup, which was filled with seniors, made the task of repeating last year’s success difficult, at best. Since the start of the season, a number of wholesale changes have also been made, including the loss of senior first baseman Samantha Braddy to shoulder surgery before she moves on to play college ball at Montreat.

A youth movement is underway, and the growing pains can be seen right before your eyes. Since a 13-2 loss to Bear Grass Charter on March 12, Northside has scored five or more runs in all eight games following. While three of those games have been losses — including two to Coastal Plains Conference leader Pamlico County — the Panthers are scratching and clawing their way through the rest of the contests. That includes a 17-8 victory over East Carteret on Tuesday that put the team at 7-6 overall, 3-2 in the CPC going into Friday’s rematch at East Carteret.

“Now it’s just like we’re a family,” said catcher Megan Hopkins, one of only two seniors now on the current roster. “Like if one girl is crying in the dugout or beating herself up, we’re right there at them.

“I just think where we came together more, we’re not so far apart that we’re more together.”

One thing that hasn’t stopped is the team’s offense. Northside has scored 15 or more runs in four of their last wins, two against Southside and Tuesday’s win. That includes a 22-7 win at Class 4A Richmond County a day before a 9-8 loss to the Raiders.

Freshman Allie Davis is coming along with her pitching. She struck out four and walked three while giving up six hits to East Carteret. The defense made four errors that kept the Mariners in it, along with some wild pitches and passed balls, especially when they scored two runs in the top of the first and four more in the top of the fifth.

“Our pitching’s been a little erratic, but Allie Davis … I thought she did a great job,” Northside coach Keith Boyd said. “She walked a couple there in the second or third inning, I think. But other than that, she pitched well enough to win, and she had pretty good defense behind us.

“We’re still having too many errors and that’s what’s getting us right now. I mean, it looks like the pitching stuff’s gonna maybe work itself out, and we’re gonna throw strikes and if we continue to score runs. But we just gotta find a way to not have four or five errors a night.”

Northside’s bats keep coming back time and time again. The Panthers pushed across six runs in the first, four in the fourth and five in the fifth. They just missed getting the 10-run rule in the final three innings.

EllaKate Hanna, a sophomore, had three hits, four RBIs and three runs to lead Northside’s offense. Freshman Kinsey White had two hits, two runs and a RBI, and junior Riley Hudson had two hits, two runs, a RBI and two doubles.

“We start seven freshmen and sophomores,” Boyd said. There’s gonna be growing pains. We understand that.”

“Like we’re not trying to hit a bomb every single time but get hits where we can,” said Hopkins, who was 2-for-5 with a double, run and RBI. “I think we’re just trying to make simple contact and get to first base and keep it going.

“I think the most important thing we progressed in is being there for each other. Learning the chemistry with new players is way different than playing with players you’ve already been with since you were like 10.”

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