By MICKEL PONTHIEUX / Sport Reporter

PELHAM – The Pelham Panthers advanced to the second round of the Class 6A playoffs after a doubleheader sweep of the Prattville Lions April 19 at Pelham High School.

The Pelham pitching staff held Prattville scoreless in 13 of the 14 innings played in the series while allowing just seven hits.

The Panthers (20-10) took the first game 5-0 led by an outstanding performance by Thomas Lowery on the mound. Lowery pitched a complete game and allowed one hit with four strikeouts and two walks.

Pelham took an early lead when Hunter Stovall doubled to left-center to bring home Fletcher Johnson for a 1-0 lead after one inning of play.

The Panthers added a run in the third, and then took advantage of back-to-back hits by Aaron Anderson and Austin Moore to lead off the fourth inning. With one out, Kolby Booth hit a pinch-hit single to left to bring home two runs for a 4-0 Pelham at the end of four innings of play.

Pelham again put together back-to-back hits in the fifth when Chase Brashier and Anderson each doubled to add a run for a 5-0 lead.

Anderson finished the game 2-for-3 with two doubles and a RBI. Stovall went 2-for-3 with a double and a RBI and Brashier added a 2-for-3 effort with a double.

Pelham followed the same recipe – dominating defense and strong offense – to win the second game of the night 6-2.

Jack Pierce pitched six innings for the win and held the Lions scores for five innings before surrendering a 2-run home run in the sixth. Pierce finished the game allowing six hits with eight strikeouts and one walk.

The Panthers took a 3-0 lead after the first three innings before breaking the game open in the fourth. Anderson led off with a double to centerfield and Moore followed with a bunt single to start the rally. Johnson drew a walk to load the bases which Lowery took advantage with a single to right to clear the bases to extend the Pelham lead to 6-0.

Lowery finished the game 2-for-3 with two RBIs while Anderson was 2-for-3 with two doubles and a RBI. Sam Finnerty went 2-for-4 with a RBI and Moore added a 2-for-3 effort with a double.

The Panthers await the winner of the series featuring the Thompson Warriors and the Spain Park Jaguars scheduled for April 20 at 11 a.m.