By Brandon Sumrall | Special to the Advertiser

The long ball was a key for the Wetumpka Indians as they took two games from the homestanding Jemison Panthers varsity baseball team on Saturday, 7-6 and 18-5.

Game 1 of the doubleheader got off to a bit of a slow start as both teams found hits hard to come by.

Jemison was first to remove the goose egg from its side of the scoreboard with one run in the bottom of the third inning, when Trae Sanders drove in Wesley Martin for a one-run lead for the Panthers.

Wetumpka answered with a run of its own in the top of the fourth on a James Stubbs single that scored James Shephard and tied the game at 1-all.

The Panthers put men in scoring position in the bottom of the fourth inning but failed to push them across the plate.

Meanwhile, the Indians added one more run in the top half of the fifth on a Baker Weldon home run that gave the Indians a one-run lead.

The Panthers plated two more runs in the bottom of the fifth when Austin Chapman scored on a passed ball at the plate, and a Jacob Bates single to center scored Will Lenoir.

After five innings of play, the Panthers led 3-2.

Two more Indian runs in the top of the sixth and three in the top of the seventh—two coming off of a Randy Knight two-run home run—put the Panthers in a 7-3 hole going to the bottom of the seventh inning.

A two-run double by Jacob Bates added two Panther runs, and with Lenoir scoring on a passed ball, the Panthers were down to their last out and within one run of the lead.

On ball four coming to Thompson Cody, Indians catcher Tristen Hughes fired down to third base to catch the Panther runner returning to the bag, thus bringing the game to its end.

Banks Woodley got the start on the mound for the Panthers in Game 1 and pitched three innings while allowing two hits and one walk, and recorded four strikeouts.

Bates led the Panthers at the plate, going 2-for-4 with a single, double and three RBI.

Game 2 saw the Panthers strike first once again, this time in the bottom half of the second inning on a Gilbert McDaniel single that scored Thompson.

Five runs by the Indians in the top of the third inning—two off of Weldon’s second home run of the day—gave the Indians a 5-1 lead after three innings.

Three runs in the fourth, three more in the fifth, and seven in the top of the sixth inning was more then enough to propel the Indians past the Panthers, as they picked up the win in Game 2.

Justin Caudle started for the Panthers on the mound in Game 2 and pitched three innings, allowing five hits, two walks and two earned runs, along with two strike outs.

Chapman led at the plate, going 2-for-4 with two singles.