After knocking off Perkins-Tryon twice in last week’s Regional Tournament, Purcell advanced to the Super Regional they were to host Tuesday and Wednesday.

Purcell dusted the Lady Demons 10-3 in the opening game September 27 with a blistering 15-hit attack.

KK Vazquez and Ella Resendiz carried the big lumber for the Dragons both going 3-5 at the plate. They both knocked in a pair of RBIs.

Hannah Whitaker and Kenna Esparza both went 2-3, Whitaker with an RBI and Esparza with  two.

Mac McKay was 2-4 with an RBI. Brynley Jennings, Payci Constant and Savanna Edwards all had hits in the contest.

Resendiz went the distance in the circle striking out seven and scattered three hits.

“It was a heck of a game,” Jones said. “We made things happen throughout our entire lineup. We scored every inning but the sixth and when you do that, it makes things a lot easier and doesn’t put as much pressure on pitching and defense.”

“It was a great way to start off Regional play,” she said.

The following day Purcell tamed Perkins-Tryon 8-3 punching their ticket to host the Super Regional this week. Coach Sarah Jones said her Dragons were seeded fifth.

Purcell was hosting Planview Tuesday at 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. with the “if necessary” game scheduled for Wednesday weather permitting.

Resendiz fanned five Lady Demons in the second game but was touched for 10 hits. Perkins-Tryon scored all three runs in the bottom of the seventh.

Purcell got off to a fast start pushing across four runs in the top of the second.

Resendiz helped her own cause going 3-4, including a double and a triple, at the plate with two RBIs.

Constant and Whitaker were both 2-3. Whitaker had two RBIs while Constant had one.

“We kept finding ways on and not leaving people on base and that’s what we needed,” the coach confirmed. “Ella pitched another great game. We didn’t hit as well as the day before but we put the ball in play, had good at-bats that turned into walks and worked off their mistakes.”

“It’s the first time since 2019 we were Regional Champs! It feels good to be one step closer,” she concluded.

In a regional warmup, the Dragons dropped a 2-0 contest at the hands of Lone Grove.

“Lone Grove is a State Championship caliber team,” Jones said. “We did a really good job holding them off until the seventh inning. Ella pitched a heck of a game in the circle and our defense was really solid. They were just able to string a couple hits together and we weren’t able to close.

“We had people in position multiple innings to make something happen and we didn’t get the clutch hit. It was a really good game though before Regionals,” the coach said.

Whitaker went 2-3 while Purcell got hits from Edwards, Resendiz and Vazquez.