Earlier in the season the Lady Panther doubles teams were doing the scoring. The singles players have stepped up big of late, and Monday in Dodge City Lakyn Smith finished second at No. 2 singles. She accounted for three of Great Bend's four team points on the day for a fourth-place finish. Garden City scored 15 points for the Western Athletic Conference title, and Hays finished second with 10 points.
After a bye in round one, Smith was part of two 8-0 matches with a win against Liberal and a loss to Dodge City. After an 8-1 win against Dodge City, Smith closed out the day in dramatic fashion with an 8-7 (4) win against Hays. Garden City's Alivia Palmer went 4-0 by a combined tally of 32-0 for the title.
Kaylin Wahlmeier opened the No. 1 singles bracket strong with an 8-0 win over Liberal. She lost her next two matches 8-1, then came up just short in an 8-7 (2) loss to Hays to finish the day at 1-3 for fourth.
The Lady Panther doubles teams struggled to an 0-8 finish on the day. In the No. 1 spot, Samantha Mayers and Taylor Lashley came close to a pair of wins with an 8-7 (8) loss to Liberal, and an 8-6 loss to Hays. Clarise Snapp and Mackenzie LaViolette also went to a tiebreak against Liberal, falling 8-7 (3).
The Lady Panthers begin Class 5A regional play in Salina on Saturday.