Matt Strahm threw a season high 8.0 innings scattering five hits while walking to pick up his seventh win of the season.  The school's all-time strikeout leader notched 13 on the day to push his season total to 114.
 
The Panthers would get on the scoreboard first in the fifth after Robbe Ewing led the inning off with a single. Tyler Palmer's sacrifice bunt would move Ewing to second. After a groundout to third, the Panthers would get the first run thanks to a Hutchinson error. Nick Feighner hit a groundball to short, but the shortstop hurried his throw and it sailed over the first baseman's head allowing Ewing to come around to score.
 
Neosho would add two more runs in the sixth to take a 3-0 lead. Jordan Miller would single to lead off the inning, and David Bote would follow that up by drawing a walk to put runners at first and second. Adam Giacalone would rip a single to right to score Miller, and advance Bote to third. The Panther's would once again capitalize on a Blue Dragon error as Garret Schaede would reach base on an error to plate Bote. A sacrifice bunt would put runners at second and third with one out, but the Panthers wouldn't capitalize as the runners were stranded where they were.
Hutchinson would not get multiple base runners against Strahm until the sixth inning. Hutch second baseman Nate Cornejo would lead the inning off with a single. Fellow University of Nebraska commit Tanner Lubach would follow that up with a double to right center. Cornejo would head for home and Nick Feighner and David Bote would combine for the play of the game as the duo paired up for a perfect relay throw to nab Cornejo at the plate and keep the score at zero. The Blue Dragons would finally get on the board in the inning with a two out double to plate a run, but Strahm would strike out the next hitter to end the inning.
 
Strahm would retire the next six batters he faced before handing the ball off to Panther closer Max Ising. Ising would hit a batter and walk a batter to start the ninth, before settling in. Ising would then strike out the next batter before coaxing a double play to end the game and pick up his seventh save of the year.
 
The win moves the Panthers to 44-14 on the season, and advances them to the Regional Championship on Monday. Hutchinson would have to turn around and play Highland for a chance to advance to the next round. The Blue Dragons would knock off Highland 12-7 to set up the rematch on Monday.
 
Hutchinson and Neosho will square off at 1:00 pm tomorrow with the Panthers winning the coin toss to determine the home team. If Neosho wins tomorrow they will advance to the Central District Tournament in Wichita. If they lose game one, the teams will face off at 4:00 with the winner advancing to Wichita.