Piedmont downed LaGrange 8-4 on Friday in the Great South Athletic Conference Championship Tournament in Williamson Stadium at Cleaveland Field. The loss dropped the Panthers (14-26) into the loser's bracket against Maryville on Saturday at 4 p.m.

Piedmont (26-15) advances to play top-seeded Huntingdon on Saturday at noon. Huntingdon scored twice in the ninth inning to beat Maryville 6-5 in the first game of the day. The loser plays the LaGrange/Maryville winner at 8 p.m.

Doug Scherer (5-5) started and took the loss for LaGrange. Scherer allowed five runs in just 1-2/3 innings. He was the first of four pitchers used by the Panthers. Scherer gave up four hits, walked five and struck out one.

Mason Webster pitched 5-1/3 innings in relief of Scherer. Webster scattered six hits, gave up three runs of which only two were earned. He walked two and struck out nine.

Piedmont's Kevin Caldwell pitched eight innings to get the win. Caldwell allowed all four runs on six hits, walked two and struck out. Ed Cook threw a scoreless ninth inning to close out th victory for the Lions.

The Lions took a 2-0 lead in the first inning. The Panthers came back with two runs in the top of the second to tie the game. Josh Shiver was hit by a pitch and Jon Brock walked. Both runners scored on Miles Lee's one-out single up the middle.

Piedmont took the lead for good in the bottom of the second. The Lions took advantage of five walks in the inning to score three runs for a 5-2 lead.

LaGrange got a run back in the fourth inning as Linwood Roberds' sacrifice fly scored Brock, who had walked to start the inning. Piedmont closed out its scoring with three more runs in the bottom of the inning to increase its lead to 8-3.

The Panthers got the final run of the game in the sixth inning. Shiver doubled down the left field line to open the inning. He moved over to third on a ground out and scored as Cody Muren flyed out to left center.

Roberds finished the game 2-for-2 with the RBI. Shiver had a single to go with his double as the Panthers had seven hits in the game. Piedmont had 10 hits, with Garrett Lovelace going 3-for-4.