Behind elite defense and another dominant outing from ace Maddie Simms, Gardner-South Wilmington punched its ticket to the supersectional while ending Serena‘s cinderella postseason run with a 4-1 victory on Friday night.

According to G-SW (26-11) coach David Simms, the Panthers stellar defensive effort on Friday night was the culmination of work they put in earlier this year, and it’s paid off in a big way this postseason so far.

“We couldn’t get outside much early this spring, so we spent a ton of time in the gym working on defense over and over again,” David Simms said. “Once we got outside, it was fly balls, ground balls, everything. The girls bought into improving defensively and recognized how important it can be in those close games.”

“Every single one of those girls wants the ball to be hit to them - I believe that mentality showed itself tonight.”

Although they had no errors, the box score did not tell the true story of how well the Panthers played defensively - especially the outfield performance.

Serena (14-11) had multiple hard hit balls sprayed all over the outfield and each one was tracked down and brought in by the outfield trio of Nina Siano, Liv Siano and Bella Dinelli.

Starting pitcher Maddie Simms shined in the circle, pitching a complete game and allowing one run on six hits with eight strikeouts.

Coming off a dominant performance against St. Edward on Wednesday, the senior ace was in command of the strike zone all night and had a ton of swing and miss with her fastball up in the zone.

“The high fastball was definitely part of the game plan coming in; I’m always going to try and throw it if I can,” Maddie Simms said. “As the game went on and our defense kept making plays, I settled in.”

Echoing her coaches sentiment, Maddie Simms believes that defense is a strong part of the Panthers identity and a big reason why they’ve advanced this far.

“We’ve worked a lot on defense throughout this season, especially with how much time we spent in the gym earlier this spring,” she said. “They were ready for anything tonight.”

“I think once I saw how well the defense was playing behind me, it helped me relax and just attack the zone.”

Brynn Christensen paced the Panthers offensively, finishing 2 for 4 with two RBIs, while Kayla Scheuber collected three hits. Simms also helped herself at the plate with two hits.

Despite the loss, Serena head coach Katie Huss was happy with the way her team played this season, especially when it mattered most.

“We knew coming into this game it was going to be tough- they’re a really good team,” Huss said. “But I’m proud of this group. A lot of people didn’t think we’d be here. We were kind of the underdogs all season, especially with girls stepping into new roles, but they just kept fighting.”

In her first year as head coach, Huss certainly got the Panthers to play hard for her and she’s looking forward to the future of the program.

“I just came into the season wanting to continue what Coach Baker built here,” Huss said. “These girls bought into it, and having coached many of them in multiple sports helped build that trust.”

Serena received seven innings from ace pitcher Cassie Walsh, who struck out seven and walked none while allowing four runs, three earned, on nine hits.

The Huskers finished with six hits on the night, with Maddie Young driving in their lone run while going 1-for-3 at the plate.

Cassie Walsh, Finley Brodbeck, Jordyn Warren, Brynley Glade, Young and Parker Twait also each recorded a hit for Serena.

Looking ahead, The Panthers will now head to Bloomington on Monday to play Meridian in the Class 1A Illinois Wesleyan Supersectional. First pitch is scheduled for 4 p.m.