Palo Verde’s softball team, after a thrilling 1-0 walk-off win over Centennial last week, kept its undefeated season alive with a home win over Coronado on Monday.

The Panthers (13-0), after being limited to one run the first four innings, broke through in the fifth en route to a 5-0 win. Junior pitcher Ava Koenig led the way with her third consecutive scoreless outing. She finished the game with 14 strikeouts and only allowed three hits and one walk.

“I’m just trying to trust myself right now,” Koenig said. “Sometimes I don’t trust myself, and that’s when I get in a hole, so I’ve been trusting what I do and letting my defense work behind me.”

Koenig, despite her dominant line, got in trouble early. Coronado’s first three hitters all reached base via a walk, a hit-by-pitch and a single.

Koenig, with the bases loaded and no outs, flipped a switch. She struck out the next three batters and the Cougars (11-10) got only two runners on base the rest of the game.

“I usually start out slow, so I try to push through it in the first. Then my legs got warm, and it all worked out,” Koenig said.

It took a while for Palo Verde’s bats to provide Koenig with some run support.

The Panthers took a 1-0 lead in the third inning after senior Mya Bartlett hit a sacrifice fly with the bases loaded. Palo Verde didn’t score again until the fifth.

Junior Haley Kearns hit her second double of the day in the inning, bringing Georgia commit Taylor Johns to the plate. Johns was intentionally walked her first two plate appearances, but her third time up she launched the third pitch she saw over the fence to extend the Panthers’ lead to 3-0.

Palo Verde added two more runs later in the inning on a sacrifice fly from senior Paige Brandes and a single from freshman Keileanna Johnson. The win gave the Panthers a commanding lead at the top of the 5A Mountain League standings.