ALLENTOWN ‑- The Palmerton softball team has been searching for answers throughout the entire 2016 season.

Friday night at Pates Park, the Bombers answered many of those questionsPalmerton pummeled Pen Arygl in the Colonial League quarterfinal round, 10-0.After a season-opening loss to Lehighton, Bomber coach Robert Hock explained that his team needed to find the right lineup combination.Three weeks later, when Palmerton yielded some late runs to Northern Lehigh in a big Colonial League loss, Hock noted that his squad seemed close to putting together a complete contest, but they weren't quite there yet."I'll be honest, I'm not sure," Hock said when asked if he finally found the right lineup. "We've kind of settled in on things and even tweaked the lineup tonight. We've moved some people that have been locked in at spots for several weeks, but we jumped them around and it actually paid off pretty well."Mother Nature delayed last night's game several minutes, and it was obvious Palmerton couldn't wait any longer to get started.The Bombers (11-9) scored four times in the initial frame.Darion Jacoby started the contest with a smashing double to left field and the next four Lady Bombers also reached base. Alyssa Olewine notched an RBI and then Kendra Pekurny immediately plated two with an opposite-field double. Pekurny had a monster game, tallying three hits and a trio of RBIs."Kendra has really been hitting the ball lately," said Hock. "We jumped her up in the lineup and she responded, it seemed like the right thing to do."We got some clutch hits early and we like what we have going here. Opposite-field hitting is something that we work on a lot. When you do get that good swing, you just hope you remember it next at-bat."The game was essentially finished after the first frame. Why? Because Reese Dugan dazzled in the circle for Palmerton after her offense gave her immediate support. She walked two in the first inning, but was on cruise-control over the next six frames."It definitely built my confidence and gave me a nice cushion," said Dugan of her team's early runs. "I think last time we played Pen Argyl we were nervous because they were in first place. Our girls really wanted to win tonight."We definitely all came together today. Even with a rough start (this season), we meshed and started to work together more. It shows."Everything clicked for Palmerton on Friday. The Bombers didn't commit an error or yield a run. Jacoby, Pekurny, and nine of their teammates reached base during the lopsided upset.TIMES CHANGE... Two weeks ago, Pen Argyl topped the Bombers during a regular season extra-inning affair, 3-2. The same Bombers' team showed up a Pates on Friday, but the result was much different. "When we caught them the first time, we were playing well, but we still weren't quite sure who we were as a team'" said Hock. "When you put four runs on the board early, it's difficult for the opposing team.NO WORRIES... The combination of early nerves and a minor injury were no match for Dugan's perseverance on Friday. She finished with five and two-third innings of work, four strikeouts, and just three hits. "I was worried about her, she took a nasty hit to her throwing hand against Northern Lehigh earlier this week. It was swelling pretty good, although, she told me it didn't hurt. She said she was more nervous than anything in the first inning, but I'm not sure she tells me the truth sometimes," Hock said with a laugh. "I trusted her, it didn't seem like pain. We kept an eye on her and she looked much stronger as the game went on."Palmerton 402 201 1 - 10 15 0Pen Argyl 000 000 0 - 0 4 3Dugan, Shupp (6), and Acher; Kocher and Due. W - Dugan. L - Kocher.