Despite losing to McKenzie in Thursday night’s game, the Butler County Magnet School Panthers are in the playoffs.

Fruitdale fell to Washington County and Excel took out J.U. Blacksher to help the Panthers secure a playoff spot.

Both of those game were also played on Thursday night, and news about the Panthers’ fate came across the P.A. system in the fourth quarter.

“It’s hard to be excited right now because I really wanted this win,” said head coach Shane Smothers after the game. “However, I’m really tickled at how hard our young kids are playing. We’ve got to get our heads up going into next week.”

The Panthers are seeded fourth in their region, which sends them to Brantley to face the Bulldogs in the first round.

“We’ve had a lot of firsts for the new school this year,” Smothers said. “We won on homecoming and senior night, and now we’re in the playoffs for the first time ever.”

While BCMS travels to Brantley, McKenzie will play host to Fruitdale in first-round action.