By Marshall Tempest
Reporter
The Apopka baseball team split their first two games this week against University High School and Horizon. Last week the Blue Darters fell to No. 10 ranked Winter Park. This week after beating University and falling to Horizon, Apopka played their final regular-season game against St. Cloud.
Apopka vs. Winter Park
The Blue Darters were run-ruled for the first time this season last week when they fell 10-0 in five innings to the Winter Park Wildcats, who are ranked 10th in the state. The loss snapped Apopka’s four-game winning streak coming out of spring break.
Head coach Bobby Brewer said the Blue Darters are a better team than they showed.
“The score was not any indication of what kind of ball club we are,” he said. “We just didn’t play well. It was the worst game we have played all year long. I don’t know what was wrong with us, but, you know, we were just out of sync, and everything just wasn’t working for us.”
The Wildcats scored two runs in the first inning, two in the third inning and six in the fourth inning to break open the game. The Blue Darters couldn’t bring in any runs but tallied five hits in the game, leaving six runners on base. Four Apopka players collected hits in this game: Nico Posluszny, Collin VanFleet, Ty Livingston and Aiden Rieli.
Apopka made three errors on defense, but the team’s bigger problem was pitching. Wyatt Jaggers started on the mound and took the loss. He gave up two hits, two runs (one earned), one walk and hit one batter while striking out one.
Connor McAfee came in to relieve Jaggers in the third and lasted one and 2/3 innings. He allowed one hit and issued four walks, leading to six runs (four earned). He also struck out five batters while throwing 60 pitches.
Logan Page came on in relief to close out the fourth inning and gave up two earned runs on two hits while recording one out.
Apopka vs. University
After a tough loss away to a top-10 team, the Blue Darters bounced back with a 12-0 win over the University Cougars. Coach Brewer told me that the boys had a great practice after the Winter Park game.
“We went over some things that we thought we needed to work on. I talked to the kids, and the boys understood, and we let them talk it out a little bit,” Brewer said. “Everybody said that for whatever reason, they just weren’t focused (against Winter Park). And so, they committed themselves to these next three games, going into districts, they said they would win all three games. We told ourselves that we’ll refocus and get back on track – and that’s what you saw tonight.”
The Blue Darters were dominant in this matchup from the start, scoring seven runs in the bottom of the first inning. The offense was relentless, piling on another in the second, three in the third and one in the fourth.
Jez Hamrick started the seven-run first inning with an RBI single to left field. Tyler Spaid upped the score to 3-0 with a sacrifice fly that sent in two more runs. Immediately after, VanFleet secured an RBI triple to push Apopka ahead 4-0. A single by Posluszny and doubles from Reef VanKuren and Rieli scored the final three runs.
Posluszny sent in a run on a fielder’s choice in the second inning, stretching the Blue Darter lead to 8-0. In the third inning, Saunders laced a double to send in the ninth run of the game. A Jaggers sacrifice fly and another RBI single from Hamrick pushed across two more runs in the third. The game’s final run was scored on a Cougar fielding error in the fourth inning.
Apopka dominated every phase of the game, with great at-bats, pitching and defense.
It was a true hitting parade for the Blue Darters as they collected nine hits in 20 at-bats. Hamrick led the way going 2-for-3 at the plate, driving in two runs and scoring twice. Posluszny went 1-for-3, collecting one run and two RBIs. Saunders went 1-for-2 with a double, an RBI and two runs scored.
Apopka used four of its arms on the mound and came close to a combined no-hitter. McAfee started and gave up just one walk while striking out five across two shutout innings. Camron Pennock came in to relieve McAfee and struck out two in one perfect inning. Page followed with his own perfect inning, striking out one.
Maddox Stinson ended the game on the mound for Apopka and gave up the only hit in his two innings of work. Stinson struck out two and walked none.
Apopka vs. Horizon
The team traveled to Horizon after defeating the Cougars but fell 8-5 in a heart-breaking loss. The Blue Darters fought to the end and almost made a comeback in a game where their fielding was uncharacteristically error prone.
Jaggers was the difference maker in the attempted comeback making clutch at-bats that spurred rallies. He went 3-for-3 at the plate collecting one run and two RBIs.
Helping Jaggers on the mound was Pennock who had a fantastic game. In two innings Pennock gave up five hits, five runs (one earned), three walks and struck out two in 64 pitches. The Apopka defense could not help Pennock control the runs but he and Jaggers gave the team a chance.
End of the season
This week marked the end of the regular season for Apopka baseball as they faced Horizon on Wednesday and St. Cloud on Thursday after press time.
The Apopka baseball team has its first game of the 7A District 4 Tournament next week. Lake Brantley, West Orange, Lake Mary, Ocoee and Seminole will all vie for the district title alongside Apopka. The district champion gets an automatic bid into the state championship tournament.
