By Marshall Tempest
Reporter
This week, the Wekiva Mustangs defeated the Evans Trojans, 21-6, after losing to the Dr. Phillips Panthers, 14-4, last week. The team finished the regular season with a 5-11 record and is now ranked 475th in the state, according to MaxPreps. With the regular season over, the Wekiva softball team is preparing for next week’s district tournament.
Wekiva vs. Dr. Philips
The Mustangs opened the game up with some great at-bats and a three-run first inning. The first two runs came in courtesy of a line-drive triple to center from Camilla Delgado that cleared the bases. Arianna Garcia brought home the third run with a sacrifice fly.
The Dr. Phillips Panthers responded with three runs of their own in the bottom of the first inning to tie the game at 3-3.
Wekiva then couldn’t get anything going at the plate in the second and third innings, with Dr. Phillips retiring the side in order in both innings. But the Panthers did not have the same problem at the plate. Dr. Phillips put up four runs in the second and seven in the third to take a 14-3 lead heading into the fourth inning.
Wekiva was able to send in one more run at the top of the fourth inning, coming on a groundball double from Tiquweshia Thomas. The Mustangs kept the Panthers scoreless at the bottom of the fourth before the game ended in the fifth inning, with Dr. Phillips taking home the victory 14-4.
Wekiva vs. Evans
It was Wekiva’s senior night when they hosted the Evans Trojans, dominating in a 21-6 win. Wekiva opened up the game with two runs on a ground-out RBI from Garcia. The Mustangs kept the Trojans off the scoreboard in the first and second innings, putting up a whopping10 runs in the bottom of the second.
The 10-run second inning started with Thomas stealing home on a wild pitch, followed by a two-run triple from Delgado that stretched the lead to 5-0. A single by Kimber sent in run six, and a home run belted by Janelle Rodriguez sent in the seventh and eighth runs of the night.
A walk with the bases loaded sent in the ninth and tenth runs of the game, followed by Maci Fix scoring on a passed ball. The last run of the inning was sent in on a walk with the bases loaded, as Wekiva took the field at the top of the third, up 12-0.
Evans scored six runs in the top of the third, but Wekiva was able to stop the bleeding before they were in danger of losing the lead. In the bottom of the third, Mix sent in a run on a ground out to up the lead to 13-6.
When Wekiva took the field again, they made quick work of the Evans’ batters, retiring the side in order. To end the game, the Mustangs exploded for eight more runs in the bottom of the fourth to win the game.
A passed ball started the rally, sending Thomas home for a run, followed by Jahliyah McCoy, who sent in run 15 with a single. McCoy scored 16 on a wild pitch, Delgado scored 17 on a passed ball, and Rodriguez followed up with a triple that sent in 18.
Garcia was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to send in run 19, a walk with the bases loaded sent in the 20th run, and Emely Varela was hit by a pitch to send in the 21st and final run of the game as the Mustangs run-ruled the Trojans in four innings.
The Mustangs had a fantastic night at the plate with Rodriguez, Delgado and Kimber leading them to the win. Rodriguez went 2-for-4 at the plate, tallying two runs, three RBIs, one triple and one home run. Delgado went 1-for-1, scoring three runs and collecting two RBIs, one triple and three stolen bases. Kimber also went 1-for-1 at the plate collecting four runs, one RBI and one stolen base.
In four innings of work Garcia gave up six runs on five hits and four walks. She also struck out seven and threw 85 pitches.
In the field, Wekiva had a near perfect fielding percentage of .938. The Mustangs gathered 12 putouts, three assists and only one error.
District Tournament
The Wekiva Mustangs will compete in the Class 6A District 5 Tournament, which starts next week. As of Tuesday, April 22, Lake Howell sits atop the standings, followed by Oviedo, Wekiva and Evans.
The Lake Howell Silverhawks currently lead the district with an 18-4 record and are 2-0 in district matchups. But Wekiva should be the second seed, as the team is 5-11 overall but 3-1 in district. The Oviedo Lions have a 3-21 record this season and are 1-2 in district, while Evans is 3-8 and 0-1 in district.
If nothing changes, the seeding will be Lake Howell first, followed by Wekiva, Oviedo, and then Evans.
The bracket for Class 6A District 5 will be just two rounds, with the one-seed matched up against the four-seed in the first round and the two-seed matched up against the three-seed. That would mean Lake Howell would face Evans, and Wekiva would face Oviedo in the first round of the district tournament.
The first round will be the first matchup between all four teams, as Wekiva has not faced Oviedo this season, and Lake Howell has not faced Evans.
In Wekiva’s matchup against Oviedo, the Mustangs are slightly outgunned on paper. Wekiva has scored 115 runs this season and allowed 204 for a negative scoring differential of 89 runs in 15 games. Oviedo scored 100 runs and allowed 192, for a negative scoring differential of 92 runs in 24 games. Wekiva is averaging more runs a game, with 7.66 per game, compared to Oviedo’s 4.16. But Oviedo allows fewer runs per game (eight) than Wekiva (13.6).
Wekiva has the advantage at the plate, batting .300 this season compared to Oviedo’s .227. In the field, though, Oviedo is just as far ahead of Wekiva at the plate with a .913 fielding percentage compared to the Mustangs’ .792. Oviedo has averaged 2.58 errors per game, while Wekiva has averaged 3.57. Finally, on the mound, Oviedo’s ERA this season is 6.23, while Wekiva’s is 18.49.
If the Mustangs prevail, they will proceed to the district championship, where they will likely play Lake Howell. Â
