Coral Springs Charter Downright Offensive In Win Over North Broward Prep

The Panthers’ Matt Fierman leads off second shortly after delivering the go-ahead single in the fourth.

From game to game, one never knows what they will get in District 4A-13. One game may be a pitchers’ duel, and the next a shootout. Tuesday night at Broward College, it was Coral Springs Charter that had its turn to shine in the wacky district. After falling behind twice early, the Panthers used a big fourth inning to capture the lead and eventually the district semifinal win, 6-3 over North Broward Prep.

The Eagles showed early on that they would be no easy out for the Panthers. In the second inning, NBP jumped out to a 2-0 lead. Fenway Parks hit a one-out double and Anthony Valeo immediately drove in Parks with a single to right. Valeo also came around to score on a Casey Kopec sacrifice fly.

The Panthers answered the Eagles two runs with two of their own in the bottom of the second. Matt Fierman started the inning with a walk and moved to second on a passed ball. Colton Rogers then drove in Fierman with a single. CS Charter tied the score on a bases-loaded walk to Jorge Solano.

In the third, the Eagles reclaimed the lead 3-2. Hernando Sierra started the inning with a single and scored later in the frame on an A.J. Fidalic base hit. Sierra went 3-for-4 with a run scored in the game.

The fourth inning was where the Panthers took control. With one out, lead-off batter Christian Khawly hit a single to open the inning, and Jorge Solano followed with a base knock to right. Stephen Kerr loaded the bases with no outs when he drew a walk.

Eagles reliever Chad Fleishman looked like he may escape the jam after striking out Matt Marek for the second out. Fierman, however, had other plans, and delivered a two-out, two-run single to right, scoring both Khawly and Solano. With the score 4-3, Rogers delivered the knock-out blow, a two-run single down the right-field line.

Rogers was also the starting pitcher for CS Charter, and although the Eagles hit him hard early, Rogers was able to throw six gutsy innings and pick up the win.

“At the beginning of the game, I was shaky, and I couldn’t find my location,” said Rogers. “I was having a hard time finding the strike zone, but I finally started to feel comfortable in the fourth inning.”

With a 6-3 lead, Rogers turned the ball over to Nick Scahill to shut the door in the seventh. The Panthers senior struck out the side in order, securing the win and a date with Pine Crest in the district championship. For Scahill and the Panthers, it was the culmination of a year’s worth of work. Scahill had surgery and missed last season, and this year, the coaching staff has been careful with his pitch counts, so to close out the district semifinal was an emotional moment.

“This year didn’t really go as we had planned with my recovery,” said Scahill. “So to build towards this moment and now have a chance to win our school’s first district championship, it’s a great feeling.”

Colton Rogers delivers a pitch Tuesday.

Panthers Head Coach Mike Higgins was happy with both of his pitcher’s performances.

“Colton went out and he battled, he got hit early, but that’s baseball, sometimes you give up hits and you give up runs, especially when your facing a great team like North Broward Prep, but it shows true character the way he came back and battled,” said Higgins. “As for Nick, it’s great to see him coming back. He’s a great young man, and he’s worked really hard, and he’s getting real close to being the Nick Scahill we all know. We babied him all season, all the while gearing him to be ready for district play, and tonight you saw why. He was outstanding there at the end.”

On the other side of the field, North Broward Prep was dealing with the emotions of being so close to the district championship game, yet falling short. Head Coach Brian Campbell had a clear message to the group of seniors that played their last game Tuesday night.

“I told them I’d wish them luck, but I don’t really think they’ll need it. They make their own luck. It’s a good group, and I just told them that I was proud of them, that I loved them, and I’m always here for them, and they will always be a part of this program and are welcomed to come back and work out with us at any time. This group did great things for this baseball program.”

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