Douglas Gets Redemption With 8-1 Win Over Coral Springs

The stranglehold has been relaxed.

After watching Coral Springs evolve into the kings of a district in which it was once a peasant, Douglas sent a message Wednesday night with its 8-1 win over the Colts: We’re back.

The Eagles (4-1, 2-0 District 8A-11) executed in all the main phases of the game with the solid pitching of Austin Kramer, a dominant hitting attack and stingy defense to earn their first win over Coral Springs (3-1, 1-1) since March 10, 2011 when the Eagles won at home 5-4. Springs, which scored 24 runs against Douglas last year, had won six of the previous seven meetings between the teams, dating from the 2010 district championship.

“It’s definitely a turning point,” said senior second baseman KJ Mayo, who went 3-for-4 with two runs. “We haven’t beaten Coral Springs in the last two years, and they’ve won three district titles in a row. It gives us more motivation for the rest of the season knowing that we turned the page and can beat this team.”

The Eagles banged out 13 hits, including seven with two strikes, and capitalized in key situations all game to complement the effective pitching of lanky right-hander Kramer, who walked two, struck out three and allowed five hits in a complete-game performance.

“I thought he was gutsy,” Eagles Manager Todd Fitz-Gerald said of Kramer. “I thought he showed some flashes of confidence but then also he pitched out of a big jam with the bases loaded late in the game, and that gave us momentum. He competed and threw strikes and got ahead and kept them off balance and did what we asked him to do. We didn’t ask him to go out and win the game. We asked him to keep us in it. He did and threw a great game. I’m proud of him.”

Douglas took control from the start, grabbing a 2-0 lead in the first to set the tone. Josh Koebel hit the first of his two two-run singles, a sharp liner down the first-base line, to bring home Mayo and pinch-runner Tony Gallo. Gallo ran for Derek Fritz, who along with Mayo led off the game with back-to-back singles.

Springs starter Jordan Barrett settled down after that inning to allow two hits going into the fifth, where he was relieved by Michael Montalvo after giving up a double to Mayo.

Kramer, likewise, was solid until running into trouble in the fourth, loading the bases with two outs on a walk and hits by Matt Messina and Colton Smith, who went 2-for-3. Third baseman Max Boling fielded a grounder and fired to first to get the Eagles out of the trouble.

“We showed good resiliency,” Fitz-Gerald said. “We didn’t let up. We didn’t give up the run. We didn’t give them anything back. We came back and hit and we kept applying the pressure. Ultimately, they bent a little more than we did and they broke a little bit and we took advantage.”

Douglas scored six runs over the next three innings, including three in the fifth where Koebel again hit a two-run single.

Springs scored its run in the sixth as Tre Dingus tripled and scored on Vinny Cerullo’s groundout.

“We have a different expectation level than last year,” Mayo said. “We just follow our coaches’ game plan. Obviously the score showed if we just follow what they say and do what they tell us, then good things will happen.”

Fitz-Gerald said he and his coaching staff tried to get the players to relax and not overthink the game.

“I think for their confidence, it’s huge,” Fitz-Gerald said. “Over the last couple of years, it’s kind of been a rough go for them against Coral Springs. It’s been their nemesis. We just talked to them all week about how it’s just another game. We have a good team. We have a lot of returning guys. Our pitching’s not very experienced, but we felt if our pitching can just hold us in the game, we’re going to hit the baseball and score some runs. They were really focused. They wanted it. I think it sets a good tone for the district obviously. We’re here and hopefully we’re going to be here for a while.”

While the Eagles were celebrating their first win over the Colts in nearly two years, Springs was busy thinking how it can do better next time.

“They played good and we didn’t play so good,” Colts Manager Frank Bumbales said. “They outpitched us, they outhit us and they outdefensed us. They’re a good team. They played their game, and we didn’t play our game. We have to play better defense and our pitchers can’t fall behind. You have to give them all the credit in the world. They came here and they made it their business to beat us. Hopefully we can rebound from this and put a better product on the field the next time. We’ve got to come out and learn from this and make adjustments and play better baseball all the way around.”

Leave a comment using your facebook account!