Winter Park Diamond Dawgs

8

FINAL

4

Leesburg Lightning
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
WIN2 0 0 1 1 1 0 4 0 1 8 11 2
LEE 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 4 7 0
WFergio
LMadonna
Leesburg Drop Championship Series Opener

Leesburg Drop Championship Series Opener

LEESBURG, Fla- Despite their struggles against the Winter Park Diamond Dawgs in the regular season, the Leesburg Lightning were a perfect 3-0 in games played at Pat Thomas Stadium against the Dawgs. Despite game one being played at “the Pat”, the Lightning faltered to open up championship weekend, dropping the opener to the Dawgs 8-4. With the loss, the Lightning are just a game away from elimination.

The first two innings were pretty uneventful for both sides, with Dominick Madonna (UNF) allowing three base runners through the first two frames while stranding them both. On the other side of the coin, Chase Malloy (Jacksonville) applied some pressure early with a single up the middle and a pair of stolen bases, but the Lightning couldn’t produce anything of it. As they would learn later, that became a trend for the night.

Dariel Fregio (St. Leo), who the Lightning had seen twice in the regular season and had struggled with (to an extent), was as locked in as any pitcher all season. Following the single by Malloy, Fregio retired 11 in a row, with the streak broken via an infield single by Clay Stearns (Troy) in the fourth. The Lightning only managed to get one other baserunner off of Fregio after that, which came in the form of a JD Stubbs (Georgia Gwinnett) walk in the fifth. At the end of the night, Fregio went seven scoreless innings of two-hit baseball, allowing just one walk while striking out five. He did all of that while keeping a criminally low pitch count, throwing 90 total pitches.

“He threw strikes and he made us swing” said manager Rich Billings. “Hats off to him. He pitched with everything he had left in the tank and he did a fantastic job.”

The Dawgs offense provided support behind him, with a pair of solo shots for Mike Ballard (Eckerd) in the third and Grant Berman (NYU) in the fourth, respectively, giving the Dawgs the early lead. They’d scratch another across in the fifth on a Sterlin Thompson single to make it 3-0. That came as a part of a three-hit inning for the Dawgs, all of which came with two outs. The first hit knocked Madonna out of the game, with Matthew Coles (Carson Newman) taking his place. 

Madonna went four and two thirds of an inning, while allowing three earned runs to go with four hits and three walks. He also struck out six batters while earning the loss.

Coles would sit the Dawgs down in order for the first time all evening in the sixth before running into trouble in the seventh. Back to back singles and then back to back walk, the latter of which brought in a run, made it 4-0 Winter Park. After a fielder’s choice, a walk and a single up the middle, Leesburg all of a sudden found themselves trailing 7-0. The Lightning pitching staff, despite it’s marvelous performances all season long, has been burnt a few times by Winter Park’s crooked innings. Tonight’s four-run seventh marked the fourth time that the Dawgs put up four runs in an inning against Leesburg. 

Despite the crooked inning and lack of offensive production, Coach Billings’ frustration was with the team’s energy level.

“I’m frustrated with the energy we played with. We had a packed house and you have to get excited about that… Things went their way because they earned those breaks because they showed up and played hard. They outplayed us tonight. We played with no emotion and no energy. You don’t earn breaks by not showing up with no energy.”

The Lightning found success once the Dawgs went into their bullpen, collecting five hits and seven total baserunners over the last two innings of the game. Despite opening the scoring in the eighth and tacking on three more in the nine, two of which came from a single up the middle from Bryce Bitting (South Florida State), it was too little too late. The Dawgs claimed an opening game victory 8-4 and snatched home field advantage from Leesburg, pushing the Bolts just one game away from elimination.

“We didn’t get in their bullpen. They took their starter out, and then we got to their bullpen.” said Coach Billings. “We’re not leaving here feeling good about ourselves. The only positive is that tomorrow’s a new day. A win tomorrow means today doesn't matter.”

The Lightning will turn to a combination of Evan Waterbor (FAU) and Dylan Kelley (UNF) for tomorrow’s do-or-die game two. The Dawgs will trot out Eric Garcia (Eastern Florida State), who earned the win in his masterful game one performance against the Sanford River Rats last round.

Matias Weilmann (Ithaca College) 

Return to News

Batting

Name AB R H RBI BB SO
Ballard, dh 4 2 3 2 1 0
Castillo, 2b 4 1 1 2 0 1
Thompson, rf 4 0 1 1 1 2
Berman, c 4 1 1 1 1 1
Carr, dh 4 0 1 1 0 2
Burgess, 1b 3 0 1 0 1 0
Drost, lf 4 0 0 0 0 1
Howard, 3b 3 1 1 0 1 1
McIntyre, cf 4 1 1 0 0 1
Orlando, ss 3 2 1 0 1 1

Batting

HR - Ballard, Berman

RBI - Ballard 2, Castillo 2, Thompson, Berman, Carr

Baserunning

SB - Castillo

Fielding

E - McIntyre, Orlando

Pitching

Name IP H R ER BB SO
Fergio, W 7.0 2 0 0 1 5
Huneck 1.0 2 1 0 0 3
Mills 1.0 3 3 3 2 1

Wild Pitches - Huneck

Pitches/Strikes - Fergio 91/62, Huneck 31/20, Mills 26/16

Groundouts/Flyouts - Fergio 7/9, Mills 1/1

Batters Faced - Fergio 24, Huneck 5, Mills 8

Batting

Name AB R H RBI BB SO
Malloy, 2b 4 0 1 0 0 2
Hill, cf 3 1 0 0 1 0
Stearns, c 4 1 2 0 0 1
Scott, lf 4 0 0 0 0 1
J. Stubbs, 1b 2 1 1 0 2 0
Bitting, dh 4 0 1 2 0 2
Griffin, rf 4 0 1 1 0 0
D. Stubbs, dh 3 0 0 0 0 1
Hall, ss 3 0 0 0 0 2
Llanos, 3b 3 1 1 0 0 0

Batting

2B - J. Stubbs

RBI - Bitting 2, Griffin

Baserunning

SB - Malloy 2

Pitching

Name IP H R ER BB SO
Madonna, L 4.2 4 3 3 3 6
Coles 1.1 4 4 4 2 2
Huter 0.2 1 0 0 1 1
Boeckle 2.1 2 1 1 0 1

Wild Pitches - Madonna

Pitches/Strikes - Madonna 83/47, Coles 45/24, Huter 19/11, Boeckle 34/25

Groundouts/Flyouts - Madonna 3/5, Coles 1/1, Huter 1/0, Boeckle 3/3

Batters Faced - Madonna 21, Coles 10, Huter 4, Boeckle 9

Diamond Dawgs

Batting

Name AB R H RBI BB SO
Ballard, dh 4 2 3 2 1 0
Castillo, 2b 4 1 1 2 0 1
Thompson, rf 4 0 1 1 1 2
Berman, c 4 1 1 1 1 1
Carr, dh 4 0 1 1 0 2
Burgess, 1b 3 0 1 0 1 0
Drost, lf 4 0 0 0 0 1
Howard, 3b 3 1 1 0 1 1
McIntyre, cf 4 1 1 0 0 1
Orlando, ss 3 2 1 0 1 1

Batting

HR - Ballard, Berman

RBI - Ballard 2, Castillo 2, Thompson, Berman, Carr

Baserunning

SB - Castillo

Fielding

E - McIntyre, Orlando

Pitching

Name IP H R ER BB SO
Fergio, W 7.0 2 0 0 1 5
Huneck 1.0 2 1 0 0 3
Mills 1.0 3 3 3 2 1

Wild Pitches - Huneck

Pitches/Strikes - Fergio 91/62, Huneck 31/20, Mills 26/16

Groundouts/Flyouts - Fergio 7/9, Mills 1/1

Batters Faced - Fergio 24, Huneck 5, Mills 8

Lightning

Batting

Name AB R H RBI BB SO
Malloy, 2b 4 0 1 0 0 2
Hill, cf 3 1 0 0 1 0
Stearns, c 4 1 2 0 0 1
Scott, lf 4 0 0 0 0 1
J. Stubbs, 1b 2 1 1 0 2 0
Bitting, dh 4 0 1 2 0 2
Griffin, rf 4 0 1 1 0 0
D. Stubbs, dh 3 0 0 0 0 1
Hall, ss 3 0 0 0 0 2
Llanos, 3b 3 1 1 0 0 0

Batting

2B - J. Stubbs

RBI - Bitting 2, Griffin

Baserunning

SB - Malloy 2

Pitching

Name IP H R ER BB SO
Madonna, L 4.2 4 3 3 3 6
Coles 1.1 4 4 4 2 2
Huter 0.2 1 0 0 1 1
Boeckle 2.1 2 1 1 0 1

Wild Pitches - Madonna

Pitches/Strikes - Madonna 83/47, Coles 45/24, Huter 19/11, Boeckle 34/25

Groundouts/Flyouts - Madonna 3/5, Coles 1/1, Huter 1/0, Boeckle 3/3

Batters Faced - Madonna 21, Coles 10, Huter 4, Boeckle 9

Scoring Plays

Top 5th

Sterlin Thompson singled up the middle, advanced to second on the throw, RBI. Carlos Castillo advanced to third. Michael Ballard scored.

Top 7th

Michael Ballard walked, RBI. Noah Orlando advanced to second. Dominick McIntyre advanced to third. Andrew Howard scored.
Carlos Castillo reached on a fielder's choice to shortstop, RBI. Michael Ballard out at second ss unassisted. Noah Orlando advanced to third. Dominick McIntyre scored.
Carlos Castillo advanced to third. Noah Orlando scored.
Thomas Carr singled to third base, RBI. Grant Berman advanced to second. Carlos Castillo scored.

Bottom 8th

Jordan Griffin singled to shortstop, advanced to second on a throwing error by ss, RBI. JDrew Stubbs scored, unearned.

Top 9th

Carlos Castillo flied out to lf, SF, RBI. Michael Ballard advanced to second. Noah Orlando scored.

Bottom 9th

Clay Stearns singled to center field. Cam Hill advanced to second. Naphis Llanos advanced to third, scored on an error by cf.
Bryce Bitting singled to left field, 2 RBI. JDrew Stubbs advanced to second. Clay Stearns scored. Cam Hill scored.

All Plays

Top 1st

Michael Ballard grounded out to p. 1 out
Carlos Castillo struck out looking. 2 out
Sterlin Thompson walked.
Grant Berman grounded out to 2b. 3 out

Bottom 1st

Chase Malloy singled to center field.
Chase Malloy stole second.
Cam Hill flied out to cf. 1 out
Chase Malloy stole third.
Clay Stearns popped up to 1b. 2 out
Robbie Scott grounded out to p. 3 out

Top 2nd

Thomas Carr flied out to rf. 1 out
Austin Burgess singled to left field.
Brody Drost grounded out to 2b. Austin Burgess advanced to second. 2 out
Andrew Howard walked.
Dominick McIntyre struck out swinging. 3 out

Bottom 2nd

JDrew Stubbs grounded out to 3b. 1 out
Bryce Bitting popped up to ss. 2 out
Jordan Griffin grounded out to 1b unassisted. 3 out

Top 3rd

Noah Orlando struck out looking. 1 out
Michael Ballard homered to left center, RBI.
Carlos Castillo flied out to rf. 2 out
Sterlin Thompson struck out swinging. 3 out

Bottom 3rd

Drew Stubbs flied out to rf. 1 out
Jesse Hall flied out to lf. 2 out
Naphis Llanos grounded out to 2b. 3 out

Top 4th

Grant Berman homered to left center, RBI.
Thomas Carr struck out swinging. 1 out
Austin Burgess walked.
Brody Drost flied out to rf. 2 out
Austin Burgess advanced to second on a wild pitch.
Andrew Howard struck out looking. 3 out

Bottom 4th

Chase Malloy flied out to rf. 1 out
Cam Hill popped up to 2b. 2 out
Clay Stearns singled to third base.
Robbie Scott struck out swinging. 3 out

Top 5th

Dominick McIntyre popped up to c. 1 out
Noah Orlando flied out to rf. 2 out
Michael Ballard singled to shortstop.
Matthew Coles replaces Dominick Madonna at pitcher.
Carlos Castillo singled to third base. Michael Ballard advanced to second.
Sterlin Thompson singled up the middle, advanced to second on the throw, RBI. Carlos Castillo advanced to third. Michael Ballard scored.
Grant Berman grounded out to ss. 3 out

Bottom 5th

JDrew Stubbs walked.
Bryce Bitting struck out swinging. 1 out
Jordan Griffin grounded out to ss. JDrew Stubbs advanced to second. 2 out
Drew Stubbs grounded out to 3b. 3 out

Top 6th

Thomas Carr struck out looking. 1 out
Austin Burgess flied out to cf. 2 out
Brody Drost struck out swinging. 3 out

Bottom 6th

Jesse Hall struck out looking. 1 out
Naphis Llanos out at first 1b to p. 2 out
Chase Malloy struck out swinging. 3 out

Top 7th

Andrew Howard singled to right center.
Dominick McIntyre singled to center field. Andrew Howard advanced to second.
Noah Orlando walked. Dominick McIntyre advanced to second. Andrew Howard advanced to third.
Michael Ballard walked, RBI. Noah Orlando advanced to second. Dominick McIntyre advanced to third. Andrew Howard scored.
Blayne Huter replaces Matthew Coles at pitcher.
Carlos Castillo reached on a fielder's choice to shortstop, RBI. Michael Ballard out at second ss unassisted. Noah Orlando advanced to third. Dominick McIntyre scored. 1 out
Carlos Castillo stole second.
Sterlin Thompson struck out swinging. 2 out
Carlos Castillo advanced to third. Noah Orlando scored.
Grant Berman walked.
Thomas Carr singled to third base, RBI. Grant Berman advanced to second. Carlos Castillo scored.
Garrett Boeckle replaces Blayne Huter at pitcher.
Austin Burgess reached on a fielder's choice to third base. Thomas Carr advanced to second. Grant Berman out at third 3b unassisted. 3 out

Bottom 7th

Cam Hill flied out to cf. 1 out
Clay Stearns struck out looking. 2 out
Robbie Scott flied out to rf. 3 out

Top 8th

Brody Drost flied out to lf. 1 out
Andrew Howard flied out to cf. 2 out
Dominick McIntyre grounded out to 2b. 3 out

Bottom 8th

Donavan Huneck replaces Dariel Fergio at pitcher.
JDrew Stubbs doubled to left field.
JDrew Stubbs advanced to third on a passed ball.
Bryce Bitting struck out swinging. 1 out
Jordan Griffin singled to shortstop, advanced to second on a throwing error by ss, RBI. JDrew Stubbs scored, unearned.
Jordan Griffin advanced to third on a wild pitch.
Drew Stubbs struck out swinging. 2 out
Jesse Hall struck out swinging. 3 out

Top 9th

Noah Orlando singled to shortstop.
Michael Ballard singled to right field. Noah Orlando advanced to third.
Carlos Castillo flied out to lf, SF, RBI. Michael Ballard advanced to second. Noah Orlando scored. 1 out
Sterlin Thompson out at first 1b to p. Michael Ballard advanced to third. 2 out
Grant Berman struck out swinging. 3 out

Bottom 9th

Jaxon Mills replaces Donavan Huneck at pitcher.
Naphis Llanos singled to left field.
Naphis Llanos advanced to second on a passed ball.
Chase Malloy struck out swinging. 1 out
Cam Hill walked.
Clay Stearns singled to center field. Cam Hill advanced to second. Naphis Llanos advanced to third, scored on an error by cf.
Robbie Scott flied out to cf. 2 out
JDrew Stubbs walked. Clay Stearns advanced to second. Cam Hill advanced to third.
Bryce Bitting singled to left field, 2 RBI. JDrew Stubbs advanced to second. Clay Stearns scored. Cam Hill scored.
Jordan Griffin grounded out to p. 3 out

Friday's game has been suspended due to weather.