RIVALRY PUT TO THE TEST

Oviedo-Hagerty baseball finale goes down to the wire

scored their first run on a double play. The Lions closed out the inning, but failed to get on base in the bottom of the second.

The third inning got even worse as the Huskies got big hit after big hit, resulting in them scoring three more runs. Now, down 4-0, the Lions turned it up in their half of the inning with Tyler Coopersmith getting on base and Kyle Ball hitting a double. As a batter, Kaiden Lopez made the biggest play yet with a single, bringing Coopersmith and Ball home to make it a 2-run game. Now with the crowd back in it, Oviedo was feeling the energy.

The fourth inning started with the Huskies getting an out on a deep ball to left-center field. But since they still had a runner on base, Coach Andy Lyon put in relief pitcher, Ben Filler, to keep the Huskies in check.

needed to keep the game tied at 4-4.

In the bottom half, Cooper Pitman slammed a deep ball to left-center field for a double that got the crowd roaring. A sacrifice fly ball and a hit to center field later, Pitman scored a run. After a strikeout and a fly ball, the inning was over, but with the Lions now up, 6-5, all they needed were three outs to win it.

DOMINIQUE MOISE | ONLINE EDITOR

It was a humid and cloudy Friday afternoon at Mikler Field. Fans packed the stands as the Lions (8-10) prepared to take on their bitter rivals: the Huskies (13-5). After a devastating 11-0 defeat on Tuesday at Hagerty, the varsity squad looked to even the series. With Kaiden Lopez, 11, as the starting pitcher, Oviedo was ready for what was sure to be an exciting game during a season that one fan described as “an incredibly hard up-and-down fight.”

Lopez started off well with a strike on the first pitch and eventually an out after a fly ball to right-center field. He struck out the second batter and forced the next one to chop the ball straight to him for an easy third out. However, throughout this strong opening, the Huskies dugout was raucous with constant chants, jeers, and distracting noises to get any kind of advantage they could - something they would continue for the entire game.

In the second inning, the Huskies were able to get into scoring position on second base after Lopez tried to check a runner at first and messed up the throw. A hit to right field later, and the Huskies