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Hernando Today

Hamilton Paces Comeback Effort

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By MARTY MILLER

Hernando Today correspondent

Published: July 6, 2008

EAST LAKELAND - For the second straight game in this year's Dixie Youth League AAA Minors (ages 9-10) All-Star State Championship Baseball Tournament, the Spring Hill American team had to come back to win a game.
After scoring five runs in the sixth inning Saturday to win its opening round game in the double elimination tournament against Poinciana, 5-2, the Hernando County team had to rally earlier in the game Sunday evening as they pounded out 11 hits to defeat Okeechobee American 13-6.
Dante Hamilton drove in four runs for SH American to pace the team's second win in the tournament and set up a winner's bracket game late Monday night with West Seminole in the 12-team, double-elimination format played at Aldine Combee Park.
On Sunday, Spring Hill American fell behind for the second time in a row as Okeechobee American scored three runs in the first inning. But from there on out, the Spring Hill club got solid pitching and a sprinkling of timely hits as they broke open a 5-3 game in the last two innings by scoring eight runs and coast to an easy win.
"This group has gotten behind before and come back," said Spring Hill American Head Coach Al Sorrentino. "In the first game we had to score five runs in the last inning to win. So tonight when we got behind in the first inning, I had a lot of confidence that they would come back."

Okeechobee sprints ahead

Okeechobee started off the first inning by combining four singles, a walk, two stolen bases and a wild pitch to score three runs.
But in their half of the first, Spring Hill got singles from Matt Myers and Matt Warner and both scored on an RBI single by Josh Penney and a run scoring double from Thomas Sorrentino to even the score at 2-2.
From there, Spring Hill got solid pitching from Warner and Penney as they combined to keep Okeechobee scoreless through the fourth inning.
In the fifth, Spring Hill American broke the game open by scoring five runs with Hamilton, who had a two-run single in the second inning, getting another two-run single in the fifth.
Along with that, Penney had an RBI single that also brought in a run when a Spring Hill runner was interfered with when he tried to score.
Spring Hill added a final run of the inning on a wild pitch.
But in the Okeechobee fifth, they scored two runs on a bases-loaded walk to Elijah Finney and a run-scoring single by Chase Quesenberry.
With the bases loaded, relief pitcher Myers got two straight strikeouts, gave up an RBI walk and ended the rally by getting a ground out to short.
In the bottom of the fifth, Spring Hill put the game away for good as Devon Nicolini drove in two runs with a single while a third run scored on an Okeechobee error.
"They have all the confidence in themselves and the coaches believe in them as well," said Sorrentino on his team's latest comeback. "I had no doubt that we could come back after what happened to us in the first inning."
The win puts Spring Hill American (2-0) into a winner's bracket game at 8:00 Monday night against West Seminole, an 11-1 winner Sunday against South Lake.
If SH American wins the game Monday, they will play Tuesday night at 8 p.m. while if they lose, they would play a game starting at 6 p.m.
Anyone who wishes to listen to the tournament can on the Internet by going to www.jocjive.com and hear play-by-play of every game.

Spring Hill American 13, Okeechobee American 6
123 456 R H E
OKEE 300 030 -- 6 6 3
SHA 320 53X -- 13 11 1
OKEE - Barcia, Finney (2), Morgan (4), Rhodes (5) and Joyner.
SHA - Warner, Penney (3), Nicolini (5), Myers (5) and Hamilton, Tinari (5).
W - Penney. L - Barcia.
2B - T. Sorrentino (SHA).
Records - Okeechobee American (1-1), Spring Hill American (8-1 overall, 2-0 states).

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