Harper extends hit streak, leads First Academy to district title
Junior softball player Hannah Harper continues to deliver in a big way this season for The First Academy.
Harper extended her hit streak to 23 games in a row and also pitched a four-hitter on Friday to help TFA claim its first softball district title since 2015.
The Royals (18-6) ended Cornerstone Charter Academy’s streak of four consecutive district championships with during an 11-1 win in six innings in the Class 3A District 7 final. CCA (11-12) entered the night having won its previous five games.
“In the beginning [of the season] we knew we had a special group of girls, and this is really special to us because it’s been a while since TFA has had a district championship,” Harper said. “When we work together, we get big wins like this one.”
Harper finished 2-for-4 with two RBIs and her seventh home run of the year in the win. She went into the game batting .575 with an on-base percentage of .595 and only four strikeouts against. As the team’s go-to pitcher, Harper had tallied 169 strikeouts and walked just 15 batters in 122 innings.
“She’s a gamer. I’ve never coached a more competitive girl,” said TFA head coach Kaley Bitterman. “It’s in her blood. She not only wants it for herself, but she wants it for the team and for the school.”
Harper, who moved to TFA as a sophomore after playing her freshman season at Sanford Seminole, has recorded at least one hit in every game since going hitless in a 2-1 win against West Orange to open the season.
The
Royals will host
Melbourne Central Catholic (15-1-1) in a regional quarterfinal on Wednesday. Cornerstone is on the road at Cocoa (15-8), which defeated MCC 9-1 in the District 8 final.
TFA, which lost at home for the only time this season 3-2 on Feb. 27 vs. Tampa Berkley Prep (13-9), goes into regionals winners of eight in a row and 10 of its past 11 since April 1.
Bitterman, in her fifth season as head coach and sixth overall at the school, noted that it’s been a total team effort up and down the batting order, and that “everyone has kind of had their own time to shine” over the past two weeks.
“Their preparation has been fantastic,” Bitterman said. “Out of all the teams I have coached here, this one knows how to bring it when it’s game time. The chemistry is unmatched.”
In Class 7A District 2, Orange City University improved to 22-0 with a 2-0 championship win against Port Orange Spruce Creek (13-9). Aminah Vega went 1-for-3 and drove in both runs while Katie Vandehey finished 2-for-2 for the Titans.