No. 1 Huskies win the flip
Coaches notoriously urge their teams to control their own destiny on the field of play.
That makes a coin flip, a luck of the draw that has nothing to do with skill or will, the source of much anxiety when it can impact a team’s chances to reach the state playoffs.
But a coin flip is exactly how Hagerty and Winter Springs decided the top two seeds for next week’s Class 8A, District 9 softball tournament, for the second time in three seasons, on Monday.
Hagerty’s David Stone made his most clutch coaching decision of the season as Lake Howell coach Tom Kreahling made the flip, to all but assure the Huskies a return to regionals for the first time since 2015.
“We met for the FACA district meeting and I had forgotten all about [the coin flip], but they were ready to go,” Winter Springs coach Mark Huaman said. “Dave brings his own coin, Tom flips it, and Dave calls it. I guess I would’ve called tails anyway.”
It was a brief and intense gathering for the coaching trio, who’ve become friends over the years while ribbing one another through text messages and tweets.
Armed with a coin more suitable for a board game than something as serious as deciding postseason seeding, Stone called “heads” on the advice of an assistant coach.
“I pulled [the coin] out of my bag and I told them we’re going with heads, because we’ve been going with heads all year and been winning with it,” Stone said. “We got the luck this time.”
The coin was a gift from players following the 2016 season. It was a gesture that mocked the unlucky moments the Huskies faced that season with coin tosses. Hagerty lost a flip in the weather-shortened Kissimmee Klassic and again to decide the top seed in districts.
The Huskies went on to lose in a 13-inning district semifinal that year to Lake Howell, which then beat top-seeded Winter Springs for the district title before going on to reach the region final.
Hagerty, ranked No. 1 in the Sentinel Super Six, will face the winner of Evans and Edgewater in a district semifinal next week, teams they’ve beaten handily this year. Winter Springs, ranked No. 3 in the Super Six, must match up with third seed Lake Howell.
The Silver Hawks have made a habit of knocking both Hagerty and Winter Springs from the playoffs in recent years. But they’ll likely need a flawless outing against the Bears this time around after losing twice by a combined 14-0 tally.
“It’s hard to beat a good team three times,” Huaman warned. “I was reminded of Shakespeare’s ‘Henry V’ when he said, ‘Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more.’ ”
Hagerty rallied twice against Lake Howell this year to win each time by a 3-2 score.
“You go through the season looking to control the things you can control, then it comes down to a coin flip again,” Stone said. “It’s just hard not to get excited about a coin flip. You have that anxiety going in, and when it lands on your side you just feel a huge sense of relief.”
Here are the Super Six rankings, with records as of games played through Monday:
Won 3-1 in 9 innings vs. then-No. 4 Lake Brantley and 2-0 vs. East Ridge.
over Lake Mary.
Won 2-1
— Won 11-0 over then-No. 9 Lake Howell.
Edged then-No. 3 Apopka 1-0.
Lost 3-1 in nine innings vs. No. 1 Hagerty.
— Defeated Seabreeze 4-1.
Apopka (18-4), Clermont East Ridge (20-2), West Orange (15-7), St. Cloud (15-7), Dr. Phillips (20-2), Lake Mary (10-10).