Lake Brantley, University toss no-hitters in regional wins
Lake Brantley’s Hannah Marien and Orange City University’s Grace Taylor were exceptional in the circle Thursday while pitching no-hitters in separate Florida High School Athletic Association softball regional quarterfinal games.
Marien, who also connected at the plate for a 2-RBI double, struck out 11 batters and issued 3 walks as the Patriots defeated rival Lake Mary 8-0 in Class 7A Region 1.
Kaeli Zahradnik went 4-for-4 with a double, RBI and 2 runs scored for Lake Brantley. The win sets up a home semifinal vs. Hagerty on Tuesday.
Hagerty’s Rachel Matthiesen, Mackenzie Hawk and Mia Spitulski each hit home runs to lead the Huskies to an 11-0 win at Timber Creek.
Lake Brantley defeated Hagerty 2-1 for the District 3 title last week.
Hagerty won 5-2 when the teams played April 6.
Taylor finished with 9 strikeouts and 4 walks during University’s 9-0 no-hit win vs. Niceville in 6A Region 1. Aminah Vega, Annalyn Duncan and Onnalee Floriano connected on home runs for the Titans, who host a regional semifinal Tuesday between 2021 state tournament teams.
No. 2 University faces No. 6 Winter Springs for the third time. The Titans won 2-0 last week in the District 4 semifinals. Winter Springs won 9-0 on March 9.
Linda Corazzini drove in 3 runs in the top of the seventh inning and Ashlyn Storm struck out 6 batters as the Bears advanced with a 3-0 upset win at No. 3 Tallahassee Chiles.
Winter Springs lost to Doral Academy in last year’s 6A state championship game. University fell short vs. Park Vista in the 7A state semifinals.
No. 6 seed Apopka plays at Orange Park Oakleaf in 7A Region 1 after pulling a 6-2 upset win at No. 3 Ocala West Port. Four players recorded 2 hits for the Blue Darters, including Jesiana Mora, who had 2 doubles, 2 RBIs and 2 runs scored.
Lake Nona held off visiting Boca Raton Spanish River for a 4-3 win in 7A Region 3. The Lions led 4-0 after two innings before giving up one run in the third and two more in the sixth. Kiley McQuillan struck out 6 batters and Kennedy McQuillan drove in 3 runs.
Alanna O’Brien struck out 8 batters to help top-seeded Groveland South Lake win 2-0 vs. Okeechobee in 5A Region 2. Alyssa Bustos and Nia Debenedittis each drove in a run for the Eagles.