Coral Springs and St. Thomas will play for Big 8 softball title
PEMBROKE PINES Coral Springs Charter and St. Thomas Aquinas will battle for the BCAA Big 8 softball title at 7 p.m. on Thursday after the two earned semifinal victories on Tuesday night at Silver Lakes Park-South.
Junior shortstop Lindsey Garcia pushed across four runs, and Coral Springs Charter (22-2) got some payback against the team that handed the Panthers their two regular-season losses, defeating Pines Charter 8-3 and ending their run of two straight tournament titles.
In a potential regional final preview in Class 8A, St. Thomas Aquinas held off Cooper City 2-1 with Kaitlin King pitching a complete game.
Garcia, an Auburn commit, got the Panthers offense going early, knocking in two in the first with a double and then another pair in the second.
“All I was thinking in the [batter’s] box, I’m going to do my job and bring in all the runs that I can,” Garcia said. “Third time’s a charm was our motivation [Tuesday]. ‘Two L’s make a dub,’ is what we said.”
Senior pitcher Emily Estroff settled in after a threerun second inning against her. Pines starter Eliza Gonzalez hit a two-run single in the frame. Cassidy Crump drove in two runs for CSC.
“Anytime you can avenge two losses like that, I’m pretty satisfied with our performance,” Coral Springs Charter coach Mark Montimurro said.
King gave up one run on three hits for the Raiders (13-4).
“Seven great innings by her,” St. Thomas coach Bryan Baucom said. “She got outs when she needed to.”
Kristen Sacca put Aquinas ahead in the first with a sacrifice fly. Meagan Patterson, a junior Troy commit, drove in another in the third with an RBI single.
Brenna Lokeinsky hit a run-scoring double in the bottom of the third to pull the Cowboys (18-5) within one, but they couldn’t get another run across against King. Cooper City starter Shelby Jones allowed two runs on three hits.
In their lone regular-season meeting, the Panthers beat the Raiders 5-3 at St. Thomas on Feb. 20.
dfurones@ sunsentinel.com / @DavidFurones_