North Broward Prep blanks LaBelle in quarterfinals

COCONUT CREEK The last time North Broward Prep made the playoffs, the Eagles soared to a state tournament appearance in 2014.

The Coconut Creek private school is hoping this year’s squad can generate the same type of magic. On Tuesday, the Eagles started their baseball postseason off on a high note, topping LaBelle 6-0 in the Class 5A regional quarterfinals.

North Broward Prep (20-8) will play at Fort Pierce Lincoln Park Academy on Tuesday in semifinals.

Anthony Tomczak picked up the win for North Broward Prep, tossing five scoreless innings. The junior right-hander allowed just two hits and struck out eight. It was his second consecutive stellar outing after throwing a no-hitter on Apr. 30.

“I think [Tomczak] was awesome,” Eagles coach Brian Campbell said. “He was in the strike zone and he was forcing those guys to swing the bat and we were making plays behind him. I was proud of Anthony and that’s what we expect of the regional him.”

After a scoreless first inning, the Eagles jumped on the board in the second thanks to some LaBelle (19-9) pitcher-catcher mishaps. With runners in scoring position, junior Chase McBean scored on a passed ball to give North Broward Prep a 1-0 lead. On the ensuing pitch, Sawyer Feller crossed the plate on a wild pitch from Ty Nesbitt to make it 2-0.

The Eagles tacked two more in the third inning after a pair of RBI hits from Dylan Goldstein and Gabriel Esquivel to push the lead to 4-0. North Broward Prep capitalized on more Cowboy mishaps in the 6th inning. Edwards tallied his second run of the contest on an error and then Kobe Benson scored on a wild pitch to extend the lead to 6-0.

With Tuesday night’s victory, North Broward Prep pushed its winning streak to six games. The exclamation point during that run came in the district final when the Eagles topped Pompano Beach 9-4, avenging a pair of regular season losses to the Golden Tornadoes.

wdusenbury@sun-sentinel .com, Twitter @dusereport