Raiders’ offense leads way to coach’s milestone victory
Baucom earns his 250th win against Spanish River
FORT LAUDERDALE — St. Thomas Aquinas softball coach Bryan Baucom picked up a milestone victory, and it was a big one.
Baucom, who has been the Raiders coach for 25 years, won his 600th career game as St. Thomas beat Spanish River, 11-6, in the Class 8A regional semifinals in Fort Lauderdale on Tuesday.
“I’ve been blessed with great kids over the last 25 years, from 1995 to now,” Baucom said. “You don’t think about how many wins. You just want to win championships, and hopefully, this team is on the right path.”
The Raiders got off to a hot start on offense, scoring five runs in the first inning on a bases-loaded hit by pitch, a two-run single by Madison Santana and a two-run triple by Madison Granberry.
St. Thomas added two more runs in the second inning on a run-scoring single by Amanda Agemy and a sacrifice fly by Santana, then two more in the fifth inning on a triple by Santana and a wild pitch.
Despite the lead, Spanish River never caved, chipping away at St. Thomas’ lead. The Sharks scored three runs in the sixth inning to cut the Raiders’ lead to three.
“Spanish River didn’t quit tonight; I’ve got to give them a lot of credit,” Baucom said. “They could have easily folded, and they didn’t want to fold.”
But St. Thomas scored a pair of runs in the bottom of the sixth to keep the game out of Spanish River’s reach and secure the victory.
The Raiders will face rival Cooper City in the regional finals on Friday.
“That is a rivalry game: St. Thomas-Cooper City,” Baucom said. “There’s been a lot of big games played at their place played over my 25-year career.”