Oviedo softball shocks Hagerty, takes on Lake Howell next for Class 6A-4 title

Lions roar past crosstown rival Huskies 11-3 behind FSU commit Angelee Bueno

OVIEDO, FLORIDA – As far as big victories go, none were bigger for Oviedo High’s softball team than the one on Tuesday night. Now, the Lions are on the prowl for more.

Two days after shocking top-seeded Hagerty, 11-3, in the semifinals of the Class 6A, District 4 tournament, fourth-seeded Oviedo (13-10) now takes on No. 2 seed Lake Howell (19-7) for the district title on Thursday night at Hagerty High. The winner gets an automatic berth into next week’s regional playoffs.

In beating Hagerty (17-7), ranked No. 5 in Class 6A in the FHSAA Power Rankings, for the first time in three tries this season, Oviedo has now won four of its last five games and seems to have found its mojo at just the right time.

FSU commit Angelee Bueno led the charge for the Lions by going 2-for-5 with a home run and four RBI. Teammates Jorja Calimlin went 2-for-4 with one run scored and one RBI; Madison Slavik, 4-for-5 with two runs scored and one RBI; and Riley Fennell, 3-for-4 with two doubles and two runs scored.

Junior Kennedy Gibson picked up the win on the mound for Oviedo, which blew the game open with three runs in the fourth inning to take a 7-2 lead. The Lions ripped 14 hits off three Hagerty pitchers.

“The Lady Lions are peaking at just the right time and the team really wanted the opportunity to play Hagerty again since we lost to them in 9 innings last time (on March 30),” said Oviedo coach Anna Hollis-Childress. “They came together as a team and hit, played amazing defense, and cheered for each other like no other game all season.

“I hope it carries into tonight's meeting with Lake Howell, as I think the team wants them just as badly as they wanted Hagerty and of course with a win tonight, we would get to host (in regionals) and that would be awesome as well,” Anna Hollis-Childress said.

Leading Hagerty were Addison Orr, who went 2-for-3 with one run scored and one RBI; and Ana Roman, 2-for-4 with one run scored and one RBI.

Despite the loss, the Huskies can still qualify for the playoffs. The four district champions in each region earn automatic regional berths, and then four at-large schools are awarded berths based on the FHSAA Power Rankings.

“Regular-season play is rewarded under the new playoff format,” said Hagerty coach David Stone. “For a number of years, Lake Howell, Winter Springs, and Hagerty were all in the same district in Class 6A. The old format brackets would only allow for the district champion and the runner-up to go the regional playoffs. That would leave one of us out and replace us with a team of much-lower caliber getting in from another district, oftentimes with a losing record because they were coming from a three-team district.

“We saw a pattern of our district champion beating their runner-up, and our runner-up beating their district champion, and we would just turn around and play each other again in the regional semifinals,” Stone said, “because of this, the state has changed to reseeding teams at the end of the regular season, and then again after the district tournaments. The regional tournament will be made up of the four district champions plus the next four highest ranked at-large teams. Since we were ranked second in our region behind Pace going into our tournament, we should be a lock to get into the regional playoffs. Barring a major upset in Pace's Region 1, our district should get four of the eight bids (Hagerty, Lake Howell, Winter Springs, Oviedo).”

Lake Howell, seeded No. 2 in the district, beat Winter Springs, 12-5, in the other semifinal. The Silver Hawks are led by star pitcher Rhianna Hudson, and fellow sophomores Mia Terito and Julianna Terito at the plate.