Viera and Rockledge played about an hour apart in regional semifinal softball games on Tuesday, but both teams started and finished the same way.
Both fell behind by two runs early but rebounded for 7-2 wins, and both will be home Friday in regional final games with a shot at the state tournament.
Savannah Simpson and the Rockledge Raiders celebrate their 7-2 victory over Merritt Island during Tuesday’s regional semifinal game.
“When you’ve got to play a team for the fourth time and they know your tendencies, it’s difficult to mount a comeback,” Rockledge coach Michael Inman said. His team had just beaten rival Merritt Island, and it was a second inning Molly McLaughlin grand slam that turned the game.
Rockledge improved to 25-3 on the season. Pitcher Ashley Stephenson, who had to fight back from the deficit on the mound, improved to 11-1.
“I’d rather play against a team that I’ve played a lot because I know them,” she said. “If it’s a team that I don’t know, then I have to go through the lineup a couple of times.”
Viera needed a couple of times through its lineup against Deltona, also falling behind by a 2-0 score in the first couple of innings. The Hawks, now 26-1, took the lead in the sixth inning. The comeback was sparked by back-to-back squeeze plays.
“Kiana (East) threw a good game, and our defense kept us in it,” Viera coach Dale Pierce said. “The defense was in it all night. They played great for us.”
East improved to 22-1 on the mound, while Kelly Bishop and Kaitlyn Jensen each drove in a pair of runs. Bishop and Sydney Brooks both went 3-for-4.
Tylen Alford, who went 2-for-4, was the only Rockledge player with more than one hit.
The Raiders will host Plantation American Heritage, a 12-0 winner over Archbishop McCarthy on Tuesday, in a Class 6A regional final. The Hawks drew Lake Region, a 1-0 winner over Tampa Chamberlain in eight innings.
Contact McCallum at 321-242-3698 or bmccallum@floridatoday.com. Follow him @Brian_McCallum on Twitter and at facebook.com/FLtoday.brianmccallum.
High school sports | floridatoday.com/sports/high-school-sports/
WEDNESDAY
Regional quarterfinal baseball
Class 7A: Seabreeze at Viera, 7; Melbourne at Edgewater, 7
Class 6A: Suncoast at Rockledge, 7; Merritt Island at Port St. Lucie, 4
Class 5A: McKeel at MCC, 4; Satellite at Avon Park, 7