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Today's games

CLASS 6A

Oviedo (25-8) vs. Miami Southridge (31-1), 10 a.m.

WORTH WATCHING: Miami Southridge last lost Feb. 22 (2-0 to a team from Fort Mill, S.C.) and is riding a 27-game winning streak. The Spartans are ranked No. 4 in the nation by Baseball America but have a chance to move up after No. 1 Elkins (Texas) and No. 2 Dunedin lost this week. Southridge is led by pitchers Edgar Ramirez (12-0, 0.21 ERA, 69 strikeouts, 66 innings) and Rolly Rodriguez (10-1, 1.21 ERA, 74 strikeouts, 64 innings). The Spartans' top hitter is outfielder Robert Zaldivar (.429). Oviedo advanced to the state tournament with an upset of nationally-ranked Apopka (No. 6 Baseball America) in the region final. The Lions last appeared in the state tournament in 2000, losing to Colonial in the semifinals. Oviedo's leading hitter is junior Kevin Cominsky (.357).

Bloomingdale (16-15) vs. Hialeah (22-10), 5 p.m.

HOW THEY GOT HERE: Bloomingdale defeated Palm Beach Gardens 6-1, Taravella 4-3 and Sarasota 4-2. Hialeah defeated Dr. Krop 12-0, Western 7-1 and Flanagan 10-5.

PROBABLE STARTERS: Bloomingdale, Brian Batson (3-4, 0.93 ERA, 61 strikeouts, 68 innings). Hialeah, Camilo Vazquez (9-0, 0.61 ERA, 88 strikeouts, 46 innings).

THE SKINNY ON BLOOMINGDALE: Bloomingdale is one of the surprises of the tournament, coming in one game over .500. The Bulls advanced with pitching depth and by peaking at the right time. Bloomingdale was 5-10 after its first 15 games but finished the second half of the season 11-5, including five wins in its last six games. The Bulls are led by Chris Woody (.414, 1 HR, 11 RBIs, 12 runs) and Mitch Rodriguez (.286, 1 HR, 8 RBIs).

THE SKINNY ON HIALEAH: Hialeah is the defending Class 6A champion. About the only thing wrong with last year's appearance was that Thoroughbreds pitching coach Carlos Marti was ejected from the semifinals when an FHSAA official believed he was receiving information from someone behind home plate with a radar gun. The Thoroughbreds are led by Vazquez on the mound and at the plate. Vazquez is undefeated when pitching and leads the team with three home runs, 32 RBIs and a .448 average. The Thoroughbreds have seven players with more than 16 RBIs.

CLASS 5A

Mosley (23-9) vs. Cooper City (22-9), 1 p.m.

WORTH WATCHING: Mosley is the only team in Class 5A to have appeared in a state tournament. The Dolphins lost to Wellington 5-4 in the 1999 state championship game. The Dolphins are led by pitcher Kyle Pearson (1.89 ERA, 75 strikeouts, 59 innings), who's also one of Mosley's leading hitters, entering the tournament with four home runs, 24 RBIs and 20 runs scored. After finishing as runner-up in its district, Cooper City shut out its last two opponents in the region tournament. The ace is Matt Cundiff (2.08 ERA, 58 strikeouts, 57 innings) and the Cowboys have seven hitters with at least one home run, led by Donnie Cundiff with six. Matt Meingasner leads the team with 31 RBIs and is batting .448, just behind Brandon Doddo's .478 average and ahead of Anthony Gonzalez at .400.

East Lake (27-4) vs. Chamberlain (14-12), 8 p.m.

HOW THEY GOT HERE: Chamberlain defeated Lakeland 2-1, Spruce Creek 7-6 and Deltona 8-7. East Lake defeated Northeast 3-1, Manatee 3-2 and Fort Myers 9-3.

PROBABLE STARTERS: Chamberlain, Devon Cason (6-2, 1.86 ERA, 48 strikeouts, 60 innings). East Lake, Tyler Huegel (9-1, 1.94 ERA).

THE SKINNY ON CHAMBERLAIN: The Chiefs are making their first state tournament appearance. The Chiefs are led at the plate by catcher Rocky Rocamora, who is hitting .423. Chamberlain received a boost when Steve Howard returned to pitching duties during the district tournament after recovering from a sore shoulder. Howard is 2-1 with one save and a 1.26 ERA with 10 strikeouts in 16 innings. Chamberlain won all three of its region games by one run. The Chiefs' longest winning streak this season is three. A win tonight would be No. 4 in a row.

THE SKINNY ON EAST LAKE: This is East Lake's first appearance in the state tournament. After starting the season 1-1, East Lake went on a 15-game winning streak before losing to Mosley 7-1 at the end of March. Chris Coghlan is one of the Eagles' top hitters and has been the second-hottest postseason hitter on the team. The hottest honors go to Huegel, who has six homers in the postseason including districts. Twice in the region tournament he pitched his team to a victory while hitting two homers in the same game. Brother Nate is the catcher and just as dangerous with the bat. The Eagles are ranked No. 5 in Class 5A, the highest ranking team remaining in that classification.

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