The baseball team finishes the postseason 8-1, with a 2-1 record at the state tournament.
By STEVE LEE
Published July 30, 2003
NEW PORT RICHEY - Cancel that summer trip to New England for the West Pasco Senior Baseball team.
That all-star squad will not be going to Bangor, Maine, site of the Senior Baseball World Series that begins Aug. 10, after bowing out of the state tournament at the Windermere Little League complex.
West Pasco extended its playoff unbeaten streak to 7-0 with Saturday's 7-2 win over Inverness. Later that day West Pasco lost 6-3 to Conway of Orlando, which beat Cross Creek of Jacksonville on Monday for the state title.
Sunday's 5-4 win over Niceville left West Pasco 2-1 in pool play of the state tournament and 8-1 in the playoffs.
"I've never talked to anybody who likes pool play," West Pasco manager Bob Fransen said. "To lose one game and be knocked out is ... those are the rules. You don't like them, but everybody knows what the situation is going in."
Right-handers Mike Lemming and Scott Bookwalter each earned a win in the state series, with each finishing the postseason with 3-0 records. Jeff Roxby, who took the loss against Conway, went 1-1.
Offensively Cellin Neptune led West Pasco in the playoffs, which included District 12 and Section 7 titles. Neptune hit four home runs, including a grand slam, with 12 RBIs and averaged .607.
Neptune was one of five West Pasco players to hit .400 or better: Tony Gironda, .500; Bobby Brunda, .483; Jeremy Coolidge, .452; and Roxby, .400.
Coolidge also tied Neptune for the team lead in RBIs.
"All things considered, the kids played pretty well," Fransen said.
In Saturday's opener Lemming scattered three hits, struck out four and walked two in six innings.
Leading 3-0, West Pasco put the game away with three runs in the bottom of the fifth. Brunda plated Matt Racinowski by drawing a bases-loaded walk, and Coolidge hit a two-run, two-out single.
Racinowski and Coolidge each went 3-for-4 in that game, with Racinowski scoring twice and Coolidge knocking in three.
Bookwalter tossed a complete game in the win over Niceville.
Trailing 1-0, West Pasco tied it in the second on Neptune's homer and took a 2-1 lead on Andy Medina's run-scoring single to score Roxby in the third.
Niceville scored two unearned runs in the bottom of the third to take a 3-2 lead, but West Pasco countered with a three-run fifth.
A Roxby double, a Brunda single and a walk to Medina loaded the bases. Roxby came in on Neptune's sacrifice fly before Brunda, and Medina scored when Racinowski reached on an infield error.
In the loss to Conway, West Pasco scored its runs in the bottom of the fourth.
Medina and Neptune hit run-scoring doubles, and Coolidge hit a run-scoring single.
