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GULFPORT - Alexa Lopez doubled in two runs in the bottom of the sixth to lead Bloomingdale past McLean, Va., 3-2 on Saturday in the Southern Region tournament at Arnold S. White Stadium.
With the bases loaded and two outs, Lopez belted a shot to right-centerfield just out of the reach of rightfielder Katalina Khoury. Nicci Hopps and Devyn White scored.
"This is the first time that we've had to do it in the last at-bat," coach Jeff Carter said. "I knew they had it, but they were starting to give me a heart attack."
Tory Bohanan went the distance, yielding three hits while striking out four against last year's World Series runnerup.
A victory tonight against Phenix City, Ala., guarantees Bloomingdale the No.1 seed from Pool II and a semifinal game against the No.2 team from Pool I.
For Bloomingdale to not reach the semifinals: It must lose tonight, Virginia beat West Virginia and Bloomingdale finish with fewer runs allowed per inning than Alabama, which has given up 26 runs to Bloomingdale's four.
Other tournamentsCOLT BASEBALL: The Wellswood Colts earned their fourth straight trip to the World Series by beating Hialeah 6-1. The Series is Aug.3-10 in Lafayette, Ind.
Stephen Daneman, a Gaither junior, struck out seven and allowed one run and two hits to earn the win, and Justin Salas hit a two-run single in the fourth. "Defense and pitching were everything for us throughout the tournament," coach Robbie Chavis said. "Our kids gave up only one earned run in the tournament."
11-YEAR-OLD BASEBALL: Northside beat Merritt Island 5-4 on Mitchell McNall's two-run homer in the sixth inning of the state tournament in Port St. Lucie.
"I can't believe they couldn't hear us yelling in Tampa," coach Bob Coffman said.
Late Friday, Northside beat Apopka 6-0 behind Aaron Paulsen's two-hitter. Tyler Koch had a run-scoring double and McNall a two-run homer.
9-10 BASEBALL: Bloomingdale lost 6-5 to Palm Beach North in the state tournament in Delray. Down 5-3 entering the sixth, Bloomingdale tied it before allowing a run in the bottom half.
"Our kids played tough all the way," Bloomingdale coach Rob Bellera said.
JUNIOR SOFTBALL: Brittny Lafuente and Erica Bowman combined on a three-hitter in Citrus Park's 3-1 win over Callahan in the state tournament in Fort Myers. Mya Anderson drove in a run with a double and Kathryn Spack with a bunt.
SENIOR SOFTBALL: Rain postponed Citrus Park's game at the Southern Sectional in Ladysmith, Va., until today.
Times correspondent Terry Jones contributed to this report.