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A day after costly errors led to the team's first loss, the Dade City seniors look to get back into the championship hunt.
By JAMAL THALJI and STEVE LEE
© St. Petersburg Times, published July 7, 2000
DADE CITY -- Senior All-Star coach Danny Filley is pretty blunt about Wednesday's 4-2 loss against Pinecrest.
"Errors, errors," he said. "That's what lost the game."
And ended the District 4 seniors team's three-game winning streak at Lake Wales. The team had four errors in all, two coming from errors by the catcher overthrowing first and second base. But a rematch with Pinecrest at 1 p.m. Saturday awaits -- if Dade City can get past tonight's game against the winner of the Lake Wales/Lakeland Orange contest.
Offensively, Dade City was led by Matt Prowant, who pitched in the loss but was 4-for-4 at the plate. Sonny Glover went 3-for-4 and brought in an RBI, as did Corey Filley.
Dade City opened the series with a 13-2 win over Zephyrhills, then narrowly defeated host Lake Wales 3-2 before beating Plant City 5-1.
"We've been crushing the ball," the coach said.
Entering Wednesday's contest, Prowant was averaging a team-high .583 and Glover was hitting .545. Jhavard Bailey and Filley each averaged .500.
Bailey, Prowant and Matt Smith each have a win on the mound, while closer Chris Nyman has finished up in all three games.
Dade City's junior baseball team (1-2) also played three games, but was eliminated in District 4 after Monday's 10-9 extra-inning loss to Lake Wales in Plant City.
Regardless of the outcome, Dade City coach Randy Maggard will not soon forget that contest.
"It was a great ballgame," Maggard said. "Probably the best game I ever coached (only) to lose."
Dade City trailed 9-5 in the top of the seventh, but Michael Onyskin and Mitchell Dunaway each had a base hit to key a four-run rally. Jared Castro slid home with the tying run on Timothy Jackson's suicide squeeze bunt.
The game ended after more than four hours on a pair of Lake Wales hits in the eighth.
To report news from Dade City Little League, contact Jamal Thalji at (352) 521-5757, ext. 25; by fax at (352) 521-0290; or by e-mail at thalji@sptimes.com.