McCollin, De La Cruz Lead Fort Lauderdale Past Hallandale 13-0

Fort Lauderdale senior shortstop Stetson McCollin drove in five runs, junior right-handed pitcher Alex De La Cruz allowed just one hit over five shutout innings, and the Flying L’s cruised past Hallandale 13-0 in a five-inning game in the District 15-4A Tournament quarterfinals at Archbishop McCarthy High School.

It was a forgettable first inning for the  sixth-seeded Chargers. Fort Lauderdale sent 15 batters to the plate and scored 11 runs to put the game away early. The Flying L’s only had four hits in the first, but took advantage of four errors and five walks.

McCollin’s two-run triple to right field scored Kris Chatman and Shelby Geisler to open the scoring. First baseman Brad Smith followed with a bloop single into left-center to score McCollin to make it 3-0.

Hallandale left-hander Fred Minaya struggled with his command, allowing seven straight batters to reach with one out.

After the Flying L’s loaded the bases, Minaya forced in three runs by walking Gary Kousek,  Alex Honner, and Chatman consecutively. Hallandale’s Enrique Matural took the mound in relief, but was unable to limit further damage. Geisler stayed patient and worked a based loaded walk to give the Flying L’s a 7-0 lead.

McCollin then hammered a bases-clearing triple to the left field fence, and would score easily on the play after an errant relay throw towards third base to make it 11-0.

“We stayed patient as a team in the first inning,” McCollin said. “I listened to coach and was able to sit back and let the ball travel to me.”

Chatman had a leadoff inside-the-ballpark home run in the third inning to extend the lead to 12-0. He ripped a shot into deep left-center with the outfield playing shallow, and was able to use his speed to race around the bases and beat the late throw to home.

Kenny Miggins’ flyball into centerfield was dropped for the sixth error of the game by the Chargers, allowing McCollin to score to make it 13-0.

De La Cruz allowed a two-out single to Minaya in the first, but dominated the rest of the way. He struck out five and retired the final 13 batters he faced in the game.

“He was ahead of most hitters all night and was in control,” Fort Lauderdale coach Terry Portice said.

Hallandale committed seven errors for the game and closed the season with just three wins.

“We are an inexperienced team,” Hallandale coach Caral Coleman said.  We need our players to  put in the preparation and get better.”

The third-seeded Flying L’s advanced to the semifinals and will meet Cardinal Gibbons at 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Fort Lauderdale has dropped two meetings between the teams earlier in the season.

“We are looking forward to getting another chance at them,” Portice said said . “We came out flat in those two games. We need to be patient and show we can play better.”

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