Kopec And Sierra Lead North Broward Prep To 10-0 Victory

NBP’s Casey Kopec delivers a pitch during the Eagles 10-0 win Wednesday.

North Broward Prep had a taste of postseason success last year when it advanced to the state final four in Class 3A. The Eagles lost many of their top players of that state semifinal team, and it was expected that this season may be a rebuilding year. On Wednesday night, NBP served notice that it should not be overlooked this season.

Casey Kopec was one of the players on that state semifinal team, and he led by example in the 2012 preseason opener. Kopec went three innings, giving up only one hit, while striking out five in the Eagles’ 10-0 win over King’s Academy. The game featured two teams that advanced into the regional playoffs last year.

NBP was led offensively by Hernando Sierra. The Eagles right fielder went 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles. He may have had a third extra-base hit, but King’s center fielder john Carpenter tracked down Sierra’s deep drive in the fourth. The offensive output from Sierra was enough to impress Eagles head coach Brian Campbell.

“Hernando swung it well,” Campbell said. “He’s been swinging it well in practice, so I was anxious to see him in a game situation, and that was good to see. Hopefully, we can build on that, and he can be a big hitter in this lineup for us.”

NBP received offense from throughout its lineup, and much of that offense was a product of patience at the plate. After a dominating performance from their ace Matt Pisciottano on Monday, King’s pitchers struggled finding the strike zone against NBP.

“This was a big contrast to our first game on Monday night,” King’s head coach Doug Magaw said. “We know we have a young staff after our ace Matt, and that really came to light tonight….We walked too many guys, and we didn’t drive runs in when we had the chance. We just forgot the fundamentals of the game tonight.”

The Eagles capitalized on their opportunities by executing the fundamentals that King’s Academy was lacking. A sacrifice bunt by Anthony Valeo in the first and a sacrifice fly from second baseman Kevin Thomas in the fifth helped NBP produce runs. In the end, the aggressive baserunning and timely hitting paid off for the Eagles. Kopec credits the coaches with getting the young players ready to follow in the large footprints that last year’s team has left.

“Us seniors that were here last year, we have to show these young guys what it takes,” Kopec said. “We also know we have to step up ourselves, and teach these young guys how to step up. It’s not as easy as it was last season, but our coaches have come in and actually taught the younger players how to play and they play hard. I like what I see.”

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