Chaminade’s Bats Carry Lions To 13-7 District Victory Over North Broward

Julian Pino’s teammates were calling for him to just do what he’d done before.

In a home-run derby as part of South Broward’s Spring Break tournament, the junior had slugged his way to the longball crown.

On Tuesday evening as he approached the plate in the fourth inning with the game tied at five apiece, his teammates were now rooting for him to channel that same swing that had carried him during the derby.

Pino did not disappoint, lifting a pitch high to left field for a two-run home run that gave the Lions the lead for good as they went on to defeat host North Broward Prep 13-7 in an exciting District 4A-13 contest played in Coconut Creek.

“I just wanted to put the ball in play,” Pino said, after striking out his first two at-bats. “It was a relief that I finally hit the ball. This was a big game for us because we lost to them earlier this season. We need to show that we can stick with anyone in the district.”

Although the win keeps the Lions (9-9, 3-6) near the bottom of the district standings, it reminds the rest of the teams in 4A-13 that Chaminade will not be an easy pass once the district tournament rolls around.

“This is the time of the year that we are relying on guys who’ve come through and also seeing who will come through for us in the future,” Lions coach Mike Moss said. “It’s almost to the point where you have to make those plays or else your season is over. We feel good about tonight.”

Chaminade tacked on another run in the fourth on a bases-loaded walk and then put the game away with three more runs in the fifth and a pair in the seventh. Pino added a single and a run to finish 2-for-4, and Danny Vitello was 2-for-4 with two RBI.

With the district tournament just a few short weeks ago, Tuesday’s game provided a nice opportunity for both teams to iron out some of their kinks in preparation for the playoffs.

Despite the loss, the host Eagles (6-11, 3-5) proved their own mettle in overcoming an early 5-0 deficit by scoring five runs in the bottom of the third inning off of Lions vaunted starter Brandon Burgess.

Sophomore Hernando Sierra blasted a three-run home run to erase the deficit as the Eagles batted around the order during the inning. Mack Nathanson helped spark the rally with a double that put two runners in scoring position, and Kevin Fagan singled up the middle and stretched it into a double to score both runners.

For Fagan, the hit was even more meaningful after the senior had survived a scary moment an inning earlier. After the Lions loaded the bases, Danny Vitello sent a liner towards Fagan at shortstop. At the last moment, the ball took a sharp bounce and ricocheted off the senior’s face, immediately dropping him to the ground. But surprisingly, Fagan refused to leave the game.

He then hit in each of his next three at-bats, including a solo home run in the fourth inning.

North Broward did find success against Burgess, as Chris Husocki was 2-for-4 with a double and RBI, and Sierra added an RBI double to finish 2-for-4.

Burgess worked through the tough stretches to earn the victory with six strong innings of work, throwing 112 pitches and recording seven strikeouts while only walking two.

“He horsed it out for us tonight,” Moss said. “He threw his fastball well tonight, and I like to see him go after people with his fastball. This is a unique place to play and whenever we play at this ballpark, crazy things happen. No lead is safe here. This is a good win for us. We’ve had times where we’ve had adversity, and this time, we came back and put it away. I am proud, and it is a step in the right direction.”

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