Lucky Threes: Colts Win Third Straight District Title With Third Win Over Douglas

To say that Coral Springs and Douglas have developed a rivalry over the years is the understatement of the year. The Colts and Eagles have become one of the premiere rivalries in Broward, and when a district title is on the line, you can expect the intensity to be taken up even a notch further.

That was the case Thursday night at Coral Springs where more than 400 fans packed the stadium to see the Colts and Eagles battle for the District 8A-11 title for the second time in the past three years. The fans received their money’s worth, with both teams leaving everything they had out on the field, and in the end, it was the Colts who came away with a 7-5 victory and their third straight district title.

Coral Springs will host the loser of tonight’s West Broward-Flanagan game, and Douglas will travel to the winner in regional quarterfinals Thursday.

The pendulum has swung in a district that was once owned by Douglas. In recent years, Coral Springs has started to take control, and it has done so by handling their crosstown rivals. This season, the Colts had won both meetings coming into the district final, and early on, it looked as if the Colts were going to run the Eagles right off the field.

In the first inning, Coral Springs scored five runs on five hits off Douglas starter Brandon Dreichler. Dylan Ebel, Lewis Brinson, Jordan Gleicher and Joey Silvani had singles in the frame, while Tre Dingus contributed a double to the hit parade. Silvani’s two-run single capped the five-run inning for the Colts.

In the second inning, Colts head coach Frank Bumbales could be heard in the dugout telling his players not to let up. Bumbales, in his 21st season at the helm, has seen five-run leads disappear quickly in previous games between the two teams.

“I knew that wasn’t going to be enough,” said Bumbales. “Anytime we’re playing them, specifically this group of players, they can swing the bats. They’re a great team, and they hadn’t won eight of their last nine for no reason.”

Bumbales’ hunch came to fruition in the third inning. Douglas put on an offensive explosion of their own in the inning, tying the score at five. In the inning, five of the first six batters that stepped to the plate eventually came around to score. Alec Dowell started the inning with a base hit, and was followed by a Colton Bottomley base knock. Derek Fritz also singled, and after a failed squeeze attempt, Mike Greenberg singled, Chris Pannell doubled, Luis Silverio singled and Jonathan Lipinski hit a sacrifice fly to tie the game.

Dreichler, meanwhile, had settled on after the first, tossing three shutout innings. Dreichler was pulled after the fourth, and he turned the ball over to Bottomley.

In the Colts’ half of the fifth, Justin Mixon drew a lead-off walk. After a strikeout, Mixon moved to second on a ground ball to first. Ebel drew a walk, and then came the play that changed the game. The Colts base-runners took off on a double steal, and when the ball was thrown into left field, Mixon scored the go-ahead run. Ebel went all the way to third on the play. Dingus then promptly singled, giving the Colts a 7-5 lead.

Dingus was new to the Colts program this season, but he did win a district title last year with Highlands Christian. This title, according to Dingus, meant much more.

“I’ve never felt like this before,” said Dingus after the win. “Even when we won districts at my old school, I didn’t have this feeling. The intensity is great, and this win was big.”

Coral Springs won the district last season over Deerfield, a surprise participant in the title game, but the emotion on Thursday night was much more personal for all Coral Springs’ players, including Brinson, who is expected to be drafted in the first couple rounds of the upcoming MLB Draft.

“We’ve got a couple of new guys that haven’t won a district title with us, and we wanted to get them that feeling,” said Brinson. “This one was special, because it’s our third in a row, and that’s never been done at this school. We’ve been together a long time, and I love these guys, so it just meant a lot, and to do it against Douglas, who we have great respect for, it’s just amazing.”

With the constant pressure of having to play in front of dozens of scouts every time he took the field this season, Brinson got off to a slow start, but he has come on in the second half of the season, and again has been a big reason why the Colts are now three-time champions. Brinson went 3-for-4 with a double in the championship game.

“At the beginning of the year, I was definitely pressing a lot. I felt like I had a lot of pressure on me with the draft and everything else, but my teammates have been great. A couple of them pulled me aside and said I didn’t need to carry the team, that we had a whole lineup of guys that could produce. Once I relaxed, the second half of the year was much better. The only thing me and my teammates are focused on now is winning that state title.”

As the game came to a close, the teams met at home plate for the traditional handshake, but many of the players exchanged hugs instead. Once their team meetings were complete, many players and coaches from both teams again came together, a sign of the mutual respect.

“We’ve got 40 young men out here that know each other, like each other, and respect each other,” said Douglas head coach Todd Fitz-Gerald. “When we’re between the lines, we are competing as enemies, but once the game’s over, we’re all friends. They got us for the third time this year, and my hat goes off to them. But hey, we’re both moving on in the playoffs, and I think we’ll represent our district well next week.”

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