That’s What She Sued

Early season match-ups do not get much bigger than the one that was scheduled for Wednesday night at Flanagan. The host Falcons, who are expected to be one of the top programs in the county in 2014, welcomed Coral Springs Christian, who also is expected to compete for a state championship.

Making the match-up even more intriguing were the two starting pitchers. For Flanagan, they sent ace Gentry Fortuno to the . Fortuno took a 17-0 career record with him to the hill. His opponent on Wednesday was Touki Toussaint, one of the highest rated amateur pitchers in the country. More than 50 scouts were in attendance for the opening pitch.

The weather, however, had other ideas. After just two and a half innings, a weather delay caused the postponement of the game until Thursday. Flanagan took a 2-0 lead into the rescheduled game, and with both aces not returning to the contest, the Falcons cruised to a 5-0 victory over the Crusaders.

“When we ended last night, we had Touki on the ropes,” said Flanagan Manager Ray Evans. “We wanted to go ahead and finish that inning out, but it didn’t happen. You never know how things will change from day to day. All we talked about after the delay was having a runner on second, and making sure when we continued play that we got that guy across the plate and kept the momentum.”

Not only did that run score, but the Falcons added two additional runs in the inning, creating a nearly insurmountable 5-0 lead after three innings of play. The Falcons were helped by three Crusaders errors in the inning, and did their damage upon resumption without the benefit of a hit. Miguel Presno and Andres Rios both had hits earlier in the inning, but they came back on Wednesday.

When play resumed, Flanagan sent senior Kharlin Sued to the mound. After Fortuno went the first three, striking out six, Sued was equally as effective in the final four innings of the game. He finished the game with four innings of one-hit ball, striking out four and picking up the win.

For Sued, this game was all about making a statement.

“We knew what we were up against these past couple of days,” said Sued. “This is a great team (CS Christian). They have a lot of stars that are well known players, and that’s a challenge. And when you bring a challenge to our house, we accept it, and we embrace it just as much as any other challenge. Tonight was no different. We responded like we expect to.”

Jeremiah Muhammad was the go-to guy on the mound for the Crusaders when the game resumed Thursday. Muhammad gave up two runs, but that was largely due to a Crusaders defense that was uncharacteristically sloppy.

“Our defense tonight was awful,” said Crusaders Manager Matt Cleveland. “And I take responsibility for that as the head coach. We just have to get better. If we play defense this is a much different game. Take nothing away from Flanagan. They are a great team, and great teams make you pay when you make mistakes. That’s what they did tonight.”

Flanagan now moves into the championship game of the Falcon Challenge on Saturday night at 6:30 PM against Douglas. The Falcons and Eagles are both in 8A, and fans attending the game may be getting a preview of a possible state final four match-up between the Broward powerhouses.

For Flanagan, the Douglas game will already be their fifth big game of the year. The Falcons opened their preseason with games against perennial powers Killian and Palm Beach Central, and then faced 2013 state finalist Monsignor Pace in their opener. With CS Christian Thursday, and Douglas Saturday, the Falcons will have played four playoff teams from last year in their first five games.

“This game Saturday will be another great test,” said Evans. “Douglas always has a great team, and they are a great team this year. They’re going to be a playoff team, and are going to be fighting to get to states just like we are. We’ve already seen them play twice this week, and Fitzy (Douglas Manager Todd Fitz-Gerald) does a great job. I’m just happy to get one more quality game in before we get into district play.”

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