When the 2026 Orange Belt Conference softball tournament gets underway Friday, the Tohopekaliga Tigers will find themselves in an unusual position. For the first time since the school opened in 2018, the Tigers will be the tournament’s top seed.
The tournament was scheduled to begin Monday but steady rain has left most fields in no condition to play until Friday when the rain stops and breezy conditions dry things out.
The Tigers opened the season with a 7-6 extra-inning loss to Lyman but has reeled off nine straight wins since then to earn the number one tournament seed based on FHSAA state rankings through March 31.
The Tigers will take a .401 team batting average into the tournament, with all nine starters hitting .321 or higher – including four hitting .400+. Junior Maria Santiago has been the lynchpin, hitting a team-leading .545 (14-for-36) with 12 runs scored while recording a 7-0 mark on the mound with a 1.93 ERA and 74 strikeouts in 61.2 innings.
First year coach Alanie Cora says she had no idea what type of team she was getting when she accepted the job last fall.
“To tell the truth, my goal when I accepted the head coaching position was to come out and have fun while creating a family-like atmosphere,” she said.
It’s apparently working out well, as team’s record is the best start in school history and the Tigers have already broken one glass ceiling when they defeated Osceola earlier in the year. The Tigers entered the season a combined 0-23 all-time against OHS, Harmony and St. Cloud, the county’s best programs year-to-year.
“I do believe we have started to close the gap and will be competitive against those teams both next week and in the future,” Cora added. “It will be a challenge though. The keys to winning for our team will be to continue to show up and have fun. We will take it one game at a time.”
As top seed, the Lady Tigers will host Harmony on Friday at 7 p.m. No. 2 Osceola will host No.3 St. Cloud Friday, and the winners will play for the OBC title at the highest seed.
If Harmony wins Friday, and the Longhorns' boys volleyball team wins the OBC championship on Friday against Celebration at Osceola, the Longhorns will win the OBC All-Sports Trophy.
Players to watch in the OBC tournament include St. Cloud’s Addison Felblinger (1.55 ERA, 97K, 81.1 IP), Grace Comiskey (.279, 11 RBI) and freshman Zhra DeLa Cruz (.500 BA); Harmony’s Emerson Aslan (.485, 4 HR, 15 RBI) and Elyssa Staley (.378, 15 RBI); and Osceola’s trio of juniors Tenley Dawson (.460, 16 R, 18 RBI), and Faith (.417) and Destiny (.419, 15 RBI) Ferrer.
If the state rankings are any indication, it could be a highly competitive tournament among the top four seeds as only 13 ranking spots among the 500+ high school teams separated top seed Tohopekaliga (No. 122 overall) and number four seed Harmony (No. 135 overall).
2026 Orange Belt Conference
Softball Championship Schedule
Friday, April 10
Harmony 7, Tohopekaliga 3
St. Cloud 6, Osceola 0
Gateway at Celebration, 7 p.m.
Poinciana d. Liberty, forfeit
Monday, April 13
Championship: Harmony at St. Cloud, 7 p.m.
Third Place: Osceola at Tohopekaliga, 7 p.m.
Fifth Place: Gateway/Celebration winner vs. Poinciana, 7 p.m.
