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Home field advantage doesn’t help Panthers PDF Print E-mail
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Friday, 05 March 2010 09:16
By Ken Jackson
Sports Writer
Home sweet home? Nevermind, Gateway coach Rob Hammond says.
His Panthers took one on the chin in Wednesday’s blustery weather, losing 14-2 to undefeated Cypress Creek in their home opener.
Leadoff hitter Jose Baez gave Gateway a 1-0 first-inning lead when he walked, stole second, went to third on a wild pitch and scored on Juan Rivera’s groundout.
That came before the Bears unleashed Danny Arbalez, who uncorked a three-run triple in the second inning and a three-run homer in the fourth to make it 2-for-2 against Osceola County teams after the Bears beat Harmony  Monday.
The Panthers are 2-4 after dropping a 6A District 6 game to Vero Beach on Feb. 26. They were rained out at Port St. Lucie Centennial on Tuesday.
Gateway wasn’t the only local team to have a rough go of it Wednesday. St. Cloud (1-2) dropped an 11-0 decision to Freedom (5-1).
Osceola (4-2) rebounded from a 13-0 5A District 5 loss to Sebring on Tuesday with a 19-5 OBC win over Celebration in which Gabby Rios doubled twice and drove in three runs. Prior to that, the Kowboys dealt Liberty its first loss with an 11-4 win that was powered by Rios’ grand slam.
Kowboys Coach Nick James said the inconsistency is a product of the team’s youth.
“We have talent, and some nights we’re capable of looking really good,” he said. “Then some nights we show our youth. But there’s a long way to go.”
OHS faced 5A-5 foe Lake Wales on Friday. OHS gets its     crack at county-killer Cypress Creek on Monday.
Celebration is 1-5, thanks to a 3-2 win over Haines City last week in which Coach Mike Pagano’s team got two runs in the bottom of the seventh.
Liberty (6-1) bounced back from its loss to Osceola in a big way Tuesday, knocking off Davenport Ridge 11-0 in a 5A-5 game. Johnny Maslanka drove in two runs, and Jared Murphy and Tim Tapia combined to pitch the shutout.
Harmony was (3-3) after an 11-1 win over South Lake on Thursday. Austin Paroz went the distance on the mound, and Tyler Lesch went 2-for-3. The Longhorns dropped a 4A District 6 game to Tavares, 6-5 on Feb. 26 before the  loss to Cypress Creek.
“We’ve got some guys dinged up. It’s not the way you want to start in the district or conference, but we’ll be okay,” HHS Coach Mike Fields said.
Harmony played at St. Cloud in a 4A-6 game on Friday.
Teams will take a brief break for FCAT testing before hitting the field Thursday. Among the day’s matchups: St. Cloud at Freedom (4 p.m.), Winter Park at Osceola, Gateway at Boone and Liberty at Sebring (all 7 p.m.).
 

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