Game had it all: late starts, momentum swings, 24 walks and an exciting finish
It was compelling and it was exciting, but it was far from artistic as the Harmony Longhorns held on to beat St. Cloud, 7-6, on Friday night at Tohopekaliga High to claim their third consecutive Orange Belt Conference championship.
The game, which began almost an hour past its scheduled 7 p.m. start due to the length of Osceola’s 11-6 win over Gateway in the third place game, lasted more than three hours and featured 24 walks, with 21 runners stranded on base.
Still, it was exciting finish, as Harmony overcame a 4-2 deficit to score five runs in the bottom of the sixth, only to see the Bulldogs score two in the top of the seventh and have the bases loaded until Longhorns pitcher Ismael Rivera retired Aiden Lewis on a deep fly out to center to end the game.
“I’ve always said there is more than one way to win a game,” Harmony coach Heath Williams said. “And tonight was a perfect example. I am not sure you can say we won the game, it was more than we survived it.”
The struggles of both starting pitchers forecast what was to follow. St. Cloud took a 1-0 lead in the first on an RBI single by Drew Kelley and Harmony tied it in the third on Clayton Williams’ sacrifice fly. Each team tallied one run in the fourth, then St. Cloud appeared to take control in the top of the sixth when Aiden Lewis ripped a two-out, two-run double to left-center gap to put the Bulldogs ahead, 4-2.
But the lead was short lived. Bulldog reliever Sean Gallagher appeared to be on cruise control when he retired seven consecutive batters, but Alexavier Perez reached on a one-out error in the sixth, then Matt Grau walked to chase Gallagher from the game. Westin Thompson reached on an infield hit, then the next three Longhorns walked to bring in three runs and give Harmony a 5-4 lead. A pitching change resulted in two more walks to score two more before Sebastian Echeverry struck out Lebron to end the inning. All totaled, Harmony scored five sixth-inning runs on one hit that did not leave the infield.
Still, St. Cloud showed some resiliency in the seventh inning. Sammy Echeverry led off with a double and after Thompson struck out the next two hitters, a pair of walks loaded the bases.
“I didn’t trust my instincts enough,” Williams said. “I think it was the first time in my coaching career I let the players talk me out of making a pitching change.”
Ismael Rivera entered and threw a wild pitch to move the runners and make it 7-5. Another run scored on an error, then Wright walked on a 3-2 pitch to load the bases. The game ended on Lewis’ deep fly ball to center field.
With the win, Harmony won its fourth straight and went to 17-6 on the year. It also gave the Longhorns a 2-1 season series lead over St. Cloud, with all three contests being decided by one run. After winning eight of their previous nine games, the Bulldogs now are 14-6.
Although Harmony won the regular season rubber game, Williams is convinced the teams will meet again this year. “From top to bottom they have a really good team over there,” Williams said. “We share the same district, so we will most likely meet them again.”
On Thursday, Tohopekaliga captured the fifth-place game with an 11-6 win over Celebration; Poinciana won the seventh-place game, 10-0, over Liberty.
2025 OBC Baseball Tournament
Quarterfinals
Osceola 1, Celebration 0
Harmony 15, Liberty 0
St. Cloud 15, Poinciana 0
Gateway 8, Tohopekaliga 7
Semifinals and Consolations
Harmony 12, Osceola 3
St. Cloud 5, Gateway 3
Tohopekaliga 18, Poinciana 3
Celebration 15, Liberty 0
Finals
7th Place: Poinciana 10, Liberty 0
5th Place: Tohopekaliga 11, Celebration 6
3rd Place: Osceola 11, Gateway 6
Championship: Harmony 7, St. Cloud 6
