Two for two: Somerset Silver Palms softball caps long week with first ever trip to state

It’s one thing to overcome obstacles.

But then there is what the Somerset Silver Palms softball team did on Friday.

Just hours after finally wrapping up their 7-3 regional semifinal win over SLAM Academy on their home field, the Stallions had to jump in a bus and trek all the way up to Coral Springs.

After some lunch at a Chick Fil-A, and for some maybe a short nap, they headed over to Betti Stradling Park in Coral Springs to take on Coral Springs Charter, the No. 7 ranked team in the nation that brought a 25-0-2 record into the game.

And find a way to beat them in a Region 4-3A championship on the same field that left them with heartbreak a year ago when they lost 2-1 in the final inning.

If there was one takeaway from Friday night, it’s that the Silver Palms girls were a determined bunch. That following a tense 1-0 extra inning victory over Charter to punch their ticket to a first ever trip to the state final four.

It marked the first trip to state for any team at the school as Silver Palms (28-2) will head for Legends Way Ball Fields in Clermont where they will take on Montverde Academy on Tuesday, May 23 at either 11 a.m. or 1:30 p.m.

The Stallions were forced to endure three consecutive days of starting and stopping the game against SLAM due to inclement weather. They finally managed to finish the game on the fourth attempt. But because the state would not allow them to move the game against Charter to Saturday (because the state required Saturday to be a makeup day for any lost games on Friday with the 3A state tournament starting on Tuesday), they had to play a two-site doubleheader.

“I can’t begin to tell you how proud I am of these girls,” Silver Palms coach Gator Rebhan said. “All week waiting for one game to end, come up here today and sit in a Chick Fil A for four hours and come out here against a great team like Charter and find a way to get it done, it tells you a lot about their resolve.”

After the game went seven scoreless innings thanks to brilliant pitching performances from both Edan Playa of Somerset and Charter’s Sophia Bertorelli, somebody finally broke the scoreboard with that precious first run when the Stallions plated an unearned run to take the lead.

That run came thanks to some aggressive baserunning from the head coach’s daughter, Taylor Rebhan.

After she reached on a two out single to left (only the third hit Bertorelli gave up all night), she took off trying to steal second. When the ball trickled into center field, she took off for third and just kept on running.

A good throw on the relay would’ve gotten her easily at the plate but it was off line and Rebhan stretched her left hand out to touch the plate.

“I don’t think I’ve ever run so fast in my life,” said an out-of-breath Taylor Rebhan. “I saw coach waving his arms green lighting me around third and I just ran as hard as I could. What a feeling when I touched that plate and was safe. I knew the way Edan was pitching and the way our defense was playing that one run would be enough and it was.”

Playa gave up a one out single to Addi Michel in the bottom of the inning and after Michel stole second one out later, it was up to Charter’s Heather Robertson to extend the game with a hit. But Playa got her swinging at a brilliant off speed pitch to end the game prompting a wild celebration from Stallion players on the mound.

Even though she only struck out four, Playa only walked one Charter batter and induced numerous pop flies for easy outs.

“My heart is racing so fast right now, I can’t even think straight,” Playa said. “This means so much. To be the first Somerset team to ever go to state in anything is amazing.”

Asked how she and her teammates dealt with the unbelievably choppy week, Playa didn’t hesitate.

“The longest week of my life.,” Playa said. “Mentally I just tried to stay positive through everything. We were being tested and it was up to us to pass the test and not complain about it. Before the game we had a team talk and just really decided to trust each other. Trust that we’re going to move each other on the bases and trust our defense and the defense really came through tonight.”

On the flip side was a stunned and disconsolate Charter squad. It marked their first loss since a state semifinal loss to Oviedo Hagerty a year ago and left head coach Mark Montimurro a frustrated figure.

That’s because he watched his pitcher strike out 18 of a possible 24 batters only to give up an unearned run, all the while not giving her any offensive support at the plate.

“We had been trending poorly now for the last six or seven games with our bats,” Montimurro said. “We tried everything. Going old school with drills, hitting everyday and it’s just been a struggle. You can’t give Sophie no runs, it’s just not fair. she deserved a better fate. But we know Somerset is a great team, Gator does a great job and we went right down to the wire last year with this team. We expected to see them in this game all season. Last year was our turn, tonight was theirs.”

Region 4-7A final - Boca Raton Spanish River 7, Coral Reef 1: The young Barracudas allowed three early runs and never recovered on Friday at home.

“The future’s bright,” Barracudas coach Zach Segal said. “We had no seniors on the field and two freshmen that got another year to get stronger and faster.”

Designated player Isabella Santos got the scoring started with an RBI triple in the game’s third at-bat. Third baseman Tamsin Scarrett smacked a 2-run homer to center in the next at-bat and the Sharks (15-8) never looked back.

The Barracudas (22-7) entered the game on a nine-game winning streak, despite losing star pitcher Camilla Villamizar to an early season injury. They leaned on freshmen arms Erin Zambrano and Quin Wylie en route to the regional final.

Zambrano started Friday, but was replaced by Wylie after allowing the initial three runs while recording just one out.

Wylie shut out the Sharks for the next four innings before she found trouble late. The Barracudas managed just four hits on offense, while limited by Sharks pitcher Giselle Portanova. Portanova issued five strikeouts and two walks to lift the Sharks into the 7A state semifinals.

Wylie allowed eight hits and four runs, including three earned, in 6.2 innings. Center fielder Brianna Perantoni went 1 for 3 with an RBI double in the loss. Right fielder Johari Askew went 1 for 3 with two steals and scored the Barracudas lone run.

Left fielder Brianna Fields also recorded a hit in the loss.

“It was a matter of time before freshman nerves and everything kind of caught up to us and they came out hot and hit the ball,” Segal said.

ALEX BUTLER

Region 4-6A final - Doral Academy 2, Fort Lauderdale 0: Sara Breaux’s two-run homer in the sixth inning lifted the Firebirds (24-4-1) to the win and the state tournament for the fourth consecutive time. Yessenia Lopez threw a three-hitter, striking out five and walking two. Doral will take on Bartow in a state semifinal on Friday at 1:30 p.m. at Legends Way Ball Fields in Clermont.

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