- Leanna Bourdage pitched seven innings with 10 strikeouts and hit a 2-run home run leading Gainesville High to a 6-0 win over Deltona.
- Gainesville High will host No. 6 seed Wesley Chapel in the Class 5A-Region 2 semifinal after defeating No. 7 seed Deltona.
- Despite battling illness for two weeks, Bourdage showed no early fatigue and significantly contributed both offensively and defensively.
Gainesville High junior pitcher Leanna Bourdage is still battling an illness.
On Thursday night at Boulware Ballpark, she was especially sick early.
The Texas A&M commit struck out the side in order in the top of the first and hit a game-winning 2-run home run in the bottom of the first as No. 2 seed GHS shut out No. 7 seed Deltona, 6-0, in an FHSAA Class 5A-Region 2 Quarterfinal.
“My lesson with Denny Tincher out in Alabama last Saturday was a huge takeaway for me and it helped me get my forms so that my accuracy and speed was better,” Bourdage said.
The Hurricanes (14-6), who defeated Deltona in last week’s district championship game, will host No. 6 seed Wesley Chapel at 7 p.m. on Tuesday in a regional semifinal. The Wildcats (20-8) advanced with a 5-3 upset win at No. 3 Springstead (Spring Hill), which finished the season 19-3.
A win on Tuesday would put GHS back in the region final, likely at defending state champion Winter Springs, who defeated the ‘Canes, 9-3, in last year’s region final.
“It’s always a good feeling to have that first one, but we have many, many more games to go,” said GHS coach Chris Chronister. “I think they’re going to get harder as we go. Deltona is a very good team and Leanna was on her game tonight.”
Although she is “still under the weather for the last two weeks,” there were no signs of fatigue, at least not early.
Bourdage struck out six of the first eight batters she faced, much like the previous game against Deltona, when she struck out seven of the first eight batters. However, this time she kept the Wolves (13-6) off the scoreboard.
She also had the game-winning hit.
In the bottom of the first inning, sophomore Taylor Rogers reached base on a ground ball error by Deltona second baseman Kaitlyn Caruso.
With one on and no outs, Bourdage crushed a pitch over the fence in left center field, her third home run of the season, for a quick 2-0 lead.
“I’ve been working hard all week, going to the gym,” she said. “I realized I need to get stronger first to be able to hit the ball further, and that’s exactly what happened.”
A one-out single by Deltona’s Memphis Derby in the top of the fourth inning was one of just two hits Bourdage allowed in her seven complete innings of work in the circle. She only walked two and struck out 10.
“She is still recovering from the same sickness, but you know how you feel after you’ve been sick, you just don’t feel 100%, but she looked pretty good tonight,” Chronister said.
Bourdage set the tone.
“Both offensively and defensively,” Chronister said. “I challenged them to really come out focused in the first inning and try to get on the board early. And fortunately, we were able to do that.”
In the district championship game, GHS trailed Deltona, 4-1, going into the bottom of the sixth inning, but this time, they took the only lead they would need in the first inning.
“It was huge, especially when you have a pitcher like Leanna in the circle,” Chronister said. “If you can get a one, two-run lead, that really puts a lot of pressure on the other team because they know it’s going to be hard to score runs and they may start to press. So, it’s always huge. I mean, in any game, it’s always good to get out into a lead, but it really helped us tonight.”
GHS extended it to a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning.
Senior catcher Roxy Walsh was hit by a pitch to start the inning and then Bourdage ripped a ground ball down the third base line for a double.
Senior Lana Renicks singled to center field to score Walsh and an error on the play by the center fielder scored Bourdage.
Another senior, Adriana Koralewski, had a pair of doubles and scored two runs.
“I think we came out here more intense than we did in our first game,” Koralewski said. “I think the first game, we were ready when we got out here, but this game, it was a different type of ready.”
Koralewski, who bats in the No. 6 spot, is now 4-for-5 with three doubles, three runs driven in, and three runs scored in her last two games.
“I’ve been in a bit of a slump,” she said. “We’re getting out of that now, thankfully. It took a hot second, but I’m glad that I’m starting to figure it out now, coming towards the end of my senior season. It feels good.”
FHSAA softball state playoffs
Thursday, May 7
Rural-Region 3 Semifinals
2 Branford 93 Union County (Lake Butler) 3
Rural-Region 4 Semifinals
1 Trenton 8, 4 Bronson 0
3 Williston 4, 2 Fort Meade 2
Class 5A-Region 2 Quarterfinals
2 GHS 6, 7 Deltona 0
