Lady Bulldogs rejuvinated

In a district tournament warm-up, Flagler Palm Coast High School shut out Spruce Creek 9-0 April 9.
by Andrew O'Brien | Staff Writer

"More what?"
"Mor-gan!"

It was the bottom of the third inning. Flagler Palm Coast High School second baseman Morgan Bunting was at the plate, leading off the inning. Her teammates cheered her from the dugout as Bunting dug in and ripped a double down the left field line. She coasted into second base, pumped her fist, and the inning was underway.

The next two batters did some bunting of their own. Kayla Lamphier and Kelsey Donahue, two of the faster players on FPC, bunted for base hits to load the bases for slugger Lee Ann Spivey. Spivey, the sophomore catcher, hammered a ball to dead-center field, and the Spruce Creek center fielder dropped the ball at the fence. One run scored, and the bases remained loaded.

Two more infield bunt-hits improved the Bulldogs lead to 3-0, and then after a Spruce Creek pitching change, FPC scored three more runs to extend the lead to 6-0.

That was all sophomore pitcher Maria Matty would need. She kept the Spruce Creek bats silent to complete the 9-0 shutout victory.

With only one game remaining until the district tournament, the Bulldogs (11-7) had hoped for a strong showing the week of April 5. Instead, before the Spruce Creek win, they dropped two to district opponents, losing to last year's No. 1 seed, Deltona, and this year's top team, DeLand, in extra innings Monday and Wednesday, respectively.

FPC coach Sarah Poppe told the Bulldogs after their two losses that they needed to play as though they were starting a new season if they wanted to make a run at the district championship.

"We have the team for it," Poppe said after the Spruce Creek game. "Tonight, the girls were so positive. They're getting back to the ... way they were at the beginning of the season. It's doing the little things that matter."

The "little things" include some of the wildest plays, which the team practices so it will be ready for a situation such as the play to end the Spruce Creek game.

There were two outs in the seventh. Runner on third. The Spruce Creek batter lifted a soaring fly ball to right field. The ball seemed destined to land in the center of a triangle formed by right fielder Ashton Stevens, first baseman Sam Mittel and second baseman Bunting. Then Stevens came sprinting in and dove. The ball landed in her glove, but as Stevens hit the ground, the ball flipped into the air.

Bunting to the rescue. She reached out and snagged the ball barehanded, bobbled it, and then squeezed it into her glove. Game over. FPC wings.

"I saw the ball and it was just a reaction," said Bunting, who smiled through stitches in her right cheek, the price to pay for trying to turn a double play against Deltona earlier in the week. "To catch it with my bare hand was exhilirating."

The Bulldogs had a lot to smile about in the game against Spruce Creek. All the bounces went in their favor.