LSCC WINS ONE AND DROPS ONE OVER THE WEEKEND

The LSCC Lakers Baseball team lost to Indian River State College on Friday by a score of 8-2.  With the loss, the Lakers dropped to 6-10 overall on the year and the loss snapped a three game winning streak.  Dave Thomas received the loss but pitched well by going five innings, allowing six hits, three runs, and striking out two hitters.  Thomas’ overall record now is 1-3.  Offensively, the Lakers only managed seven hits from seven different players.  Jason Matusik had the only RBI for the Lakers.

On Sunday, the University of Tampa JV Spartans came to town to face the Lakers.  The Lakers led by a score of 4-1 after five innings of play but the Spartans scored two runs in the 6th inning and three more in the 7th inning to take a 6-5 lead.  The Lakers battled back in their own half of the 7th inning by scoring two runs to take the lead for good and win the game by the score of 7-6.  The winning pitcher was Eddie Bonilla.  He improves to 3-0 on the year.  Nick Wilson threw a scoreless ninth inning to notch his first save.  Chandler Jagodzinski also threw well in relief by going 2 2/3 innings, allowing two hits, no runs, and striking out one hitter.  Jagodzinski has yet to allow an earned run this spring in 15 1/3 innings.

Offensively, the Lakers were led by Cody Mombourquette (2-4, 2 RBIs), Matusik (1-3, RBI), and Stephen Bellantoni extended his hitting streak to 16 games with a single in the 5th inning.

The Lakers are back in action on Monday at home against Hillsborough CC.  First pitch is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. and Nic Kovacs will be the starting pitcher.

LSCC WINS ON THE ROAD AT PASCO-HERNANDO CC ON WEDNESDAY

Jason Matusik had three hits, including a go ahead 3 run homerun in the 8th inning and four RBIs, to lead the Lakers to a 9-7 win at Pasco –Hernando CC on Wednesday.  Eddie Bonilla was credited with the win after throwing 1 1/3 innings of shutout baseball.  Chandler Jagodzinski struck out the side in the ninth inning to pick up his third save of the year.  The Lakers improve to 6-9 overall on the year and have won three straight games.

Besides Matusik, LSCC got offensive production from Stephen Bellantoni (2-for-4, RBI, stolen base), Chase Okey (3-for-4) and Josh Johnson (2-for-5, three RBIs).

The bullpen came up big for the Lakers by throwing 7 innings, allowing one run, 4 hits, and striking out 5 hitters.
The Lakers are next in action on Friday at home versus Indian River State College.  First pitch is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.

LSCC GOES 2-2 OVER THE WEEKEND

The LSCC Baseball team split four games over the weekend against three different teams.  On Friday, the Lakers traveled down to St. Pete College and lost to the Titans by a score of 6-2.  Offensively, the Lakers were led by Tim Blackmon (1-3, 2 RBIs) and Zac Hubbard (1-3).  The bullpen for the Lakers pitched well by going 4 2/3 innings without allowing an earned run and only giving up three hits.  Mark Peterson was credited with the loss and falls to 0-2 on the year.

On Saturday, the Lakers were once again on the road this time at Polk State College.  The Lakers jumped out to a quick 3-1 lead after three innings but Polk scored seven times in the bottom of the fourth inning and never trailed thereafter and won the game 12-7.  Offensively, the Lakers were led by Carlos Labrador (HR, 2 RBIs), Bryan Hill (1-3, RBI, Stolen base), and Zac Hubbard (3-4, RBI).  Dave Thomas was credited with the loss and falls to 1-2 on the year.

On Sunday, the Lakers pounded out 17 hits and 18 runs in game one of the doubleheader against the visiting Dundalk CC Lions to cruise to a 18-1 victory.  Stephen Bellantoni, Cody Mombourquette, Tim Blackmon, and Hill all collected 3 hits apiece in the win.  Blackmon hit his first career homerun and Hill added two homeruns and six RBIs in the win.  On the mound, Brandon Vazquez threw six innings, allowing two hits, one run, while striking out six Lions’ hitters.  He improves to 1-2 on the year.  In game two, the Lakers scored six runs in the bottom of the 6th inning to win 7-5.  Mombourquette went 2-for-3 with 2 RBIs and Erick Figuerora (1-1, 2 runs scored, 2B, 2 BB) reached on all three plate appearances.  Chad Allen is credited with win out of the bullpen and improves to 2-0 on the year.  Eddie Bonilla earned the save in the 7th inning, his first of the year.

The Lakers improve to 5-9 overall after the weekend and are back in action on Wednesday at Pasco-Hernando CC.  First pitch is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.  This game is a makeup game from the rainout that occurred on Feb. 5th.

LAKERS DROP ANOTHER CLOSE ONE TO HILLSBOROUGH COMMUNITY COLLEGE ON MONDAY
From the Daily Commerical Staff Report

Chase Okey, Cody Mombourquette, and Stephen Bellantoni combined for eight hits on Monday, but the Lakers fell short, 6-5, to home standing Hillsborough Community College.

Okey collected three hits and drove in four runs for the Lakers, while Mombourquette chipped in with a 2-for-4 performance at the plate.  Bellantoni managed a perfect day at bat, with three hits and a stolen base.

LSCC (3-6) will host Polk State College on Wednesday at 3 p.m.  Nic Kovacs is the scheduled starting pitcher.

LSCC SPLITS A DOUBLEHEADER AGAINST BREVARD COMMUNITY COLLEGE ON SUNDAY
From the Daily Commercial Staff Report

Dave Thomas yielded just five hits in five innings on Sunday as the LSCC Lakers Baseball Team split a doubleheader at Brevard Community College.  Jake Davis threw the last two innings of game one to close it out for the Lakers (3-5) who won the first game, 6-2, before dropping a 2-1 decision in the nightcap.

Offensively, in game one, Bryan Hill collected a hit and drove in a run while Carlos Labrador managed two hits and Josh Johnson ended with a hit and two RBI.

LSCC is back in action on Monday, Feb. 15th @ Hillsborough Community College.  First pitch is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. Brandon Vazquez (0-1, 4.00 ERA) will be making his third start of the year.

LAKERS FALL TO HCC ON THURSDAY NIGHT

The LSCC Baseball team lost 12-9 on Thursday night at Pat Thomas Stadium to the visiting Hillsborough Community College Hawks.  With the loss, the Lakers fall to 2-4 on the year.  Nic Kovacs made his first start of the season and threw 4 innings, allowing 4 hits, 3 runs, and striking out 5 Hawks hitters.  Kovacs was tagged with the loss and falls to 0-1 on the year.

The Hawks led 3-1 going to the top of the 7th when they opened up the scoring by plating 5 runs in the 7th inning and 4 runs in the 8th inning to make the score 12-2.

The Lakers made it interesting in the 9th inning by scoring 7 runs to bring the score to 12-9.  However, the game ended with a pop out to the shortstop with the bases loaded.  Offensively, the Lakers were led by Bryan Hill (3-4, 2B, grand slam HR, 4 RBIs), Zach Pitts (2-5, RBI), and Carlos Labrador (2-5, 2B, RBI).  The Lakers collected 11 hits in the game with 6 of those coming in the bottom of the 9th inning.

The Lakers are back in action on Friday at home against St. Petersburg College.  First pitch is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.  Mark Peterson (0-0, 0.00 ERA) will be making his second start of the year.

LSCC DROPS A PITCHER’S DUEL TO INDIAN RIVER STATE COLLEGE ON MONDAY
From the Daily Commercial Staff Report

Four LSCC pitchers combined to limit home standing Indian River State College to a single earned run on Monday, but it was not enough as IRSC shut out the Lakers by a score of 2-0. Brandon Vazquez was tagged with the loss and falls to 0-1 on the year.

Offensively, Cody Mombourquette went 2-for-4 and Zach Pitts went 1-for-3 to lead the LSCC hitters.

The Lakers (2-3) will be back in action on Thursday night when they host Hillsborough CC at 7 p.m. The game will be played at Pat Thomas Stadium. Former East Ridge standout, Nic Kovacs, will be making his first start of the season.

LAKERS GET BEAT BY BROWARD CC ON SATURDAY

The LSCC Lakers Baseball team dropped a 10-6 decision against the visiting 9th state ranked Broward Community College on Saturday.  BCC scored 6 runs in the top of the sixth inning to blow open a 2-1 game.  The Lakers fall to 2-2 on the season. 

Dave Thomas suffered his first loss of the season.  He pitched well enough to win by going 5 1/3 innings, giving up 3 hits, 3 earned runs, and striking out 6 BCC hitters.  Chad Allen and Nick Wilson threw well in relief by not allowing any runs in 2 2/3 innings.

Offensively, the Lakers managed 9 hits but left 12 runners on base including the bases loaded in the first inning.  The leading hitters for the Lakers were Stephen Bellantoni (2-4, RBI, 2 stolen bases), Bryan Hill (2-4, 2B), and Josh Johnson (2-5, stolen base).

The Lakers are back in action on Monday, Feb. 8th @ Indian River State College.  Brandon Vazquez will be making his second start of the season.  First pitch is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.

LSCC SCORES LATE TO WIN AGAINST PASCO-HERNANDO COMMUNITY COLLEGE
From the Daily Commercial Staff Report

Lake-Sumter Community College scored three runs in the eighth inning Wednesday to pick up an 8-5 win against Pasco-Hernando Community College at the LSCC baseball complex.

Eddie Bonilla (1-0) picked up the win in relief with two scoreless innings and Chandler Jagodzinski earned his second save of the season.

Austin Flowers had three hits to pace LSCC, which pounded out 12 hits total against five Pasco-Hernando CC pitchers. Chase Okey and Stephen Bellantoni had two hits apiece. Cody Mombourquette scored three runs for the Lakers (2-1).

Jason Matusik had a three run homerun in the fifth inning for LSCC. The Lakers scored a run in the second and four in the fifth to take a 5-0 lead before Pasco-Hernando CC responded with five runs in the sixth.

LSCC plays Pasco-Hernando CC at 3 p.m. Friday in New Port Richey. Freshman, Nic Kovacs will be making his first start of the season.

LAKERS LOSE LEAD LATE IN SEASON OPENER ON FRIDAY VS SOUTH FLORIDA COMMUNITY COLLEGE

The LSCC Baseball team lost a 7-5 decision on Friday against the South Florida Community College Panthers in the season opener for both teams.  South Florida Community College got off to a quick 4-0 lead after the top of the 3rd inning but the Lakers answered back with 2 runs in the bottom of the 3rd and 3 runs in the fifth inning to take a 5-4 lead.

However, in the top of the 8th inning, the Panthers tied the game with a solo homerun and eventually scored 2 more runs in the inning to take the lead and eventually win the game.

Leading hitters for the Lakers were Cody Mombourquette (2-5, 2 RBIs), Stephen Bellantoni (1-3, 2 RBIs), Zach Pitts (2-4), and Josh Johnson (2-4, 2 runs scored, SB).  Carlos Labrador and Zak Hubbard each added a hit.  The Lakers finished with 10 hits on the day.

LSCC starting pitcher, Dave Thomas made his season debut by throwing 5 innings, allowing 4 runs on 8 hits and striking out 5 Panther hitters. Zach Oliver came on in relief and threw 2 scoreless innings. Nick Wilson (0-1) was credited with the loss by giving up 3 runs in the 8th inning. Chandler Jagodzinski pitched out of a jam in the 8th inning and finished with 2 scoreless innings while striking out 2 Panther hitters.

The Lakers fall to 0-1 on the year and will be back in action on Monday, Feb. 1st @ Hillsborough Community College.  First pitch is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.  Sophomore, Brandon Vazquez will be the starting pitcher.

LAKERS WIN FIRST GAME OF THE 2010 SEASON

Zack Pitts continued his early season hitting streak by going 3-for-4 at the plate on Monday in leading the visiting Lakers to an 8-6 win over Hillsborough Community College. The Lakers improve to 1-1 on the season.

Chad Allen, making his first appearance in close to two years because of Tommy John Surgery, earned the win by pitching one scoreless inning. Allen moves to 1-0 on the year. Chandler Jagodzinski pitched the final inning for his first save of the year.

LSCC (1-1) is back in action on Wednesday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. versus Pasco-Hernando Community College. Freshman Mark Peterson will be making the start.

The new year for baseball and softball at Lake-Sumter Community College begins on Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2010.

True student-athletes
FRANK JOLLEY
Staff Writer

LEESBURG -- Rich Billings looks for more than baseball players when he is on the recruiting trail.

The Lake-Sumter Community College baseball coach wants not only the best high-school players he can find, but he searches for student-athletes who can be leaders in the classroom, as well.

LSCC has long had a tradition of stressing academics before athletics, even if that meant losing potential student-athletes who could offer a faster track to success on the baseball field.

The tradeoff, Billings believes, benefits LSCC in the long run because true student-athletes are better prepared and mature enough to play at the next level. It also makes LSCC student-athletes more marketable to four-year colleges once their eligibility at the junior-college level has been exhausted.
Billings will begin finding out if the school's academics-first approach will pay dividends when the Lakers host South Florida Community College in both teams' season opener at 3 p.m. today at the LSCC baseball complex.

"We want student-athletes with character and I believe that by stressing academics along with athletics, we can find those players," Billings said. "I want our players to be ready for life after baseball. Most of these kids won't play the game after college and I want our players to graduate with resources to succeed off the field. Even if they are lucky enough to play professionally, no one plays forever.

"It might be easier to win more games if we weren't so strict on academics, but I think it's more rewarding for everyone to go the way we go."
Billings said LSCC's academics requirements for student-athletes are to maintain a 2.0 grade-point average -- identical to the National Junior College Athletic Association's requirements. In addition, he requires all baseball players to attend four hours of study hall each week.
Those who do not meet Billings' study hall mandate are suspended for one game.

As a result of LSCC's emphasis on academics, the Lakers compiled a 3.18 GPA in 2009, which ranked third in the state and 15 in the nation. Five players were selected to the Florida Community College Athletic Association All Academic team in 2009 and three were national Academic All Americans.

Despite the rigid requirements, Billings said he lost only one player in each of his three seasons as head coach due to academics. He added that a "handful" of potential student-athletes have not been offered scholarships after learning that they may have struggled to keep up in the classroom.

Billings said he couldn't think of one instance when a potential recruit told him that LSCC's standards were too high and inflexible.

"I truly believe that even if a player struggled in high school, they understand that college is a fresh start and they want to take advantage of that," Billings said. "I've never had a kid tell me that we place too much of emphasis on academics. That says a lot about the kind of kids we look at.

"They want to succeed."

LSCC players admit the school's requirements do put additional pressure on them, but they realize it is part of the maturation process.

"On days that we have games, it's not so bad because I have only one class," sophomore pitcher Nick Wilson said. "When we don't have games, I'm usually on campus from 8 a.m. until 9 p.m. Between classes, practice, working out in the weight room and study hall it's a long day, but it's actually a lot of fun.

"It's tough sometimes to balance everything and find time to get things done that I have to get done, but it's not more than I expected before I came to LSCC. This is college and it's supposed to be tougher."

Wilson's work in the classroom and on the field have already paid off. He has signed a national letter of intent with the University of Tennessee-Martin for his junior and senior years.

Former Eustis High School standout Zach Oliver, entering his freshman campaign, said he has found college to be far more demanding than high school. Oliver said the having a mandatory study hall allows him time to get classwork and projects done in a timely manner.

Still, Oliver said he has accepted the challenges of playing at LSCC and has never regretted signing with the school.

"I love it," Oliver said. "The classwork is tougher and so is playing here, but it's going to make me a better person when I graduate. I'm able to play baseball, which I love to do, while I work towards earning a college degree. It might've been easier to stay eligible and play baseball at another school, but I'm going to leave LSCC in two years ready for the next step in my life.

"That's what going to college is all about."

Billings said he has never been tempted to loosen his academic requirements in order to win games. Part of his job as a coach is to be a mentor to his players and trading victories for lower grades would be doing a disservice to his players.

"We want to win and I think we've got a chance to reach the state tournament this year for the first time in school history, but I want to do it the right way," Billings said. "Our standards are high and we're going to keep them high. We're winning in the classroom and, hopefully, we'll win on the field this season."

OKEY SIGNS WITH UT-MARTIN

Catcher moving on up
FRANK JOLLEY
Staff Writer

LEESBURG -- Chase Okey has spent much of life defying his critics.
The Lake-Sumter Community College baseball standout grew up being told he was too small to play catcher, arguably the most demanding position on the field.

Rather than listening to the naysayers, Okey used their comments as fuel to stoke his desire to prove them wrong. After a sterling career at Eustis High School, Okey earned a scholarship to LSCC and became an all-conference player as a freshman, batting .343 with 30 RBIs, both totals second on the team.

Okey wasn't content, however, and spent the summer playing for the Clermont Mavericks in the Florida Collegiate Summer League, producing a .318 batting average against some of the nation's best college pitchers.

The persistence that drove Okey to succeed, in spite of those who felt the 5-foot-8, 165-pound backstop couldn't stand the rigors of catching, paid off Friday when he signed a national letter of intent with the University of Tennessee-Martin in Martin, Tenn.

Okey will complete his sophomore year at LSCC before moving on to play at the NCAA Division-I level.

"It's a great fit for me," Okey said. "I want to major in Wildlife Management and UT-Martin was one of the few schools that had it. Saint Leo University showed an interest in me, but no school in Florida taught my major.

"I visited UT-Martin a couple of weeks ago and everything seemed so right about it. The coaches were great, the campus is nice and they have my major. After I thought about it and talked about it with my parents, I realized UT-Martin was the right place for me to go."

Rich Billings, LSCC baseball coach, believes UT-Martin coach Bubba Cates will find out quickly that Okey is proof of the adage about not judging a package by its size. Billings said Okey proved during the summer in the FCSL that he is capable of playing against Division-I competition.

Okey, Billings said, defies the odds by giving 100 percent at everything he does. In addition, Billings said Okey is not afraid to step up and be a leader.

"He's the type of player you can use as an example," Billings said. "If you have players who aren't playing as hard as they should, you can talk about Chase and example that he sets. He has so much character for a young man and know hows to play the game.

"Chase will never quit on you, no matter what the situation, and that's one of the reasons he has become such a great player and a great leader. If you work as hard as he does, you're going to succeed."

Okey said he considers baseball to be secondary to his education. He has always believed that his first priority in college is to earn a degree and backs that up by carrying a 3.43 grade point average at LSCC.

While he dreams of playing professional baseball after his college career is over, Okey said he wants to take advantage of the opportunity to attend college and prepare himself for life after baseball.

"Even if I do get to play professionally, I won't be able to play forever," Okey said. "I want to have something to fall back on whenever my playing career is over. I work just as hard in the classroom as I do on the baseball field, because I want to be a success on and off the field."

Nick Wilson signs a letter of Intent

Nick Wilson has signed a Letter of Intent to continue his baseball career with the University of Tennessee-Martin, a Division One member that participates in the Ohio Valley Conference.  Wilson, a sophomore from Oviedo High School, hopes to build off a tremendous 2009 summer in the Florida Collegiate Summer League where he led the FCSL in ERA with a 1.20 mark.  He finished 3-1 on the summer with 14 appearances in 30 total innings pitched.  Wilson is the second Laker player to sign with a 4 year school this year, as Chase Okey also recently signed with UT Martin during the early signing period in November.

A pair of LSCC baseball players had a tremendous summer in the Florida Collegiate Summer League.  Nick Wilson (So. Oviedo HS), a member of the Sanford RiverRats led the FCSL in ERA with a 1.20 mark.  He finished 3-1 on the summer with 14 appearances in 30 total innings pitched.

Chase Okey (So. Eustis HS), a member of the FCSL runner-up Clermont Mavericks, concluded a productive summer by finishing fourth in the FCSL in batting average with a .318 clip. He also finished fourth in the league with 42 hits in 38 games played.

The following returning LSCC baseball players participated in the FCSL this summer:

Chase Okey - Clermont Mavericks
Nick Wilson - Sanford RiverRats
Chandler Jagodzinski - Winter Park Diamond Dogs
Bryan Hill - Clermont Mavericks
Carlos Labrador - Winter Park Diamond Dogs
Chad Allen - Winter Park Diamond Dogs

Past Lakers that played in the FCSL this summer:

John Prano - Sanford RiverRats
Tim Dye - Clermont Mavericks
Nick Delguidice - Leesburg Lightning
Derek Abis - Clermont Mavericks
John Michael Blake - Leesburg Lightning
Gary Decker - Clermont Mavericks

You can find stats, bios, and schedule information for the FCSL by going to www.floridaleague.com