Dawgs Fall in Four-Hour Marathon
| Final (11) | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 5 |
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0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 10 | 3 |
LEESBURG, Fla. – The Winter Park Diamond Dawgs battled for more than four hours Tuesday night, but defensive miscues proved too much to overcome in a heartbreaking 6-5, 11-inning loss to the Leesburg Lightning in Game 1 of the Florida Collegiate Summer League semifinal series at Pat Thomas Stadium.
The marathon lasted 4 hours, 20 minutes and featured five Winter Park errors, leading to multiple unearned runs that ultimately proved to be the difference.
Winter Park overcame an early deficit and briefly grabbed the lead in the sixth inning, but the Diamond Dawgs were unable to overcome a series of defensive breakdowns. Leesburg's first run came unearned in the opening inning, and another defensive miscue in the sixth helped the Lightning answer immediately after Winter Park had taken a 5-3 advantage, tying the game at 5-5.
The Diamond Dawgs also faced adversity on the mound in extra innings. Kaiden Perez exited to begin the 10th inning after suffering an apparent injury to his throwing arm, forcing Daniel Irrizary into action. Irrizary responded with a scoreless 10th to keep Winter Park alive.
The game ended in heartbreaking fashion in the bottom of the 11th. With runners aboard, Hayden Gustavson reached on a fielder's choice before a throwing error allowed Dylan Green to race home with the winning run. Rather than getting an opportunity to extend the inning, the errant throw ended the marathon and gave Leesburg a 6-5 walk-off victory. It was Winter Park's fifth error of the night and its most costly.
Despite the loss, the Diamond Dawgs received solid offensive production from Skyler Jersey, who scored three runs. Garrett Frost and Jacob Pearl each drove in a run as Winter Park finished with seven hits.
Facing elimination, the Diamond Dawgs will look to even the best-of-three semifinal series in Game 2, scheduled for 6 p.m. Wednesday at Alfond Stadium. A win would force a decisive Game 3, while a loss would end Winter Park's 2026 season.
Justin Baltes (University of Central Florida)