It was a matchup of underdogs as the no. 5 seed Central Bears defeated the No. 3 seed Wesley Chapel Wildcats, 14-6, for the 5A-7 district championship on Friday night.
Wesley Chapel got out to a 3-0 lead behind a great pitching effort by starter Chris Ryan, who carried a perfect game into the 5th inning. But that's when the wheels came off for the Wildcats. It was Pedro Pantaleon with a pinch-hit, bases-clearing double that gave the Bears there first lead of the game 4-3.
Central would go on to have 15 at bats and score 11 runs in the top of the 5th. Wesley Chapel made three pitching changes in the inning to try and stop the bleeding.
The Wildcats made a comeback attempt, earning three runs in the bottom of the fifth to bring the game within five, 11-6.
In the top of the 7th Pedro Pantaleon recorded his fifth RBI of the night, on his way to earning the Nitro Circus Player of the Game award, and stretching his team's lead to eight, 14-6.
In the bottom of the 7th, Central reliever Matthew Warner closed the door on the Wildcats and the Central Bears celebrated their 1st district championship in 13 years.
Both teams advance to the regional quarterfinals, Central securing home field advantage for the first round of the playoffs.