Blazers Blast Angels To Claim Original Division Title

                The Fort Lauderdale Blazers successfully defended their Original Division crown as they posted an 8-2 win over the Parkland Angels in Game 5 of the Original Division's Championship Final Series. Last season, the Blazers, then known as the Hallandale Twins, captured their first title.
                The pitching match up featured the league's all-time wins leader Michael Cimilluca for the Blazers against Cory Stern for the Halos.
                Stern experienced immediate trouble in the bottom of the first as Dylan Ebel led off with a walk and went to second on a single by David Leon. After a double steal put runners on second and third, Joe Iacobucci delivered an RBI single that barely eluded the diving attempt of Danny Hernandez in right field. Ebel scored and Leon stopped at third on Iacobucci's hit.
                Two pitches later, Leon scored as the result of a wild pitch.
                Stern recovered to retire John Spellman on a fly to short right, but walked Jorge Correa, ahead of a sacrifice fly by Dominic Ficarra that scored Iacobucci.
                After the first, Stern steeled down and matched zeroes with Cimilluca until the fifth.
                In the bottom of the fifth, Leon led off with a long home run to right center. Iacobucci followed with a base hit before Spellman unloaded the frame's second home run, a majestic blast to left center that put the Blazers ahead 6-0.
                At this point, Seraph skipper Gary Rogers lifted Stern and brought in fire baller Samuel Hernandez. Correa greeted Hernandez with a sharp double, but the Blazers could not do any more damage as Hernandez struck out the side.
                In the sixth, the Angels broke through as A.J. Hierro lifted a high fly down the left field line that wrapped around the foul pole for a home run.
                The Angels added another run in the eighth to pull to within 6-2 on a pair of errors and had runners on second and third, but Spellman snared Danny Hernandez's liner to third for the third out to end the threat.
                In the bottom of the eighth, Iacobucci and Spellman followed a doubled by Leon with RBI singles to put the Blazers up by six.
                With the outcome all but decided, Cimilluca retired the Angels in order in the ninth, the final out coming as Iacobucci laid out in center to catch Joseph Pagan's line drive.
                Upon achieving the victory, the Blazers began the wildest celebration in league history. The joyous revelry started in the dugout, spilled back out onto the field, and wound up in the early morning hours in some of the finer establishments in the greater Fort Lauderdale area.
                Leon led the Blazers in Game 5 with four hits. Iacobucci and Spellman added three hits each. Cimilluca limited the Halos to one earned run on three hits, walking two, hitting a batter, and striking out nine.
                After the game, the editors of South Florida Baseball Report named Dylan Ebel as the Senior Circuit's playoff MVP. Ebel was forced to move from second base to catcher for the majority of the post season after Mike Fuentes hurt his thumb. Ebel responded with, not only an excellent defensive effort, but by leading the Blazers in times on base and runs scored.
                Game five was the only game in the series that was won by the home team.
                Original Division Finals-Blazers Blank Angels In Game 4: The Original Division's Championship Final Series will come down to a fifth and final game after the Parkland Angels squandered an opportunity to wrap up the crown as they were whitewashed, 10-0, by the Fort Lauderdale Blazers in Game 4.
                With Blazers' ace Michael Cimilluca shelved by a fever and back spasms, Adam Martinez and Dominick Ficarra stepped into the breach and combined on a six hit shutout.
                Martinez started and earned the win after allowing four hits in five innings. Ficarra was awarded a save after tossing four scoreless innings of relief. Martinez walked four, hit two, and struck out one. Ficarra walked two, hit a batter, and fanned three.
                Dan McGlynn started for the Halos and took the loss after yielding six earned runs on 12 hits.
                The Blazers took a 3-0 lead in the top of the first on RBI singles by Joe Iacobucci and Michael Fuentes. An error also aided the cause.
                A five run outburst in the fourth iced the game for the Fort Lauderdalers. After a one out double by Rob Thomson, Dylan Ebel had an RBI single. David Leon singled and Ebel went to third, from where he score on a sacrifice fly by Iacobucci. John Spellman had an RBI single, and, after an intentional walk issued to Jorge Correa, Ficarra reached on an error as Leon scored. A sacrifice fly off of the bat of Grant Trower capped the rally.
                In the eighth, the Blazers added two more runs on a passed ball and an RBI single by Thomson.
                Thomson had three hits to lead the Blazers. Jarrod Rubinstein had two hits to pace the Seraphs. Angels leadoff hitter Matt Rogers reached base all four trips to the plate, but was unable to advance past second.
                The fifth and final game is scheduled for Thursday night, but rain is currently being forecast. If the game is rained out, it will be rescheduled for Saturday.
                The road team has won all four games in the series, thus far.
                 Original Division Finals-Angels Romp In Game 3: The Parkland Angels stand one win away from capturing the Senior Circuit crown after an emphatic 11-2 victory over the Fort Lauderdale Blazers in Game 3 of the best of five Championship Final Series.
                Seth Marcus tossed seven impressive innings for the Seraphs, limiting the suddenly struggling Blazer lineup to one earned run on three hits. Cory Stern pitched two scoreless innings of relief, permitting two hits, but striking out five. Marcus struck out eight and walked four.
                Rob Thomson started for the Blazers and suffered the loss after allowing four runs on just three hits in four innings of work. Thomson was mostly the victim of poor fielding. The Fort Lauderdalers committed a total of four errors in the game. All of the runs against Thomson were unearned.
                A pair of errors and a two run home run by A.J. Hierro in the first inning gave the Angels a 4-0 lead. The Halos added two more runs in the fifth without benefit of a hit before the Blazers got on the board with an unearned run of their own. A five run outburst in the seventh, highlighted by Anthony Boza's two run double and a three run home run by Joseph Pagan, gave the Angels an insurmountable advantage.
                Dominic Ficarra capped the scoring with a home run of his own in the bottom of the seventh.
                Hierro's two hits led the Angels. Ficarra had two of the Blazers' five hits.
                The Angels will attempt to close out the series in Game 4, scheduled for Tuesday night.
                Original Division Finals-Blazers Knot Series In Game 2: The Fort Lauderdale Blazers squared the Original Division's Championship Final Series with a 4-1 win over the Parkland Angels in Game 2. The best of five series stands tied at one win a piece.
                Michael Cimilluca of the Blazers, who took the loss in Game 1, and Dan McGlynn of the Angels engaged in a pitcher's duel and, this time, Cimilluca got the better of it. The veteran righty scattered seven hits and struck out six in a complete game effort. McGlynn, the rookie lefty, also permitted seven hits, but was let down by his defense and took the loss.
                The Blazers opened the scoring in the top of the first as David Leon doubled and scored on a Joe Iacobucci single. The Halos tied the score in the fifth as A.J. Hierro and McGlynn led off with singles, a Matt Rogers infield hit, following a force play at third, loaded the bases, and an error allowed McGlynn to score.
                The Blazers broke the tie in the sixth as John Spellman doubled and eventually scored on a passed ball.
                In the eighth, the Blazers added two insurance runs. Leon led off with a double, Iacobucci drew a walk, and Spellman reached on an infield single. McGlynn retired the next two batters, but Rob Thomson reached on a throwing error as two runs scored.
                Leon, Spellman, and Dylan Ebel led the Blazers with two hits each. Rogers paced the Parklanders with two hits.
                The pivotal third game is scheduled for Thursday night.                
                Original Division Finals-Angels Take Game 1: The Parkland Angels took a one game to none lead in the best of five Championship Final Series with a 4-3 win over the Fort Lauderdale Blazers at chilly Pompano Municipal Stadium on Thursday night.
                Cory Stern, a last minute choice, started for the Halos and went the distance for the win. Stern allowed the powerful Blazer lineup only four hits. Stern walked six and struck out 12.
                It was also Stern who drove in the go ahead run in the top of the ninth with an RBI ground out.
                Michael Cimilluca pitched a complete game for the Fort Lauderdalers and took the loss. Cimilluca did not allow an earned run and scattered 11 hits.
                The Blazers opened a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first as Dylan Ebel and David Leon led off the game with bases on balls and eventually scored on a pair of wild pitches.
                In the top of the third, Matt Rogers singled and then came around to score on a Blazer error. The Angels tied the score in the sixth as Alex Cuadra drew a walk and then benefited by consecutive errors. An infield single by Dan McGlynn scored A.J. Hierro with a run that put the Seraphs ahead, 3-2.
                The Blazers drew even in the bottom of the eighth as a pair of errors wrapped around a walk allowed Joe Iacobucci to score.
                In the top of the ninth, Rogers led off with a single, went to second on a ground out, and advanced to third on a errant pickoff attempt, before scoring on a ground out by Stern, giving the Angels a 4-3 advantage.
                The Blazers threatened in the ninth, but Stern got John Spellman to ground out with the tying and winning runs on base to end the game.
                The series continues with Game 2, scheduled for Tuesday night.
                

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