Prevailing in tight, low-scoring games had been the hallmark of Bloomingdale’s baseball postseason run. Three of the Bulls’ last five games were decided by a run.
Each time, Bloomingdale found a way to come through, whether it was a timely hit, a suburb defensive play or a critical strikeout from someone on the staff.
Those nail-biters, including a 3-2 victory over Palm Beach Dwyer in Friday’s Class 6A state semifinals, helped the Bulls advance to the final for the first time since 2014 and instilled confidence in a team already well-versed in delivering in clutch situations.
In Saturday’s final, there were no close calls.
Bloomingdale jumped out to a four-run lead in the third and cruised to a 5-1 victory over Fleming Island. It is the Bulls first state title in baseball.
David Eckhaus earned the win. The left-hander went three innings, allowing one run on two hits and striking out two. Chase Cappell threw four innings in relief out of the bullpen and recorded the last 12 outs for the save.
Those two got plenty of offensive support. The Bulls totaled ten hits. Drake Harman, Wyatt Strickland each had two hits.
