OAKLEAF - Oakleaf High softball has readied itself for the upcoming Kissimmee Klassic softball tournament in south Florida in the first week of April with a resounding 13-3 win over a tenacious Ridgeview High team that knocked off Yulee High, one of the top northeast Florida teams, in the tournament semifinal with a come-from-behind 4-2 win.

"We preach on them to play each game like it's the last one," said Oakleaf coach Heather Han, who must ready her troops for their Kissimmee Klassic opener with powerhouse Bartow, 10-3 and ranked sixth in 6A and also the Klassic runnerup in 2024 and the 6A runnerup. "We have a pretty tough week coming up with Baker County and Fleming Island before going to Kissimmee."

Keystone Heights (4-5, 19th in 2A) also travels to Kissimmee with a first round game against 2A-Florida Christian of Miami (10-5, 4th in 2A and a region semifinalist last year) on Thursday, April 3. The Indians schedule also includes some high powered games with Fort White (7-4, 7th in Rural behind 1A finalists Branford and Trenton) at home and Columbia (10-3, 5th in 5A) on the road.
Oakleaf's tournament championship win over Ridgeview came after a tough 2-0 win over Yulee, but may have unfortunately awakened the Lady Knights batting lineup in the finale against Ridgeview.

For Ridgeview High softball coach Angela Agurkis, who summoned the spirits of her state championship days at Oakleaf High School when she was the catcher for coach Christina Thompson to win just her third game of the season, has tried to created a "dog fight" mentality for her very small and inexperienced Panther team.
"I keep telling them to keep the dog in the fight and wait for an opportunity to make the big play," said an elated Agurkis after the topsy turvy 4-2 win over Yulee proved fruitful with a diving outfielder catch, a spectacular RBI bunt and a pitcher stab on the final out. "I have yet to have a game with a full roster due to injury or illness of whatever and these kids just keep playing hard. I tell them it will pay off maybe not this year, but maybe next year."
Agurkis, with the win just her third of the season with eight losses, had one coaching shift that proved to be a catalyst for the team when catch K.K. Watts broke a thumb and Agurkis installed junior third baseman Nicole Deschamps as her catcher.
"She's one of the few returners from last year and probably our team leader out there," said Agurkis. "She has filled that role as a commander on the field with her directions on defense and her bat in the lineup."
In the game, with Yulee holding just a slim 1-0 from an outfield error in the third inning, Agurkis got her first spectacular play from freshman right fielder Brielle Fuquay who made a diving stab of a line drive just inside the first base line that would have given Yulee as least one more run after the RBI double.
"That's what we talk about all day, making plays," said Agurkis. "As the young players understand the speed of the high school game, they will be able to make those plays."
In the fifth, Yulee again added a run with a wicked hit past third baseman Peyton Kirk that put a baserunner at second base, eventually third base with a passed ball by pitcher Saige Bialek. A fielder's choice grounder scored the second Yulee run; 2-0.
At this point, Agurkis went to Deshchamps to chat with the team huddle between innings and the move paid off with dividends.
"I just told them to play smart, play fast and keep the ball in front of them," said Deschamps, also vying for the MISS Ridgeview crown in April. "This team is a a bunch of young guns that maybe just need someone to give them direction every now and then."
Whatever Deschamps message conveyed, Ridgeview exploded in the bottom of the fifth with a blooper to Hannah Smith, a hard single to Chloe Riegel and a spectacular third base bunt by freshman Arianys Jimenez that got the first Ridgeview run on the board.
"That was about a beautiful a bunt as I've ever seen," said Agurkis. "And, I think her first one with a run scoring from it."
After Jimenez got the ball rolling (pun intended), Kirk, the lone senior, answered with a ripped double to centerfield to tie the game at 2-2. A fielders' choice grounder by Deschamps got one more run and a single from Bialek put the score at 4-2.
"Then, we had to play defense," said Agurkis.
Yulee, in typical Yulee fashion, attacked at the batters box opening with a double, but Bialek got a fly ball to left field where Smith made the snag, then a strikeout before ending the inning with a cat-like stab of a line drive off the mound.
"We call her the robot because she is so fast like that,"said Agurkis.
With a new pitcher on the mound for Yulee, Ridgeview mustered a walk, but baserunner Addison Kochman got tagged stealing second and Yulee's at bat ended the game at 4-2.
Oakleaf, in the second game of the day, beat Yulee 2-0 behind 10 strikeouts from senior pitcher Charlotte Maddox and a double and RBI triple from Ava Tolbert with Oakleaf.
In day two of the tournament, Yulee exacted a bit of revenge on Ridgeview with a 10-3 win off four runs in the sixth inning.
In the Oakleaf vs. Ridgeview game, featuring Panther pitcher Saige Bialek back on the mound and Oakleaf starting with Janiah Henderson, the Panthers looked like the same team that beat Yulee the day before with Henderson putting two walks on base; Peyton Kirk and Bialek, with the Oakleaf outfielder Ava Tolbert getting sun blasted on a fly ball and Agurkis punching up two steals by Kirk including home plate with Bialek scoring on the error to put Ridgeview up 2-0.
"We have had spurts of good bats and we needed to get our confidence back for the second half of the season," said Han. "Jaydyn (Beall), Ava (Tolbert) and Charley (Maddox) have been our lead batters, but we've gotten some good batting from the next couple of batters; Zoe (Schmehl) and Avery (Garcia) to move them on the base."
In the Oakleaf first at bats, Beall reached on a hard grounder past Ridgeview shortstop Bella Jeffers with Bailek issuing two walks to load the bases for a wild pitch that scored Beall and a Maddox RBI single for Oakleaf to go up 3-2.
Henderson whiffed three batters to put Oakleaf back in the dugout and Beall, Tolbert, Maddox and Garcia got singles to push Oakleaf's lead to 6-2.
Ridgeview got their third and final run on a Kirk double and a Nicole Deschamps single to close the gap to 6-3, but Oaklead scored a third three-run inning behind singles by Lexi Fisher and Tolbert to go up 9-3.
Singles in the sixth by Desiree Norris and Isabella Grassis got the Oakleaf final runs.

Upcoming schedule

Mon., March 24
Tocoi Creek and Ridgeview

Tues., March 25
Orange Park at Clay
Oakleaf at Baker County
Creekside (8-2) at Middleburg (9-3)
Fort White at Keystone Heights
University Christian at SJCDS

Wed., March 26
SJCDS at St. Joseph Academy

Thurs., March 27
Providence at Clay
Ridgeview at Baker County
Fleming Island at Oakleaf

Fri., March 28
Menendez at Clay
Keystone Hts. at Columbia
Middleburg at Baker County
SJCDS at Trinity Christian