MIDDLEBURG - Green Cove Springs Junior High baseball had the unenviable task of facing the undefeated top seed Lake Asbury Junior High Tigers in their semifinal while the Oakleaf Junior High Yellow Jackets had to face second seed Baker County in the Northeast Florida Athletic Conference baseball championship tournament Monday night at Middleburg High School.

In both games, late inning surges spelled victory for both teams with the Cougars nipping Lake Asbury 7-6 off an RBI single by Wyatt Horejsi in the fifth inning and Oakleaf getting a monster double from Ezekiel Johnson and a spectacular left field snag by Gabe Moyer to snuff a possible seventh inning scoring opportunity for Baker County.

For Oakleaf, the nip and tuck battle swayed with both starting pitchers on limiting base time until the final inning when Gregory Breaston doubled home the game winning run in the seventh inning.

Oakleaf and Green Cove Springs will play Wed., April 5 at Middleburg for the NEFAC championship.

In the final at bats for Baker County, with Oakleaf up 4-3, relief pitcher Ezekiel Johnson came in and smoked the Baker County lineup with two strikeouts around a sterling left field stab from Gabe Moyers between the strikeouts to end the contest. Johnson also hit a towering fly ball double that bounced off the Baker County outfielders glove to score the tying run with Conner Tant on first base after alertly sprinting to first on a dropped third strike. A

second field error, at first base after a muffed catcher’s play at home, put Tant at third before Johnson’s blast tied the game.

With Johnson at second, Breaston hammered a second double to the left center fence for the go ahead tally.

Oakleaf got excellent mileage from starting pitcher Tant who lasted until the seventh when Johnson was installed in relief.

In the first semifinal, Lake Asbury got punched with a five run third inning by Green Cove to feel the sting of a championship atmosphere at the home of the Broncos baseball team.

Green Cove showed off early bat power with a single by Ocean Bland and a double by Chase Donaldson, but Lake Asbury pitcher Lucas Montoro staved off the opening salvo.

Lake Asbury answered quickly with a single by McRae and and fielder’s choice to Conte that put the Tigers up 1-0. Lake Asbury also posted a double, by Hester, but could not get him to home plate.

In the third, Montoro got pelted with two singles and a walk to set up a bases loaded scenario before Bland was hit by a pitch for the Cougars first run.

Two more singles and a walk put Green Cove up 5-1 with the feel of n upset imminent.

Lake Asbury, in championship form, answered quickly with Peyton McRae singling and stealing second before a line drive from Cole Conte got a run.

With Bland on the Cougar mound, Lake Asbury kept intent on getting the score back with singles and walks plus a monster double from Clayton Hickey to go ahead 6-5 in the fourth.

Caleb Ainsworth hit a run scoring double for Green Cove in the fifth to tie with Horejsi’s single giving the Cougars the final tally.

Oakleaf and Baker County split in the regular season; 3-0 for Oakleaf on February 28 and 11-1 to Baker County of March 30.

For Green Cove, Lake Asbury won a 7-4 match on February 23. Green Cove lost twice to Baker County; 12-0 and 9-4.

Oakleaf and Green Cove split in the regular season with Green Cove winning a 3-2 match on February 21 and Oakleaf winning 3-1 on March 23.