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Raiders, Cougars To Face Off In Spring Tourney

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By DAREK SHARP

dsharp@tampatrib.com

Published: April 1, 2009

PLANT CITY - It was by coincidence, but the pool that Durant and Plant City were placed in for the Saladino Baseball Tournament puts them into very familiar environs.

Namely, they get to play each other again.

Tourney action gets started this Saturday. Although there will be more in the way of fanfare, the Raiders and Cougars might otherwise feel like the Saladino is just a continuation of the regular season. Not only are Durant and Plant City in the same group for Pool Play, another District 6A-8 foe, Riverview, is in the pool as well.

Most often the Saladino provides teams the chance to square off with some different opposition. But Plant will be the only nondistrict team that Durant or Plant City gets to face - unless they advance to the quarterfinal round.

The event runs Saturday through April 10 at various locations. There are 28 teams - all but one from Hillsborough County - placed in seven pools of four teams each. After round-robin play (three games) takes place the seven pool winners advance to the quarterfinals. An additional wild card team, the best of the squads that finished 2-1 without winning its group, will continue playing.

All of Durant and Plant City's pool games are at Riverview. Saturday the Raiders will face Plant at 4 o'clock, with Durant set to play the host Sharks at 7 p.m.

On Monday, Durant meets Plant at 4 p.m., followed by the Raiders and Sharks at 7 p.m., then on Tuesday Plant City and Durant meet at 4 o'clock.

Other pool play will be going on at Brandon High, Leto and the University of Tampa. The winner of Plant City and Durant's group (the Southern Division) will play the Northern Division winner in a quarterfinal next Wednesday morning. Gaither, Hillsborough, King and lone non-Hillsborough team Wesley Chapel comprise the Northern Division.

All of the games from the quarterfinal round on will be staged at Brandon.

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