Player of the Day:
Cameron Meehan, Timber Creek
Pitcher of the Day:
Hunter Barco, Bolles
Timber Creek 6
Suncoast 3
The Timber Creek Wolves and the Suncoast Chargers found themselves in a back and forth battle that wasn't settled until the sixth inning. A big inning for the Wolves gave them the late lead and a 6-3 win over the Chargers.
Both teams scored a run in the first inning thanks to errors. Timber Creek was then able to grab a lead in the third when Cameron Meehan drove in Chris Torres. They would add a third run in the fifth when Parker Rook drove in Meehan with a base hit.
Facing a 3-1 deficit, the Chargers were able to rally in the sixth to tie the game. A single, stolen base and error allowed Nathan Brodsky to come around and score. One batter later, Juan Alvarado drove in the tying run on a base hit to the outfield. Timber Creek was quick to answer, taking advantage of an errant throw from the center fielder that allowed Arnie Ruiz to score. A pair of wild pitches later in the inning allowed two more runs to score, making the final of 6-3.
Meehan was the offensive leader for Timber Creek, going 3-3 with a double, two singles and a walk. He scored twice, drove in one and was credited with three steals. Cole Nelson had a strong outing for the Wolves, tossing 5.1 innings and allowing three runs (one earned) on five hits with five strikeouts. Jason Riley closed the game out and earned a save with 1.1 innings of perfect work.
Atlantic Community 16
Hillwood 0
The day's opening game at Seminole High School did not bode well for the Hillwood Hilltoppers as Atlantic Community earned a four-inning mercy rule win, 16-0, on Thursday morning.
The Eagles pounded out fourteen hits in three innings, and were helped by five Hillwood errors. They scored four in the first, seven in the second and five in the third inning. All fifteen batters for the Eagles reached safely via hit or walk, with eleven different players scoring runs.
Atlantic starter Cameron Husing gave up one hit over three shutout innings while striking out four. He was also 2-2 at the plate with two RBI and a run scored.
Boone 3
Highland 2
The Boone Braves grabbed an early lead and then scored a late run to take home a 3-2 victory over the Highland Hawks on Thursday morning.
The game could have been broken early with Boone loading the bases in the top of the first, but they were unable to put a run across. They made up for it in the second though, plating two courtesy of RBI singles from Howard Rodriguez and Chris Jones.
Highland was able to get one back in the bottom of the fifth when a Ty Gravett double scored teammate Todd Dearborn. They would tack on another in the sixth when an errant throw by the pitcher allowed Jacob Zoller to score.
With the game tied in the seventh, Chris Jones got things started when he was hit by a pitch. He promptly stole second base and scored the game winning run on an Edgar Alvarez single. Connor Kvatek, who entered the game as a pitcher in the sixth, set the Hawks down in order in the bottom of the seventh to earn the save.
Jones was 2-3 with a run, RBI and two steals to lead the Braves. Starting pitcher Caden Schlicenmeier earned the win, throwing 5.1 innings. Jacob Zoller was 2-3 with a run for Highland.
Gainesville 5
Vero Beach 2
An early lead and a strong effort from Chase DeMichele on the mound propelled the Gainesville Hurricanes to a 5-2 win over the Vero Beach Fighting Indians.
Tyler McNamee started things off with a single, and moved to second on a walk to Joseph Strong. After a groundball moved McNamee to third, Demichele scored him on a sacrifice fly. Two batters later, Nico Samarkos drove in Kyler Marquis with an RBI single to make it 2-0.
The score remained 2-0 until the fourth when Vero Beach got one back on a sac fly from Reid Bass. Both teams scored in the sixth, to make it 3-2. Gainesville was able to put it out of reach in the top of the seventh though with a two-run single from Nico Samarkos, making the final score of 5-2.
Demichele went the distance for the Canes, allowing three hits and two runs over seven innings. Samarkos led the offense, going 2-3 with 3 RBI on the day.
Bolles 6
American Heritage 0
Sophomore sensation Hunter Barco showed why he is one of the most highly touted members of the Class of 2019, throwing a gem on the mound for the Bolles Bulldogs, who defeated the American Heritage Stallions 6-0.
In 6.2 innings of work, Barco allowed two hits ... singles in the third and fourth innings ... and only one runner to make it past second base. He used a 89-91 MPH fastball and an impressive slider to keep the Stallions offense stabled. Barco recorded four strikeouts and one walk on the day.
Clemente Inclan, who was 2-3 at the plate, drove in the first run of the game in the bottom of the first. The Bulldogs added three in the fourth inning on a Mac Forrester RBI single and an error by the American Heritage pitcher. Another paid of runs were added in the sixth, which was more than enough with Barco dealing. Inclan, Forrester and Nathan Skinner each finished 2-3 with an RBI to lead the Bolles offense. With the win, the Bulldogs earned a spot in the championship game on Friday night.
Winter Springs 4
Orangewood Christian 2
Andy Rodriguez provided all of the offense needed for the Winter Springs Bears, as they overcame a late deficit to win 4-2 over the Orangewood Christian Rams.
The scoring began in the bottom of the second when Rodriguez roped a double to the gap, scoring Zachary Barnhill. The scoring then stopped abruptly in the third, fourth, and fifth inning as both starting pitchers were dealing. Winter Springs made a pitchng change in the top of the sixth, and it looked like a bad idea when Orangewood broke through for two runs on a Drew Bane double and a Troy McPete single, making it 2-1.
The Bears refused to hibernate and were able to rally in the bottom half of the frame. Michael Jordan was hit by a pitch top start things, and was moved to second on a single from Altoon Coleman. Nolan Vargo successfully sacrificed both runners over, leading to an intentional walk from Orangewood to load the bases and create a force out. Rodriguez was having none of that, however, as his second double of the day plated all three runners to give the Bears the 4-2 lead.
Rodriguez was 2-4 with two doubles and drove in all four runs for Winter Springs. Drew Bane was 2-3 with a run and an RBI to lead the Rams offense.
Royal Palm Beach 5
Hagerty 3
A dramatic comeback with a trip to the championship game on the line? This wasn't Hollywood ... this was the Royal Palm Beach Wildcats against the Hagerty Huskies on Thursday evening.
Hagerty starter Josh Allen cruised through five innings of work, not allowing a hit until the fifth inning. The Huskies had scored once in the third on a Britt Crawford single, so things were looking good. However, in the bottom of the 6th, things fell apart for the Huskies. Hagerty committed three errors in the inning, and allowed four hits as Royal Palm hung a five-piece in the inning. Ten batters stepped up for the Wildcats, with seven of them reaching via walk, hit or error.
The Huskies attempted a comeback in the seventh, and managed to score twice with two outs, but it was too little, too late as they fell by a final score of 5-3. With the win, Royal Palm will now face Bolles in the FHSI Classic championship on Friday night.
Seminole 1
San Gorgonio 0
Seminole did just enough on offense to take out the San Gorgonio Spartans, winning 1-0 on Thursday night at Seminole High School.
The Seminoles opened up the bottom of the first inning with three consecutive singles from Scott Fickas, Craig Conk and Mick Addis. A Yuri Sabb groundout allowed Fickas to score, making it 1-0. And that would be it for scoring from both teams.
Matt Negrete of San Gorgonio tossed six innings, and allowed the one run on six hits. He also had five strikeouts and no walks issued. Freddy Albaladejo, who started for Seminole, was effective, keeping the Spartans scoreless despite allowing three hits and five walks in 5.1 innings. Brandon Seekamp was able to close out the game, tossing 1.2 innings of perfect relief to seal the victory.
Olympia 4
University Christian 2
A quick strike by the Olympia Titans provided enough offense to secure a 4-2 win over University Christian in Thursday's nightcap at Sanford Memorial Stadium.
The first four hitters for Olympia reached base safely via single, single, walk and a two-RBI base knock from Francis Villaman. A sacrifice bunt from Preston Goodbar put two runners in scoring position for Collin McMahon, who promptly delivered a base hit of his own, scoring Jeslyn Whitehead and Villaman, to make it 4-0.
University Christian threatened in the second, loading the bases with two outs on three straight singles, but Titans starter Ben Blair coaxed a groundball out to end the threat. The Christians were able to finally make it on the board in the fifth courtesy of an error and an RBI single from Darien Smith. Another groundball out would end that threat as well. Jason Marcus would come on in relief for Olympia, and throw a scoreless sixth and seventh to save the win.
Blair threw five innings, and allowed two runs (none earned) on six hits with three strikeouts en route to the win. Villaman was 2-3 with a run and RBI to lead the titan offense. Darien Smith and Ryan Meister each had two hits for University Christian.
Schedule for Friday March 24
Visiting Team listed first
Home Team listed second
Games at Sanford Memorial Stadium
9 am: Vero Beach vs. University Christian
11:30 am: Suncoast vs. Highland
2 pm: American Heritage vs. Hagerty *3rd Place Game
4:30 pm: San Gorgonio vs. Timber Creek
7 pm: Royal Palm Beach vs. Bolles *Championship Game
Games at Seminole High School
9 am: Hillwood vs. Gainesville
11:30 am: Winter Springs vs. Boone
2 pm: Orangewood vs. Atlantic
4:30 pm: Olympia vs. Seminole