FORT MYERS – As it has all season, the Martin County High baseball team left it all on the field.
This time, the Tigers came up just short.
Giving Gainesville Buchholz all it could handle, Martin County gave up an unearned run in the bottom of the ninth inning and dropped a 3-2 decision to the Bobcats in the Class 6A State Semifinal on Friday at Lee Health Sports Complex – Hammond Field, spring training home of the Minnesota Twins.
While Buchholz goes on to Saturday’s state championship game, the Tigers’ magical season came to a sudden end in heartbreaking fashion.
“Just the way they’ve been all year. They fight to the end, as you see,” Martin County coach Brett Hawkins said. “They never give up. It’s just one of those things where we ran out of gas.”
Tigers fight back from early deficit
Martin County fought tooth and nail, erasing an early 2-0 deficit, answering with two runs in the top of the third inning.
While Bobcats’ starter Dion Wilburn and reliever and winner Cohen Lafler shut the door thereafter, Tigers’ starter Zane Moody and reliever Ethan Chan were equally effective.
Until the bottom of the ninth.
After fouling a bunt off his face, Buchholz No. 7 hitter Angel Irizarri singled to center field. An error on a pickoff throw at first chased Irizari to third with no outs.
Hawkins had no choice except to walk the next two hitters, even though they were the Nos. 8 and 9 hitters in the lineup.
“You have to do that. There’s no other way to do that,” Hawkins said. “That’s the game of baseball. You have to play for the force, because if they try to squeeze, it’s a whole lot easier to get a force on a squeeze at home plate sliding in.”
John Thornton IV came on from the outfield to pitch for Martin County.
Leadoff hitter Zac Brown took the first two pitches for balls before lifting a fly ball to Stone Preston in center field. It was deep enough to score Irizarry from third with the winning run and set off a wild celebration that started at second base and ended up in deep center field.
“One through nine, great team,” Hawkins said of Buchholz.
Wilburn worked the first seven innings, allowing six hits and two runs (one earned) while walking one and striking out seven. Lafler worked the final two innings, surrendering a hit and a walk with three strikeouts.
“They’re a good pitching team all around,” Hawkins said.
Buchholz gets to Moody early
Top-seeded Buchholz (25-7) jumped on top in the second off Moody.
Hudson Sapp walked with one out and stole second. Irizarry singled to left to score Sapp and continued to second on an error. On a hit-and-run, No. 8 hitter Tyler Thurmond dropped a single into right field to score Irizary to make it 2-0.
“I started off dealing with some things,” Moody said. “I got the changeup working and the fastball has been well this year. I was relying on that a lot. I had pretty much everything going today. I gave it my all.”
The fourth-seeded Tigers rewarded Moody with two runs in the top of the third inning.
Batting ninth, Moody got the rally started with one of his two hits. Grady Messner followed with a single. Brennan Jones bounced into a force out and stole second.
Thornton knocked in pinch-runner Lennon Janke with a hit to right, and Jones came around on an error on the play to tie the game.
“It’s super huge the confidence it instills in me going out there knowing guys are going to score runs behind you,” Moody said. “It definitely helps the presence out there. The guys behind me I trust enough to fight with.”
A senior, Moody gutted out seven innings, allowing five hits and two runs (one earned) while walking two and fanning four. He threw 67 strikes among his 97 pitches.
“I’d put him on the mound any day of the week,” Hawkins said of Moody. “He’s going to give you what he gives you right now. He doesn’t want to come out of the game. He’s going to give you every bit that he has in his body he’s going to give you. And that’s all you can ask.”
Another injury for Martin County
Martin County suffered yet another injury when Preston Sullivan was forced to leave the game after bouncing into a double play in the fourth inning.
“It’s just one of those things,” Hawkins said. “It kept snake biting us all year. It just hurt. It hurt the lineup. It hurt continuity and things like that.
“Not to blame it on any type of injury. Our boys fought.”
The scoreboard may indicate the Tigers made three errors, but it doesn’t display the number of defensive gems the team turned in.
Catcher Colton Bettencourt battled the elements in foul territory to catch a foul popup during the Bobcats’ rally in the second inning.
Center fielder Stone Preston made a spectacular lunging catch in right-center field in the third inning. Second baseman Frankie Brancaleone needed to charge and make an off-balance throw to end the third inning. Messner hauled in a deep drive in the left-center field gap in the seventh inning.
“Losing Stone and Grady in the outfield, especially Stone,” Hawkins said of two of his seniors. “I’ve had him for four years. He tracks the ball down as good as anybody in baseball. You kinda lose the awestruck because he’s just that good at doing it. It’s going to be a big thing to fill. You don’t fill guys like that. Those guys don’t come along.”
In addition to the two outfielders, Martin County loses Moody, Hunter Wilson, Chan, Mitch MacPhee and Josiah Narvaez to graduation.
“Great group of guys. Stone, Grady and Zane,” Hawkins said. “Champ has been consistent all year on the sidelines. To get to this type of place, you’ve got to have to lean on those guys. Those guys have to carry you. Those guys were the leaders.”
Asked to sum up the season, a season where Martin County (24-8) played in its first Final 4 since 1968, Hawkins said, “Grit. Just grit. The way these boys played, just grit. Grit and heart. That’s how I would sum up the season.”
Moody concurred.
“Coach Hawkins pretty much hit the nail on the head: It’s a gritty group of guys,” he said. “It may not look the best on paper as far as being the most talented, but every single one of those kids fights with everything they have in their body. That’s why we made the run that we did. It sucks we fell short. It’s just an incredible group of guys. I couldn’t be more fortunate to play with them.”
Buchholz, which lost the state title game the past two seasons, will play St. Thomas Aquinas, a 4-1 winner over Land O’Lakes, in the second semifinal.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Martin County baseball’s gritty season ends in state semifinal loss
Reporting by Dennis Maffezzoli, Special to TCPalm / Treasure Coast Newspapers
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
