FORT MYERS — Facing one of the best pitchers in the country, junior right fielder RJ Shields felt nervous, and he imagines the rest of his team did, too.
While most FHSAA Final Four teams threw their ace in the semifinal, No. 2 seed Stoneman Douglas saved senior left-handed pitcher Gio Rojas for the championship match. Rojas, who is projected to be selected in the first round of the 2026 MLB Draft, throws a 97 mph fastball. Ahead of the championship game, in 66 innings, Rojas went 10-1 with a 0.64 ERA, striking out 112.
“He’s a very hard-throwing lefty,” Shields said. “He hides the ball very well. We came into it very intimidated, I’d say from the players’ aspect. We just needed more confidence up there.”
No. 1 Venice fell to No. 2 Stoneman Douglas 2-1 in the FHSAA Class 7A state championship at Hammond Stadium on Saturday, May 16, in its first Final Four appearance since 2019. Rojas struck out 12 batters in 6 2/3 innings, holding Venice (32-2), which is ranked No. 2 in the country, to one hit.
On Friday, May 15, Stoneman Douglas’ Jackson Taylor hit a walk-off single in the bottom of the seventh to push the Eagles to the title match. Six-time champion Venice fought through a potential upset in the semifinal, defeating Vero Beach 4-2 behind senior left-handed pitcher Carter Cox’s eight-strikeout complete game.
Douglas (28-6) players approached their head coach, Todd Fitz-Gerald, with the idea to pitch Rojas in the championship a week before the Final Four.
“Why wouldn’t we throw our best against the best?” Rojas said.
The team used ChatGPT to figure out probable outcomes and present statistics to Fitz-Gerald, explaining why Rojas needed to start on Saturday. Fitz-Gerald agreed to it.
“It was a battle when you’re facing one of the top pitchers in the country,” Venice head coach Craig Faulkner said. “We knew that. They took a risk and saved him for us. It’s kind of an honor for them to save him. We were up for the challenge, but man, he’s really good.”
In the top of the first, after junior right-handed pitcher Kasen Poplin walked senior Cade Raley and senior Randy Ruiz, Rojas laid down a bunt, sending Raley home.
With two outs and the bases loaded, Venice pulled Poplin early, putting his brother, sophomore right-handed pitcher Kohen Poplin, on the mound. Kohen pitched for 5 1/3 innings, holding Douglas to four hits and allowing one run.
“Kohen definitely coming in, pitching a lot of innings in a row, gave us a chance to win,” Faulkner said. “We just fell a little short.”
Douglas held onto the single run through six innings despite Venice’s attempts to tie.
In the fifth, after third baseman Maddox Volk was hit by a pitch, sophomore Ty Danielo bunted, pushing Volk to second. But Rojas struck out Cox and freshman Macade Carey to end the inning.
And in the bottom of the sixth, Graham Houston walked before advancing to third on a wild pitch and catcher Jonathan Mauro’s sacrifice fly. But Rojas kept the Indians at bay again, striking out senior Randall Riley.
“He throws a lot of strikes and didn’t give many opportunities,” Faulkner said about Rojas. “We guessed right a few times. Stole second base. Had men in scoring position. We just couldn’t get the big run when we needed.”
Douglas extended its lead in the seventh. After senior Jake Rizzo walked, Venice replaced Kohen Poplin with closer Aiden Cary. Rojas followed with a single to center before sophomore Ander Elorriaga’s bunt brought Rizzo home.
The Indians made another pitching change, putting Shields on the mound, who escaped the inning with bases loaded.
Down 2-0 in the bottom of the seventh, right-handed pitcher Ben Bianchi replaced Rojas and secured two quick outs for Douglas before Shields hit a home run over the right field fence.
Bianchi struck out Cox to end the game.
“This team means a lot to us,” Faulkner said. “We love our players. They pour it out on the field and give it all. We wanted to win it all. We were in a good position to do it. These guys fought through the regionals and district. It means a lot that they gave full effort all the time. We had no hiccups in the season for the most part.”
Surrounded by his emotional players, Faulkner reconciled the loss in a makeshift interview room following the game. Douglas made a gutsy move, and it paid off. The Indians worked to find ways to overcome the potential first-round pick, but they couldn’t.
“It stinks to not win it all,” Faulkner said. “But man, when you run into a guy like Rojas, we knew it was going to be a battle. And it was. I figured it was going to be a 1-0, 2-1 ball game like it was. I was just hoping to be on the other side of that.”
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Venice falls in 7A title game to Stoneman Douglas, MLB prospect Gio Rojas
Reporting by Emma Moon, Sarasota Herald-Tribune / Sarasota Herald-Tribune
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
