VERO BEACH – When newcomers arrive on the Vero Beach High baseball team, they are nurtured and taught the culture of the program by the incumbents.
“Any time new kids come in, our kids embrace it and mentor and model what’s expected here,” Vero Beach coach Bryan Rahal said. “The kids then blend right in and you can’t tell who hasn’t been here.”
Some of the newcomers made big contributions when the team needed it most.
That led to a family-like setting with one big dogpile on the pitcher’s mound.
JT McLaughlin, Charles “Chuck” Singletary IV, Jaxon Pomar and Colt Miller blended in with the veterans to help Vero Beach sweep its best-of-3 regional final series.
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After a victory Friday, Vero Beach closed out Park Vista High with a 7-6 nailbiter over the Cobras in eight innings in the Class 7A-Region 3 final on a sweltering Saturday in Vero Beach.
Winners of 10 straight, Vero Beach heads to Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers for its second Final 4 performance in the past three seasons.
And it couldn’t have been accomplished without the four transfers.
“I’ve got a dugout full of unsung heroes, all waiting for the time and waiting for the moment,” Rahal said.
One of the main focal points entering the postseason was if a player didn’t think he had an opportunity to contribute in the manner he envisioned, just wait because your time may come in a big moment.
“You have to be in the right frame of mind because that opportunity is going to present itself,” Rahal said. “If you’re not ready, you’re going to let that moment pass you by. So make sure you are ready.
“We’ve had big talks about attitude determining outcome, staying positive. You saw that today, last night, last week.”
McLaughlin answers the call
Limited to five innings during the regular season, McLaughlin came on in relief of starter Brandon Walker and kept Vero Beach in the game.
The 6-foot-1 right-handed pitcher got the final out after Park Vista scored four runs in the fourth inning to take a 5-3 lead.
McLaughlin, who came over from Vero Beach Master’s Academy for his senior season, then pitched two hitless and scoreless innings with two walks and two strikeouts after Vero Beach tied the game with two runs in the top of the fifth inning. (Vero Beach was the visiting team in the second game.)
“It’s been a little bit,” said McLaughlin, who most recently pitched in a game March 25 against Evergreen High out of Colorado. “But I always keep my head up. I haven’t had many innings, but these times are the most fun coming in pitching and be a part of the team and giving my full effort and my heart.”
“A guy who struggled for innings all year, kinda figured some things out and his number got called in a critical situation. He was fantastic,” Rahal said. “He kept us in the game and allowed us to tie it and extended it until we could get the lead.”
McLaughlin’s mindset: “Help out the team. I don’t try to think too much when I’m throwing. Just go out there and throw the white ball.”
“JT did amazing,” Singletary said. “He did what he was supposed to do.”
Brayden Schlitt, who hadn’t pitched all season, got an out. Hunter Johnston worked his way out of a jam by getting two outs in the seventh inning in his 2026 mound debut to get the victory.
“Brayden Schlitt, Hunter Johnson, minimal innings on the year, come in and collect some outs so we could get that lead and go to Colt Miller,” Rahal said.
After Vero Beach scored two in the top of the eighth inning, Miller got the final three outs.
Scheduled to be the Game 3 starter, if it was needed, Miller surrendered a run on a sacrifice fly after two hit batters and a walk.
“My team got me two runs there at the end, so we just had to go out and win the game,” said Miller, a transfer from John Carroll Catholic High who picked up his third save to go along with a 3-0 record. “Throw strikes. I knew if we got the lead later in the game, I was going to have to close it out. My team got me runs and we made it happen.”
Offense scratches to produce runs
In the seesaw affair, Vero Beach got even at 5-all in the fifth. Singletary’s third home run of the season, a bomb to left-center field, brought the team within 5-4.
“It felt great,” said Singletary, who came over from Fort Pierce Central High. “Hanging curveball.”
Hudson Schlitt followed with a double and was sacrificed to third by Jaxon Pomar, a John Carroll transfer.
After a walk to Cody Morgan and Jordan Tomas was hit with a pitch to load the bases, Nate Downey walked to force in a run.
Vero Beach thought it had another run when Dom Lopez was struck with a pitch, but the home plate umpire ruled Lopez intentionally dived into the pitch and called Lopez out.
Singletary also was in the middle of the winning rally. He doubled down the third-base line with one out and stole third. Hudson Schlitt was hit with a pitch and stole second. Pomar dropped a single just inside the left-field foul line to produce Singletary.
“He’s been focused all week and kinda changing his frame of mind, his approach at the plate, figuring things out, working hard,” Rahal said of Singletary. “Figured out what wasn’t working and what was working and we saw the result of that.
With runners on the corners, Pomar was caught in a rundown between first and second allowing Schlitt to score what proved to be the winning run.
“Yes, we called the play,” Rahal said. “When it works, you always say it works to perfection. So we’ll stick with that.”
Morgan in the middle of Game 1 heroics
In the first game of the series Friday evening, Morgan pitched the first six innings. The senior right-hander allowed three hits and one run while walking four and striking out seven.
For the season, Morgan raised his record to 9-4, lowered his earned run average to 1.00 and surpassed the 100-strikeout plateau with 104 in 70 innings.
It was the 30th win of his career.
Offensively, Caleb Wood had three hits, including his team-high fifth home run of the season, and knocked in three runs.
Vero Beach extended a 2-1 lead with six runs in the fourth inning, knocking out Park Vista starter Cody Wexler (8-1) and handed him his first loss of the season.
A measure of revenge in returning to the Final 4
In sweeping second-seeded Park Vista (20-7), top-seeded Vero Beach avenged a season-ending 2-1 loss in the third and deciding game of the best-of-3 regional semifinal last season.
“These kids are gritty kids,” Rahal said of his squad. “They work hard. They believe with a team-glory-first attitude.
“Great team across from us.”
Vero Beach raised its record to 15-1 at home and has not lost since a 4-1 setback to Herndon High in South Carolina on its spring break tour.
In its most-recent trip to the Final 4 two years ago, Vero Beach lost in the 7A state semifinals to eventual champion Parkland Stoneman Douglas, 9-7.
“What a feeling, not for me, not for my staff,” said Rahal, in his 14th season who thanked Dr. Peggy Jones for hiring him. “I coach with the best guys in the world. They’re like brothers, little brothers, sons. One is a son. They’re great guys. To see them get the opportunity to go to the Final 4 is really cool.
“The players for me to see them get the opportunity and see this excitement and experience this joy on the field – the kids in tears and emotional – that’s why you coach. That’s why the losses hurt and the wins feel good. Not for any other reason. You hurt when you lose because they’ve worked so darn hard. You see the disappointment on their face because they’ve worked so hard.
“To go back to the Final 4 is more about getting the experience and joy with these kids. I love practice, so I’m more excited about practice on Monday than anything else. That’s all I was looking forward to: one more week of practice. Any time you can practice the last week of the season is a good feeling.”
And the contributions came from everywhere.
“It means a lot,” Singletary said.
“Champions here. I love it. It’s like a family,” McLaughlin said. “Great culture. I love being here. It feels amazing to be able to contribute, especially with something as important as this, it feels amazing.”
“It’s exciting,” Miller said “The Final 4 is what everyone dreams of. Couldn’t ask for a better final year, for sure. It’s awesome.”
“Super excited for those contributions, but super excited for four-year guys: Cody Morgan, Caleb Wood, Jordan Tomas, Brandon Walker. Dominic (Lopez) has been a three-year guy. Hunter Johnston is a three-year guy. Those guys have been in the program year in and year out.”
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Vero Beach baseball returns to states with the help from new players
Reporting by Dennis Maffezzoli, Special to Treasure Coast Newspapers / Treasure Coast Newspapers
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
