High School Baseball: Trinity Catholic and North Marion make regional final

Baseball is rolling in Marion County. Friday night marked the regional semifinals and Ocala has two teams in the thick of things.

North Marion and Trinity Catholic hosted home playoff games. The Colts outscored Hernando 7-2, and the Celtics topped Jacksonville Bolles 6-0 to reach the regional final.

“We’re just playing really good baseball right now,” Trinity Catholic head coach Tommy Bond said. “Mekai Griffin was outstanding tonight. He threw multiple pitches for strikes and was locked in from the get-go. He gave an outstanding performance.”

On the other side of town, North Marion and Hernando treated the packed stands to high-level play on offense and defense.

“We’ve played a ton of playoff games here, but in my 19 years, I’m pretty sure it was the biggest crowd,” North Marion head baseball coach Dale Hall said. “We had people lined up along the outfield fence. You could hardly move behind home plate.”

Both teams play for regional championships Tuesday night. North Marion (24-5) hosts Orlando Bishop Moore (21-7-1). Trinity Catholic (21-8) travels to Jacksonville to face The Providence School (24-2).

With both teams earning bids for the regional title, it's time to see what got them this far. How much their storylines parallel might surprise you.

Mekai Griffin’s big night

The Celtics’ big win came from a big performance from Griffin, who made plays on the mound and at the plate. The University of Miami commit pitched a shutout and gave up two hits in the regional semifinal win.

Griffin pitched a complete game with 12 strikeouts, plus he drove in two runs. He’s been on a mission since this postseason began.

“It’s been a completely different look in his eye the last two starts,” Bond said. “The district championship game and this one. He’s that type of kid that in big moments, he’s going to be ready to go.”

In the midst of one of his big games in Trinity Catholic’s most important game thus far, Griffin realizes he couldn’t do it alone.

“I threw good, but at the same time, the defense did really good behind me, allowing me to work through counts that, even if I was behind, letting them put the ball in play and let the defense work,” Griffin said. “Cadence at shortstop had a great double play to get me out of the inning. The bats behind me were juiced.”

Celtics share traits of 2021 champion

It’s been a while since the Celtics made the regional title game, but they have a history. Their last trip was in 2014. Trinity Catholic won the regional and state titles that season.

“The mindset is similar,” Bond said. “That was a scrappy group back then that just got hot at the right time of year. This team reminds me a lot of that group. They’re just going to fight for every pitch, and that’s what this group’s done so far.”

The Celtics felt a hint of disrespect after starting the playoffs on the road despite winning a district championship. Trinity Catholic took it out on Pensacola Catholic, beating them 15-3 in the quarterfinal regional. Shutting out Bolles was a part of their revenge tour.

Bond thinks the team still has more venom in its bite. They’re hoping to bring it to Jacksonville when the Celtics play again.

Jake Tompkins makes a statement

In the bottom of the third, North Marion lead Hernando 1-0. With so much time to go, it was anyone’s game until Jake Tompkins stepped to the plate.

“I’m sure it was an at-bat he’ll remember for the rest of his life,” said Hall. “He had one almost identical against IMG at the end of March. It ended up being the game-winning hit. The same trajectory, same exit velocity, just absolutely crushed.”

Tompkins has been waiting on this moment. He’s spent plenty of hours in the cage honing in on his swing. When he’s dialed, he’s sending the ball out of the park in the game’s biggest moments.

Defensive keys to consistency

A team with one of the nation’s leaders in home runs has an offensive powerhouse writer all over it. While North Marion does swing it well, its defense has been a mark of consistency.

All year, the Colts have cleaned up innings with big defensive plays and power pitching. Hernando averaged 7.9 runs a game; North Marion held them to two runs.

“We just pitched well and played great defense,” Hall said. “I sound like a broken record, but that’s what gotten us to 24 wins.”

Hall says the Colts’ consistency comes from their work ethic. It’s a program expectation for you to work hard, permeating the team. North Marion’s constant preparation shines on the field.

For the fourth time

On Tuesday evening, Trinity Catholic and North Marion will compete for regional titles. It’ll be the fourth time two or more Marion County schools played for a region title on the same day.

The first chance Ocala area schools earned the opportunity to win multiple titles dates back to 1983 with St. John Lutheran and Forest in those games.

Trinity Catholic has a track record of playing in these games. In 2013, the Celtics won the regional title. North Marion and Trinity Catholic could be the first schools to bring regional titles to Marion County in the same season.

This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Two Marion County baseball teams one win away from state semifinals