Bishop Verot baseball advances to regional final, Canterbury and St. John Neumann fall

A roundup of high school playoff events from Tuesday through Saturday, May 7-11

SATURDAY

Baseball

Class 3A-Region 2

Bishop Verot 14, Tampa Catholic 1

During Bishop Verot's run of six consecutive regional championships in the 2010s, the road to states usually went through Tampa Catholic, with the Vikings dispatching the Crusaders during the regional playoffs in 2011, 2013, and 2015.

The 2024 edition of the team on Sunrise Drive hopes that history is about to repeat itself.

Bishop Verot jumped out to a 6-0 first inning lead, and cruised to a 14-1 win over the Crusaders Saturday night at Duane Swanson, Sr. Field. The win sends the Vikings to their first regional championship game since 2016, a Tuesday night date in Fort Myers with Berkeley Prep, a 6-0 winner over top-seeded Calvary Christian, and also leaves the Vikings as Southwest Florida's last team standing for 2024."We were really dialed in from the first inning tonight," Bishop Verot head coach Casey Scott said. "Our guys brought the energy from the first pitch, and we were able to jump on them right away."

Tampa Catholic made errors in each of the first three innings, and those errors will likely haunt the Crusaders into the summer. In the first, the Vikings scored all six of their runs with two outs, starting with an RBI double from Jason Bello and culminating in a grand slam well over the right field fence from Brody Baxmann.

A one-out error similarly hurt Tampa Catholic in the second, as Joey Lawson lifted a three-run homer out to left field, again with two outs, to give the Vikings a commanding 9-0 lead. Verot's tenth run was more directly thanks to an error, with Baxmann scoring on an errant throw from the TC catcher in the third.

Tampa Catholic got a run back in the fourth, but Jason Bello ensured the game would end after five innings with Verot's third home run of the night, a two-run shot to right field in the bottom half of the frame. Verot would add two more runs in their final trip to the frame, accounting for the 13-run edge.

While 12 runs would be enough run support for nearly any pitcher, Verot starter Maddix Simpson didn't need much of it. The Ohio State signee allowed just one run over four innings of work, consistently inducing weak contact from the Crusaders. Bello finished the game for the Vikings, adding a scoreless frame to his offensive output.

Verot's final roadblock before a trip across town to Hammond Stadium comes in the form of another historic rival for the Vikings - the Buccaneers of Berkeley Prep. Verot will likely see Florida State signee Rivers Kurland in the final, but the game will be at Swanson Field, an opportunity the Verot boys appreciate.

"Our guys have worked all year to get this chance, and to get a great team like Berkeley Prep on our home field is even better," Scott said. "We're hoping we have another great crowd Tuesday night."

— Ryan Murphy

Class 2A-Region 3

Carrollwood Day 2, St. John Neumann 0: The top-seeded Celtics were upset by the Patriots at home after managing just two hits. Carrollwood Day tallied five hits as a team, including a pair of doubles.

Northside Christian 7, Canterbury 0: The Cougars fell in the Class 2A-Region 3 semifinal despite outhitting the Mustangs 8-5. Noah Torres and Garrett McManus each had a pair of hits in the loss. J.T. Huether gave up eight hits and seven runs while walking three and fanning four over four innings pitched.

THURSDAY

Class 1A Boys Lacrosse State Semifinal

CSN 11, Saint Andrew's 10 (OT)

In a state semifinal game featuring physical play, the Community School of Naples boys lacrosse team survived the heat and a brutal matchup with Saint Andrew's and unseated the three-time state champs Thursday afternoon.

Led by Cal Wyatt’s seven goals – including a shocker to end the game - the Seahawks beat the Scots 11-10 in overtime to win the Class 1A state semifinals in boys lacrosse and move on to the state title game.

CSN won it with a goal by Wyatt eight minutes into the extra period after taking a long pass by goalie Sachin Nanavati. Strangely enough, Nanavati had just come in after starting goalkeeper Michael Slusar left due to injury. Slusar had several big stops despite the Scots’ scoring onslaught, including two big saves in the OT.

The game featured plenty of injuries, stick checks, and sweat.

The Seahawks will meet Benjamin, who throttled Jacksonville Bolles in another Class 1A state semifinal Thursday afternoon 19-7, in the state title game Saturday at 5.

The Seahawks won this one through some ball control by winning eight of 11 faceoffs.

“The faceoffs gave us the ball,” said CSN coach Keith Lee. “The faceoffs are big no matter who scores. The faceoff can help you start a run of scoring, or stop another team’s run of scores. It was amazing out there. The kids played great lacrosse. The players executed well. All the great individual efforts helped the team.”

Saint Andrew's tied the game at 10-10 with a score with only 2:08 left in regulation.

“Number 5 (Wyatt) scored all the goals, and their goalie stopped all the shots,” said Saint Andrew's coach Tony Seaman. “That was all the other team needed to win. But sometimes it just doesn’t go your way. We had three or four shots hit the crossbar.”

Sophomore standout and Notre Dame commit Dylan Faison scored five times for Saint Andrew’s, which lost for the first time since March 12.

CSN built up a 4-1 lead but the Scots came back. When Faison battled through three CSN defenders for a goal with 3:27 left in the first half, it was tied at 4-4. Two minutes later Faison then scored to give the Scots a 5-4 lead. But Wyatt dribbled in a goal with 50 seconds left to tie the score at 5-5 at halftime.

The Seahawks immediately scored twice within the first three minutes of the third quarter.  But the Scots knotted it with goals at the midway point of the third. The teams then traded goals late in the third, making it 8-8 heading into the final frame.

― Tom Corwin

Softball

Class 5A-Region 3

Fort Myers 3, East Bay 2

Michael Phelps served as inspiration to help the Green Wave over the line in their regional playoff quarterfinal against East Bay.

Fort Myers head coach Dan Mills had told his team the story of how Phelps’ trainer used to purposefully do things to get him out of his routine, like step on his goggles, to get his athlete accustomed to adversity.

That advice came in handy when some of the stadium lights suddenly went out at the top of the sixth inning with the score tied 1-1.

“Somebody stepped on our goggles, so we just got to keep our composure, be ready to go when we do play,” Mills said.

The delay lasted 20 minutes, bringing Fort Myers' Afton Jessogne back to the circle after she had only thrown two pitches in relief of Alexa Bent. Jessogne gave up a hit to the first batter she faced then retired the next three.

The Fort Myers bats struggled with East Bay pitcher Elana Roush, who struck out 11 batters in the game.

The delay might have been what the Greenies needed to recharge.

Sitting in a circle in the infield, the Fort Myers players did the wave, played duck-duck-goose and made music requests to the press box.

“This team has a spirit that I want them to be loose,” Mills said. “They thrive when they’re loose, and I enjoy to see the chemistry they have and I don’t want them uptight.”

Once the game resumed, Tegan Webb, Daciana Harvey and Sage Rodmyre came through at the plate. Webb started off the bottom of the sixth with a hit, Harvey reached on an error and Rodmyre drove them both home with a double launched to center field.

Rodmyre had two hits and three RBIs and Harvey reached base three times.

“I basically told the girls our top of the order has to outplay theirs,” Mills said. “That’s going to be the game, and we did.”

The final three outs were anything but simple for the Green Wave. After the first two runners got on, Bent was sent back in the game. The bases were loaded on an error and a run scored on a walk.

With no outs and the bases juiced, the Greenies didn't panic. They successfully executed the next two plays at home and Reece Harris caught the final out in left field.

With the win, Fort Myers advances to the regional semifinals where they will get a rematch with North Fort Myers. The Greenies got the win against their rival earlier this season.

“We talked about the road to anywhere goes through North, and I know that they’re anxious to get another shot at us,” Mills said. “This is going to be the game that matters this season. The game that we played earlier this year means nothing.”

— Dustin Levy

North Fort Myers 14, Ida Baker 4

Kaliyah Williams' bat and Azlynn Gomes' glove led North Fort Myers to a 14-4 win over Ida Baker in the Region 5A-3 quarterfinals on Thursday night at Bobbie Dewey Field.

The Red Knights (22-5), advance to face rival Fort Myers in the semifinals on Tuesday, which they will also host.

For Baker (14-10), it spelled the end of a season that saw a heavy strength of schedule, injuries, illness, and multiple starters playing their first season of high school softball. Through all that they exceeded expectations by beating Fort Myers in the district semifinals and earning an at-large bid to the regionals.

"We had nothing to lose coming out here playing against North," Baker coach Lori Castellano said.

Williams, the pitcher, gave strong support to her own cause by going 4-for-4 with 5 RBI and falling a home run shy of the cycle. She hit a double, clearing the loaded bases, in the fifth inning, triggering the 10-run rule and ending the game.

"It felt very good," Williams said. "I've been struggling lately, so it felt really good to be able to hit and go 4-for-4 tonight."

In the circle, she gave up 3 earned runs and struck out 4.

Gomes, who had 3 hits of her own, got to wear a chain necklace that said "golden glove" for the diving plays that she made at second base.

Abigail Hynes led off the bottom of the first inning by belting a hit that landed and rolled all the way to the fence in right-center field for an inside-the-park home run. Jordyn Prado laid down a bunt that brought home Audrie Florenzano. Williams followed with a single to left field that scored Gomes. Alison Smith and Bella Miceli each added RBI singles along the left field line to put the Red Knights up 5-0.

This prompted Castellano to swap starting pitcher Kaiden Nealeigh with designated player Oliviah Slywestrek. That settled things down for a bit and gave the Bulldogs an opportunity to work on a comeback.

"She comes in and she's like stone," Castellano said. "It doesn't affect her. Although her speed isn't much, her off-speed is very effective. If she complements that, it's effective."

Alyssa Auger led off the top of the second for Baker with a double to the gap in right-center field. After Auger advanced to third, McKenzie Cole ground out to first base, allowing Augur to trot home, making it a 5-1 game. Slywestrek retired the Red Knights in order in the bottom of the second.

A 3-run top of the third gave the Bulldogs their best opportunity for a comeback. Julie Nieves led off with a double to right and eventually scored on a passed ball. Then Auger hit a two-run single, bringing home Kaiden Nealeigh and Makayla Nieves to make it 5-4.

But that was as close as it would get. The Red Knights went on to score nine unanswered runs, which included another inside-the-park home run, this one hit by Florenzano.

― Dave Montrose

Northeast 7, Barron Collier 2

After plenty of scoring in the last month of games, the bats of Barron Collier High's softball team were tamed by Northeast High pitcher Danielle Brunner Thursday night.

Brunner allowed only four hits as the Vikings stormed into Barron Collier and won this region quarterfinal showdown. The Vikings won it with two runs in the fifth inning, breaking a 2-2 stalemate, and broke it open with three more in the sixth.

It was the first time the Cougars hadn’t reached double-digits in runs in almost a month.

“This is a tough loss for us, no question,” said Barron Collier coach Sivan Palacios. “We did the best we could. I couldn’t be more proud of these girls. Our errors played a big role in the game. Errors always play a big role in any game.”

Lashell Roberts and Baylie Dorr both had two hits and three RBI for the Vikings.

“We couldn’t hit her rise-pitch,” Palacios said of Brunner. “She just came and threw. And she just had a great rise-pitch.”

There was scoring early and also plenty of errors. The teams combined for six errors in the game.

“We started slowly tonight, but we eventually put it all together,” said Northeast coach Reginald Randolph. “We made some errors early that were because of nerves. And Danielle held her own. She came through at critical moments.”

The Vikings put up two in the first. With one out, Mikayla Simon walked and scored when Lashell Roberts doubled. Roberts also scored when Dorr singled to center.

BC got one back in the bottom of the first when Sheila Forbes walked, went to second on a single by Gabby Alvarez and scored on a Vikings infield error.

The Cougars tied it in the third. Forbes singled, went to second on a fielder’s choice, to third on an error and scored when Jordyn Kinn hit a sacrifice fly to deep left field.

But Northeast would get the runs to win it 1 ½ innings later. Dorr doubled to start the fifth and she scored when Avan Twinam also doubled. Twinam came home on a BC error in the outfield. So that made it a 4-2 Northwest lead.

― Tom Corwin

Parrish Community 10, Mariner 0

PARRISH – The Parrish Community High softball team gave its opponents a firm reminder that it’s the defending 5A state champions with a dominating win to open the 5A-Region 3 playoffs on Thursday night.

Senior starting pitcher Rylee Little struck out 13 of the 18 batters she faced and the Bulls collected eight hits in a four-and-a-half-inning game.

“We have high expectations here,” Parrish coach Erin Spivey said. “I’m a firm believer that if you’re not shooting for the stars, what are you shooting for? I don’t want them to ever settle for mediocrity. I want them to shoot for the stars, that way they know in life they can handle anything that’s thrown at them.”

Little struck out eight of the first nine batters she faced with an overpowering fastball that set the tone early for the Bulls. She finished with five scoreless innings, allowing just three batters to reach base on a passed-ball strikeout, a walk, and a bloop single to shallow center field.

Mariner freshman starting pitcher Gabi Winters matched Little early as she worked around a hit-by-pitch to escape the first inning unscathed.

But an error-filled second inning led to three runs for Parrish – on a fielding error on a throw to third base, a passed ball, and a sacrifice bunt.

“Way too many mistakes,” Mariner coach Rachel Holloway said of her team’s four errors and three passed balls. “They’re fast with the ball on the ground. Just way too many mistakes. It was a challenge (coming up from Mariner) and it was just so hot. We were exhausted coming up here. (Winters) pitched really well. With no mistakes, we’d have stayed in the game longer.”

Winters nearly bounced back in the third inning as she recorded two outs in the first three batters she faced, but Parrish added on two more runs on a two-run single up the middle by Little to stretch the lead to 5-0.

Mistakes and errors crept up on Mariner again in the fourth. A fielding error and a throwing error allowed sophomore Sadie Kruse and freshman Kyndal France to reach base to open the inning before a pair of passed balls brought them home.

― Vinnie Portell

Class 2A-Region 3

ECS 17, St. Pete Canterbury 1: Canterbury scored the game's first run, but the Sentinels scored the next 17, including 10 in the fourth to put the regional quarterfinal game away. Karsyn Mootz drove in four runs, hitting a triple and home run, while Kylie Shaw (2 runs, 2 RBI) and Makayla Jakubuwski (2 runs, 2 RBI) also hit home runs in the win. Payton Billie scored three runs and Kiley Davie had two doubles, scored twice, and drove two in. ECS will host Fort Meade Tuesday in a semifinal.

Region 7A-2

East Lake 10, Riverdale 0: The Raiders were no-hit and ended their season with a 20-8 record.

Class 4A-Region 2 Track

Boys Team Scores: T10. Lehigh (26); 26. Palmetto Ridge (9).

Boys Automatic Qualifiers

400: 1. Dorian Mallary, Lehigh (47.84)

Wheelchair Shotput:1. Joseph Herwin, Riverdale (5.10)

Wheelchair 100: Joseph Herwin, Riverdale (35.71)

Wheelchair 200: Joseph Herwin, Riverdale (1:23.32)

Girls Team Scores: 12. Lehigh (24); 30. Palmetto Ridge (3).

Girls Automatic Qualifiers

400: 2. Torri Gary, Lehigh (56.20)

1600: 2. Gianna Del Pizzo, Lehigh (5:07.66)

WEDNESDAY

Baseball

Class 3A-Region 3

Bishop Verot 8, Clearwater Central Catholic 0

The Vikings opened the floodgates with back-to-back four-run innings to cruise to a regional playoff win against the Marauders on Wednesday night.

Starting pitcher Joey Lawson gave up two hits and no runs through five innings while striking out eight batters.

“Obviously winning at this time of year, it doesn’t matter how you do it as long as you come out with the win, so proud of these guys,” Bishop Verot head coach Casey Scott said. “They’ve worked hard for so long for this and to do it at home is even better.”

Through three innings, the contest looked to be a pitching battle between Lawson and Clearwater Central Catholic’s Cooper Riley.

After getting just one hit in the first three innings, the Vikings tallied four in the fourth, starting with a knock by senior Maddix Simpson.

Lawson drove in the team’s first two runs with a single, which led to a four-run rally for the squad.

“They had infield in so just get the ball the other way,” he said. “Doesn’t matter how, just get it outside, and it worked.”

The Marauders changed pitchers to start the fifth, but the result was the same with four Viking runs crossing the plate.

Freshman Braylon Sheffield led the team with three hits and three RBIs. Along with sophomores Lawson and catcher Carter Chalder, the Vikings’ underclassmen have played an important role in the team’s success along with veterans like Simpson and Jason Bello.

“I think they just kind of bought into everything and they’ve been the guys that have been on the front lines for us all year, so this is, for them, they’re no longer underclassmen,” Scott said.

Lawson was particularly steady, working his way through jams in the second and fourth innings, ending both potential Clearwater rallies with strikeouts.

“Joey’s the man,” Scott said. “I’m glad he’s here for two more years. There’s no situation too big, too small, but that’s a total product of just the work that he puts in every single day, so we’re very blessed to have him.”

The defense behind him held up too, turning several tough outs into routine ones – including a spectacular sliding catch by Curtis Coulliard in left field.

Verot will host Tampa Catholic in the regional semifinals on Saturday. The Vikings defeated the Crusaders 5-3 earlier in the season.

“Just glad we get to keep them together for another couple days,” Scott said. “Hopefully we still got a little something left in the tank for Saturday.”

— Dustin Levy

Class 4A-Region 3

Hardee 7, Estero 5: Hardee scored four times in the fourth inning to take a lead it would never relinquish. Estero (21-6) scored all five runs in the third inning to take a 5-3 lead as Justin Trometer, Sandro Hernandez, Rylan Stewart, Ian Messinger and Evan Goeller each drove in a run.

Class 2A-Region 3

Canterbury 16, Seffner Christian 2: The Cougars (17-11) scored 14 runs in the top of the first to put this game away early. Noah Torres hit a two-run double and a grand slam in the opening frame while Anthony Meady added a two-run single and a three-run home run. Ever Silvente and Joseph De La Nuez added first-inning RBI singles in the first inning. They'll play at Northside Christian on Saturday.

St. John Neumann 6, Shorecrest Prep 1: The Celtics (22-6) jumped out to a 4-0 first-inning lead on an Alex Kuenzle sacrifice fly a Michael Maradona RBI single, and Mason Ceccarelli two-run single. Ceccarelli added another RBI single in the third. Trevor Nikolis earned the win for Neumann, allowing one hit and no runs while striking out five over four innings. Neumann will host Carrollwood Day on Saturday night.

Carrollwood Day 1, SFCA 0: Cole Ingole pitched a complete game with six strikeouts, allowing ni walks and five hits in the loss. Aiden Matyas and Eli Moore both doubled for SFCA (18-6).

Softball

Class 3A-Region 3

Bishop Verot 3, Tampa Catholic 1

Vikings third baseman Melanie Moreno provided all the offense Bishop Verot would need as pitchers Crimson Lawrence and Payton Breadmore held Tampa Catholic's bats at bay for a regional quarterfinal win.

With Abby Goff and Crimson Lawrence at second and third, respectively, and one out in the third inning, Moreno drilled a pitch into left field to give the Vikings a 2-0 lead.

“I had runners on second and third and I was thinking (opposite field) trying to get them in. And then I got down to that 2-2 count and I was like, all right, whatever is close, execute,” Moreno said. “So I saw that pitch in. It was low, made it stay on the ground. And I'm thinking of the team, so I help them, they help me. That's how the game works.”

Lawrence started and after giving up a one-out single in the first, she retired the next 11 batters in a row. She ran into trouble in the fifth as a single and hit batter put runners on and #3 drove one in with a opposite field hit down the right-field line. Another hit batter loaded the bases but #24 hit a hard shot right at Lawrence, who scooped it up and threw her out to end the threat.

Breadmore came in for the sixth and allowed only one infield single while striking out three to collect the save.

Tampa Catholic (10-11) gifted the Vikings (21-6-1) an insurance run in the sixth as a two-out ground ball to the pitcher was thrown away at first allowing Jaelyn Riley to reach second. McKenna Robbins followed and crushed a ball down the right-field line for a triple and a 3-1 lead.

Bishop Verot had chances to break the game open early. They had bases loaded with no outs in the first but a double play and a fly to center kept them off the board. They also had runners at first and third with one out in the second and fourth innings and could not score.

“We knew coming into the game, it was gonna be a tough game,” Vikings coach Chris Gatewood said. “Once you get to this stage of the playoffs, you can't really look at anybody's record and go off of that. I mean, because they're coming from a Tampa area with a lot of talent, we knew that they were going to be a good ballclub and be able to come in and give us a good ball game. Credit to our girls, too, as well. They played hard. And we did strand some base runners tonight, we weren’t able to cash in on that but, I mean, at the end of the day, they found a way and at this point in the season and playoffs, you just got to find a way to advance and make it to the next game and they did that tonight.”

The region’s fourth-seeded Vikings will be on the road Tuesday to face top seeded Academy of the Holy Names.

― Ed Reed

Class 2A-Region 3

Seacrest 12, SFCA 5

The region's sixth seed, the Stingrays received a complete-game effort from seventh-grade pitcher Caroline Porter and timely hits to defeat the King's in a rematch of a district playoff game.

Porter struck out five, including her 100th of the season, walked two, allowed two earned runs and nine hits, with three of those coming in the seventh inning. Porter faced a bases-loaded situation in the second inning but responded by striking out the next two batters and fielding a ground ball on a 1-3 putout. She found her rhythm after that.

“[Porter] is learning in her youth to stay in games, even if something isn’t working. She’s learning to stay within herself and continue to pitch,” said Seacrest head coach Ashley Spencer, whose team will host Moore Haven Tuesday in a semifinal.

Porter and the Rays got into trouble in the fourth. With runners at second and third, SFCA’s leadoff hitter Adrianna Thorne reached on a line drive that went in and out of the shortstop’s glove and as Thorne hustled into second the left fielder threw the ball wide of the second baseman, allowing a second run to score. Candice Chime then singled and advanced to second on a throw trying to get Thorne out at the plate unsuccessfully.

The Seacrest offense gave Porter plenty of support as 22 batters reached base in 42 plate appearances with the Stingrays' first two batters Sidney Dawick, an eighth-grader, and Jolie Booth getting on base four times and scoring four times each. Dawick led off the game with an infield hit, stole second, and scored on a Booth single. Dawick and Booth would each walk three times. Booth’s only out even proved to be helpful because after she lined to the second baseman, the ball was thrown away trying to get the runner back at second, which allowed two Rays to score.

Leading 7-4, Seacrest broke the game open in the sixth. SFCA starter Braelyn Davis got two quick outs, including a strikeout, but walked the next two ― Dawick and Booth. Cecilia Spencer singled to score Dawick. SFCA would intentionally walk the next batter, which set up a bases-loaded walk that scored one. A throwing error followed by a single from Porter would score two more to make it 11-4.

Each team would plate a run in the final frame. Seacrest’s Olivia Lopez hit an RBI single and SFCA’s Sarah Yarnell would hit a sacrifice fly.

Although SFCA's season came to an end, they finished 17-7 and are looking forward to this group’s future.

“I think we showed a lot of growth this season. We saw a lot of good things, a lot of young girls stepped up and made some good plays for us this season,” said King's coach Chris Davis. “I’m proud of what they accomplished this season. It’s a disappointing end but we should be a pretty good team next year going forward.”

― Ty Maranzatto

Class 4A-Region 3

LaBelle 10, Dunedin 0: Abby Hicks and Payton Crews combined on the four-hit shutout as the region top-seed Cowgirls (22-6) won in six innings. Marissa Burchard walked all four of her at-bats, scoring twice, while Carli Spencer, Emorie Anderson and Brooke Black each drove in two runs

Estero 6, Robinson 0: Joey Gray threw a complete-game shutout, allowing seven hits and two walks with three strikeouts for the win. Dena Peregrin scored the game's first run in the fourth with a home run and Lillian Peregrin added another run with a double. Megan Adams drove in two more in the sixth with her single. Avery Sanchez drove in a run in the seventh with a single and later scored Estero's sixth run on an error.

Clearwater 12, Bonita Springs 2

Class 3A-Region 3 Track and Field Championships

Take a haul of field event and hurdling golds for the girls of Barron Collier with field event and distance depth for the boys of Naples, and you have winning formulas for the Cougars and Golden Eagles Wednesday night at Punta Gorda in the Class 3A-Region 3 Championships.

Barron Collier’s girls scored an astounding 45 points in field events led by Shamoya Clemetson who captured gold in the long jump, 100 hurdles and silver in the 400 hurdles. She rounded her night out with a leg on the 4x400 relay to capture bronze.

“What we do well is we can win an event," said Barron Collier coach Melissa Jackson. "We don’t have a lot of depth, but that’s why at Districts we were runner-up because we can’t get a second or a third."

Naples got its meet off to a good start on the track, taking the boys 4x800 relays thanks to a strong anchor from Hector Toro. The Golden Eagle senior scored more points after taking second in the 1600.

The pole vault duo of state leader Luther Mogelvang taking gold and teammate Cooper Tunkle earning third helped apply the finishing touches for the Naples title.

The trophy put Naples coach Bronze Bruland in a philosophical mood. “I think something a lot of people forget is how hard every single person on the team works regardless of whether they’re one of the top two that move on,” Bruland said.

The lone triple winner on the night was Dunbar’s Kayla Hopkins who took gold in the 100, the 200, and anchored the Tigers winning 4x100 relays.

“I’ve been working all year long for it and now I’m ready for state and look to get my times back down,” Hopkins said.

The Fort Myers girls finished 14 points behind Barron Collier to finish second while the Green Wave boys were the top Lee County team, placing third with 56.5 points.

The Class 3A State Meet is Friday May 17th in Jacksonville.

Girls Team Scores: 1. Barron Collier 87; 2. Fort Myers 73; 3. Hillsborough 72; 4. Osceola 70.5; 5. Naples 55; 6. Charlotte 47; 7. Dunbar 38; 8. North Fort Myers 37; 9. Parrish 37; 10. Palmetto 26

Boys Team Scores: 1. Naples 92; 2. Jesuit 61; 3. Fort Myers 56.5; 4. Hillsborough 56; 5. Dunbar 47; 6. Charlotte 42; 7. Gulf Coast 36; 8. Parrish 35; 9. Seminole 29; 10. Palmetto 27

Girls Automatic Qualifiers

Pole Vault: 1. Giovanna Molloy, North Fort Myers (3.45m)

Long Jump: 1. Shamoya Clemetson, Barron Collier (5.71m); 2. Genesis Surlin, Naples (5.59m)

Javelin: 1. Rebecca Van’t Hoff, Barron Collier (38.14m)

Shot Put: 1. Cherldine Paul, Barron Collier (13.16m); 2. Julia Lemmon, Fort Myers (12.71m)

High Jump: 2. Noel Davis, North Fort Myers (1.57m)

Discus: 1. Julia Lemmon, Fort Myers (45.95m); 2. Cloelle Altaratz, Naples (37.50m)

4x800: 1. Fort Myers, 9:53.86; 2. Naples, 10:02.89

100 hurdles: 1. Shamoya Clemetson, Barron Collier, 14.76; 2. Liusmar Rivas Velasquez, Barron Collier, 14.77

100: 1. Kayla Hopkins, Dunbar, 12.12

4x100: 1. Dunbar, 47.53

400: 1. Liusmar Rivas Velasquez, Barron Collier, 56.56

400 hurdles: 2. Shamoya Clemetson, Barron Collier, 1:04.71

800: 1. Tara Watkins, Naples, 2:16.93

4x400: 1. Fort Myers, 4:03.67

Boys Automatic Qualifers

High Jump: 2. Alex Thelusma, Fort Myers (1.92m)

Discus: 1. Sean Kabangele, Naples (48.12m)

Pole Vault: 1. Luther Mogelvang, Naples (4.50m)

Javelin: 2. Will Brockmeier, Gulf Coast (53.75m)

Triple Jump: 2. Mike Luma, Ida Baker (13.48m)

Shot Put: 2. Brady Clark, Naples (15.70m)

4x800: 1. Naples, 7:58.06; 2. Dunbar, 8:00.37

1600: 1. William Montanye, Gulf Coast, 4:19.87; 2. Hector Toro, Naples, 4:20.00

400: 2. Isaiah Bryant, Naples, 49.25

800: 1. Joshua Dorestin, Dunbar, 1:56.18; 2. Jack Marshall, Naples, 1:56.77

3200: 1. Craig Allard, Jr., Fort Myers, 9:40.12

4x400: 2. Lely, 3:23.96

— John Rinkenbaugh

TUESDAY

Baseball

Class 5A-Region 3

Northeast 7, Naples 3

In such a close and competitive region like Class 5A-Region 3, sometimes you need a little bit of magic.

For Northeast, those breaks came. And for Naples, that magic ran out after three nail-biting wins in district play that propelled them to the postseason.

The second-seed Vikings (23-4) executed the little things at the right time, scoring six of their seven runs with two outs in a 7-3 win over the host Golden Eagles (21-8).

In what was expected to be a low scoring affair between two aces in Johnny King and Cory Geinzer coming in, the first inning was nothing but. A 36-pitch first inning from King resulted in a 1-0 lead for Northeast, before Naples blitzed Geinzer for three runs in the bottom half to claim the lead, as Nico Blanco, Mac O'Malley, Brandon Garcia, and Tucker Hansen all had roles in the first inning barrage.

"We started out really good," Naples coach Jimmy Nocera said. "Johnny was a little off today with his control, and the pitch count went up. He competed like I thought he would. We didn't get anything on their ace after that first inning. All the credit to their pitcher. He settled down after the first inning and did his job. They're good. They play good small ball. They play good defense, and their pitcher gamed. We just didn't put enough pressure on him later in the game.”

Aside from two-out double by Josh Sorensen which plated Ace Williams in the third, King was smooth sailing through the third, fourth, and fifth innings, with eight of Northeast's nine outs coming via strikeout. Things looked to be trending in Naples’ direction, holding a one-run lead with King sitting at 94 pitches entering the sixth inning.

Then, the switch flipped.

The Vikings weren't squaring up pitches, but capitalizing on errors, miscommunications and playing small ball. Northeast forced King out of the game after back-to-back bunts which tied the game at 3-all, before three more runs came across in the frame via a single, error, and wild pitch. Each of those runs came after Drew Stillwell struck out the first two batters he faced out of the bullpen.

"King's a hell of an arm over there," Northeast coach Johnny Lancaster said. "He's unbelievable. Those scouts are here for a reason. For us to battle and claw, and eventually get him out of the game by getting the pitch count up, it's a testament to our guys. We've been fighting all year long. We're a scrappy squad.

"We wanted to attack the fastball early, because he's punched out 100 guys in 40 innings. If you get to two strikes, ‘Good luck’ is what I was told by a lot of people. We were trying to attack the fastball early. We got some in good counts, got the pitch count up, and we executed at the end of the day."

King (8-1, 0.73 ERA) ended his final high school outing allowing four hits, four earned runs, and three walks while striking out 10. It was the sixth time this season he struck out 10 or more batters and finished with 110 strikeouts on the season.

Naples went 4 for 6 in the first inning with a double, three singles, a walk, and a hit by pitch, and went just 2 for 19 (.105) the rest of the way from the second inning onward. Geinzer moved to 9-0 on the season, managing to work around a season-low five strikeouts of all his starts this year.

"He has been an absolute dog on the mound," Lancaster said. "The first inning got us a little bit, but he competes. Believe it or not, the kid played JV baseball his freshman and sophomore year. Last year, he was good, and this year, he came back because he just worked. He worked hard as anybody on this team. The velo took a jump, the off speed improved. He's a competitor. You saw how fiery he was out there, ready to go. He's our guy on the mound, and we're riding or dying with him. When he's on the bump, we can beat anybody."

The Golden Eagles graduate 11 seniors, all of whom were a part of at least one 20-win season over the last three years, combining to go 63-26 with a Final Four appearance two seasons ago. Northeast will see their season continue at home on Friday against Parrish Community, 3-0 winners over Port Charlotte.

"It's very emotional, very tough to say goodbye to them," Nocera said. "Most of them are not going on to play college ball, although a few of them are. They become your family. You hang out with them for six or seven months straight, and you train with them, work out, and all this other stuff. When they leave and you have so many of them leave at once, it's very emotional.

"This is without a doubt the closest team that I've had here in my eight years. They do everything together on and off the field, and when it ends, it's tough."

— Alex Martin

Jesuit 7, Island Coast 3: The Gators (19-10) jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead in the third inning thanks to a three-run shot by Jordi Guerrero, but saw the bats go cold the rest of the way, finishing 2-of-26 as a team (.087) with 13 strikeouts by Tigers pitching.

TRACK AND FIELD

GIRLS

Class 1A-Region 3

Local Team Scores: 3. Evangelical Christian (52); 5. Canterbury (46); 8. First Baptist (37); T11. SFCA (23); T19. CSN (8); T21. St. John Neumann (7.50); 26. Marco Island (4)

Automatic Qualifiers

100: 1. McKenzie Travis (Evangelical Christian), 11.54

200: 1. McKenzie Travis (Evangelical Christian), 23.82

400: 1. McKenzie Travis (Evangelical Christian), 56.63

800: 2. Isabella Adams (Village School), 2:20.64

1600: 2. Isabella Adams (Village School), 5:16.88

100 Hurdles: 1. Joslyne De La Nuez (Canterbury), 14.77

4x100: 1. Canterbury, 48.71

4x800: 2. CSN, 10:05.41

Discus: 2. Charis Cecil (SFCA), 33.93m

Long Jump: 1. Aniston Newman (First Baptist), 5.42m; 2. Joslyne De La Nuez (Canterbury), 5.28m

Class 2A-Region 3

Local Team Scores: 4. Bishop Verot (55.50); 8. Aubrey Rogers (28); 9. Gateway (24); 12. Oasis (17); 15. LaBelle (12); 16. Estero (11.50)

Automatic Qualifiers

800: 1. Caroline Muddell (Bishop Verot), 2:24.52

1600: 1. Mackenzie De Lisle (Bishop Verot), 5:04.38

3200: 2. McKenzie De Lisle (Bishop Verot), 10:49.69

4x400: 2. Bishop Verot, 4:11.05

4x800: 2. Aubrey Rogers, 10:16.85

Discus: 2. Aleah Baron (LaBelle), 32.73m

High Jump: V’Davrielle Johnson (Gateway), 1.57m

BOYS

Class 1A-Region 3

Local Team Scores: 3. SFCA (48); 4. First Baptist (46); T8. CSN (33); T19. Canterbury (11); 22. Evangelical Christian (4).

Automatic Qualifiers

400: 2. David Johnson (SFCA), 50.43

800: 2. Elliot Anderson (SFCA), 1:57.18

110 Hurdles: 2. Latrell Noel (First Baptist), 15.67

4x400: SFCA, 3:24.33

Discus: 1. Treaden Henry (CSN), 48.86m

Pole Vault: 2. Cameron Brenner (CSN), 3.30m

Triple Jump: 2. Andrew Azunque (First Baptist), 13.53m

Class 2A-Region 3

Local Team Scores: 2. Bishop Verot (90); 9. Aubrey Rogers (33.50); 12. Estero (24.50); T16. Gateway (10); T21. Oasis (8); 25. LaBelle (3).

Automatic Qualifiers

800: 2. Max Sedmak (Estero), 2:01.02

3200: 2. Andrew Marino (Bishop Verot), 9:42.99

110 Hurdles: 1. James Little IV (Bishop Verot), 14.90

400 Hurdles: 1. James Little IV (Bishop Verot), 57.13

4x400: Bishop Verot, 3:28.38

4x800: 1. Aubrey Rogers, 8:14.53

Discus: 1. Ryan Peterson (Bishop Verot), 50.78m

This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: HS Roundup: Results from the week of May 6-11