Palm Beach County baseball digest: Park Vista's ace dominates, Benjamin reloads and much more
One-third of last season's starting lineup is now at the University of Virginia.
The two workhorse pitchers who combined for nearly 100 innings are gone.
The top underclassman, Ole Miss commit Jackson Miller, transferred to neighboring Dwyer.
And yet the Benjamin Buccaneers are back among Palm Beach County's best high school baseball teams, despite personnel losses that would leave most programs reeling. The Bucs (5-2) put together a five-game winning streak before hitting a bump in the road Friday in an 11-1 loss to Miami-Dade power Westminster Christian.
"We didn't get the hype we did last year, which isn't a bad thing," coach Chad Mills said. "This team is maybe a little bit hungrier. They feel like they have something to prove."
Last year's hype was warranted. Led by the three UVA commits – first baseman Walker Buchanan, shortstop Tristan Head and pitcher/DH Freddie Beruvides – the Bucs went 24-3, losing in the Region 3-3A semifinals to Montverde Academy.
Mills entered this season with some question marks. The biggest: How do you replace four Power 5 players and pitcher Parker McGraw, who led the county in wins (11) and ERA (0.49)?
"I knew we'd play good defense and our offense was going to score enough runs," Mills said. "It was all going to come down to pitching."
Senior left-hander Cannon Baughman, who was 2-0 with a 2.07 ERA in 27 innings last season, was the heir apparent as the No. 1 starter, but Mills needed other pitchers with limited varsity experience to step up.
So far, so good. Sophomore left-hander Johnny Havlicek, grandson of the late Boston Celtics star, has made a big leap forward in his second varsity season.
"He's a totally different kid," Mills said. "He's going to be our No. 2 guy and throw a lot of innings."
Senior Shane Giaimo, sophomore Gus Doskey and freshman Luke Taplett, all right-handers, have been used in key situations, giving the Bucs much-needed depth.
Offensively, the Bucs haven't had much of a drop-off. Five players are hitting .375 or better: outfielders Griffin Miller (Tennessee commit) and Brody Bitove (Pepperdine) and infielders Drew Buchanan, Ben Swank and Derek Rubin. Buchanan, a junior, could join his brother Walker in the Division I ranks.
Mills said he doesn't expect another 24-3 season, especially after toughening up the schedule to better prepare the Bucs for the postseason.
"Last year we had a few too many games that were easy to overlook," he said. "We knew we were going to take some lumps this year, but when we get to regionals, we won't be seeing anything we haven't experienced."
Mattison's hot start
Park Vista left-hander Ethan Mattison is picking up where he left off – and then some.
Mattison, the Post's Player of the Year last season, threw five shutout innings in an 8-0 victory over Vestavia Hills (Ala.) last week. He gave up three hits, walked three and struck out 11.
In three starts, the Florida Gulf Coast commit is 3-0 with a 0.00 ERA and 33 strikeouts in 15 innings. He has given up only seven hits and one unearned run.
"He's as hard a worker as you're going to find," Cobras coach Larry Greenstein said. "When talent matches up with hard work, this is what you get."
But while Greenstein can sit back and watch Mattison deal once a week, he'll need to develop more arms for the Cobras (4-4) to have any shot at repeating last year's deep playoff run. They're 1-4 in games started by pitchers not named Mattison.
Week 3 standouts
Joey Abbazia, American Heritage-Delray: Pitched a complete-game shutout with seven strikeouts in a 7-0 victory over King's Academy; homered in a win over St. Andrew's.
Aidan Arjune, Suncoast: Went 6-for-8 in victories over Santaluces and Pine Crest, including a home run and four RBIs.
Luke Hogue, Palm Beach Gardens: Pitched six strong innings and went 3-for-3 in a 4-3 victory over Jupiter; had two RBIs in a win over Jensen Beach; went 3-for-4 in a loss to Vestavia Hills (Ala.).
Steven Montes, John I. Leonard: Went 3-for-4 with a double, three RBIs and four stolen bases in a victory over Olympic Heights.
Kody Morgan, Dwyer: Went 4-for-4, including a three-run homer, and walked three times in victories over Seminole Ridge and Hialeah-ABF Academy.
Matt Pagan, West Boca Raton: Went 3-for-5 with a grand slam and seven RBIs in a 19-9 win over Fort Lauderdale-Westminster Academy.
Luis Polanco, Forest Hill: Pitched six shutout innings in a 9-1 rout of Wellington.
Zach Stefan, Boca Raton: Pitched six shutout innings in a 3-0 victory over Coral Springs Charter; went 2-for-4 with a triple in a win over Olympic Heights.
Week 4's top games
Tuesday
West Broward (6-1-1) at Jupiter (6-2), 5:30 p.m.: One of Broward County's top Class 7A teams pays a visit to Palm Beach County.
Thursday
Benjamin (5-2) at North Broward Prep (7-1), 6:30 p.m.: The Bucs get a big test from the Eagles, who have won two of the last three state Class 3A titles.
Boca Raton (5-1) at Park Vista (4-4), 6:30 p.m.: Coming off a 3-0 week, the Bobcats face southern Palm Beach County's traditional power.
Rick Robb's Top 10
Jupiter (6-2)
Benjamin (5-2)
Boca Raton (5-1)
Dwyer (5-3)
Suncoast (6-1)
Palm Beach Gardens (5-3)
Cardinal Newman (4-3-1)
Park Vista (4-4)
Palm Beach Central (4-3)
West Boca Raton (3-4)
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Palm Beach County baseball digest: Ethan Mattison dominates in hot start
