Lester shows poise in new role to clinch Lakeland Christian's win; McKeel, Mulberry advance
LAKELAND — Bases loaded, one out, leading by one run in an elimination game — that certainly qualifies as a high-pressure situation for a pitcher. It wasn’t too much pressure for Zach Lester.
Nine pitches later, Lester recorded two strikeouts to clinch Lakeland’s Christian’s 6-5 victory over Most Dora Christian on Saturday night in the Class 2A, Region 2 quarterfinals.
Lakeland Christian (23-4), the defending Class 2A state champion, returned to the region final with the victory and will play Orlando First Academy at 7 p.m. Tuesday.
Lester isn’t exactly a grizzled veteran when it comes to high leverage pitching or pitching in general. Saturday’s relief outing was his third of the season and of his high school career. Yet on a night when LCS’s first three pitchers combined for nine walks, Lester was asked to do one thing. Throw strikes.
Lester needed five pitches to strikeout the first batter on a 2-2 pitch, and four pitches to end the game.
“Coach told me to just come in those strikes, so I just went in there pounded the zone and got good results,” Lester said. “I just went out there and took a deep breath and just tried to stay within myself and not overthrow or do anything too much.”
For the season, Lester, the starting center fielder, has pitched 2 2/3 innings and has struck out five of the eight batters he has faced all season.
Finding a position player to fill this sort of role isn’t new for LCS coach Matt Diaz. Last year, Diaz tabbed senior second baseman Wyatt Jenkins as a playoff closer. Jenkins pitched in three games and closed out the state championship game.
“Zach's my version of that this year,” Diaz said. “He's a guy, I know who’s going to go in and throw strikes, and if they hit him, I can live with that. They beat us, but I know he's going to go in and throw strikes. He's not going to walk anybody. And he certainly was the right guy for the moment tonight. Possibly should have started him, but I don't know if he would have been as locked in. It would have been too peaceful for him. Sometimes Zach loves a little — he's a middle linebacker — he loves the little chaos around him.”
It was the second inning in a row in which an LCS pitcher struck out the final batter of the inning with the bases loaded. Peyton Rutledge was a high-wire act in his two innings of work. He allowed one hit but walked five batters and struck out five batters, escaping the sixth-inning jam without allowing a run.
While LCS pitchers were walking nine batters, its hitters were finding ways to score six runs despite having five hits. The Vikings reached base seven times without a hit as they walked three times and were hit by a pitch four times. Lester was hit twice.
The Vikings used a combination of small ball with five sacrifice bunts, the long ball with Conor Brown’s solo home run along with doubles by Daniel Herrera and Dan Colon, and situational hitting with Brown’s game-winning sacrifice fly to score their runs.
“There was only really, there was only one situational offensive play today where we didn't get the job done, and that's pretty good for a high school baseball team,” Diaz said. “We work on that. I try to get them ready for college for that because I know I'm watching a lot of college baseball right now and coming into the playoffs, they're all bunting, they're all hitting and running, they're all doing all those things. So situationally, I thought our, our boys really responded. They took selfless at-bats.”
Lakeland Christian grabbed the 5-1 lead with runs in the first four innings. Starter Fin Donay battled through four innings, allowing three hits, three walks and one run. Mount Dora Christian rallied for four runs to tie the score in the fifth inning off reliever Nathan Diaz.
“I did tell the guys in the playoffs, don't be offended, I will pull you too soon rather than too late,” Matt Diaz said. “That's kind of what my philosophy is in the playoffs. If I have a gut feeling, it's time to go to the next guy. My gut was wrong. I put Nathan in there, and he's been money in those situations all year and today he just didn't have it.”
4A-3: Rivals McKeel, Mulberry to meet in region finals
There will be at least one Polk County team in the FHSAA baseball state tournament as Mulberry and McKeel each won in routs on Saturday night and will meet in the Class 4A, Region 3 finals on Tuesday.
KJ Scobey and Jorge Cordova each drove in three runs as McKeel blasted Hardee, 10-0, and Mulberry's historic season continued with a 10-0 victory over Tarpon Springs.
Scobey finished 2 for 3 with a double and scored two runs, and Cordova homered and also went 2 for 3 with two runs scored. McKeel took control with a six-run fourth inning and finished with eight hits.
Kadan Howell pitched a six-inning complete game and allowed four hits. He struck out eight and did not walk a batter.
In Mulberry's win, junior Hayden Wyatt doubled, homered and drove in five runs. The Panthers finished with four hits but walked six times, was hit by a pitch twice and reached base on an error three times.
Noah Campbell pitched a four-hitter in four innings and struck out one with one walk.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Zach Lester clinches Lakeland Christian's win in regional semifinals
