Marathon’s boys baseball team improved its win streak to five last week, thanks to a trio of wins in an end-of-season run toward district playoff action.
The Fins defeated Somerset South Homestead 15-1 on April 15, aided by 3 hits from junior catcher Gabe Leal. Dylan Ziels and Jack Chapman had a pair of hits each and Aidan Gonzalez, Dylan Williams, Leo Mendez and Tiago Rivero accounted for the rest. Rivero’s hit was an inside-the-park home run off a massive line drive, scoring 2 runs for Marathon. Mason Thornton only needed 5 innings on the mound to seal the win, striking out 5, walking 4 and allowing 3 hits from Somerset.
The following night, Miami High would be the next victim, falling 3-0 to the Dolphins. Ziels started with the ball, lasting 4 innings before handing it off to Leal. The duo combined for 6 strikeouts, no walks and 3 hits in the win. Leal and Thornton had 2 hits each and Leo Mendez had 1.
The final game of the week was the most important for Marathon, as April 20 was their first in their conference playoff series. The Fins were matched against Ransom Everglades, a team they had mixed results against in the regular season. The Dolphins turned to Ziels, their ace, to secure a spot in the South Florida Baseball Conference finals against Riviera Prep on Thursday, April 25. Ziels pitched a complete game, adding 10 Ks to his stats in the big 4-0 win. Gabe Leal had another pair of hits for the Fins, making it 7 in one week. Ziels had another pair of hits and Thornton and Williams added 1. Gavin Leal, playing in his first game since suffering a hip fracture earlier in the season, had the final hit of Marathon’s 7.
Coral Shores split the week, with a win on April 16 followed by a loss on the 19th. Against Somerset Silver Palms, the ’Canes brought home a 9-1 win, racking up 13 hits in the lopsided game. Donovan Thiery and Zeke Myers each had 3 of those hits. Campbell Lavoie and Maykol Bonito Rodriguez had 2 apiece. Riley O’Berry, AJ Putetti and Grady Temkin had the other 3. Lavoie pitched 6 innings, striking out 6 and allowing nine hits with no walks. Thiery closed the game, striking out 2 in his inning on the mound.
Next up for the Hurricanes were the Lions of Chaminade-Madonna. Coral Shores lost that one 7-5, scoring all of their runs in inning 7. Myers and Lavoie had matching hits, with a single and double each. Ross and Thiery teamed up to strike out 6 batters in the loss.
Key West played at FIU stadium on April 18, facing Westminster Christian School. Despite matching the Warriors hit-for-hit, the Conchs came up short, losing the game 6-4. The freshman bats were on point, with hits coming from Roman Garcia and Nelson Ong. Auggy Davila added 2 and Noah Burnham, a junior, had the final hit for Key West. Anthony Lariz, Jacob Burnham and Vinny Moline teamed up to strike out 9 batters in the loss.
The following night, Key West returned home to Rex Weech Field and defeated the 7A Buccaneers of South Dade High School in front of a delighted home crowd. Steel Mientkiewicz, Caden Pichardo, Nelson Ong, Lariz and Garcia had a base hit each in the 4-1 win. Another trio of Conchs worked together to strike out 7 batters. Christian Koppal, Felix Ong and Moline all spent time on the mound, with Koppal being credited with the win. The Conchs have a pair of games at home against the Eustis Panthers Friday and Saturday, April 26 and 27, before turning their focus on defending their district title.
