The Lady Conchs reached the Elite Eight round of the FHSAA 4A state playoffs after a hard-fought pitching duel against the Mavericks of Archbishop McCarthy on May 13.
After a lopsided victory in the regional quarterfinals earlier this month, Key West made a road trip for the FHSAA 4A Region 4 semifinals. The Mavs earned the home field advantage with the No. 2 seeding for the region while the Conchs were ranked one behind. The teams were as well-matched as it gets, with both sides offering phenomenal pitching in what became a defensive battle.
McCarthy got on the board first with a pair of doubles in the bottom of the second that scored one run. The score remained 1-0 in favor of the Mavericks until the fifth frame. With two away and hopes of advancing dwindling, Kaleaya Dickerson drew a walk. Dickerson then made it to second on a passed ball, but her efforts were not necessary. On the next pitch, Maicee Gage sent a fly ball over the center-field fence to score two.
The Lady Conchs then put their all into a collective defensive effort, rallying behind their ace, Brianna Brenner, who was yet again masterful in the circle. Brenner struck out 11, walked one and gave up three hits and a single run to keep the Conchs in the hunt for a state championship.
Gage ended the night with a pair of hits, which amounted to half the team’s total. Vera Rodger accounted for the other two. The 2-0 win placed the Conchs in the Elite Eight with a shot at a regional championship against a powerful American Heritage team on May 15 – the same school that knocked out Key West’s baseball team in late April. Head coach Jason Garcia described the contest as a “very exciting game, one of the best games I’ve been a part of as a coach. These young ladies never gave up and continued to fight in a very well-pitched game.”
The Patriots, ranked first in Region 4 with a loaded pitching staff and a bevy of heavy hitters, took an early one-run lead in the first frame and never looked back. Key West’s bats were unusually quiet against the Patriots’ ace, an eighth-grader with a 0.92 ERA, 14 wins and .200 on-base average. The Lady Conchs managed four hits, with two from Shylo Sanchez, who singled and doubled; Aaliyah Mcleod and Alexa Condella had one single apiece. Brenner struck out three, walked one and gave up a dozen runs over six innings of work in the circle.
The Patriots’ hits included a trio of home runs to make it 21 and counting this season. After their 9-0 victory, the Pats now move on to the Final Four, while the Conchs face the end of the road. Their 16-8 season included a district title and plenty of returning talent in the coming seasons.
