As the Marathon Dolphins took their talents on the road last week for some 1A Rural matchups, the Key West Conchs looked to respond to the end of their red-hot win streak to start the season.
One inning of ball was all it took to end Key West’s double-digit win streak on March 11. The Conchs paid a visit to Westminster Christian and felt the immediate wrath of the red-hot Warrior bats. Nine runs scored off five hits, three walks and a pair of hit batters ended the perfect record of not only the Conchs, but their ace, Donovan Thiery, who had not allowed a single earned run this season. In contrast, Key West’s bats were stagnant, with Nelson Ong, Jackie Niles and Darreld Tremino delivering the only base hits. The Warriors put the first blemish of the season on Key West’s record, winning 12-0 in five-and-a-half innings.
Two days later, it looked like the Conchs might end up with two knocks against them when the visiting South Dade Buccaneers pulled ahead in the first inning. The Bucs held onto the lead until the patient Conchs tied it up in the sixth. Key West fans enjoyed an extra inning of baseball as the Conchs put together a smart series at the plate and won with a dramatic Roman Garcia walk-off double, which scored a run and ended the game.
Garcia ended the contest with three hits, two of which went for extra bases, while Tyrone Cervantes, Ong, Tremino and Xavier Perez each added one hit to the team total of seven in the 4-3 victory. Sophomore Kade Maltz started on the mound, with relief from Ong and Auggy Davila, who earned the win.
The following night, five Conchs saw work on the mound in a decisive 9-0 win against Coral Reef. Cruz Holmes got the start and the win, sending six Barracudas back to the dugout, walking none and surrendering two hits and no runs over four innings. Thiery, Cervantes, Carter Wirth and Beau Bender all added relief in the win. Garcia registered another trio of hits, with two apiece from Perez, Ong, Maltz and Thiery. Thiery’s sixth-inning line drive was good for his second home run of the season. Tremino had one hit and a pair of RBIs to make it an even dozen hits for the 12-1 Conchs.
Marathon started their week with a rubber match against St. Edward’s School. Each team had won one game the prior weekend, and after seven innings on March 9, the stats were nearly identical. What separated the winner from the loser was a costly set of errors from the Pirates and a confidence boost from a packed home crowd for the Fins.
Eighth grader Bradley Buigas singled and tripled while Massimo Quargnali, Jason Stubblefield and Jack Chapman each singled. Reef Rella, another eighth grader, had two RBIs and started on the mound for Marathon. Then Jack Chapman stepped in to earn the 6-5 win.
The Dolphins then hit the road to test themselves against some District 7 competition. Three of four teams the Fins faced are fellow 1A Rural classifications, a calculated move by head coach Joey Gonzalez, who used the trip as a scouting mission for the postseason.
The Fins met up with Dixie County on March 13, where they had no trouble dispatching the Bears in six innings. Marathon racked up 11 hits in all with two each from Buigas, Rella, Quargnali, Roco Piscetello and Dylan Williams. Rella homered in one of his three at-bats. Gabriele Cirina earned the win for the Fins, allowing just one hit and no runs over four innings. Cirina fanned seven before Williams threw two shutout innings for Marathon.
Next up were the Chiefland Indians, who turned the tables on the Dolphins, beating them in six innings. Williams added another two hits while Chapman and Cirina accounted for the other two. Chapman took the loss on the mound, striking out five but surrendering seven runs to the Indians. Piscetello closed out two-thirds of an inning for Marathon.
The slide continued March 14 with a 9-3 loss to the Pirates of Crystal River, the only team outside the 1A Rural designation Marathon faced on the trip. The teams squared off in a pitcher’s duel until a disastrous fourth inning, when the Pirates capitalized on five hits, three hit batters and an error to pour on eight runs.
Rella had two hits including a double for Marathon to lead the offensive charge, but took the loss on the mound for the Fins. Williams and Piscetello added some relief, but the 3A Pirates took the win. Marathon’s final opponent, the Trenton Tigers, are ranked second in 1A Rural and will make it clear where the Dolphins’ chances for postseason glory stand. The game was scheduled for March 16 (results not available at press time).
A pair of losses evened out Coral Shores’ record heading into spring break. The Hurricanes lost 2-1 at home against South Dade on March 10 after a stingy Buccaneer pitcher held Coral Shores to just two hits. Jack O’Keefe and Riley O’Berry had one hit each in the loss. O’Berry went the distance, striking out four, walking none and surrendering seven hits over seven innings.
Schoolhouse Prep paid the Hurricanes a visit March 13, delivering an 8-3 loss that put Coral Shores at 6-6 heading into spring break. Emileano Barrios had a pair of hits while Mason Clark and Mailon Aguila had one each. Andy Cone pitched four innings, striking out three, walking six and surrendering three hits and two runs before O’Keefe and Barrios finished out the game for the Hurricanes.
Photos by Rocky Gonet and Justice Lee Isom
