Archbishop McCarthy Comes From Behind To Captures District 15-4A Crown

Archbishop McCarthy has been in this position before, so when Fort Lauderdale scored two runs in the third inning to take a lead on the Mavericks, nobody panicked. That cool and collected attitude helped Archbishop overcome the early deficit and win the District 15-4A title Thursday night, 7-2.

Early on, it looked like Fort Lauderdale starting pitcher Logan White was going to shut down the high powered Mavericks offense. Through the first three innings, Archbishop could not figure out White. When the Flying L’s scored two runs in the third, and the Mavericks were blanked in their half of the inning, a concern grew among Archbishop supporters.

That concern, however, was short-lived. In the fourth, when the Mavericks used a combination of small-ball and explosiveness to take the lead. Chris Thompson had a bunt single, and Alex Fernandez followed with a booming double to right-center field, scoring Thompson. Archbishop put additional runners on base and Brandon Roberts brought the tying run across the plate with a ground out to second. Garrett Kennedy drove in Ivan Santos with a single, ending the scoring for the Mavericks in the inning, but not before they took a 3-2 lead.

From there, starting pitcher Alexander Fernandez took control on the mound. Fernandez did not allow another Flying L’s runner to cross the plate on the evening, throwing a complete game. The offense, however, was not done. In the sixth, Archbishop put the game away.

Santos was the catalyst for the first run in the sixth. After singling, Santos stole second, moved to third on a wild pitch, and scored on a base knock by Roberts. Later in the inning, Brian Gonzalez hit a two-run single, and Jose Brizuela closed the scoring for the game by driving in Gonzalez with a base hit.

Once Fernandez finished off Fort Lauderdale in the seventh, the celebration was on.

“It is great to see the players celebrate in the dog pile and to make another lifetime memory in winning their fourth straight (district title),” said Archbishop Head Coach Rich Bielski. “The seniors led the comeback tonight when we needed the spark. They want to keep playing and keep this thing going.”

Keep playing the Mavericks will do. The defending state 4A champions will host Belen Jesuit on Tuesday evening in a regional quarter-final game.

Fort Lauderdale’s season will also resume on Tuesday when the Flying L’s travel south to Key West.

(special thanks to Carlos Guzman for contributing to this article)

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