Brizuela Graduates, Then Powers Archbishop McCarthy Into State 4A Final

“Breezy took off his jersey, put on his Superman cape, and said ‘boys, we’re going to the championship game.'” That is how Archbishop McCarthy Head Coach Rich Bielski described the surreal moment that senior Jose Brizuela provided Monday night in Archbishop’s 4-2 win over Wakulla in the 4A state semi-final game.

The day started early for Brizuela and his senior teammates. The Mavericks were slated to play in the state 4A semi-final at night, but before that game in Port St. Lucie, the seniors attended graduation back in South Florida. Then there was the two hour bus ride.

“I had popped up two times, and I knew my coaches wanted me to come clutch, and I knew my teammates wanted me to come clutch,” said a jubilant Brizuela after the game. “I told them I was going to lead them to the port, and that’s what I did. Now we have one game left, and we’re gonna go get ’em.”

But early in the game, the Mavericks appeared to be having trouble adjusting to their long day.

In the top of the first Mavericks starting pitcher Andre Martinez worked into an early jam. Ryan Zimba started the inning off with an infield single. After a wild pitch moved Zimba to second, Casey Eddinger walked. Conner Smith then worked the count full before hitting a momentum changing double play to third, where Brizuela tagged out Zimba and threw to second to force out Eddinger. Martinez then got Dalton Dugger to fly out to center to end the inning.

Archbishop then mounted a threat in their half of the first when Brizuela led off the second with a fly ball that was lost in the twilight by War Eagles outfielders. The hit went for a triple. After a Nick Basto pop out, and a Alexander Fernandez walk, Nick Travieso grounded into a 6-4-3 double play, ending the Mavericks threat.

The game stayed scoreless until the bottom of the third. With two outs and nobody on, Basto hit a flair into left that fell in for a hit after Brandon Crisp’s diving attempt came up short. Fernandez then followed with a long drive into left-center that drove in Basto. Fernandez was stranded at third, but his triple gave the Mavericks a 1-0 lead after three.

In the fourth, the War Eagles again threatened. Dugger reached on an error, and Tylor Hudson executed a perfect push bunt, putting runners on first and second with no outs. The inning then got worse for the Mavericks when Jordan Montague laid down the second consecutive bunt of the inning, and when the ball was thrown down the left field line, Wakulla had tied the score at one.

With things looking bleak, right fielder Adam Duarte and catcher Garrett Kennedy combined on the play of the game. Dillon Norman lifted a fly ball to right that Duarte caught. The junior then threw a perfect strike to Kennedy at home, who held on to the ball despite being barreled by Hudson. Archbishop did not escape completely unscathed, as Jeff Barnes drove a single up the middle to give Wakulla the lead 2-1 in the middle of the third.

“When the ball was hit, I was relaxed, I just wanted to catch the ball and make a strong, accurate throw,” said Duarte of the play that Bielski called “game-changing.”

The Mavericks immediately tried to answer in their half of the third. A one-out double by center-fielder Chris Thompson was followed by a walk to Kennedy. After a fly out, Duarte hit a bunt single to load the bases. The rally ended, however, when Brizuela hit a ground ball to second.

In the fifth, Martinez settled down on the mound, and Archbishop quickly went back to work at the plate. For Martinez, he finished the game with six innings pitched, giving up only one earned run and striking out seven.

“I tried to give my team the best chance to win,” said Martinez, the winning pitcher in the regional final against EuGallie, and now the state semi-final winner. “My coaches came out and told me before the fifth, we have nine outs, and we need to hold them where they’re at (two runs). I just relied on my stuff that I trusted the most, and I’m really proud of my team for backing me up.”

The bottom of the fifth produced two walks and a wild pitch, putting runners on second and third, but again the Mavericks left their sixth and seventh runners of the game on base when Thompson flew out to left. With only six outs remaining in their season, the squad from Southwest Ranches had to dig deep.

Enter Brizuela. One out walks by Roberts and Duarte brought to the plate the Mavericks lead-off hitter. With a 2-0 count, Brizuela launched a three run blast to right to give Archbishop the lead that had eluded them all game long.

Jose Brizuela steps to the plate and hits a three-run home run to give Archbishop the 4-2 win over Wakulla.

From there, Brizuela carried that momentum to the mound in the seventh, where he struck out the side and sent Archbishop to their second consecutive state final, where they will meet the same team they defeated last year, Tampa Jesuit. To date, only two Broward teams, Nova and Westminster Academy, have ever repeated as state champions, Archbishop is hoping to become the third.

It is no secret who will get the ball for the Mavericks today, as they have rode the one-two punch of Martinez and Fernandez all season long. Fernandez knows what it is going to take to capture the state title.

“It’s going to be a really hard fought game,” said Fernandez. “We’re going to have to play our best, play hard. We’ve got to be hungry and play our hearts out.”

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