American Heritage Walks Off Arnold To Reach 4A State Final

A grounder to right field off the bat of Blayden Caballero gave the American Heritage Patriots a 3-2, walk-off win over the Arnold Marlins on Monday night, in the Class 3A state semifinal at Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers.

The Patriots (27-6) advance to Tuesday’s 4A state final, where they will face the Mulberry Panthers at 7 P.M., also at Hammond Stadium. The Panthers (27-9) advanced to the finals with a 3-2 victory over the Jesuit Tigers in Monday’s other 4A semifinal.

With a pair of base runners on and one out in the bottom of the eighth, Caballero jumped on the first pitch he saw to step up and be the hero for his team. After setting the stage with a double to center, R.J. Machado came around to score the deciding run that now has the Patriots playing for a chance at their fourth state championship in team history.

Caballero was 2-for-3 with a triple, a walk and a run to lead the Heritage offense, the only batter on his team to record multiple hits. Dylan Dubovik was 1-for-3 with a double, an RBI, and an intentional walk, and Joseph Castro went 1-for-4 with an RBI and a run.

Caden Garro earned the win, after throwing two-and-two-third innings of scoreless relief. He allowed a hit and a walk, while striking out four. Starter Talan Holiday struck out eight over five-and-a-third innings of work, surrendering two earned runs on six hits and two walks.

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