Timely hits send Tritons to semifinals
The Mariner Tritons host the Barron Collier Cougars at 7 p.m. Friday in the Region 3-4A semifinal round of the state baseball playoffs.
The Tritons earned that right with an 11-7 victory Tuesday over Palmetto Ridge, but it was far from a sparkling performance.
“It’s nice to play poorly and still win,” said Tritons coach Steve Larsen. “Our pitching was not sharp and our fielding was less than adequate. Fortunately, timely hitting can win some ball games and that’s what happened tonight.”
When all else failed, timely hitting came to the Tritons’ rescue. Alex Santana lined a run-scoring single in the first inning and Dan Cohill smacked a two-run single in the first. Jason Carmichael laced a two-run single in the fifth and Luiggy Marte lined a three-run double down the left-field line in the fifth.
The visiting Bears grabbed leads of 1-0 and 4-3 before the Tritons broke it open in the fifth inning.
The Tritons (25-4) overcame that 1-0 deficit with a three-run rally in the first inning. Walter Cleary (2-for-4) started it with a double to right-center. Daniel Alimonti drew a walk in front of cleanup hitter Alex Santana, who lined a timely RBI single to right to tie the game.
With two out and runners on second and third, Cohill’s two-run single put the Tritons in front 3-1.
That lead lasted until the third when the Bears scored three runs, only one earned, with one out to regain the lead. The last two runs scored on a Tritons’ fielding error.
The Tritons manufactured the tying run in the fourth after Martin Evans’ leadoff single. Evans stole second and was sacrificed to third by Taylor Walker. Evans scored the tying run when the Bears misplayed Marte’s ground ball to third.
“It helps to have runners on base,” said Larsen. “It makes the pitcher uncomfortable and the infielders play at double-play depth, making timely hits the key.”
That was the successful strategy in the Tritons’ six-run fifth-inning eruption. They plated five earned runs on six base hits and one error.
Alimonti’s ringing double down the left-field line led off the barrage. Alex Santana (2-for-3) singled past the shortstop, who then committed an error to put the runners on second and third. Carmichael’s single to right plated both runners.
After Cohill walked, Carmichael was picked off second base for the first out. Evans singled and Walker drew a walk to load the bases. Marte cleared the bags with a line-shot double down the left-field line to give the Tritons a seemingly comfortable five-run bulge. Marte wound up scoring on Audry Santana’s double down the left-field line.
Cleary, pitching the fifth and sixth innings in relief of Carmichael, was the beneficiary of the rally to earn the win. Cleary, though, did give up two runs in the sixth as the Bears closed the gap to 10-6.
The Bears added a run with two out in the seventh against Mariner’s Stanley Padfield.
Palm. Ridge 103 002 1 – 7 8 5
Mariner 300 161 x – 11 11 4
W – Walter Cleary. L – Pedro Carillo.
2B – Ulysses Rodriguez (PR), Audry Santana (M), Walter Cleary (M), Daniel Alimonti (M), Luiggy Marte (M).