Prep Report: Close not good enough for Bulldogs
It ended up being a close call, but the Estero Wildcats escaped with an 8-4 District 4A-11 victory Tuesday night at Ida Baker.
“Estero proved they are undefeated in the district for a reason,” said Bulldogs coach Ryan Jackson. “They are a very opportunistic team. They put the ball in play.”
It took a pair of four-run rallies in the last two innings for the Wildcats (13-3) to pull out the victory after trailing 3-0 from the first inning.
Junior right-hander Branden Gutierrez started on the mound for the Bulldogs (8-7, 2-3 district) and scattered four hits over five innings. Left-hander Billy Larrimore started the sixth. That’s when the Wildcats started their comeback.
“Our goal was to throw four pitchers to mix them up a bit,” said Jackson. “I planned to use Gutierrez for three innings, but he was lights-out and got through five. Estero did not hit our lefties very well the first time we played them, but … they are 13-3 for a reason.”
Leading 4-0 after five innings, the Bulldogs were cruising when the Wildcats awakened.
Larrimore got the leadoff batter in the sixth to ground out, but walked the next two and gave up an RBI single to Kyle Miller. Jackson brought in sophomore lefty Sean Brady, who walked the first batter he faced to load the bases. Zac Culverhouse, hitting in the eighth slot in the order, drove in two runs with a single to right and Anthony Prohaska laid down a safety squeeze bunt to bring home the trying run.
The Wildcats tacked on four more runs in the seventh inning, helped by three Bulldogs defensive errors, tagging Brady (2-3) with the loss.
“I am proud of the boys because they have started to swing the bats,” said Jackson. “They are not going to quit. We’re proving to teams we can hang in there and the kids are believing in that. This was our third district loss, but we had the lead in every game.”
Matt Pearce pitched a complete game with six strikeouts for the Wildcats. He surrendered three runs on five base hits in the first inning before settling down to hold the Bulldogs to just one run on three hits over the final six innings. He sat down the Bulldogs in order in five of the final six innings.
“Our huddle after the game was very positive,” said Jackson. “I told them to not hold their heads down because they just had the best team in the district on the ropes.”
Caleb Farmer and Zack Nason had two hits apiece for the Bulldogs. Nason collected two RBI with his hits.
The Bulldogs get a chance to redeem themselves Thursday night at Lehigh.
Estero000 004 4 – 8 10 1
Ida Baker300 010 0 – 4 8 3
W – Pearce. L – Brady (2-3).
In other games played Tuesday:
Island Coast 11, Gateway Charter 0: Taylor Renegar and Kameron Gellinger drove in three runs apiece and F.T. Corso added two RBI with two hits to lead Island Coast’s win over District 3A-12 rival Gateway Charter.
The Gators (13-2, 3-1 district) don’t play again until Wednesday at Palmetto Ridge.
Gateway 000 00 – 0 6 3
Island Coast 254 0x – 11 10 1
W – Harding (1-0). L – Campbell.
3B – Taylor Renegar (IC). HR – Taylor Renegar (IC).
Fort Myers 4, Cape Coral 3: Brandon Marshall pitched a complete game and hit a home run, but Cape Coral dropped a one-run decision at Fort Myers.
Mitch Marinack and Cody Carroll had two hits apiece for the Seahawks (9-5), who host Cypress Lake Friday.
Mariner 24, South Fort Myers 0: Twelve runs in their first at-bat established dominance and sparked the Tritons to victory at South Fort Myers.
Kevin Cavanagh and Walter Cleary powered the Tritons with four hits apiece. Cavanagh drove in four runs while Cleary accounted for six RBI, including a three-run home run in the second inning.
Ryan Hutson doubled and drove in two runs and Alex Santana added a two-run home run in the second inning. Tyler Bender and Charlie Klein got in on the parade of 20 hits with two hits and one RBI apiece.
Jason Carmichael pitched two innings to pick up the win and combined with Cavanagh to toss a two-hitter.
The Tritons (9-6, 3-2 district) host Lemon Bay Friday.
Mariner(12)50 07 – 24 20 1
South FM 0 00 00 – 0 2 2
W – Carmichael (3-2). L – Stanislawski.
2B – Holowell (M), Cavanagh (M), Hutson (M). HR – Santana (M). Cleary (M).
Softball
In games played Tuesday:
Ida Baker 12, Estero 2: Ida Baker kept its perfect season going with a 10-run victory over District 4A-11 rival Estero.
The Bulldogs sprayed 14 base hits over five innings and struck for five runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to record the win.
Jessica Nuccio drove in three runs with three hits and Deniece Bent drove in three runs with two hits to lead the Bulldogs. Sierra Myers contributed three hits. Katie Rieser added two hits and two RBI and Hannah Kelly two hits and one RBI.
The Bulldogs (11-0) play at Lehigh Thursday.
Estero000 11 – 2 2 4
Ida Baker023 25 – 12 14 0
W – Peres (10-0). L – Hernandez.
2B – Rieser (IB), Kelly (IB).
North Fort Myers 16, Cypress Lake 2: North Fort Myers broke open a close game by rallying for six runs in the fourth inning, sparking a lopsided win at Cypress Lake.
Brittany Agricola and Anne Rettig drove in three runs apiece to lead the Red Knights’ 16-hit attack. Kaitlyn Grubb and Amanda Plaza contributed three hits apiece and Nykol Smith had two hits with one RBI.
The Red Knights (9-4) host South Fort Myers Friday.
North FM 110 635 – 16 16 2
Cypress Lake 101 000 – 2 4 5
W – Waitekus (3-1). L – O’Riley.
2B – Rettig (NFM). 3B – Agricola (NFM).
South Fort Myers 2, Mariner 1: Odd circumstances figured into all the runs as South Fort Myers stunned Mariner.
A leadoff walk followed by an attempt at a sacrifice bunt produced two runs for South in the first inning. An errant throw to second base trying for a forceout went deep in the outfield allowing both runners to score.
Carrie Grigiski singled and stole second base, then scored on a fielding error to account for the Tritons’ only run. Grigiski pitched four innings and was charged with the loss. She and Alyssa Langdale combined to strike out 10 batters, but the Tritons struck out 12 times themselves.
The Tritons (9-5) host Lemon Bay Friday.
Mariner001 000 0 – 1 2 3
South FM 200 000 x – 2 1 2
W – Nylander. L – Grigiski (2-5).
Island Coast 9, Gateway Charter 2: Island Coast notched its third win in a row with a District 3A-12 win over Gateway.
Darian Martin had three hits and drove in three runs to lead the Gators. Khris Mims also drove in three runs while Olivia Lugo contributed a pair of hits.
Dana Ruff (5-2) struck out five over three innings to earn the win.
The Gators (7-10) play at Palmetto Ridge next week Wednesday.
Gateway 020 000 0 – 2 5 2
Island Coast 206 001 x – 9 12 4
W – Ruff (5-2). L – Rigazio.
Girls Lacrosse
Cape Coral 18, Cypress Lake 10: Joanna Russell and Chloe Hutchins scored six goals apiece to lead Cape Coral to victory at Cypress Lake.
Alex Matos and Alana de Panfilis scored two goals apiece while Brooke Ramey and Sydney Antle added one apiece for the Seahawks.
Tennis
Matches played Tuesday:
(Boys) Ida Baker 6, Riverdale 1
Singles – Quinten Armeda (R) def. Nick Boye 6-2, 7-5; Matt Harrison (IB) def. Jay Teran 6-3, 6-3; Caleb Littlestone (IB) def. Juju Rogers 6-0, 6-1; Jaryd Wydock (IB) def. Alberto Madrid 6-4, 6-0; Chris Carrillo (IB) def. Martin Villacreses 6-1, 7-5.
Doubles – Boye-Harrison (IB) def. Armeda-Teran 8-6; Littlestone-Wydock (IB) def. Rogers-Madrid 8-6.
Records: Baker 10-2.
Next Match: Tuesday, Ida Baker at Lehigh (makeup of rainout).
(Boys) Bishop Verot 7, Estero 0
Singles – Christian Padgett (BV) def. Gianni Hinkson 6-1, 6-2; Dominic Merkli (BV) def. Jule Wise 6-0, 6-0; Quade Marinell (BV) def. Denver Mortenson 6-0, 6-0; Joe Deleeuw (BV) def. Patrick Shipman 6-0, 6-0; C.J. Spiro (BV) def. Miles Neff 6-1, 6-0.
Doubles – Padgett-Merkli (BV) def. Hinkson-Wise 8-1; Merkli-Marinell (BV) def. Mortenson-Shipman 8-1.
Records: Bishop Verot 4-2, Estero 3-6.
Next Match: Thursday, Fort Myers at Bishop Verot.
(Girls) North FM 7, Island Coast 0
Singles – Abbey Gunderson (NFM) def. Brittney Cobb 6-0, 6-0; Kateryna Gorbanovska (NFM) def. Melissa Davidson 6-3, 6-1; Tanya Moore (NFM) def. Erica Manzi 6-1, 6-0; Roodelyne Forvil (NFM) def. Jennah Cores 6-0, 6-0; Marisa Durfey (NFM) def. Laura Morales 6-0, 6-0.
Doubles – Sarah Ibrahim-Jennifer Gibson (NFM) def. Cobb-Davidson 8-2; North wins by default.
Records: North Fort Myers 8-3.
Next Match: Thursday, North Fort Myers at Bishop Verot.
(Girls) Bishop Verot 7, Estero 0
Singles – Linda Kornienko (BV) def. Morgan Lodes 6-0, 6-0; Mariel Rickert (BV) def. Lurrel Wise 6-1, 6-1; Nia-Marie Eddie (BV) def. Bobbi Wendel 6-1, 6-0; Marilyn Merkli (BV) def. Janae Bennett 6-0, 6-0; Kathleen Norris (BV) def. Janna Acosta 6-0, 6-1.
Doubles – Kornienko-Rickert (BV) def. Mielke-Wise 8-0; Eddie-Merkli (BV) def. Wendel-Bennett 8-1.
Records: Bishop Verot 7-0, Estero 3-6.
Next Match: Thursday, Fort Myers at Bishop Verot.
(Girls) Mariner 6, Lehigh 1
Singles – Brittany Webb-Martin (M) def. Winny Wong 6-4, 6-2; Daria Park (M) def. Betty Rodriguez 6-2, 6-1; Whitney Flynn (L) def. Taylor Brown 6-3, 6-1; Lexi Perun (M) def. Hailey Yzauirre 6-4, 5-7, 10-8; Madison Fletcher (M) won by forfeit.
Doubles – Webb-Martin-Sydney Bell (M) def. Wong-Flynn 8-0; Fletcher-Park (M) def. Rodriguez-Yzauirre 8-2.
Records: Mariner 11-1.
Next Match: Tuesday, Mariner at North Fort Myers.