- April 3, 2025
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FPC's Wyatt Reynolds tags out Sandalwood's Trenton Baskin, who was caught in a rundown. Photo by Brent Woronoff
Matanzas's Ethan DiGuglielmo receives the stop sign from his coach as he is safe on third with a stand-up triple in the sixth inning against Mainland. Photo by Brent Woronoff
FPC's Jordan Gonzalez had a shutout through four innings. Photo by Brent Woronoff
Liam Smith slides home safely. Smith came all the way around on a four-base error. Photo by Brent Woronoff
FPC's Marion Clayton rounds second base on his way to third. Clayton would go on to score on a wild pitch to give the Bulldogs a 2-0 lead in the fourth inning. Photo by Brent Woronoff
Mainland pitcher Mateo Bond fires a pitch to the plate. Photo by Brent Woronoff
Mainland pitcher Mateo Bond loses his cap as he throws a pitch. Photo by Brent Woronoff
FPC third baseman Kevin Maya (13) throws to Wyatt Reynolds as the Bulldogs get Sandalwood's Trenton Baskin in a rundown. Photo by Brent Woronoff
FPC reliever Adam Kleinfelder stretches before taking warm-up pitches in the bullpen. Photo by Brent Woronoff
Matanzas coach Jim Perry talks to his players after their 15-5 win against Mainland in the District 5-5A quarterfinals on April 29. Photo by Brent Woronoff
Matanzas batter Josh Cope watches the pitch. Photo by Brent Woronoff
Matanzas’ softball team is the lone survivor.
Two days into the high school baseball and softball district tournaments, the Pirates are the last local team still alive in the postseason. They have had a stellar year, and they hope to keep it going.
After defeating Mainland 4-0 on Tuesday, April 30, Matanzas (19-3) will play Deltona (17-5) in the District 4-5A softball championship at 6 p.m. Thursday, May 2, at Daytona State College's softball field in Daytona Beach.
Even if the Pirates don’t win the district title, they will likely advance to the regional playoffs. They are currently ranked fifth in Region 1 with the top eight teams, plus any district champs not in the top eight, advancing.
Advancing through the playoffs, however, won’t be an easy task. Four of the top five teams in Class 5A are in Region 1, including top-ranked Middleburg and No. 2 Gulf Breeze.
Leah Stevens and Ashley Sampselle combined to shut out the Bucs (4-18) in the district semifinals. Stevens struck out seven batters in 2.2 innings, while Sampselle struck out seven in 4.1 innings.
Mainland’s Bella DeJulio allowed four hits and one earned run in six innings. DeJulio, who will play softball next year at St. Leo University, finished her high school career with over 600 strikeouts.
Mainland defeated Pine Ridge 15-1 in the district quarterfinals on April 29. Jacqueline Methot drove in three runs and Lauren Cruz drove in two. DeJulio did not allow a hit in five innings. She struck out 14.
Juliet Fogel and Mackenzie Manhart each drove in a run for Matanzas against the Bucs.
In other games:
SOFTBALL
Flagler Palm Coast fell to University 14-4 in the District 2-7A softball semifinals on April 30.
The Bulldogs (16-10) likely finished their season. Freshman Mackenzie West hit a home run and drove in three runs for FPC. University (14-10-1) collected 13 hits, including seven extra-base hits. The Titans will face top-seeded Spruce Creek for the district title.
West and Sadie Schell each batted over .400 this season for the Bulldogs. West led FPC with a .493 batting average and four home runs. Schell, who will be a senior next year, batted .404 with 12 doubles.
Seabreeze fell to Atlantic 12-2 in the District 4-4A semifinals on April 29.
BASEBALL
Matanzas defeated Mainland 15-5 at home in the District 5-5A baseball quarterfinals on April 29. But the Pirates lost to top seed Pine Ridge 5-1 in the semifinals the next night to finish the season with a 10-14 record.
Matanzas trailed Mainland 4-0 in the middle of the third inning but scored three runs each in the third, fourth and fifth innings and ended the game with a six-run sixth inning.
Braden Russell went 3 for 3 with four RBIs for the Pirates in the win over the Bucs. Freshmen Nick Pandich, Dylan Vanderbur and Wiley Conner and senior Ben Apfelbach each had two hits. Leadoff hitter Ethan DiGuglielmo hit a triple in the sixth, walked three times and scored four runs.
Sandalwood scored three runs in the top of the fifth inning to defeat Flagler Palm Coast 3-2 in a District 1-7A quarterfinal on April 29. FPC starter Jordan Gonzalez got out of trouble in the fourth with a strikeout to leave the bases loaded. Jackson Phillips tossed a complete game for the Saints, allowing one earned run on four hits.
FPC’s Brenin Striplin had an RBI single with two outs in the second inning. Marion Clayton scored on a wild pitch in the fourth. The Bulldogs finished the season with a 14-12 record.
Deltona blanked Seabreeze 9-0 in the District 5-5A semifinals on April 30. The Sandcrabs’ season ends at 10-16.
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