On Tues., March 31, the men’s varsity baseball team took on Coral Glades High School at 6 p.m. at Anthony Rizzo Field. The team was coming off a 10-9 victory over Belen Jesuit Preparatory School. The team has had a very successful season so far, going 16-5 in their campaign to defend their fifth consecutive state title. Coral Glades entered the game with a 14-7 record.

The top of the first inning began with pitcher Reid Dadic (28) on the mound. The team started out strong with a flyout to center field, and shortstop Cade Raley (13) retiring the second batter for a ground out.

However, Dadic’s chance at a no-hitter ended early after Coral Glades managed to drop a single into right field. Despite this, Dadic held Coral Glades to no runs in the first inning following a good play by second baseman Sean Torres (5) for the forceout at second base.

In the bottom of the first, Raley batted in the lead-off spot, and put the team on the right track with a single to center. A wild pick-off attempt at first allowed Raley to advance to second base easily. Following this, first baseman Jake Rizzo (22) walked after four balls, putting baserunners on first and second with no outs.

Stepping up to the plate next was designated hitter Giovanni Rojas (12). Rojas, widely known as a dominant pitcher, proved to be a formidable opponent in the batter’s box as he proceeded to blast a three-run home run to give the team an early 3-0 lead.

Rojas excelled in this matchup, hitting two home runs with six RBIs. Rojas is committed to play collegiate baseball at the University of Miami. Rojas is also ranked as the eighth overall MLB draft prospect according to MLB.com, meaning he has the option to play college baseball, or declare for the draft out of high school.

Coral Glades finally got their first out of the inning after outfielder Randy Ruiz (3) struck out, but the team got back on track after Dadic doubled to right field. Outfielder Lorenzo Laurel (6) flew out to right for the second out of the bottom of the first. This was followed by Torres tallying the team’s fourth run of the game with an RBI single. The inning finally ended with the team up 4-0 after a flyout.

In the second inning, the team’s infielding unit played well once again, forcing three groundouts and getting back on the offense. The bottom of the inning began with catcher Nelson Velazquez (42) singling to left. Velazquez played well in the win, recording a 2 for 3 statline at the plate, which he credited to his aggressive mindset.

“When I’m up to bat, my mindset is to stay aggressive and hit a hard line drive wherever the ball is placed,” Velazquez said.

After Raley laid down a bunt to move the runner over to third, Rizzo was hit by a pitch and took first base. Rojas stepped up to the plate for the second time with two men on, belting the ball over the fence for his second three-run homerun of the game, extending the team’s lead to 7-0. This was followed by Coral Glades changing pitchers in just the second inning.

Ruiz was hit by a pitch and walked to first, and then proceeded to second following Dadic getting walked on balls. However, Ruiz was picked off at second and Laurel struckout, ending the inning.

To begin the top of the third, Coral Glades recorded their second hit of the game with a single. The team recovered with a groundout and Dadic subsequently struck out his first batter of his outing. For the final out, Raley made a nice stop at short to force another groundout.

“I contributed the most on defense.” Raley said. “I played shortstop really well and made some good plays.”

To kickoff the bottom of the third, Torres grounded out to second. Outfielder Angel Rodriguez (10) hit the ball to third and the Coral Glades third baseman fumbled the ball, resulting in an error and Rodriguez making it safely to first. Rodriguez capitalized on a wild pitch, taking home and scoring another run for the team.

In the top of the fourth inning, Coral Glades recorded an infield single before the next three batters were retired to keep Coral Glades scoreless. The bottom of the fourth featured Dadic hitting an RBI single to drive in their ninth run of the game.

Dadic batted well in this matchup, going 2 for 2 at the plate while tallying an RBI.

“Whether I’m at the plate or on the mound my focus is to help the team win,” Dadic said. “It makes my day on the mound easier when the team’s bats are hot.”

Laurel followed up with an RBI single of his own, making the score 10-0. On a wild pickoff attempt, another runner came across home plate to score yet another run. Rodriguez batted a ball into the outfield for another RBI single as well, making the score 12-0 at the conclusion of the fourth inning.

In the fifth inning, Dadic was replaced by pitcher Drew Bolvin (27). Dadic pitched a great game, allowing only three hits and zero runs accompanied by two strikeouts over four innings. Bolvin finished the top of the fifth with one hit, zero runs and a strikeout.

“I control my breathing to stop myself from speeding up,” Dadic said. “Lock in on the strike zone and go after every hitter and get a result in the least amount of pitches possible.”

With the team up big going into the bottom of the fifth, the umpires convened and enforced the mercy rule, ending the game two innings early as the team took home their 17th victory of the season in a dominating fashion.

The team put on a clinic in this one, taking down Coral Glades 12-0 in a mercy rule finish. The team batted a stellar .524 average along with no runs allowed. The team will look to build off this win on the road against Chaminade-Madonna College Preparatory School on Tues., April 7.