The baseball playoffs continue Friday with region quarterfinal games in Classes 7A-6A and 2A. Admission is $7. Here is the schedule with outlooks for each area game, as well as team leaders for each matchup.
Class 7A
Durant (19-5) at Wharton (21-4), 7
The Cougars, the 7A-8 runnerup, had their six-game win streak snapped with a loss to Sarasota Riverview in the district final. Still, despite that setback, Durant was able to secure a playoff berth by beating Lakewood Ranch 11-0 in the semifinals.Sean Hermann led the Cougars, throwing a one-hit shutout with eight strikeouts. The Wildcats have won six straight, including victories over Alonso (6-2) in the semifinals and Sickles in the final of the 7A-7 district tournament. Elijah Dukes hit a two-run homer against the Ravens and Evan Chrest allowed one earned run and recorded 10 strikeouts in six innings of work against the Gryphons.
Team leaders
| Category | Durant | Wharton |
| Batting average | Austin Sewell .394 | Zach Ehrhard .447 |
| RBIs | Dylan LaPointe 19 | Elijah Dukes 24 |
| Home runs | Luke Scolaro 2 | Elijah Dukes 4 |
| ERA | Sean Hermann 0.25 | Jackson Perkins 0.88 |
| Strikeouts | Sean Hermann 109 | Ryan Fry 73 |
Sickles (15-9) at Sarasota Riverview (18-9), 7
The Rams got hot at the right time, beating Newsome and Durant by a combined 23-3 to win the 7A-8 district title. The Gryphons, the 7A-8 runnerup, advanced with a 2-0 win over Steinbrenner in the semifinals. Holden Wade threw a three-hit shutout with 12 strikeouts.
Team leaders
| Category | Sickles | Sarasota Riverview |
| Batting average | Kohl Robertson .475 | Clay Russin .433 |
| RBIs | Chase Conville 14 | Clay Russin 22 |
| Home runs | Kohl Robertson 2 | Four players with 2 |
| ERA | Holden Wade 1.71 | Pip Smalley 0.33 |
| Strikeouts | Holden Wade 80 | Pip Smalley 58 |
Class 6A
St. Petersburg (14-8) at Mitchell (21-6), 7
The Green Devils had their seven-game win streak snapped with a loss to Bloomingdale in the 6A-10 final. Still, St. Petersburg made the playoff by beating East Bay 2-0 in the semifinals. Connor Crosby threw a three-hit shutout with five strikeouts against the Indians. The 6A-9 champion Mustangs have won four straight and eight of their last nine. They took the title by beating Sunlake 3-1 in the semifinals and Gaither 7-2 in the final. Ashton Crowther threw 5 ⅔ scoreless innings, allowing three hits and recording seven strikeouts against the Seahawks. Aidan Miller went 2-for-3 with a double and two runs scored against the Cowboys.
Team leaders
| Category | St. Petersburg | Mitchell |
| Batting average | Fletcher Hislop .333 | Aidan Miller .415 |
| RBIs | Fletcher Hislop 16 | Aidan Miller 22 |
| Home runs | Fletcher Hislop 1 | Aidan Miller 4 |
| ERA | Andrew Blackett 1.11 | Ashton Crowther 1.58 |
| Strikeouts | Connor Crosby 72 | Ashton Crowther 62 |
Gaither (13-11) at Bloomingdale (19-6), 7
The Cowboys advanced with a 7-1 victory over East Lake in the 6A-9 semifinals. Austin Grause went 2-for-3 with a run scored. The Bulls have put things together, winning 10 of their last 11 games. That total included victories over Largo (6-2) in the semifinals and St. Petersburg (3-2) in the final of the 6A-10 tournament. Marlon Bowen had a two-run double against the Packers and Gabe Garrett went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored against the Green Devils.
Team leaders
| Category | Gaither | Bloomingdale |
| Batting average | Miguel Pina .407 | Colby Shelton .413 |
| RBIs | Frank Perez 17 | Colby Shelton 20 |
| Home runs | AJ Graham 2 | Colby Shelton 5 |
| ERA | Colin Jackson 0.70 | Jack Owens 0.95 |
| Strikeouts | Colin Jackson 69 | David Eckaus 77 |
Plant City (19-6) at Winter Haven (14-11), 7
The Raiders made the playoffs as the 6A-8 district runnerup thanks to their 5-0 victory over Leto in the semifinals. Adan Longoria threw a three-hit shutout with four strikeouts. After starting the season 6-9, the Blue Devils turned things around, winning eight of their last 10 and took home the 6A-7 title.
Team leaders
| Category | Plant City | Winter Haven |
| Batting average | Kelein Johnson .400 | Mason Jantomaso .388 |
| RBIs | Ryan Robinson 19 | Roberto Odor 15 |
| Home runs | Colin Shultz 4 | Desean Rodgers, Dylan Bowen 2 |
| ERA | Preston Rogers 1.22 | Zach Lamb 2.89 |
| Strikeouts | Adan Longoria 52 | Jeremy Weaver 52 |
Bartow (18-11) at Strawberry Crest (17-9), 7
The Chargers overcame a 1-6 stretch a month ago to win six of its last games, including victories over Armwood (11-1) and Plant City (6-0) to take the 6A-8 title. Colby Fanning threw a two-hit shutout with six strikeouts on the mound and went 3-for-4 with a double, two RBIs and two runs scored against the Raiders. The Yellow Jackets, the 6A-7 runnerup, started the season 9-1 before going 9-10 the rest of the way.
Team leaders
| Category | Bartow | Strawberry Crest |
| Batting average | Jonathan Vastine .408 | Colby Fanning .467 |
| RBIs | Robby Putnam 26 | Arjun Nimmala 30 |
| Home runs | Jonathan Vastine 3 | None |
| ERA | Jonathan Vastine 0.59 | Luke Richardson 1.75 |
| Strikeouts | Dalton Ogilvie 52 | Bryan Boully 73 |
Class 2A
Keswick Christian (16-5) at Bishop McLaughlin (18-7), 7
The Hurricanes, ranked No. 6 in the classification, have won seven straight, including victories over Cambridge Christian (11-0) and Academy at the Lakes (10-0) for the 2A-9 title. Tanner Boccabello and Joseph Rodriguez combined on a one-hit shutout with nine strikeouts in the semifinal win over the Lancers. Isaiah Myles went 4-for-5 with a double, a triple and two runs scored and Augie Mojica and Ethan Burkhardt combined on a one-hit shutout with seven strikeouts to beat the Wildcats in the district final. The Crusaders advanced with a 2-1 win over Shorecrest in the 2A-10 semifinals. Cameron Horner threw a two-hitter with eight strikeouts and Bryce Artze went 2-for-3, including the game-winning RBI against the Chargers.
Team leaders
| Category | Keswick Christian | Bishop McLaughlin |
| Batting average | Caleb Rogers, Luke Bacon .446 | Augie Mojica .409 |
| RBIs | Caleb Rogers 33 | Drew Knight, Andrew Duncan 15 |
| Home runs | Caleb Rogers 5 | Nicholas Cucchi, Drew Knight 1 |
| ERA | Blake Albritton 1.96 | Ethan Burkhardt 1.35 |
| Strikeouts | Cameron Horner 53 | Tanner Boccabello 47 |
Academy at the Lakes (10-14) at Northside Christian (14-12), 7
Playing a regular schedule that included plenty of games against teams in higher classifications paid off for the Mustangs, who won the 2A-10 district tournament by beating St. Petersburg Catholic 10-5 and Keswick Christian 6-3. Zach Johnson went 3-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored against the Barons. Scott Lynch hit a three-run homer and Ryan Lowe went 3-for-4 with an RBI against the Crusaders. Though they entered with a losing record, the Wildcats won two of the three at the 2A-9 tournament to advance as a runnerup. Cole Syversen and David Scamporino-Blount combined on a no-hitter in an 11-0, five-inning win over Bayshore Christian in the semifinals. Josiah Bayona went 4-for-5 with four runs scored in a 12-11 semifinal win over Hernando Christian.
Team leaders
| Category | Academy at the Lakes | Northside Christian |
| Batting average | Josiah Bayona .371 | Andrew Williamson .392 |
| RBIs | Tanner Pelaez 16 | Jake Cappock, Ryan Cerrone 17 |
| Home runs | Jacob Syversen 1 | Four players with 2 |
| ERA | Palmer Bringgold 3.00 | Shane McClanahan 2.85 |
| Strikeouts | Cole Syversen 54 | Robert Kocis 38 |
Brevard HEAT (4-11) at Seffner Christian (17-4), 7
The Crusaders, ranked No. 8 in 2A by MaxPreps, were dominant in last week’s 2A-8 district tournament, outscoring Lakeland Victory Christian and Winter Haven All Saints by a combined 21-4. Brevard HEAT has lost four straight but automatically advanced in the 2A-7 tournament thanks to a bye in the first round of the three-team district.
Team leaders
| Category | Brevard HEAT | Seffner Christian |
| Batting average | Tim Puhnaty .564 | Dylan Cheeley .427 |
| RBIs | Tim Puhnaty 14 | Dylan Cheeley, Connor Loomis 18 |
| Home runs | None | Spencer Boynton 2 |
| ERA | Tim Puhnaty 4.47 | Ben Cheek 0.28 |
| Strikeouts | Tim Puhnaty 46 | Joey Jensen 75 |
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