Land O' Lakes tops Vanguard in baseball regional semifinal
OCALA - Land O' Lakes senior pitcher Brian Holiday allowed one hit, struck out 20, and knocked in the go-ahead run in the fifth inning to lead the Gators to a 3-0 win over Vanguard in Wednesday night's Class 5A-Region 2 semifinal.
Land O' Lakes improved to 20-8 on the season and advances to the regional finals. Vanguard ends the season at 16-11.
"Hats off to that team over there, the pitcher on the mound and coaching staff," said Knights head coach Scott Schaub. "They threw their number one at us and we knew it and were prepared for it. We had to make a little bit more adjustments at the plate that we didn't and we saw a complete dude on the mound."
Land O' Lakes threatened in the top of the first as Holiday singled and stole second base with one out. He was gunned down trying to steal third base by Knights catcher Bobby Gottuso and Vanguard left-hander Brian Long struck out the next batter to end the inning.
The Knights went to work in the bottom of the frame as Adam Oxendine lined a leadoff double down the right-field line off Holiday. Cody Antonucci struck out trying to bunt Oxendine to third base and Holiday whiffed the next two batters to end the threat.
Land O' Lakes had runners on base in the next three innings, but each time, Long, a senior who scattered eight hits and struck out three, was able to escape unscathed to keep the game scoreless.
Vanguard was not able to get any kind of offense going against Holiday, who mixed a blazing fastball with a curveball to keep the Knights off-balance at the plate.
Land O' Lakes broke through against Long in the top of the fifth inning as Dylan Makowski lined a single to centerfield, stole second base and scored on a one-out single up the middle by Holiday, who advanced to second base on the throw home. Holiday moved to third base on an infield single by Tim Dunn and raced home on a sacrifice fly by Daniel Busot to give the Gators a 2-0 lead.
That was more than enough support for Holiday, who did hit a batter but issued no walks. The hard-throwing right-hander managed to strike out nine Knights in a row.
Land O' Lakes added an insurance run in the top of the seventh inning off reliever Trace Allday as Bennett Marzullo smacked a triple to centerfield and scored on a base hit by Makowski to put the Gators on top by a score of 3-0.
Holiday, who has committed to Florida SouthWestern State College, struck out the side in the bottom of the inning to secure the shutout and seal the semifinal victory for the Gators.
"We just couldn't get any guys on base and put any pressure on," coach Schaub said. "Their pitcher was in straight command mode all game and was tough. I'm proud of Brian because he pitched well and gave us a chance to win."
Despite the loss, it's been a hugely successful season for the Vanguard baseball program with high expectations for next season.
"This was my first time in the state semifinals and knowing we were two wins from going to the Final Four in Fort Myers is awesome for our program," coach Schaub said. "This team made history winning a home playoff game and this sets the standard for Vanguard baseball. People showed up because they know we deserved to be here. Hats off to the seniors for all of their contributions. We have some key pieces coming back next year and we'll have some sophomores that didn't get a lot of opportunities this season but they'll get plenty next year. We have a chance to make noise next year for sure."