PB Gardens Advances To Semifinals With 5-0 Win

Udie Summerall hit his first varsity home run in the fourth inning.

The saying goes “The best things in life are worth waiting for.” That sentiment rang true for the Palm Beach Gardens Gators on Thursday night.

Both the Gators and Spanish River Sharks had to wait through a hard rainstorm before starting their regional quarterfinal matchup. After the rain passed and the field was made playable, the two teams had waited an hour and 15 minutes before the first pitch of the game was finally thrown. Once it was tossed it was all Gators, as Palm Beach Gardens topped Spanish River 5-0.

Lead by senior ace Pavin Smith on the mound and the bottom of the batting order at the plate, the Gators had a solid game all around, including defensively.

“Pitching and defense were key,” Palm Beach Gardens Manager Joe Russo said. “Pavin pitched well and Horvath came in and closed it out. No errors and played some good defense, which is what it is going to take to win in regionals — pitching, defense and timely hitting.”

Smith led the way for the Gators on the mound with another impressive pitching performance. Smith faced 21 batters and threw 91 pitches in his five and two-third innings of work, striking out nine. He allowed only two hits without surrendering a run. Despite having a little trouble getting comfortable early on for the second game in a row, Smith again settled down nicely and got into a groove on the mound.

“Sometimes it takes a little bit of time to find your groove,” Russo said. “The last outing early on he got hit around but he bounced back right away so that has definitely gotten better.”

Possibly the biggest surprise on the night though was the production offensively from the bottom part of the batting order, specifically the eight and nine hitters, as well as the leadoff hitter. Those three hitters — Udie Summerall, Tyler Farrell and Nick Horvath — collectively went 6-for-8 with with a home run, three doubles and two of the three RBIs recorded on the night. The result was something that Russo definitely was happy to see.

“I feel pretty good about our lineup,” Russo said. “We have a senior in Tyler Farrell, who has really been consistent all year, and then Udie Summerall, a sophomore that has steadily continued to work and work and showed us enough in practice that we felt he deserved a chance to play first base and swing the bat and he had a big knock.”

Although Spanish River lost Thursday, they advanced farther than any Sharks team had in several years.

The big knock that Russo was referring to was the first varsity home run hit by Summerall. Coming to the plate in the fourth inning and with Palm Beach Gardens already up 3-0, Summerall connected on a pitch and took it deep over the right-field fence to extend the lead to 4-0.

“I had a good first at-bat and George told me to stay where I was at, I saw a the first pitch and just hit away.” Summerall said.

Like he has all year, Horvath came in after a big night at the plate and proceeded to record the final four outs on the mound for the save. With the win, the Gators extended both their season and their winning streak to eight, something coach Russo said is the result of solid defensive play and being more comfortable at the plate.

“Defensively, I think we are continuously putting good games together,” Russo said. “At this point in the season, that is important. Offensively, I really like our at bats. I think early in the year we were feeling for our swings a little bit, and right now, they are going up there being aggressive.”

Spanish River had trouble getting much going all game. It had runners on base in the second, third and sixth innings but couldn’t translate the baserunners into runs.

“It’s a tough one sometimes,” Spanish River Manager William Harvey said. “Palm Beach Gardens is a great team, and their pitcher is certainly everything that he’s advertised, but I can’t help but think that we did it to ourselves a little bit tonight.”

Pavin Smith threw five and two-thirds shutout innings, giving up only two hits while striking out nine.

Despite the loss, there still are many positives Harvey and his team can take away from the season, including making it farther then any Sharks team has in several years.

“We went farther than any team has gone in the last number of years,” Harvey said. “The kids got chance to see what it’s like to win and be on the road and put a little pressure on themselves. Hopefully down the road that will benefit some of the younger guys that are coming back next year.”

Palm Beach Gardens’ season will continue Tuesday night when the Gators will face Park Vista in the regional semifinals. Russo knows he will need another performance out of his team like he had against Spanish River if it wants to advance.

“We got a lot of confidence in our pitchers and have a lot of guys available to throw,” Russo said. “They are going to be a good team, and it is going to be a tough game. It is always a tough game against Park Vista.”

If there is one thing that Russo does know, is that it is going to be exciting playing the game in front of the home crowd.

“It’s always fun to be at home,” Russo said. “We always travel well, but it is always good to have the big crowd at home.”

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