4A-13 District Tournament Preview

Host: Pope John Paul II

Schedule:

Monday, April 20th

4:00 PM: (5) St. Andrew’s vs. (4) King’s Academy

Tuesday, April 21st

2:00 PM: (3) Cardinal Newman vs. (2) Pope John Paul II
4:30 PM: St. Andrew’s/King’s Academy winner vs. (1) American Heritage-Delray

Championship

Thursday, April 23rd

4:30 PM: Semifinal winners

Full stats for 4A-13 can be found on the 4A-13 Stats Page!

Overview – It would be easy to assume that with their abundance of talent and remarkable pedigree, the American Heritage Stallions are the overwhelming favorites in this district. But the fact remains that Pope John Paul II is the two-time defending champions and the Eagles had to get past the Stallions to do it both times. Until somebody dethrones them, they are still the team to beat in 4A-13. Cardinal Newman cannot be overlooked either. They are well coached, have some good sticks and a true ace. They always play tough and are in every game. King’s and St. Andrew’s are the wildcards. The Lions faltered after a strong start but have necessary weapons to get hot and make a run, while the Scots are a young bunch who have improved throughout the season and may be peaking at just the right time to sneak up on some teams.

1. American Heritage-Delray – The 2015 season was business as usual for the Stallions as they once again did not suffer a single loss to a district opponent. They did not suffer too many losses at all, in fact. With just one game left to go, Heritage boasted a 19-5 overall record, leading many to consider them one of the best teams not just in Palm Beach County, but also in the entire state. With that kind of reputation anything less than a deep run will surely be considered a disappointment.

Regular season success has not been the issue for Manager Carm Mazza’s bunch though. Despite all their wins and district domination, the Stallions have not won the 4A-13 title since 2012, when they went all the way to the state finals and finished as the runner-up. They have been upset in each of the past two district tournaments by Pope John Paul II, and last year that loss came in the semifinal, preventing Heritage from even taking part in the regional playoffs.

The road to glory should not be much different this time around. The Stallions will need to be prepared to pull the pesky Pope thorn from their side if they want to wear the crown.

“You know what,” said Mazza before the season began, “the way it’s been going the last couple of years, we’re undefeated in the district, we’re the number one seed, and then we cant get over Pope in the playoffs. So, I don’t mind losing one if I know we’re going to get over Pope in the playoffs.”

The Eagles having the second seed means that any showdown between the two rivals will not take place until the championship game, and there is always the chance that someone gives Pope a taste of its own medicine by upsetting the Eagles in the earlier round. Any way you slice it, Heritage is sitting pretty with the top seed. They will need to win just one game to guarantee a trip back to regionals, and that game will be contested against either King’s Academy or St. Andrew’s, two teams that the Stallion swept by a combined score of 40-3 in the regular season.

Adding to Heritage’s already stellar chances is the fact that the team is bursting with talent. The line-up combined for a .281 batting average and is led by exceptional hitters like Tyler Frank, Jonathan India and Chris Canavan. Frank led the county with 29 runs scored while India had the most doubles (10) in Palm Beach.

Pitching-wise, Mazza has five guys who tossed over 20 innings at his disposal and not one of them had an ERA over 2.40. That kind of depth will prove invaluable if the Stallions make it into regional play. Backing up those pitchers is a defense that is as crisp and clean as they come and gave up just four unearned runs on the year. To round things out, they can also run the bases and love to steal them, racking up 76 thefts throughout the season.

The bottom line? Anyone who runs into the Stallions in these playoffs is going to have their hands full.

2. Pope John Paul II – The Eagles were once an afterthought in this district. Not anymore. Now they are the two-time reigning champions.

The club’s starting nine have all been playing together since they were little. They have come up through the system under Manager Peter Graffeo, turning the program around in the process, and now would love to cap off their final year at the school by making it three in a row.

If the seedings play out, they’ll have to do that the same way they always have, by upsetting rival American Heritage. But for that to even become a possibility they will have to get past a sneaky-good Cardinal Newman team. They swept the Crusaders in a couple of tight games this season, but beating a rival three times in one year is always a challenge.

On the field, the Eagles succeed via a solid and steady team effort. If any aspect of the club stands out as a particular strength it would be their bats. Hitting .373 and .382, both Cale Brader and Christopher Graffeo are a presence at the plate. Graffeo also supplies a bit of power, blasting two long balls in the regular season while slugging .527. Besides those two, Luke Cimo, Josh Parker and Cal Bocchino all hit over .300

The pitching staff consists of Johnny Sheridan, Daniel Mayer and Alex Bialakis. All are solid and capable starters and Bialakis led the district with 61 strikeouts.

Like each of their previous championship campaigns, the Eagles had an up-and-down season in 2015, finishing right near the .500 mark. As always, Graffeo deliberately rounded out the team’s schedule with some of the best schools in the county though, hoping to better prepare his players for the challenge that playoff-caliber teams present. It has worked in the past and Pope always seems to come into the playoffs with a renewed sense of focus and a singular purpose. If the same holds true this year, they very well may add another title to the collection.

As nice as that would be, the veteran squad would love to take things a step further. They have fallen just short of a trip to states each of the last two seasons, and this year they want to take that next step.

“I believe that this is it,” said senior and team leader Evan Schaffner. “This is our last ride. I feel like we have everything going for us. This is going to be a good year and I feel like we do have the capability of making it over to jetBlue.”

3. Cardinal Newman – Legendary Manager Sam Howell came home to manage at his alma mater this season and earned his 300th career win along the way. Now, he and his Crusaders would like to make some noise and open some eyes in the 4A-13 playoffs.

The team lost some key talent from a 2014 squad that finished 15-10, before going down to Pope in the district finals and North Broward Prep in the regional quarterfinals. As a result, the team had to deal with some growing pains in 2015 and had a rough go of it at times, but Howell believes that good things are on the horizon.

“We’ve had some ups and downs,” Howell said. “We lost six or seven one-run ballgames early in the year. So, we learned early in the year what it takes to win those tight ballgames. Maybe in the playoffs it’ll help us.”

The Crusaders’ journey will be a tough one. They will be challenged by the two teams that swept them. The road starts with Pope John Paul II, a team they have not been able to solve in their last three attempts, dating back to last season’s district final.

Helping them out will be a couple of sluggers that led the district in home runs. Rudy Viton bashed three, while Robbie Hoyt tied for second with two. Christian Vazquez, German Torres and Luis Besteiro also star on offense and help to give Newman a dangerous lineup.

The pitching staff is solid if not spectacular. They struck out 148 batters and ace Tyler Krull finished second in the district by tossing 59 of those. Hoyt and Torres are next in line and all three sport an ERA in the mid-twos.

On paper, the Crusaders appear to be on the outside looking in when it comes to title hopes, but playoff history is littered with magical stories of teams that caught fire at just the right time and went on to find glory. Newman needs look no further than its first-round opponent to find one such tale and perhaps it can use that as motivation.

4. King’s Academy – When they played in District 3A-12, the Lions got used to having success in the playoffs. They reached the regional finals in both 2012 and 2013, but have run into trouble since being bumped up a class, losing their first and only tournament game last year.

Now in their second season in 4A-13 and first under Manager Brad Wilkerson, the Lions got off to a solid 5-1 start and improved to 7-4 from there. A pair of four-game losing streaks hijacked their season, and they finished 3-5 within the district to earn the fourth seed in the playoffs. That means the Lions will be pitted against St. Andrew’s in a do-or-die match-up to start things off. If they win, they will be presented with the dubious reward of a date with American Heritage-Delray.

King’s will come into their first game with the confidence of knowing they beat the Scots in both of their meetings this year. The first game was a tight one, decided by just one run, but the Lions dominated in the second game, this one at home, rolling to a 12-4 victory. That bodes well for them considering that not only will they be hosting the tournament, they will also have last at-bats.

Austin Sharkey, Colin Valente and James Vaughn have been offensive standouts for King’s, while the pitching has been a group effort. The team has seven pitchers who saw significant mound work throughout the year, but they are led by lefty Matt Tucker. The senior posted a 0.99 ERA, good enough for second best in 4A-13, and will play a critical role in his team’s playoff chances.

Vaughn also was a force on the mound. He led the district with five saves and finished second in 4A-13 with a 1.21 ERA.

Should the Lions get the better of the Scots, the second-round contest against Heritage could have the makings of an upset. The two teams have a long playoff history against each other, know each other well, and match-up competitively. They played a couple of close games in the regular season, with the Stallions coming out on top by a score of 3-0 both times. If King’s can flip the script in a third meeting they may be able to ride the momentum all the way back to the regional finals, where the Lions are accustomed to being.

5. St. Andrew’s – Billy Horn’s first season as the head man at St. Andrew’s got off to a rocky start. With just one senior among them, the young and inexperienced squad began the season 1-8. Things began to turn around after that though. They won six of their next 11 and, although they did not beat a district opponent, they appear to be headed in the right direction.

Having the fifth seed means they will be participating in a play-in game against The King’s Academy on the Lions’ home turf. A win there would have them bumping up against top-seeded American Heritage-Delray for a change to play for the championship. Anyway you slice it, they have a daunting task ahead of them.

Richie Rocca, Scott Gellman and Jon Frechter have the best bats on the team and all will need to perform at the top of their game if the Scots are to pull off an upset. Frechter had a strong 2-for-4 showing in the first contest against King’s, as did Jordan Spitzberg, who also contributed with a pair of RBIs. Horn will surely be looking for the same type of production this time around.

Gellman also serves as the team’s best hope on the mound. He posted a 2.55 ERA while tossing 33 innings over the season. As the lone senior on the roster, Rocca’s pitching stats are not indicative of what a strong competitor he is. He led the team in innings pitched and will battle to the end if given the opportunity.

While they still may have a ways to go, the Scots have come a long way since their rough start and have shown improvement. Horn’s philosophy is all about effort and being competitive and if his team continues to peak at the right time, they can present a difficult challenge for a team that gets caught overlooking them.

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