No. 4 Boca Breaks Long Playoff Drought With Road Victory

Boca Raton scored four runs in the first inning and then held off a late Braddock rally to win 7-4 on Tuesday in a regional quarterfinals playoff game.

The Bobcats (20-8) ranked #4 in Palm Beach put the pressure on early, scoring four times in their initial at-bat. Starting pitcher Zach Stefan delivered a two-run double and Johnny Rogers added an RBI-single. The Bobcats also added a run on an error.

“The win was huge for us,” said Boca Raton manager Christian Benhart. “Not only does it keep our season alive, but that’s Boca’s first regional win in about nine years. So, it’s definitely great for the school. It’s great for the program. And it’s just awesome to be able to see these guys’ hard work throughout the year pay off.

“But we’ve got to get back to work because the road gets tougher from here. It’s definitely not going to be easy.”

Rogers (2-3, 2 RBIs, run) and Aidan Donnelly added solo homers and Brady Crawford (3-4, RBI, run) delivered an RBI-single as the Bobcats posted single markers in the second, fourth and sixth innings to make the difference in the game. That’s because the hosting Bulldogs scored two runs in their first and last at-bats.

Dante Ambrose contributed one of nine Bobcats hits and scored twice.

Braddock (17-10), which outhit Boca Raton, 10-9, battled back. Alex Rodriguez-Gallo delivered a two-run single in the first inning to slice the deficit to 4-2. His sacrifice fly brought home Adam Hernandez in the seventh inning, and a single by Devin Lopez drove in Mario Magana with the final run for Braddock.

That’s because Kaden Bartlett came on in relief for Boca Raton with the bases loaded and one out and recorded the final two outs of the game, earning the save for Stefan.

“I didn’t feel like (Zach) necessarily had his best stuff,” Benhart said. “But he battled his tail off and at the end of the day that’s all we can really ask of our guys.”

Hernandez led Braddock at the plate with three hits and two runs scored. Magana added two hits and scored twice while Lopez finished with two hits and an RBI.

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