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Stratford Spartans vs. Bellaire Cardinals, Friday May 3rd, 2024
The playoffs are here! The Spartans vs. The Cardinals. Due to weather, all games were moved to Cy Ridge High School. Bellaire would jump out quickly on the Spartans and lead the game 3-0 after the first inning of play. The Cardinals would make it 4-0 in the 2nd inning. The deficit wouldn’t last long. Luke Zilafro would start the rally with a single in the top of the 3rd inning. With 2 outs in the inning, Caden Baker blasted the first pitch he saw over the rightfield fence to cut the lead to 4-2. Bellaire answered the bell again in the home half of the 3rd with 4 more runs to once again extend the lead to 8-2.
In the 4th, a Blake Barry hit-by-pitch followed by a Zilafro double made it 8-3, Cardinals. The top of the 5th proved to be a noisy inning for the boys in green. Walks by Baker and Chris Johnson to lead off the inning were followed by a Maddox Garnero single to make it 8-4. Ethan Gentil singled on a ground ball to third to make it 8-6, scoring Johnson and Garnero. Once the 5th inning ended, the score was deadlocked 8-8.
The Spartans' pitching staff only gave up one more run the rest of the game and gave the offense a chance to jump on top late. Braxton Wakefield led off the 6th with a single, followed by a Garnero walk. Henry Braniff singled to left, driving in Wakefield. Barry once again provided the punch with a 2-run single to left, driving in Garnero and Braniff, making it 11-8, Spartans. Adam Gilbert, Baker, and Johnson would all drive in a run a piece in the 6th to extend the lead to 14-8, a lead the Spartans would not give up.
Walker Sage was solid in 3 and 1/3 innings of relief. He would earn the win out of the bullpen and give the Spartans a 14-9 victory to get a 1-0 series lead heading into game 2.
Stratford Spartans vs. Bellaire Cardinals, Saturday May 4th 2024
Saturday afternoon provided a chance for a series win and a ticket into Round 2 to face off against Cinco Ranch. Caden Baker would lead the game off with a single to center after a brilliant 10-pitch at-bat. After advancing to 3rd on two stolen bases, Baker was brought home on a Maddox Garnero single, making it 1-0, Spartans. Blake Barry made it 2-0, scoring Garnero on a single. The Spartans were not done…Chris Johnson joined the hit parade in the first with a single to left, scoring Barry, making it 3-0 after 1 inning of play. It would remain 3-0 until Bellaire posted 2 runs in the 3rd, making it 3-2 Green. In the bottom of the 3rd, Braxton Wakefield led off with a double to left. The lead was extended to 4-2 after a series of miscues by the Cardinals and Wakefield scoring on a wild pitch. The bottom of the 5th saw Stratford add yet another run to make it 5-2. Wakefield led off with a single and advanced to third on a balk and a ground out. Henry Braniff’s sac fly to center was enough to extend the lead once again.
Thomas Cloud was on fire all game for the Spartans. He pitched 5 strong innings, striking out 4 and only allowing 2 runs and 3 hits. Caden Cooper was called on out of the bullpen to get 6 big outs and he did just that. The Junior right-handers struck out 4 Cardinals, the last to end the game with the bases loaded, providing the Spartans the series win and Bi-District Championship.
This week’s Varsity Baseball Schedule:
After winning their series against Bellaire, Spartan Baseball is moving on to the Area Playoffs vs. Cinco Ranch. Follow us on Twitter or Instagram for the latest updates on game times and locations.