Trinity Christian-Bishop Snyder baseball playoff rematch worth wait

Jacksonville baseball's most anticipated rematch proved worth the wait. In a battle of prospect-packed lineups, ninth-place hitter Ja'Rod Flowers drove in the go-ahead runs in the sixth inning, Romy DeCenzo nailed down a tense save and host Trinity Christian edged Bishop Snyder 5-3 in the deciding Game 3 of the Florida High School Athletic Association Region 1-2A baseball championship series on May 9. Victory advances the Conquerors to the FHSAA final four in Fort Myers, which begins May 18 for Class 2A.

The latest installment in the rivalry between the Jacksonville private-school powers lived up to its billing, three weeks after Trinity outlasted the Cardinals 11-10 in a 13-inning district championship epic. Bishop Snyder had rolled 9-2 in Game 1, exploiting six Conqueror miscues and riding opportunistic hitting with two hits apiece from Tanner Upton and Landis Pickett. Trinity (25-8) unleashed two homers by on-fire slugger Jordan Martinez and one from Tyler Ellis to turn the tables in Game 2, winning 6-4 and overcoming a homer from the Cardinals' Cole Dennis.

That forced a Saturday night decider, which included yet another home run for LSU commit Martinez — his third three-homer day of the year. Bishop Snyder (23-8) pulled ahead 3-1 on a Cody Boshell home run, a bases-loaded hit batsman and an Upton RBI single, before the Conquerors struck in a four-run sixth. Ellis and Parker Loew singled before Flowers' go-ahead two-out hit.

Bishop Snyder, which was seeking its first-ever final-four trip, got two runners aboard in the seventh before DeCenzo returned from outfield to nail down the save. REGION 1-3A South Walton d. Suwannee 2-0 (2-1, 10-0) Suwannee became only the second team all year to score a run against South Walton ace Coleman Borthwick, but it wasn't enough as the Bulldogs (19-14) exited in a sweep to the nationally-ranked Seahawks (28-4).