Royals Crowned: TFA baseball claims first state title

By the time the ump behind home plate had raised his hand on the called strike three, Ben Barrett was pumping his fist before throwing his glove to the ground in a moment of pure emotion.

Then, among a blur of flying bodies, he found himself in the middle of a dogpile that engulfed him in a sea of baby blue. After seven innings of work on the mound for The First Academy, he had held Westminster Christian scoreless — helping lead the Royals to their first baseball state title with a 3-0 win in the Class 3A finals Tuesday, May 25.

“It was kind of crazy even realizing that we actually did it — we actually just won states,” Barrett said. “All the work we put in finally paid off. It was just crazy.”

In that pile with Bennett was sophomore Matthew Perez — who played a pivotal role in the three runs scored in the top of the seventh inning. Perez recalled the final strike and how — for a split second — he was thrown for a loop.

“We were just one strike away from winning it, and when it actually happened, I froze up for a second — I couldn’t believe it,” Perez said. “After that, I don’t know — all of my emotions started coming out; it was pure excitement.”

In the stands, a large contingency of TFA supporters — many of whom were bussed in from the school — cheered and screamed as things unfolded on the field. Meanwhile, off to the side, head coach Scott Grove was celebrating with coaches. 

Given how difficult it was to lose last season because of the COVID-19 pandemic, being able to come back and win 31 games en route to the school’s first baseball title conjured a mixture of elation and appreciation for the team.

“It was unbelievable,” Grove said. “It was everything that you work for — as far as being a baseball coach — and seeing the excitement of the kids, you really can’t explain the feeling; it is just the best feeling anyone can have. I know there are so many great coaches in Florida who have never been able to experience that, and it’s just such an honor … I couldn’t have asked for a better group of young men.”
 

A PATH TO GLORY

In a season filled with dominating wins, it was a game that pushed the Royals to their brink that proved to be the eureka moment.

Following a regular season during which TFA lost only one game — an extra-inning loss to Bishop Moore earlier in the year — the Royals entered the state playoffs rolling. After beating The Villages Charter 11-3 in the opening round, the Royals were matched up against Trinity Catholic in a game that needed to be seen to be believed.

Despite having their No. 1 starter in Isaac Sewell — who has blanked teams left and right — on the mound, the Celtics put up nine runs to go up 10-4 in the fourth inning. What happened from there was a frantic rally that saw the Royals storm back to a 12-11 win.

“After that game, I said, ‘Yeah, we’re destined — we’re going to win the whole thing now — you guys came back from that? We’re going to win the whole thing now,’” Grove said. 

The Royals proceeded to roll past Berkeley Prep 7-1 before a Sewell-pitched gem gave the Royals a hard-fought 2-1 win over Bolles in the state semis — pushing TFA into the state final.
 

WINNING IT ALL

Whether it was fate, luck, talent or a combination of all three, Grove’s words would — as if by magic — be spoken into existence. 

But it didn’t come easily.

The day after playing Bolles in the semis, TFA took the field at Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers to take on Westminster Christian for the title. And once again — just as was the case the day before — the Royals found themselves in another pitcher’s duel. For six innings, neither side could find pay dirt, but that changed in the top of the seventh inning when Westminster Christian blinked first. 

The seventh-inning scoring started off following an error that allowed Trent Kelly to score from third, before a ground out by Khadin Bastian brought in Perez — who made it to base previously on a fielding error — to make it 2-0. Another error — this time on a ground ball hit by Barrett — would bring in Greg Pettay.

What followed was the big bottom of the seventh inning from Barrett to help seal the win for the Royals.

“It was basically just staying locked in and staying focused, because a lot of times people will kind of come up there and think they have the game and make bad pitches, and let the other team hit it,” Barrett said. “Just getting those first two outs was huge for me.”

With rings to come and celebrations still to be had, many on the team are already looking toward next season — which will see most of the squad return back to action. But now, it’s all about taking in the moment, even if it’s still hard to fathom. 

“I keep telling my wife, ‘Can you pinch me? Is this a dream?’” Grove said with a laugh. “It still really hasn’t sunk in totally of everything that we have accomplished this year.”