Osceola soph's Alvarado, Dubiel lead Warriors Game 1 win at Jesuit

Osceola soph’s Alvarado, Dubiel lead Warriors Game 1 win

Osceola sophomore Blake Dubiel leaps in celebration as he jogs toward second base after his leadoff home run in the fourth inning. The Warriors took Game 1 of the 4A-3 Region Final best-of-three series against Jesuit, by a score of 2-1.

By Jarrett Guthrie, Editor

TAMPA – Osceola sophomore Leo Alvarado isn’t lighting up radar guns too often, he hasn’t overpowered hitters, and he hasn’t tried to do too much.

Alvarado hasn’t done anything this season … but win.

And that didn’t stop as the young lefty took the ball for the Warriors in Friday’s Class 4A-Region 3 showdown, spinning 5 2/3 innings of one-hit baseball as Osceola held off national No. 19 and region top seed Jesuit, 2-1 in Game 1 of the best-of-three region final series.

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“Leo has been doing that for us all year,” Osceola veteran head coach Stefan Futch said. “He’s 11-0 now. He doesn’t throw 90 (mph), he doesn’t throw hard, but he’s a pitcher. He puts a little on, he takes a little off and he’s done it all year.”

Osceola sophomore lefty Leo Alvarado improved to 11-0 on the season, pitching 5 2/3 innings against Jesuit, allowing one earned run on one hit, and struck out seven.

Jesuit (24-6) got its first two batters aboard on walks, before Alvarado and the Warriors’ defense clamped down. He would face just two over the minimum the next four innings, and retire two in the sixth (finishing with one hit, four walks and seven strikeouts) before the 16-year-old bumped into the state pitch-count limit.

After arguably the biggest start of his career, Alvarado was calm and admitted he didn’t feel too many nerves against the perennial powerhouse aiming at a fifth-straight state final four appearance.

“This was a cool experience,” Alvarado said. “I didn’t know what I was getting into, hearing the name Jesuit, but I just went out there and did my thing.”

Jesuit senior Kaden Waechter is fired up after ending the sixth inning with his ninth strikeout. The Florida State signee pitched seven innings, allowed two earned runs on six hits and two walks, falling to 5-3 on the year.

Osceola (24-6) got singles in the first and second innings, but couldn’t turn them into runs against Tigers senior and FSU signee Kaden Waechter. But that changed in the third inning as senior Ethan Futch lined a one-out single to left, and was on the move as sophomore Max Wing ground a hit through the left side, ending up at third base for a few pitches before senior Ricky Stegbauer (2-for-4) dropped a line drive hit into center to plate the first run.

“That was just huge to do early,” Ethan Futch said. “Getting that run, taking control, that’s the best thing you can do in baseball.”

Warriors senior Ethan Futch hit a one-out single into left field to start a run-scoring rally for Osceola in the third inning.

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With a hit-and-run on, Max Wing moved Futch up to third with a single on the ground through shortstop.

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And senior Ricky Stegbauer lined an RBI single to centerfield to bring in the game’s first run.

The Warriors added to the lead as sophomore Blake Dubiel unloaded on the first pitch of the fourth inning and deposited it over the fence in left field for his first home run.

“My first at-bat, I got blown by – three-straight sinkers and I was late,” Dubiel said. “So, my second at-bat, I widened my stance, opened up a little bit, got a first-pitch fastball, turned and crushed it.”

Everybody’s hands (and feet) go up, as Osceola celebrates the solo home run from Blake Dubiel (#24) in the fourth inning.

Those two innings accounted for four of the six hits Waechter allowed, as he struck out nine in a complete-game effort.

“We’ve been working on over-speed all week and we told them, ‘if they throw harder, it goes farther,” the Warriors head coach said. “So, Blake caught it and it went. It was a beautiful thing.”

Junior catcher Brady Marshall’s second-inning single was Jesuit’s lone hit off of Osceola starting pitcher Leo Alvarado.

Jesuit’s lone hit through the first five innings was a second-inning groundball passed the second baseman from junior Brady Marshall. Tyler Trombley took over at first as the speed-up for the catcher, but was caught stealing by Warriors catcher Futch – the first of two for the State College of Florida signee in the game.

“I love my defense and it’s the pitchers job to let them do the work while I’m doing my own (work),” Alvarado said. “At the end of the day, I’m just grateful for my boy (Ethan) here, he did all the hard work.”

Osceola C Ethan Futch fires a throw to second base to catch a runner stealing in the second inning.

Wilson Andersen got aboard on a fielder’s choice in the fourth, moved up a base on a wild pitch, but was thrown out trying to steal third for the final out of the inning.

“We preach good pitching and defense and being able to throw guys out like that shuts their running game down,” Futch said of his son. “I couldn’t be prouder of him.”

Osceola 3B Kaedyn Phillips looks at the umpire who makes the out call after an on-target throw from C Ethan Futch beats Jesuit’s Wilson Andersen to the bag.

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Futch gets a heroes welcome back toward the dugout after ending the fourth with his second caught-stealing.

The senior backstop had high praise and some light-hearted jokes about his battery-mate’s performance.

“(Leo)’s been great all season, locating his spots and has done a great job recently,” Futch said. “… He’s a lefty. He doesn’t use his brain the right way, he doesn’t think about big situations, he just goes out there and throws the ball.”

Jesuit senior SS Wilson Andersen made a tremendous play in the fourth, scooping a ball, turning and firing an off-balance dart to first base …

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… where Tigers junior 1B Griffin Boesen makes a play on a one-hopper for the put-out.

Jesuit’s Cannon Murtagh earned his way on base with his second walk of the game in the sixth inning, before moving to third on a wild pitch and a groundout, which would push Alvarado to his pitch-count limit and draw out Futch to make a pitching change, but not before wrapping the sophomore in a hug.

“He came up to me and said, ‘give me a hug, dude,’” Alvarado said. “Coach Futch doesn’t do that a lot, that was pretty cool getting a hug from him.”

The Osceola bench walks Leo Alvarado back to the dugout after he was relieved in the sixth inning.

Bryce Besece hit a single through the right side off of the new reliever Stegbauer to drive in the Tigers only run, but the senior would get a strikeout to hold onto the one-run lead.

Jesuit junior Bryce Besece chopped an RBI single through the right side in the sixth inning …

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… bringing home a pumped Cannon Murtagh for the Tigers only score of the game.

Jesuit’s aggression on the base-paths proved costly again with one out in the seventh, when Jay Kirchner smashed a ball to the wall in center, but decided to try and stretch his double an extra base, only to have a relay come in from leftfielder Zach Spadorcia, to the shortstop Wing, then on to the third baseman Stegbauer for the put out, and Kaedyn Phillips allowed just one more single (by Mason Greco) before wrapping up his fourth save of the season.

The Warriors will return to Hyer Family Park, but will be the home team on the scoreboard for Saturday’s Game 2, set for 1 p.m. and Jesuit would be the home team should the Tigers force a deciding Game 3 later Saturday afternoon.

Osceola closer Kaedyn Phillips (#8) and 1B Aiden Dyals celebrate the game’s end.

⚾ Class 4A-Region 3 Final – Game 1 ⚾

Osceola 2
Jesuit 1

O 000|000|0 – |2|6|1
J 000|001|0 – |1|4|1
W – Alvarado (11-0); L – Waechter (5-3); S – Phillips (4)
2B – Kirchner (J); HR – Dubiel (O). Records – O (24-6); J (24-6).

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