Saladino Day 1: TC rallies twice to take win from Durant
Tampa Catholic senior Ethan Frame shows off his celebration skills after his third-inning RBI double.
By Chuck Frye, Senior Staff Writer
TAMPA – On the mound and at the plate, Blaine Rowland was bringing it.
Facing host Tampa Catholic to start Saladino Tourney play Saturday afternoon, Rowland started by blasting a solo home run to give the undefeated “home team” Durant an early lead. When the Crusaders rode an Ethan Frame RBI double to tie things in the top of the third inning, Durant’s 6-foot-4 senior delivered again in the home-half of the inning, by almost drilling a hole through the left-centerfield scoreboard for a two-run blast. And on the hill, the Florida commit strung together a run of eight straight strikeouts running to the start of the sixth to seemingly lock in a 3-1 advantage.
As his Durant teammates wait to join the celebration, Blaine Rowland points skyward after a two-run homer in the third inning, his second of the day.
Then, inexplicably, the wheels came off.
Behind full-lineup production and some timely two-way work from senior Alex Sotiropoulos, Tampa Catholic impressively rebounded twice to take home an emotional 10-6 victory.
“I think in the first couple of innings we were swinging the bat and then we had a little bit of a lull,” Crusaders head coach Paul Russo Jr. said of Rowland’s dominant stretch. “Then we had that conversation about staying with our approach, seeing the ball down and swinging early, and (the bats) came alive again in the sixth and seventh innings.”
Tampa Catholic’s Lucas Cinnante shows his teammates “the money” after his second run-scoring single, part of the Crusaders’ game-winning five-run rally in the seventh inning.
Sotiropoulos was the catalyst in that turnaround, first in the sixth when he followed an RBI single from Lucas Cinnante and drilled a fastball deep over the leftfield fence for a three-run homer and a lightning-fast 5-3 lead.
“Honestly, I was looking for anything to get a swing on,” the Columbia commit said. “We were in an important position and I knew I had to bring the momentum back to us. I was mainly waiting for my pitch to hit and I got it right there – a fastball middle-middle. There’s no better pitch in baseball.”
For a few more photos from this one click here.
However, Durant (5-1) still had loads of fight left. After DH Noah Morales’ RBI double, picture perfect base hit bunts from pinch hitter Tristan Brown and Jackson McClelland against reliever Sotiropoulos drew the Cougars even while a Devin Suero infield hit put Durant back on top.
Durant senior Devin Suero (21) beats the tag of Tampa Catholic shortstop Cal Johnson for a third-inning stolen base.
“Even when we were lined up to make plays, (Durant) put the ball down where they needed to,” Russo Jr. said. “We know they can play small ball and they executed all of their bunts.”
But rather than shrink from the challenge, the Crusaders (5-2) stepped up once again.
Sending 11 men to the plate with nine-in-a-row reaching base, Tampa Catholic erupted for five runs. Key blows came from Frame (third hit of the day, second RBI) and Cinnante (second run-scoring single) while the other runs scored on a fielder’s choice, a passed ball and an error.
Energized by a five-run explosion in the top of the seventh, Sotiropoulos gets two strikeouts to close out the comeback victory.
Energized by the latest Crusaders eruption, Sotiropoulos wasn’t about to let Durant back in.
“Our offense gave us some insurance so there was really no pressure on me at all,” the senior said. “Just go out there, throw strikes and get outs.”
And that he did, shaking off an error to strike out a pair then induce an infield ground out to end the contest.
“Playing tough early games against Calvary Christian, Jesuit and Berkeley Prep … we had to learn how to produce in big moments and deal with the pressure,” Sotiropoulos said. “I think these games really helped us (Saturday).”
“If you look at our schedule for the whole year, it’s tough,” concluded Russo Jr. “We play Bishop Verot later in the year and they’re the number one team in the state. And after I put together this tough a schedule, we find our who we’re playing at Saladino and it makes my schedule even harder.
“I was very proud of the boys because after some tough losses they got over the hump (against Durant). Learning how to win one of these games, I think that helps.”
Both teams return to play at TC on Monday as Durant plays Steinbrenner at 4pm, while the Crusaders face Alonso in the nightcap at 7.
#8 Tampa Catholic 10, #2 Durant 6
T 001|004|5 – |10|12|3
D 102|003|0 – |6|9|1
W – Ledo; L – Brooks; S – Sotiropoulos
2B – Frame (T); Morales, Mobley (D); HR – Sotiropoulos (T); Rowland 2(D). Records – T (5-2); D (5-1).
