The high school baseball season is winding down, and softball is not far behind.
District tournaments for baseball begin the week of April 14, followed by the softball postseason the final week of April.
Here are six upcoming broadcasts to get you ready for the postseason. All games will be streamed online (audio only) at Mainstreet Daily News.
Friday, March 28 – P.K. Yonge at St. Francis Catholic baseball, 4:30 p.m.
This is the second of two meetings between the Blue Wave and the Wolves. P.K. Yonge won the first game at home, 14-4, on Feb. 28.
Pitching is the biggest concern for the Blue Wave (8-8), who allowed 14 walks, hit four batters and committed five errors in a 21-11 loss at home to Dixie County (Cross City) on Thursday. They dug themselves a 19-1 hole by the top of the third inning. P.K. Yonge rallied with four in the third and five in the fifth, but the deficit was too much to overcome.
They also surrendered double-digit runs in an 11-0 loss at Palatka on Wednesday, and last week allowed double-digit runs in losses to Vanguard (Ocala), 10-3, and Coral Shores (Tavernier), 10-4 and 10-0.
St. Francis Catholic Academy, which made the postseason last year for the first time since 2015, is peaking at the right time. The Wolves (11-5) have scored 74 runs during their current six-game winning streak, including a 15-1 win at Wildwood on Thursday and a 14-3 win at district foe Countryside Christian on Tuesday.
Another interesting note is that Jacksonville University softball signee Emma Mansfield is the starting catcher today for P.K. Yonge.
Monday, March 31 – Oak Hall at Newberry baseball, 6 p.m.
The Eagles flexed their muscles on Thursday by scoring 18 runs against Hawthorne to split the two-game series. A rare feat occurred when senior Gavin Jones (4-for-5) hit for the cycle with a single, double, and a triple in three of his first four trips to the plate. His home run in his final at-bat was a grand slam. He leads the Eagles (5-5) with a whopping .588 batting average.
OHS and Newberry met for the first time in 10 years last year, with the Panthers winning both meetings, 11-3 and 3-2. The visiting Eagles are seeking their first win in the series since 2007.
Newberry, which got upset by Trenton in last year’s Class 1A-Region 4 Final, is looking to get back to the final four. The Panthers, who won their first state title in 2021 and lost in the state semifinals in 2023, are 8-5 heading into Saturday’s home game against Trinity Christian Academy (Jacksonville), the No. 6 overall team in Florida according to MaxPreps.
Tuesday, April 1 – Santa Fe (Alachua) at Columbia (Lake City) softball, 6 p.m.
This is kind of a unique matchup as first-year Columbia softball coach Joe Saucier will coach against his daughter. Junior Reagan Saucier plays outfield for the visiting Raiders, who are 11-1 this season. That’s no April Fools.
“This is the first time I have head coached and not had her in the dugout with me, so 4/1 will be a fun one,” Saucier said. “The trash-talking has already started.”
Both teams are ranked top 10 in the state in their respective classifications. Santa Fe was ranked No. 7 in Class 3A in the FHSAA’s first rankings of the season this past Monday. The host Tigers (10-5) were ranked No. 5 in Class 4A. The Raiders and the Tigers are also ranked in the top 20 of The Prep Zone Power Poll.
Thursday, April 3 – Colquitt County (Norman Park, GA) at Buchholz baseball, 6 p.m.
The first time these two teams met, the Bobcats won 5-3 in extra innings in the Peach State.
And it got a little chippy.
The Bobcats have reeled off 17 straight wins to open the season. Buchholz, which advanced to its first state championship game in program history last year, is 17-0 heading into tonight’s game at Bartram Trail (St. Johns).
Buchholz is the No. 1 team in the state in Class 6A and they are ranked third overall in Florida. They are also ranked 13th nationally by MaxPreps.
Tuesday, April 8 – Providence (Jacksonville) at Buchholz baseball, 6 p.m.
This one looks good on paper, but it’s a bit of a down year for the visiting Stallions, who are ranked 12th in Class 2A.
Providence, which won state titles in 2003 (A), 2008 (2A) and 2012 (3A), is led by sophomore pitcher Preston Matricardi, who had a 1.66 ERA and 65 strikeouts as a freshman at Yulee. The FSU commit leads the Stallions (12-7) this year with 49 Ks in only 25 innings pitched.
However, Providence, which made the 3A state playoffs last year, has struggled at the plate with a .251 batting average. They have played a difficult schedule that includes nationally ranked Bishop Verot (Fort Myers), 2A No. 2 Trinity Christian Academy (Jacksonville), the overall No. 6 team in Florida, Class 7A No. 9 Creekside (St. Johns) and 1A No. 3 St. Johns Country Day (Orange Park) tonight.
By comparison, Providence lost 10-0 at Trinity Christian on March 20 while Buchholz upset the then nationally ranked Conquerors on the road, 5-3, on March 4.
Thursday, April 10 – Santa Fe (Alachua) at GHS softball, 7 p.m.
This is the second meeting between these two Alachua County rivals and the first time was close. The host Raiders scored six runs in the bottom of the second inning and held on for a 7-6 win in Alachua.
Despite losing star pitcher Leanna Bourdage to an injury, Santa Fe College signee McKenna O’Sullivan is starting to find her groove in the circle. In a 10-0 win against Forest (Ocala) on Wednesday, the senior tossed a two-hit shutout in five innings. She also went 3-for-4 at the plate with two home runs and 7 RBI.
O’Sullivan (.486), Alabama State signee Braylin Cook (.469) and Hawthorne transfer Madisyn Gillins (.548) lead a GHS team that has won four in a row heading into tonight’s rematch at Suwannee (Live Oak). Santa Fe, whose only loss was 4-3 at Fort White on March 4, is led by senior J’lyn Guyden (.486), junior Madisen Crosby (.484) and sophomore Maren Hornsby (.472).
We’ll also broadcast a baseball district championship game on Thursday, April 17 (TBD), followed by regional coverage the week of April 21.