In the home opener in February, varsity baseball was shut out by Winter Park, 4-0. Two months later, the team responded with back-to-back wins over Winter Park, beating them to secure the District 3 championship 7-6 and win the regional quarterfinal 8-2 to keep the season alive.

With a 20-8 record in the regular season, the team put in the work against top teams in the state, practicing six days a week, three hours a day, all season, as well as team bonding to improve chemistry on and off the field. Team bonding included praying before games, going out to dinner before and after games, and even getting their teachers in on the fun. History teacher Teresa Decio said she would wear a blue wig for a week if they won regionals this year.

“We worked on team chemistry. It is just so much better now, and we understand each other a lot more, allowing us to work better as a team now,” senior Jalin Copeland said.

Losing 13 seniors from last year’s roster, younger players had to step up into major roles this season.

“I thought we were going to be a little bit struggling after the start of the season, but as we went on, I knew we would come together and win some games in the playoffs because that is the kind of program that we have,” sophomore Aiden Kearney said.

Starting their postseason off with the district win against Winter Park fueled their confidence. Offense held a team batting average of .292, seven runs on seven hits, and four RBIs. Defense also did its job, with a .964 fielding percentage and ten strikeouts with only two walks. Sophomore pitcher Isaias Torres pitched 5.2 innings and eight strikeouts, leaving junior Nick Stentiford to close the game.

The district championship was a highlight of the season.

“Our game against Winter Park was my favorite moment this season,” Copeland said. “Everyone was really energetic. When we’re working as a team and hyping each other up, we definitely do a lot better than when we’re just down in the dugout, it’s just bad.”

Going into the sixth inning, the Huskies were up 2-1. When Kearney got the first run in the sixth inning, four more were scored, putting the Huskies up 7-1, giving them a massive lead that would let them pull out the win later on.

“Hitting a home run against Winter Park in the district finals was my favorite moment. It put us up by one run and got our momentum going to score four more runs that inning and win the district championship,” Kearney said.

While the matchup against Winter Park was exciting, the second round of the regionals was even more dramatic, a three-game series against Spruce Creek, the same team they beat the season before.

The team lost the first game 4-3, but they came back and won game two 2-1 after having to go three extra innings to get the victory. Junior Noah Adkins pitched 6.1 innings with nine strikeouts, and senior Brenden Beldowicz pitched for three innings with zero runs allowed. Junior Nathan Rhodes also had a home run.

Entering the third game, senior pitcher Keltan Fitzgerald took the mound with the season on the line, and he delivered. Fitzgerald pitched 7.2 innings, allowed zero runs, and struck out seven batters in a dominant performance that secured the 1-0 win.

“Before the game even started, I was so locked in,” Fitzgerald said. “I knew that the season was in my hands.”

And the drama continued until the final out.

In the bottom of the eighth, players thought a Spruce Creek line drive had been caught to end the series, and they stormed out of the dugout to celebrate. It was not caught, though, so they had to reset, and Fitzgerald had to focus on getting the next batter out. When he reached his pitch count, Stentiford stepped in to close the game.

“When Nick came in and got the last out, it was electric,” Fitzgerald said.

What started as an uncertain season has turned into much more, and the team has advanced to the regional final on May 8 at 6 p.m. at home against West Orange.

For seniors like Fitzgerald, every game now carries extra meaning.

“Being a senior, I don’t take any of this for granted,” Fitzgerald said. “I just want to keep having moments like these and keep moving on.”