BillJohnson's blog

The 2008 District 3-4A Champion Middleburg Broncos.

The patchwork pitching staff and near-perfect defense that defeated Bradford Wednesday to put Ridgeview in next week's regional playoffs was unable to stand up to second-straight night's pounding Thursday as Middleburg banged out 12 hits and took advantage of numerous fielding miscues on its way to claiming a 15-7 victory and the District 3-4A championship title.

Middleburg, which had home-field advantage as the district tournament host, will continue to enjoy the friendly confines of Bronco Field for Tuesday's regional quarterfinal, as well as next Friday's regional semifinal, should it win Tuesday. In the first round, the Broncos will play the loser of Thursday night's District 4-4A championship game (either Bishop Kenny or Stanton). Ridgeview, the District 3-4A runner-up, will travel to winner of that game for its regional quarterfinal Tuesday.

Ridgeview wasn't supposed to win with a kid barely out of the junior varsity on the mound. Middleburg wasn't supposed to defeat the No. 3 team in the state, and certainly not by roughing up its ace pitcher for eight runs.

But the Panthers and Broncos did all those things Wednesday, and more, as they ignored their tournament seedings and upended the district's No. 1 and 2 seeds in back-to-back games to set up an All-Clay County District 3-4A baseball championship game. More importantly, both teams have qualified for the regional playoffs for the first time in six years. They will play each other for the district championship and the right to host that first-round regional game at 7 p.m. Thursday at Bronco Field.

Jenna Rogers lined a ninth-inning triple to the right-field fence and Mary Gaver laid down a bunt that caused just enough confusion in the Crystal River infield to give the Clay Blue Devils a 3-2 first-round regional softball victory Tuesday night in Green Cove Springs.

Senior Clay pitcher Crystal Chesser outduels Crystal River strikeout artist.
For more photos from the game, visit the Spotted gallery.

The win puts the Lady Blue Devils (22-5) in Friday night's regional semifinal against District 6 champion Dunnellon, a 25-3 team that beat St. Augustine Tuesday night, 3-0. Friday's game will be at 7 p.m. at Clay High.

The visiting Lady Pirates came into Tuesday's Clay game with one of the strongest pitchers in the state, Cassidy Rush, a Florida Gulf Coast University commitment who had 214 strikeouts coming into the game. And, while she added 10 more to that total against Clay, the Lady Blue Devils were able to punch out 10 hits as well, including an in-the-park homer by Tera Powell, triples by Rogers and Loryn Collins and a double by Caitlin Toth.

Meanwhile, Clay pitcher Crystal Chesser outdueled the Pirates strikeout artist by sending down 13 Crystal River batters by herself and giving up only five hits in nine full innings of work.

"She was a good pitcher," Chesser said of her counterpart. "She had a strong breaking ball."

As for her own pitching, Chesser said she was pretty sure she could hold her own on the mound, but the 13 strikeouts were a pleasant surprise as well as a single-game personal-best.

Senior Middleburg catcher Brian Leino blasted a two-run homer in the first inning and a three-run double off the center-field fence in the second as the Broncos defeated Fleming Island, 5-2, to win the St. Johns Athletic Conference baseball championship Thursday night.

Brian Leino follows through on a first-inning home-run swing.

Freshman pitcher Cody Robinson (5-2) pitched five innings to get the win, while veteran senior Ryan Raymer, fresh off a five-inning perfect game, closed out the final two innings to earn the save.

Even in the end, as it was being dissected, piece by piece, the heart of Orange Park continued to beat.

First they cut out Tony Baker -- five fouls with five minutes to play -- and then David Marlar.

Yet, with less than three minutes remaining in the Region I-6A Basketball Championship at Orange Park High School, and after trailing by as many as 17 points, the Raiders' heart still somehow pumped them to within three points of tying a game against a bigger, faster and more talented Winter Springs opponent.

Raider Clarence Tillman (23) goes up against Winter Springs' "sixth man" Luis Jacobo. 

At certain points Tuesday night, Jerome Clyburn looked more like a pinata than a basketball player as time and again he drove fearlessly into the gritted teeth of Mandarin's bruising defense only to wind up in a crumpled heap at the feet of 6-foot-9 P.J. Gaynor.

Mandarin's P.J. Gaynor realizes the end is near as Jerome Clyburn steps

to foul line late in the fourth period of Orange Park's regional semifinal win.

But at the end of 32 minutes of play in Tuesday night's Region I semifinal at Orange Park, it was Clyburn who proved to be the big man, hitting seven of 10 free throws and connecting on two clutch three-pointers from opposite corners in the fourth period to put his Raiders into the Region 1 Championship Final at 7 p.m. Saturday in The Dome.

The senior point guard scored 13 of his team-high 21 points in the final eight minutes as the Raiders moved one step away from the state's 6A Final Four tournament with a 57-52 victory over their old District 1 nemesis.

Unlike Thursday night, when he somehow just knew to dish the ball off to teammate Tony Baker for a crucial regulation-tying three-pointer, this time Clyburn knew the game was on him, and he was ready to lay his body on the line for his teammates.

"Yeah, there's going to be a lot of bumps and bruises," Clyburn said. "Every time we play them it's like a dogfight. They've got a wonderful team, and we have a great team, and it's going to be a great game no matter what ... They bring out the best in us and we bring out the best in them."

Fellow senior starter David Marlar (18 points) complemented Clyburn's fourth-period kamikaze mission with six points of his own, including a clutch four-for-four free throw performance in the final eight minutes. Baker had eight points, followed by Sammy Mojica, 4, Tyler Robbins, 3, Clarence Tillman, 2, and Derell Bonner, 1.

Gaynor paced the Mustangs with 25 points, while Akeem Washington put in 16.

Every point was big as the Mustangs' defense kept the game the way they like it: low scoring. In going 22-8 this season, Mandarin has averaged just 53. 6 points a game while limiting opponents to 49.6. And tied at 48 with 1:29 left to play, the visitors had seemingly succeeded in keeping the pace of the game in their comfort zone.

But Orange Park (27-2) came out of a time out and Clyburn hit his second-straight three pointer to make it 51-48 and force Mandarin into a time out with 48.2 seconds left. The Mustangs came out fouling and the Raiders were up to the challenge as Marlar, Baker and Clyburn each hit two foul shots in the final seconds to seal the victory.

On Saturday, the Raiders will host the winner of Tuesday night's other Region 1 semifinal between Winter Park (28-1) and Winter Haven (25-3).

Fleming Island had a bit of trouble adjusting to the statewide spotlight Friday, and as a result, the Golden Eagles won't be playing for the state soccer championship in Fort Lauderdale on Saturday.
Fort Lauderdale's St. Thomas Aquinas, playing in its own backyard in a final four tournament its been to -- and won -- before, dealt the Golden Eagles a tough 3-0 loss Friday afternoon, ending the team's best-ever season at 23-2-3.

With his team down by three points and with the very real possibility looming that only 12.8 seconds remained in Orange Park's basketball season, senior point guard Jerome Clyburn brought the ball up court for what could be the last time in his Raider career.

As he neared DeLand's basket, and as the clock seemingly raced toward the end, he remembered what his teammate Tony Baker said: "I'm hot."

Orange Park's Tony Baker might have been feverish, but he was also hot.

Jerome Clyburn and Tony Baker each scored 17 points and Orange Park's defense shut down a much taller Mandarin offense to win the District 1-6A championship, 57-48, at Gainesville Buchholz Saturday night.

Unlike their close double-overtime loss to the Mustangs last month, the Raiders were able to close this one out in regulation with some solid foul shooting. The Raiders are now 2-1 vs. Mandarin, a team they could not beat in three tries last year. 

The Mustangs came out and took a 16-12 first-period lead, but Orange Park's defense asserted itself in the second period as the Raiders went into the half with a 31-24 lead.  

Still recovering from a bout with the stomach flu, Ridgeview's undefeated sophomore heavyweight John Dixon had to play a lot of  defense in Saturday night's Region 1-2A championship final to stay that way, but in the end the 35-0 Panther will go to states next week still undefeated and most likely still ranked No. 1 in the state. 

Fleming Island's Chris Taylor works for a pin against Forrest's Michael Masline.

Dixon and Fleming Island's Adam Taylor (189) will carry regional championships into next week's 2A state tournament in Lakeland, in which 14 Clay County wrestlers will take part. Taylor was one of seven Golden Eagles to qualify. Dixon will lead five Panthers to the event. Two Middleburg Broncos will join them. (Clay and Orange Park competed in the Region 1-1A and Region 3-3A regionals, respectively. Check Sunday's Florida Times-Union for results.)

"I'm still a little weak from it," Dixon said of the flu. "But I didn't have any doubts that I could win it. I just needed to push through it."

Dixon had beaten Choctawhatchee's Kyle Purcell by one point in last year's regionals, so this year's 3-2 win seemed logical. But not to Dixon.

"It was all my fault," he said. "I know I won, but it shouldn't have been that close."

States will start Thursday, and Dixon is hoping to regain all his strength by that time.

In the team race, Fleming island finished second to Gainesville, 151.50 to 138.50. Ridgeview finished fourth at 114.

Golden Eagles joining Taylor at states will be second-place finisher Chris Fox (103); third-place finishers Derek Horine (125) and Grant Taylor (160), and fourth-place finishers Mark Cornett (112), Corey Perry (140), and Chris Taylor (171).

After Dixon, the rest of the Panther lineup for Lakeland will be second-place finishers Josh Pitts (125) and Richard Mannwarren; third-place finisher Giovany Ocasio (130) and fourth-place finisher Derek Johnson (152).

Middleburg qualifier Larry Carnes finished second at 152 by a close 7-6 decision, while heavyweight J.J. Steichen place fourth.