Melbourne High’s strong baseball season ended Friday in Fort Myers in the FHSAA Class 6A state semifinals.
In a game that included a two-hour 25-minute lightning delay, the Bulldogs lost to Pace 2-1.
After the delay, Alex McCrany made it to the Patriots race with two outs, giving Pace one last advantage. The Bulldogs finished their year 26-3.
Pace, 26-3 with the win, moved on to play at Doral Academy or Sickles.
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Melbourne scored first, but missed opportunities to increase their advantage in subsequent innings. Michael Petit drove into Bryson Ayala at the top of the third. Ayala scored from the second after the doubling to withdraw from the half.
Five runners were detained in the Bulldogs game.
Pace equalized the game at the bottom of the fourth when Palmer Etheridge returned home with a pass. The Patriots missed a great opportunity in the third when Brent Cadenhead pulled out of the move but found himself stranded.
It was the second semifinal semifinal appearance for the Bulldogs under coach Pete Donovan, who achieved 510 career wins last week regional final victory over Winter Haven. Donan’s team in Melbourne 2012 played in the state tournament in Port St. Lucy, where they also lost to Pace.
The Melbourne High softball team was due to play for Bart in the 6A regional final later Friday. The Eau Gallie was the only remaining baseball team from Brevard County. In Saturday’s match of the Class 5A championship at 13:00 “Comadores” will face the Jesuits from Tampa.
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