Editor’s Note: This is the fourth of five stories unveiling the 2025 Bosshardt Realty All Area Softball and Baseball Teams. Click here to read about the Small School Softball Team, the Small School Baseball Team and the Big School Softball Team.
The Buchholz Bobcats were once again the class of high school baseball in North Central Florida.
For the second year in a row, the Bobcats advanced to the state semifinals in Fort Myers and ended up as the 6A state runner-up.
Buchholz won a school-record 33 games and was ranked in the top 10 in the state and also in the top 25 nationally by MaxPreps.
So it shouldn’t be surprising that five Bobcats were named to the 2025 Bosshardt Realty Big School All Area Baseball Team (2A-6A).
Buchholz players make up nearly half of the 11 players chosen.
Long-time head coach Ron Brooks retired after the season and was replaced by Bobcats assistant coach Chris Malphurs, who was previously a head coach at Gainesville and Santa Fe.
Buchholz was led in 2025 by senior utility player JJ Gardner. Gardner, who signed to play at Jacksonville University, batted .375 with 30 runs, 36 hits, 25 RBI, nine doubles, and a team-high eight home runs. On the mound, Gardner was a perfect 7-0 with a 2.16 ERA in 12 appearances and struck out 62 batters while allowing only 14 earned runs in 42.1 innings pitched.
“JJ was excellent this season. He was the best player on the best team,” Malphurs said. “He’s a guy who looks the part when he steps off the bus and he backed it up in a big way. He’s the total package. He works so hard on all aspects of the game. He understands what it takes to be a high-level athlete and does the little things to care for his body and get it to perform at a peak level. He competes his tail off and is a guy you want in the box or on the mound with the game on the line. The future is very bright for JJ.”
Next up is junior pitcher Aidan Kastensmidt. The JU commit finished with a team-high 12 wins and 2.53 ERA in 15 appearances and 63.2 innings on the mound. He also batted .297 with 26 runs, 27 hits and 26 RBI.
“Most people know Aidan for what he’s done on the mound for the last three years at Buchholz, which continues to be stellar, but he is truly a Swiss Army knife type player,” Malphurs said. “He has such a high-level skillset, we could play him pretty much anywhere on any given night. He’s been on the mound for some of the biggest games in Buchholz’s history over the last three years, and I would say he’ll return for his senior year as the most seasoned veteran pitcher in Class 6A. He has an opportunity to cap off an already stellar high school career as one of the best to pitch at Buchholz High School.”
Two more Buchholz seniors named to the squad are catcher Kai So and outfielder and Cedaris Smith.
So, who is heading to Harvard for college, batted .339 with 39 hits, 23 RBI and six homers.
“Kai is the hardest-working player I’ve ever coached,” Malphurs said. “He is constantly working to perfect his craft. He loves baseball and is a true student of the game. He has more of an understanding of his swing and his feel than any other high school hitter I’ve seen. He quickly became one of the most feared leadoff hitters in the state for good reason. Can’t wait to see how he continues to excel at the next level.”
Smith, who will be moving on to the College of Central Florida in Ocala, batted .331 with a team-high 36 runs, and also added 39 hits, 29 RBI, 10 doubles, three triples and three home runs.
“My staff and I identified Cedaris to be a future star from our first time seeing him in middle school,” Malphurs said. “He can play anywhere on the field and is a tremendous athlete. He does a great job of leading by example and has an infectious smile. He’s the type guy you show up to the ballpark excited to coach every day. He understands the physicality the game requires today and has worked tirelessly to raise his already high level of strength and athleticism. The ceiling is high for him and I look forward to seeing him compete at one of the top JUCO programs in the state/nation in Ocala.”
The fifth and final Buchholz player on the All Area team is junior infielder Blake Brewer. Brewer led the Bobcats with 47 hits, 38 RBI and 13 doubles, and added 33 runs and four homers.
“Blake is a special talent. He’s incredibly fun to watch play the game,” Malphurs said. “He’s very aggressive and has the skill set to hurt the opponent in a number of ways. He possesses the mind of a coach and is always thinking ahead. He’s a fierce competitor with a quiet confidence and I’m so excited that we get him back for another season at Buchholz.”
There were other teams besides Buchholz in the Mainstreet Daily News Area who made playoff runs. Suwannee finished 23-10 and advanced to the Region 1-3A final, where they were eliminated by eventual state runner-up South Walton (Santa Rosa Beach).
The Bulldogs were led on the mound by junior Grayson Greene. Greene was 8-4 with a 2.14 ERA, allowing only 18 earned runs in 59 innings with 71 strikeouts.
“Grayson Greene might be the most competitive player I have ever coached,” Suwannee coach Billy Moran said. “He has been the consensus No. 1 for Suwannee since his freshman year and has faced some of the best schools in the region in any classification.
“What makes Grayson special is the confidence he has in himself, regardless of the opponent. He pitches with tempo and commands the strike zone with a four-pitch mix. His consistent performances have led Suwannee to countless victories and helped catapult the program into a powerhouse.”
The Columbia Tigers returned to the postseason this year, finishing 17-12 and advancing to the second round of the 5A playoffs. Columbia was led by senior infielder Ayden Phillips.
Phillips led the Tigers with a .372 average and also paced Columbia with 20 RBI and six doubles. On the mound, Phillips had a 2.06 ERA in 11 appearances, allowing only 15 earned runs in 51 innings with 70 strikeouts.
“Ayden is an all-around player, can play any position on the field and play it well,” Columbia coach Chris Howard said. “He has a love for the game that can’t be taught. He will be missed in the Columbia High baseball program.”
Keystone Heights had a successful season as well, finishing 19-9 with a district title and advancing to the 2A playoffs.
The Indians were led by senior outfielder Guage Barry. Barry hit .420 with 34 hits, 19 RBI, and six doubles and had a 2.54 ERA in 52.1 innings with 54 strikeouts on the mound.
“Guage is a great teammate with good character,” Keystone Heights coach Chris Roach said. “He hit well for us in the four hole most of the year. He played very good defense in right field when he wasn’t pitching and put us in good positions to win games.”
Newberry finished the season 11-8 and missed out on the 2A playoffs. The Panthers were led by sophomore infielder Tavis Honeycutt, who hit .407 with 22 hits, 21 RBI and four home runs.
The final two members of the big school squad are Santa Fe senior infielder Jackson McDavid and P.K Yonge sophomore outfielder Darius Medley.
Santa Fe missed the playoffs with an 11-15 record, but you couldn’t blame McDavid, who led the Raiders with a .425 average with 34 hits, 32 RBI, six doubles and five triples.
Medley is the final member of the Big School All Area team. P.K. Yonge also missed the postseason, but Medley led the Blue Wave with a .449 average, 32 runs, 31 hits, 19 RBI and seven doubles. His 36 stolen bases ranked fifth in the state in all classifications.
2025 Bosshardt Realty All Area Big School Baseball Team (2A-6A)
C – Kai So, Buchholz (SR)
INF – Tavis Honeycutt, Newberry(SO)
INF – Ayden Phillips, Columbia (Lake City) (SR)
INF – Jackson McDavid, Santa Fe (Alachua) (SR)
INF – Blake Brewer, Buchholz (JR)
OF – Guage Barry, Keystone Heights (SR)
OF – Cedaris Smith, Buchholz (SR)
OF – Darius Medley, P.K. Yonge (SO)
Utility – J.J. Gardner, Buchholz (SR)
P – Aidan Kastensmidt, Buchholz (JR)
P – Grayson Greene, Suwannee (Live Oak) (SR)
Honorable mentions
Bradford (Starke) – Matthew Stafford (SR), Avery Burgin (JR), Breion Johnson (JR), Ryland Rike (JR), Patrick Pendarvis (SO), Kaedan Parks (FR)
Buchholz – Wyatt Clark (SR), Stuart Ding (SR), Zac Brown (JR), Roen Kresak (SO), Hudson Sapp (SO)
Columbia (Lake City)—Trayce McKenzie (SR), Bynton Edge (SR), Tison McCray (JR)
Eastside – Curtis Williams (SR), Wrex Louidor (SR), Rodney McClellon Jr. (SO)
Gainesville – Chris Eckhardt (JR), Jackson Dugan (JR), Connor Kemph (JR), Kaiden Griffith (JR), Estaban Barranco (SO)
Keystone Heights – Austin Smith (SR), Ty Mitzel (SR), Andrew Wilson (SR), Ethan Franklin (JR), Destin Harnage (JR)
Newberry – Tristan Woodrome (SR), Aiden Michaux (SO), Brycen Ochs (SO), Brantley McCoy (FR)
P.K. Yonge – Micah Gratto (SR), Josh Davis (SR), Charlie Tumminia (JR), Tyler Belleville (SO), Colt Kramer (FR), Nico Wheeler (FR)
Santa Fe (Alachua) – Caleb Kietzman (SR), Tyler Whitworth (SR), Angel Irizarry (JR), Evan Christmas (JR), Dylan Doria (SO)
Suwannee (Live Oak) –Grayson Bonds (SR), Noah Lopez (JR), Colton Rogers (JR), Gabriel Garcia (JR), Jace Moran (SO), Kyler Watson (SO), Hampton Newman (SO)