Last year was a special year for the Buchholz and Trenton baseball teams.

Both teams advanced to the final four.

In fact, Buchholz advanced to its first-ever semifinal and state championship game.

The Bobcats (24-9) defeated Hagerty (Oviedo), 1-0, in the FHSAA 6A-Region 1 Final to advance to Fort Myers.

They defeated Bloomingdale (Valrico), 12-0, in the 6A state semifinals, but lost to Dwyer (Palm Beach Gardens), 10-3, in the title game.

Several players from that team are back, including Division-I signees JJ Gardner (Jacksonville University) and Kai So (Howard University; .338 with 19 RBI), Belmont Abbey College signee Wyatt Clarke (1.27 earned run average in 21 appearances in 2024), junior Aidan Kastensmidt (JU commit, .310 with 11 doubles, 4 HRs and 28 RBI) and senior Cedaris Smith (.404, 16 RBI in 20 games), among others.

The Bobcats, who host Columbia (Lake City) at 7 p.m. tonight, opened the season with a 13-1 win on Tuesday at 6A regional quarterfinalist Fleming Island (Orange Park), which dropped down to 5A this season.

Kastensmidt (5-2 with a 0.69 ERA in 2024) was the winning pitcher, working four innings and allowing no runs on just one hit with nine strikeouts. He was also 2-for-3 at the plate with a double, triple and four runs driven in.

“A lot of people thought last year was kind of our year, but I’m really excited about this year with the nucleus we have coming back, and the pitching that we have,” said Buchholz coach Ron Brooks. “I think we’re going to play really good defense. I think we’re going to sneak up on some people offensively, so really encouraged and these three guys [Gardner, So and Clark] are a big part of that.”

Buchholz will compete in 6A-District 2 with Bartram Trail (St. Johns), Forest (Ocala), Oakleaf (Orange Park) and Tocoi Creek (St. Augustine).

“We have a big target on our back, especially in the area, but I think that this year we have a lot of kids from JV who have stepped up, especially pitching,” said Gardner, who batted .308 with 27 RBI, 13 doubles and 4 HRs. “I think our team has a very good chance of getting back to state, if not winning it. We have very good team chemistry.”

Trenton (13-12) upset Newberry in the 1A-Region 4 Final to advance to its first state semifinal since 2018.

The Tigers, who enter year two under head coach Chris Marlo, return nine starters, including his son, Jordan, who recently signed with D-I West Georgia.

All Area players Brant Bivens, who led the team with a .395 average and 11 doubles, and Ty Moses (top junior in North Florida with a fastball up to 89 miles per hour), and Mason VunCannon (standout sophomore on the mound up to 86 mph in the fall), are some of the key returnees along with Marlo, who was injured last season but still played in 16 games and batted .250 and was second on the team with five doubles.

Jordan Marlo had a home run, two doubles, a single and two walks in a 20-5 win at Class 7A West Port (Ocala) on Monday in the season opener. Moses was 3-for-5 with a double and three runs scored and Bivens, a sophomore, was 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored.

In a 3-2 win against Madison County on Tuesday, Bivens threw a complete game (77 pitches) for Trenton (2-0) with no walks, two earned runs, and eight strikeouts in seven innings pitched.

Other key returnees include sophomore Pierson Weatherilt (.281, 13 RBI), a gap-to-gap power and premier defender; senior Isaac Johnson (.292), one of the top hitters in the district last year; Noah Owens, rising sophomore with power to all parts of the field; and senior Stephen Furst, who has blazing speed with the ability to track down balls.

Trenton moves into the new Rural classification this year and will compete in District 7 with Bell, Bronson, Chiefland, Dixie County, Wildwood and Williston.

“Trying to get back to Fort Myers but taking the season one game at a time,” Chris Marlo said. “Need to be most concerned with what’s in front of us at the time. These guys play and practice as a family, a really special group. They all push each other and try to get better every practice.”

Other area teams who made the postseason last year include Union County (Lake Butler), Newberry, Williston and Chiefland, which returns eight starters, in Class 1A, St. Francis Catholic Academy and Oak Hall (2A), Keystone Heights (3A), Santa Fe (Alachua) and Suwannee (Live Oak) in 4A, and Columbia (Lake City) in 5A.

St. Francis Catholic (14-10) returns 11 starters from last year’s team (7 position players, 4 pitchers) that made an FHSAA regional for the first time since 2015.

“Our goals are a little higher this season,” said second-year coach Ryan Brown. “In order for us to reach those goals and have another successful season, we’re going to have to do all the little things that are required to play winning baseball.”

Santa Fe alum Kyle Brooks (2011) takes over the Raiders (14-13), who return seven starters including Jackson McDavid (.425, 20 RBI, 4 HRs), Caleb Kietzman (54 IP 5-1 record 2.46 ERA, 25BB/57Ks), Nate Robertson (.282 BA, 26 Runs, 5 2Bs) and Evan Christmas (.400 BA, 10 runs, 11 RBI).

“It is great to be back here at Santa Fe,” said Brooks, who played for the University of North Florida. “Myself and my two brothers all played baseball at Santa Fe and have endless memories both on and off the field. I was fortunate enough to play with my older brother Corey while he was a senior and I was a freshman, then my younger brother Casey while I was a senior and he was a sophomore. I will never forget winning the district title over Suwannee in 2011.”

The Raiders will compete in 3A-District 5 with Bradford (Starke), Eastside and Palatka.

Gainesville High, which had a young team in 2024, hopes to improve on last year’s 7-16 team. A total of six starters return, all juniors, including starting pitcher Cade Dixon, Jackson Dugan (C), Connor Kemph (1B), Zak Kazlauskas (2B), Taylor Brewer (3B), and Chris Eckhardt (CF).

“Not only is it year three for me, it is also year three for the juniors who have been here since day one,” said GHS coach Adrian Ramos. “It’s time we start to see the fruits of our labor and apply the wisdom from the highs and lows of prior seasons. We expect to see an improved product on the field this year, and are excited to get going.”

GHS is in 5A-District 5 with Belleview, Mainland (Daytona Beach), Matanzas (Palm Coast) and Seabreeze (Daytona Beach).

Columbia and Fleming Island are joined by Middleburg and Ridgeview (Orange Park) in 5A-District 3.

Returning starters Bynton Edge (.280; 29.2 IP 4.01 ERA 39 K’s), Max Schuler (.281), Casen Maddox, Trayce McKenzie (.349) and Ayden Phillips (.450) had 37 of the 53 extra-base hits last season for the Tigers (15-13).

“Our expectations are always to contend for a district title and make a playoff run,” said Columbia coach Chris Howard, who enters his fourth season. “We’re challenged with filling a few key roles and learning to play as a team. We do feel confident that if this team gels and plays as a team that we will be a playoff contender.”

Hawthorne, which will compete in Rural District 6 along with Branford, Fort White, Hilliard, 1A state semifinalist Lafayette (Mayo), and 1A regional finalist Union County (Lake Butler), will be led by first-year coach Matt Surrency.

“Young team needs to continue working on improving and minimizing errors, develop fundamentally and manufacture runs,” Surrency said. “Pitching and defense will be key areas for us to focus on.”