The last time Trenton and Chiefland played, it was 12 days ago for the Rural-District 7 title. Trenton fell behind 3-0 in the fifth inning before rallying to win 4-3 over the Indians.
Tuesday night, the two teams met once again in the opening game of the Rural-Region 4 Semifinals. This time, the Tigers left no doubt.
Jordan Marlo hit a three-run home run in the opening inning and host Trenton led 10-0 after the first two innings and cruised past Chiefland 11-4 to go up 1-0 in the best-of-three series.
Top-seed Trenton (21-4) can advance to the region final next week by beating Chiefland on Wednesday night. If the Indians win, the third and deciding game would be Thursday night at Chiefland.
Game 1 was originally scheduled for Monday night, but was postponed due to rain and lightning. Waiting an extra 24 hours didn’t affect Trenton.
Brant Bivens led off the bottom of the first with a single to left field off Chiefland starter Taylor Brown. Mason Vuncannon followed with a single to left as well, and then Marlo followed with his three-run shot to center field. Three batters in, the Tigers led 3-0.
“We got off to a good start with Bivens getting on, Vuncannon getting on, and Jordan hitting the three-run shot,” Trenton coach Chris Marlo said. “Those guys have been producing for us all year.
But then came the seven-run explosion in the second inning for Trenton. Ten batters came to the plate for the Tigers, with two walks, two hit batters, an error, and four hits leading to the big inning.
Bivens had a sacrifice fly to extend the lead to 4-0, and VunCannon followed with an RBI double. Zane McArdle added a two-run single later in the inning, and Isaac Johnson drove in another run with a single.
“The middle of the order, the bottom of the order have all been hitting good,” Chris Marlo said. “We’ve got a tough lineup. Every guy, one through nine, can all hit the ball out and hit the ball over the outfielders’ heads.”
Bivens started for Trenton and pitched three shutout innings. Chiefland (13-11) got all four of its runs in the fourth against Tigers reliever Noah Owens.
Jolen Doty drove in the first run with a sacrifice fly and Colton Brown had a three-run double to make it 10-4. But that was it for the Indians.
Game 2 on Wednesday will be broadcast at 6:45 p.m. on Mainstreet Daily News (audio only) with Mike Ridaught and Joe Baker calling the contest.
FHSAA Baseball state playoffs (Best-of-3)
(Teams in the Mainstreet coverage area in bold)
Dates & times are subject to change
Class Rural-Region 3 Semifinals
Game 1 – Monday, April 28
2 Union County (Lake Butler) 9, 3 Branford 1 – Union County leads 1-0
Game 2 – Tuesday, April 29
2 Union County (Lake Butler) 12, 3 Branford 0 – Union County (14-14) wins 2-0
Class Rural-Region 4 Semifinals
Game 1 – Monday, April 28
4 Chiefland at 1 Trenton, 7 p.m., ppd. rain
Game 1 – Tuesday, April 29
1 Trenton 11, 4 Chiefland 4 – Trenton leads 1-0
Game 2 – Wednesday, April 30
4 Chiefland at 1 Trenton, 7 p.m. – Game will be broadcast online (audio only) at Mainstreet Daily News beginning at 6:45 p.m.
Game 3, if necessary – Thursday, May 1
1 Trenton at 4 Chiefland, 7 p.m.
Class 1A-Region 2 Quarterfinals
Game 1 – Monday, April 28
2 Orangewood Christian (Maitland) 7, 3 St. Francis Catholic Academy 0 – Orangewood Christian leads 1-0
Game 2 – Tuesday, April 29
2 Orangewood Christian (Maitland) 5, 3 St. Francis Catholic Academy 3 – Orangewood Christian wins 2-0
Class 3A-Region 1 Semifinals
Game 1 – Monday, April 28
3 Suwannee (Live Oak) 5, 2 West Florida (Pensacola) 2 – Suwannee leads 1-0
Game 2 – Tuesday, April 29
2 West Florida (Pensacola) 9, 3 Suwannee (Live Oak) 8 – Series tied 1-1
Game 3, if necessary – Thursday, May 1
2 West Florida (Pensacola) at 3 Suwannee (Live Oak), 7 p.m.
Class 5A-Region 1 Semifinals
Game 1 – Wednesday, April 30
5 Columbia (Lake City) at 1 Niceville, 7 p.m. CT
Game 2 – Thursday, May 1
5 Columbia (Lake City) at 1 Niceville, 7 p.m. CT
Game 3, if necessary – Saturday, May 3
1 Niceville at 5 Columbia (Lake City), 7 p.m.
Class 6A-Region1 Semifinals
Game 1 – Wednesday, April 30
4 Tate (Cantonment) at 1 Buchholz, 7 p.m.
Game 2 – Thursday, May 1
4 Tate (Cantonment) at 1 Buchholz, 7 p.m.
Game 3, if necessary – Saturday, May 3
1 Buchholz at 4 Tate (Cantonment), 7 p.m. CT