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#7 Sickles Defeats #9 Strawberry Crest to Open the Season

February 22, 2023
Rocco Iervasi
PBR Florida Managing Director

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Tuesday night saw a matchup of two top 10 ranked teams in the state with #7 Sickles hosting #9 Strawberry Crest. The stands were packed with scouts and it was a close battle the whole way through.

Getting the start for Sickles was UCF recruit Caden McDonald. The right-hander was coming off a big 2022 season and looked to kick off his senior spring in the same way. McDonald sat 89-92 with his fastball and got it all the way up to 93 mph. He paired it with a mid 70s slider that helped generate swings and misses. McDonald went 6 shutout innings for Sickles allowing just 3 hits while recording 9 strikeouts.


For Strawberry Crest, Florida recruit Alex Philpott started on the mound. The 6-foot-5 right hander worked 88-90 with his fastball pairing it with a tight spinning CB. Philpott went 4.1 innings allowing 2 runs and striking out 3.


Sickles struck early in the first. Connor Vance and Hayden Yost led things off with walks. A few batters later, Louisville commit Thomas Bly singled to left to drive in Vance and give Sickles an early 1-0 lead. Strawberry Crest rallied in the 2nd inning, getting runners on 2nd and 3rd but were left stranded.


In the 5th, Sickles would rally once again. After a Connor Vance walk, Florida recruit Hayden Yost would notch his second hit of the game. Following Yost, starting pitcher Caden McDonald would help himself out with an RBI single to make it 2-0 Sickles.


In the 6th, Strawberry Crest looked to fight back. FSU recruit Arjun Nimmala singled to left. Next batter Zachary Redner was hit by a pitch. With 2 on and 2 outs, both runners were left stranded and the score remained 2-0.


Luke Fikar would close things out for Sickles in the 7th giving them a big 2-0 win to start their season. Hayden Yost and Justin Allen both recorded 2 hits each in the win.