Place an Ad Calendars Classified Forums Sports Weather

sptimes.com Text-only News sections Arts & Entertainment AP The Wire Business Citrus County Columnists Floridian Hernando County Hillsborough Letters Movies Neighborhood Times News Update North Pinellas North of Tampa Obituaries Opinion Pasco County South Pinellas Sports State Tampa Bay TV Times World & Nation  Find your local news section Weekly sections Brandon Times City Times Homes Outdoors Perspective Personal Tech Taste Travel Weekend Xpress Special Sections Arena football Buccaneers College football Devil Rays Lightning Police reports Schools Seniority Subscriber Services Subscribe Renew Help Advertise Place an ad In print Online Market Info Join Us Internships Scholarships Times Jobs Contact us

This time, surprise not pleasant for Rams

BISHOP KENNY 13, RIDGEWOOD 0: A five-run first inning is too much for the Rams to overcome.

By GREG AUMAN, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published May 17, 2002

TAMPA -- As unimaginably high as Ridgewood had been on the same field one night earlier, the Rams found the other side of baseball in the state championship game Thursday night.

After upsetting a Dunedin team ranked No. 1 in the nation Wednesday, Ridgewood was humbled by Jacksonville Bishop Kenny 13-0 at Legends Field. The Class 4A defeat brought the state's 10-run mercy rule into play in a title game for the first time in five years.

In 220 championship games since 1922, only two have been decided by larger margins.

"They've got a good ballclub, no doubt about it," said Ridgewood coach Larry Beets, whose team became the fourth in Pasco County history to play for a state title. "They did a great job of hitting the ball, so you learn. A game's never a nonlearning situation."

Thursday night was a lesson taught by a veteran of the final four to a title-game rookie. Kenny coach Bob West had to wait for his sixth state tournament appearance as a head coach before taking home his first gold medal.

"Every time we've been lucky enough to come down here, there was disappointment that we didn't win, but I didn't feel like the whole world crumbled," West said. "Being able to come to this environment and play in this environment is unbelievable. It's the greatest high school championship the state puts on."

The Crusaders (27-4) got a commanding performance from sophomore left-hander Chris Nelson (4-0), who was called up from the junior varsity a month ago. Nelson faced one batter more than the minimum, holding the right-handed Rams lineup to two hits in an efficient 52-pitch game.

At the plate, Kenny reached base on an error on the game's first play and tagged Rams starter Richie Hittel (8-3) for five runs on five hits in the first. The scoring started with a two-run single from second baseman Chris Campbell, who added a run-scoring double in the second and a two-run home run in the third.

Hittel left in the third trailing 6-0, and reliever Matt Laliberte fared no better. After one strikeout, the Crusaders' next six batters reached base, all scoring to reach the final 13-0 margin.

Beets said he couldn't blame his team for not having the same emotion after a dramatic upset of Dunedin on Wednesday, a game that West said was "as good a high school game as I've ever seen."

"Oh, you hate to lose," Beets said. "Playing tiddlywinks, you hate to lose. We got it to the last game of the season, but we lost the game.

"It was a great run, and not winning the ballgame, that's not going to take away from anything we did to get here."

Ridgewood, which didn't win its conference or district crown but still beat three state-ranked teams away from home to reach the final, has the consolation of winning more games and going further than any team in the school's 19-year history.

A majority of Thursday's announced crowd of 2,886 was the orange-and-blue variety that drove down from New Port Richey.

"I'm ready to practice tomorrow," said Beets, eager for his 20th season at Ridgewood. "The hardest thing now is saying there's no more practice."

For Hittel, one of two seniors, it was a tough ending to a surprising postseason run. He committed errors at shortstop in the sixth and seventh innings Wednesday, but made enough defensive plays to keep his team alive.

On Thursday, Kenny's bats were so much that his team never made it to the sixth.

"It's like they knew it was coming. They were swinging it ... but this feels great," said Hittel, clutching the silver medal hanging from his neck.

"I just wish I had the gold one."

© 2006 • All Rights Reserved • Tampa Bay Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111

Contact the Times | Privacy Policy
Standard of Accuracy | Terms, Conditions & Copyright