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Baseball tournament sparks revival for Sickles Gryphons
By TERRY JONES © St. Petersburg Times, published May 18, 2001 CITRUS PARK -- At midseason, the Sickles baseball team had a bleak to very-bleak outlook for any success in 2001. The team had a record of 1-9 and most casual observers wrote off the Gryphons. However, the team had several young players with a lot of skill and most of the losses had been very close, which offered hope. The young Gryphons seemed to be in every game scrapping to the last out. Then came spring break and the prestigious Tony Saladino Memorial Baseball Tournament. The Gryphons were seeded last and seemingly didn't have enough of anything to even win a game in the tourney. Wrong! Before the first game the young Gryphons made a pact. They agreed to simply have fun playing baseball in the tournament and focus on doing their best in each inning of each contest. They joked and laughed in the dugout and throughout the tournament. When it was over the Gryphons had knocked off every team they faced and, with an undefeated record, evened their season record and won the tournament championship. Afterward, Sickles lost only three more games and closed out a winning season of 13-12. "This is the type of season that really tests your character as a person and as a coach," Sickles coach Bop Pagano said. "By the time we reached our 1-9 record, I'm sure there were many people who were very disappointed with our team. But as a coach, it's not the wins or losses I was counting, but how we were performing overall." Junior infielder Grant Chapman became the offensive leader for the Gryphons. He closed the season with a team-high batting average of .358 with 25 RBI, 6 doubles and 3 home runs. Defensively, David Ivey provided a steady glove and added speed on the bases and on defense. He finished the season hitting .328 with 8 RBI. Brian Scoville, Bryan Rojas, Ryan Chavis, Ernie Diaz, David Cash and Matt Gess all bolstered the offense hitting over .200. They all played excellent defense throughout the season. In addition to ending up as the No. 3 best hitter, Scoville was the top pitcher for the Gryphons. At the plate, he ended the season hitting .299, which included 2 triples, 2 doubles, a home run and 16 RBI. On the mound, he finished with a 1.30 earned-run-average in 53 innings, a 4-2 record and 55 strikeouts. Diaz and Chavis cornered the outfield at left and right respectively, making several spectacular throwouts at both home plate and first base. Chavis finished with a batting average of .271 and Diaz .264. Rojas, Cash and Gess rotated defensively around the infield. The three played with sure gloves taking turns at second base, third base and shortstop. Rojas finished with a batting average of .278, Cash .234 and Gess .217. Gess also contributed 10 RBI. Ryan Ratcliffe was the ninth starter, covering centerfield and hitting .197 with 4 RBI. Adam Drury was the No. 2 pitcher. He recorded an ERA of 1.97 with 36 strikeouts. Greg Leimkuehler, Robert Rodriguez, John Impriano, David Ivey, Louis Guthrie, Paul Moat, Brandon White, Nick Sanchez and Mark Groves made up the balance of the pitching corps. Completing the Gryphons roster were Richie Rodriguez, Greg Hughes, Ryan Weeks and Justin Nickolich. "The Saladino Tournament obviously was the highlight of our season, but the stretch after the tournament was a telling story about the team," Pagano said. "With many of our players returning next year, we are hoping to reach the next level of high school baseball."
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