Sherwood baseball dominates in state semifinals
[See more photos from this year’s state semifinals here!]
BETHESDA – The two-time defending state champion Sherwood High School baseball team will return to the finals once again after cruising in the 4A state semifinals to a 9-2 victory over No. 3 Severna Park Tuesday afternoon.
With the win, the Warriors will take on No. 1 seeded Urbana with a chance to three-peat. After spending the offseason talking to players about playing in a third straight state final, Sherwood head coach Sean Davis said he told his team after the game, “‘The hard part’s done, we’re there, now we just go to the big stage.’”
“I was really happy with how the guys played,” said Sherwood head coach Sean Davis. “There was a lot of traffic on the bases, a lot of pressure, a lot of good swings.”
Sherwood’s batting was hot throughout the game, finishing with nine hits.
Ben Berger looked strong at the plate with two hits and three RBIs, Ryan Bouma finished with three runs and an RBI, and Brian Scott had an RBI and two runs.
“It’s nothing new for us,” said Berger. “We’re more experienced than all the other teams. We’ve got a great group of guys, and I’m pumped to go win another state championship.”
Both Berger and Bouma are seniors committed to playing D-2 baseball at Frostburg State University in Western Maryland.
“We have the experience, so I think we can get it done again,” said Bouma. “We’re not very nervous. We’ve been in this situation before. I think we can do it.”
Meanwhile, Angel Santiago-Cruz and Nathan Clarke each managed two hits in the loss for Severna Park.
The Falcons quickly jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning on an RBI double by Seamus Patenaude.
“Not just today, but all season, I’m just proud of the guys and the way they battled,” said Severna Park head coach Eric Milton. “You can’t let one game define what they did.”
However, the momentum completely swung in the Warriors’ favor in the bottom half of the inning, as Berger and Allen each had an RBI to take a 2-1 lead.
The lead grew in the bottom of the third when Berger doubled to center field and drove in two more runs.
“I love the play from this team,” said Berger. “Not the best day pitching for me, but everyone else came after me. The bats kept it alive today.”
With the score 4-2 heading into the bottom of the fourth, the Warriors added three more runs. Sherwood’s last two runs came off Gavin Hughes’ sacrifice fly in the fifth, and Bouma scored on a wild pitch in the sixth.
“They had a great pitcher; we hit really well,” said Bouma. “We just got to use this game’s momentum till the next game and keep rolling.”
