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HIGH-SCHOOL

Park Vista baseball gets walk-off revenge on Stoneman Douglas

Alex Peterman
Special to The Post

LAKE WORTH – Park Vista baseball shocked nationally-ranked Stoneman Douglas 4-3 on Tuesday in a gritty game that was a rematch of last year's Class 7A second round matchup. 

With the game on the line in the bottom of the seventh inning, Park Vista senior Ethan Strikowski played hero with the game-winning sacrifice fly – sending the ball just deep enough for pinch runner Peyton Samuels to tag up at third and score. 

Closer Jacob Esgro earned the win for Park Vista after throwing three-plus shutout innings with four strikeouts. 

Stoneman Douglas (8-2) entered Tuesday's contest ranked No. 10 nationally, No. 3 in Florida and No. 2 in Class 7A according to MaxPreps. 

The Eagles eliminated Park Vista 5-3 in the second round of the Class 7A state tournament last spring. 

The Park Vista baseball team celebrates their victory against Stoneman Douglas, racing out to meet Ethan Strikowski after his game-winning sacrifice fly in the bottom of the seventh inning  on March 23, 2022.

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Here are three takeaways from Park Vista’s 4-3 win over Stoneman Douglas: 

1. Park Vista closer lives up to budding reputation 

Esgro, described as a humble player by Park Vista head coach Larry Greenstein, has quietly – and quickly – built a reputation as a reliable closer in his first varsity season with Park Vista. 

After allowing his inherited runner to score on a sacrifice fly in the top of the fourth inning, Esgro settled into his pitch control and dominated the second half of the contest.

“Toward the beginning, when I started pitching, the changeup wasn’t working,” Esgro said. “I couldn’t get it down, so I was just forced to throw the fastball. And then in the last two innings, I got the changeup down, and that’s pretty much when I started dealing.”  

Park Vista closer Jacob Esgro winds up for a pitch in the fifth inning of Tuesday's 4-3 win against visiting Stoneman Douglas. Esgro tallied four strikeouts across three-plus frames of scoreless work to earn the win on March 22, 2022.

In a game that was 3-3 for the final three innings, Esgro’s commanding presence on the mound was an anchor for the rest of the team according to Greenstein. 

“Jacob came in, and just shut the door right there,” Greenstein said. “That was a big, big break for us. I think it settled everybody down. We went, ‘Okay, it’s 0-0 again. Let’s see what we can do.’ So, we ended up attacking from that point.”

After the game, Esgro quietly soaked up one of the biggest moments in his young career with Park Vista. 

“They’re a really good team,” he said after the win. “That’s the best team I’ve ever pitched against in high school.”

2. Strikowski hits game-winner to cap Cobras rally 

It was an appropriate finish between two of south Florida’s finest programs.

After Bruce Thornton singled to lead off in the bottom of the seventh, the Cobras called on pinch runner Peyton Samuels to commandeer the base-paths. 

A walk moved the speedster over to second, and he zipped over to third on a passed ball.

Park Vista's Peyton Samuels races home to score the game-winning run on teammate Ethan Strikowski's sacrifice fly against Stoneman Douglas on Tuesday, March 23, 2022.

When Strikowski stepped up to the plate, he did so with a sense of deja vu.   

“Last year, the same situation happened against Wellington, and I had that picture in my head the entire time,” the senior said. “All I wanted to do was put the bat on the ball and do the job and get the run in.”

He did just that, launching the ball toward left field just far enough to allow Samuels the opportunity to tag up at third base and beat the throw to home. 

3. Championship teams win messy games 

The game didn’t start out as a pretty one for Park Vista although it didn't go the way Stoneman Douglas imagined. 

Several unforced errors by both infields were sandwiched between a bevy of walks as the two sides’ starting pitchers struggled to find consistency on the mound. Park Vista's four runs equaled its hit total. 

While the visiting Eagles only managed two hits, the Cobras issued seven walks across the first three innings that made things difficult.  

Park Vista senior Ethan Strikowski takes a swing in his first at-bat against Stoneman Douglas on Tuesday, March 22, 2022. Strikowski hit the game-tinning sacrifice fly in the bottom of the seventh inning to help the Cobras improve to 9-3 on the season.

“It was kind of a sloppy game early on,” Greenstein said. “There were a lot of walks, there were a few errors that probably both teams don’t make, and it was kind of sloppy on both ends.”

The Cobras found their rhythm, settled their collective nerves, and found a way to rally. 

After playing West Broward last Thursday and Stoneman Douglas today, Park Vista will welcome Vestavia Hills from Alabama, who has several highly-touted players for Wednesday's game. 

“You know what, to see where we’re at, we’ve got to compete,” Greenstein said. “We’ve got to play good teams.”