As always, records, stats, or any prior game of the season can be thrown out when Coral Shores and Marathon High are matched on a schedule.
Sure enough, it happened once again as the Coral Shores baseball squad — which has just four wins in 10 contests during the 2024 campaign — headed south to take on Monroe County rival Marathon — which had won 10 of 12 to begin the year — during which Hurricanes starting pitcher Campbell Lavoie was able to go toe-to-toe with Dolphins’ ace Dylan Ziels — combining to strikeout 23 while allowing seven hits, and four walks — that resulted in a 1-0 victory for the ‘Canes on Monday, March 25, on the Middle Keys Campus.
Lavoie would collect 10 of those strikeouts, sitting the Dolphins down in order three times, with one of his three walks being turned into a double play. Marathon did threaten to score in the fourth when Jack Chapman opened the at-bat with a single, then reached third after a walk and wild pitch, but Lavoie forced a pop-out and ground out to get out of the jam.
Ziels was equally as dominant, striking out 13, while surrendering just one walk, while the first two hits Hurricanes hits, from Lavoie and Ben Friedman, were dismissed with ease as the Dolphins ace retired the side in order following the base knocks, one thrown out second by Gabe Leal attempting to steal.
In the sixth, Coral Shores’s AJ Putetti produced the lone run of the game, as he opened the frame with a single, and with a fielding error on his steal of second ended just 90 feet away from home. He scored on a wild pitch during the at-bat of Donovan Thiery that resulted in a single and following a hit by pitch Ziels would induce a double play ground ball to end the threat.
Marathon looked to rally in the bottom of the inning as Roco Piscetello singled to lead off the at-bat, followed by a Jack Chapman double, but Pisctello was called out trying to score on the relay throw home. Chapman reached third on the throw but would be stranded there as Lavoie got a ground out and fly out to send the game into the seventh and final inning.
After a Ziels went sat the Hurricanes down in order in the top of the seventh, Lavoie retired the first two before allowing a base runner via a walk but then finished the win with his 10th strikeout for the complete-game shutout.
It will be the only regular-season matchup between the Monroe County rival, but there is still a good chance the two meet in the District 16-3A tournament, as despite their overall records, the Dolphins are 1-2 against district foes and the Hurricanes are 4-0. Coral Shores’ unblemished district record will be put to the test against defending district champion Keys Gate, who the ‘Canes beat 10-1 during the second game of the season, this time on the road Friday, March 29, in Homestead at 3:30 p.m. Marathon will not play again until Monday, April 1, at Riviera Prep, which starts a three-game road swing also heading to Miami Country Day on Wednesday, April 3, and North Miami Beach on Thursday, April 4.
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