High school baseball playoffs: Trinity Christian, Creekside advance

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Trinity Christian scored nine runs in the fifth inning and held on to beat Providence 11-8 to earn a spot in the 4A state semifinals.

The game was played Thursday morning after rain forced two previous attempts to play the regional final to be postponed.

Providence took an early 2-1 lead on a Carson Beck RBI single, but the Conquerors responded with a Tyler Isenberg home run in the top of the third to tie the game at 2.

One inning later, Providence pitcher Nathan Hickey's solo home run gave the Stallions the lead again at 3-2. 

Then, the big inning for Trinity Christian, a nine-run fifth, that was sparked by a two-run error. The Conquerors would score nine runs in the inning and appeared to be on the way to an easy win, but in the final inning, the Stallions had the winning run at the plate before Trinity Christian closed it out to advance to the state semifinals, where they will face either Trinity Catholic or Calvary Christian on May 23.

Creekside 3 St. Augustine 2 (9 innings)

In the 7A regional semifinals, St. Augustine and Creekside went to extra innings in their game at Flagler College. 

Creekside drew first blood thanks to a St. Augustine error that gave Creekside a 2-0 lead in the first. The Yellowjackets clawed back, scoring a run in the third on an error. They drew even in the fifth, scoring the tying run on a ground out.

The game remained tied until the top of the ninth, when Nick Tripp singled and then scored the go-ahead run, giving Creekside a 3-2 lead. Tripp then closed out the bottom of the ninth on the mound to clinch a berth in the 7A semifinals where they will face Pace.