St. John’s Country Day Wins Class 2A State Championship

The Spartans race across the field at Hammond Stadium in celebration of their Class 2A state championship.

Clay County has its first state champion.

On their third straight walk-off win, the St. John’s Country Day Spartans claimed a 4-3 win over the Miami Christian Victors to win the Class 2A state championship, Wednesday morning at Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers. A passed ball in the bottom of the eighth inning allowed senior Connor O’Steen to come home and record the winning run.

“This is the first state championship in Clay County history, and we’re very proud of that,” St. John’s Country Day Manager Tom Lucas said.

It was an anti-climatic ending that came after an epic game that highlighted everything great about playing the game of baseball on the esteemed stage of a Major League field in the state championship. This was the grand finale of the entire season, what both teams had worked all year for, and both sides left it on the field to compete for the coveted trophy. The biggest winners of all were the fans who got to witness such baseball at its finest.

Manager Tom Lucas hoists the state championship trophy to acknowledge St. John’s Country Day’s title victory.

“I’m very proud of the guys, and hats off to both teams and all the players. It was one of the best games I’ve ever been a part of,” Lucas said. “With so much on the line, we’ve been extremely battle-tested. Of four extra-inning games we’ve been in, we’ve won all four. We’ve walked off the last three games, and I just think these guys were prepared for that.”

By the way these two teams competed, fans were prepared to see anything by the end of it. The Spartans (25-6) struck first to take the lead in the third, but the Victors keep clawing back and eventually tied things back up in the seventh inning. To no one’s surprise, it took an extra inning of play to ultimately determine the outcome. Befitting the magnitude of each moment, both sides were intense and aggressive from the first pitch to the very last.

“What we were telling them was to put pressure,” Lucas said. “You can’t just strike out. Just keep putting pressure, want the ball and want to be in the moment. We just had guys step up. We went to a freshmen in the eighth inning, Gavin Coffey, and he stepped up big time. We had a pinch-runner in senior Connor O’Steen who scored the winning run.”

With the game tied and the momentum working against them heading into extra innings, Gavin Coffey did his part to perform like a seasoned veteran who did not resemble any normal freshman on the mound in such a pressure situation. Coffey responded with a scoreless frame, working around a two-out walk to Dylan Prince to then end the inning thanks to a great diving catch from shortstop Kolt Myers.

“I thought we were very solid defensively,” Lucas said. “Kolt Myers made two great plays at shortstop, and senior Seth Alford caught that line drive. That’s just the way baseball works. That ball could be one foot to the left and it’s a double down the line, but he catches it and doubles the guy off. Early in the game, our outfielder, Nick Bowden, made a play running down a ball deep in the right field gap. That was a very big play for us.”

Left-hander Austin Stratman delivered five gritty innings for the Spartans, allowing an earned run on seven hits and a walk, with four strikeouts.

The Spartans rewarded all that great defense by finishing things off with their first swings in extra innings. T.J. Sunderhaus singled to center to get it going, and Hunter Rodgers dropped down a bunt and reached for a base hit that landed runners on the corners. Miami Christian responded to catch the lead runner attempting to score on a passed ball, but the play also allowed O’Steen to reach third, after he came in as a pinch-runner for Rodgers. When the ball got away from the backstop again, O’Steen seized the moment and raced home for the biggest run ever scored in Clay County history.

The fact that it was scored by a Spartan lifer only seemed fitting. A student at the school since kindergarten, and a selfless member of the team who rarely starts but is always ready to play his role, O’Steen will now always have his career sacrifices remembered with honor as part of the legacy it has now led to.

“I’ve seen a lot of great players come through this program in the seven years since I’ve been in the program in sixth grade. To win it with this group of guys that I’ve been with for seven years, it just means the world,” O’Steen said. “It’s truly a dream come true for us. It’s something special, because it is the first one in history. As Coach told us, to be the first one in history, your name and your legacy is forever remembered.”

There were so many other contributions that will also be remembered from this day. The Spartans did all the rest of their scoring by tallying three runs in the bottom of the third. Gabriel Gilliand singled to lead off, but was erased on a fielder’s choice from Kyle Boylston. Myers then connected for an RBI singe to left that ultimately put him on third base off an error. James Gilson walked to put runners on the corners, and Seth Alford kept it going with an RBI single to left that drove in both base runners.

That slim lead nearly held up. Miami Christian answered back to get on the scoreboard with a run in the top of the fourth. Ronny Cruz lined a single to start it off, Ray Yero walked and then Alejandro Abreut smacked an RBI single to left to send Cruz home.

Hunter Rodgers connects for a base hit, as he went 1-for-3 with a walk.

The Victors continued to pressure, but kept being held back. Christian De Los Santos made excellent contact for a liner to the left on the double play by Alford, who snared the ball and then doubled off a base runner to quell a threat in the sixth.

But a wild seventh inning brought in two runs and allowed Miami Christian to finally tie it back up. Mike Palenzuela and Kevin Bruno both singled to get things started, and Julio Gonzalez advanced the runners with a sacrifice bunt. Willy Mendez followed with an RBI single to right, and then Cruz tied the game at 3-3 with a sac-fly RBI that allowed Bruno to tag up and score.

“That team did not go away,” Lucas said. “There are a lot of teams, once they tie you like that, you are so close to winning it and they take that momentum, sometimes it is hard to get that momentum back. So I’m just really proud of this team to bounce back.”

Just as it had done all year, St. John’s Country Day had its best stuff in the end when it was needed most. The team had seen that state title slip away at the very end before, but this time they made sure their ending would be different.

“I’ve been on the other side two times. This is our third time here and we’ve lost it here, so I get it,” Lucas said. “Miami Christian just played hard, and those are some tough kids. They are battle-tested and they were not going to go away easily. I think both teams coming together and embracing each other and respecting it, that was just one great game, well-played on both sides. Somebody has to win it and somebody has to lose it. They brought out the best in each other, and then came together and celebrated. Even in defeat, they were very gracious and complimented us and congratulated us. It helped display the sportsmanship and talent that both teams had.”

The Spartans were aggressive on the bases, which worked to advance the runners on some wild throws by the defense.

It means something significant to achieve your goals without compromising your morals. So often in sports it becomes ingrained and almost necessary to have animosity toward your opponent. But when you have shed each other’s blood and left it all on the battlefield, there is nothing left but to feel the respect each has earned.

“With the travel ball circuit now, you’re playing with these guys all summer, guys from all over the country that you are meeting,” Myers said. “You’re meeting the top prospects from everywhere, and everyone is just making each other better. It is just a respect thing for the game of baseball. Everyone loves the game and wants to make it better.”

There is one last thing that was also better this time, and that was the bus ride home. Coach Lucas admitted that in previous trips to states, the bus ride home had included tears and regrets at missed opportunities. But in 2024, Tom Lucas and the St. John’s Country Day Spartans belted in a state championship trophy to the passenger seat of the bus, and they brought it home to Clay County for the very first time.

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