Choctaw baseball used spring break to make a statement.
The Indians rattled off four straight wins over a six-day stretch from March 14-20, capped by a 13-5 road victory over Bay on Friday. The run has pushed Choctaw to 11-4 on the season and 2-0 in district play, and with the FHSAA’s most recent power rankings placing the Indians in position for the No. 1 seed in the regional playoffs, the program is chasing something it has never achieved: a spot in the Final Four.
The signature win of the streak came Wednesday night at home against Mandarin, a team that arrived fresh off a 3-0 upset win over Niceville.
The night belonged to Jack Marracco, who delivered a two-way performance that included five strikeouts on the mound and an RBI double that scored his brother Carter to put Choctaw on the board first, 1-0.
- “He’s a good player, he’s tough, he goes out there and gives it all he’s got every night, and it worked out for him tonight,” Choctaw head coach David Weber said.
The floodgates opened in the fourth inning.
Isaiah Rohn singled,Jack Harrell walked and Jayden Rowell reached on an error to load the bases. Carter Marracco singled to bring Rohn home, and Jack Marracco picked up his second RBI of the night with a hit that scored Harrell to make it 3-0.
Rowell then scored on a wild pitch to push the lead to 4-0 before Jordan Figueroa capped the inning with a two-RBI single that brought home Jacob Mickey and Maddox Gentry, extending the lead to 6-0.
Mandarin mounted a rally in the fifth, loading the bases before a walk to Gage Flowers scored Dylan Colligan. Jordyn Houston followed with a sacrifice fly that brought home Hunter Simpson to cut the deficit to 6-2, but Choctaw settled down from there to secure the win.
The streak began March 14 with a 4-0 shutout at Holmes County, followed by a 10-3 win over Central on March 17 before the Mandarin and Bay victories closed it out.
“That’s always special, but we have a whole lot of season left,” Weber said. “We’re going to continue playing games and not get caught up in that hopefully, and continue to get better, because the best team at the end wins.”
