High school baseball: Lake City Columbia stays hot, beats Santa Fe 6-2

LAKE CITY — Those who filed into Columbia baseball's Tiger Field Friday night were able to see a bit of this and a bit of that as the Tigers hosted the Santa Fe Raiders, capping off a two-game week for both programs.

For those who like watching pitching duels? Friday night's game delivered.

More of a home-run fan? The Raiders-Tigers matchup would've had you covered.

Through it all, it was the hosting Tigers who found themselves on the winning end of the night as Columbia topped Santa Fe 6-2, extending their win streak out to five wins.

Here's how it happened in Lake City.

Fernald, Lovelace battle on the bump

Unlike the last time Columbia (12-2) and Santa Fe (7-4) saw each other, the Tigers and Raiders would take their time finding the scoreboard.

In the meeting on Feb. 23, the two teams combined for five runs in the first inning as the Tigers worked their way to a 4-1 lead in the opening frame. Columbia went on to outscore Santa Fe 6-0 in the remaining six innings to take the 10-1 win.

Come Friday night, the Raiders and Tigers would hang zeroes in the opening three innings as both team's starting pitchers dueled.

Columbia senior and UCF baseball commit Josh Fernald got the nod Friday night, pitching the opening four innings and giving up one hit and one unearned run against the 18 batters he faced, while also striking out five.

"They threw a really good arm," Santa Fe head coach Travis Yeckring said. "I thought our guys had some really good at-bats."

The Raiders were the first to find the scoreboard as the Tigers' fielders crumbled, committing three errors in the top of the fourth inning.

With free chances, Santa Fe was able to loaded the bases and eventually push across a run as freshman Nate Robertson reached on the inning’s third and final error, which allowed senior Kyler Nowling to score from third.

"That one inning, three errors and we get out with just giving up one run? We were very blessed," Columbia head coach Chris Howard said.

And as quick as the Raiders found themselves in the lead, they found themselves in a jam as the Tigers returned the favor and loaded the bases thanks to a pair of walks and a one-out base hit off the bat of senior Carston Palmer. Up to that point, he was the only batter to get a hit off Santa Fe junior Dylan Lovelace (3.2 IP, 4 hits, 5 ER, 6 K).

"After the first time through, we started working him a little bit and figuring out where he was locating," Howard said. "Things got better from there."

One hit makes the difference

With the bases loaded and one out, Columbia junior Camdon Frier stepped into the batter's box. And the Tigers couldn't have asked for a bigger competitor to step into the big moment.

On the football field, Frier lines up at receiver and is currently committed to Florida State, where both his father and uncle played in the 1990s. Frier also boasts football offers from Alabama, Mississippi State and Kentucky, as well as a handful of baseball offers from schools such as Clemson and South Carolina.

Frier got out to a rocky start Friday night as he struck out in his first at-bat and committed the first of Columbia's three errors in the top of the fourth inning.

"He's hard on himself," Howard said of Frier. "I worry about him running into the wall or something sometimes."

Needless to say, Frier didn't need reminding that he had quite the opportunity in front of him when when he toed home plate in the bottom of the fourth inning with the bags juiced.

"Listen man, we don't need a home run," Howard told Frier ahead of his at-bat. "We just need you to be Camdon Frier."

Fortunately for Howard and the Tigers, being Camdon Frier meant lifting a 3-2 offering out to the scoreboard and beyond the fence, good for a grand slam.

And while both Columbia and Santa Fe would add runs later, Frier's big cut ended up being the deciding factor.

Both programs playing for the long road ahead

Last season, the Tigers advanced to the Class 5A Final Four, where they fell to Eau Gallie.

This year, the plans are the same. And scheduling teams like Santa Fe, which is a contender one class lower in 4A, only helps Columbia prepare.

"That's the goal," Howard said. "We hope to stay high in the rankings and get to host again this year and hope things roll our way again."

Meanwhile, while Yeckring reminded the Raiders that their program isn't one to look for moral victories, he was pleased with his team's performance and willingness to compete for seven innings Friday night.

"We've been kinda waiting for that," Yeckring said.

Coming into the matchup, Santa Fe was on a two-game skid, now extended to three. However, if you look at the Raiders' schedule, their losses haven't come against slouches.

Alongside two losses to the Tigers, the Raiders have lost to North Marion and Baker County − two other respectable 4A opponents.

"I scheduled really tough this year," Yeckring said. "I just told our guys, going through some adversity makes it better at the end."

This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: High school baseball: One swing the difference as Columbia tops Santa Fe