Two of the top 20 baseball teams in the state of Florida are getting ready to face off at 1 Raider Place this week.
Plant City High School will host a preseason classic featuring Trinity Christian Academy, Seffner Christian Academy and Brandon High School that begins this afternoon and ends Saturday. Of the four games on tap for the next two days, Friday night’s closer between PCHS and TCA is the highlight.
The Raiders and Conquerors are far from strangers, having gone head-to-head in several preseason contests during Raiders head coach Mike Fryrear’s time at PCHS. The coach is particularly excited now because, for the first time in school history, PCHS is entering the 2019 season as one of the top 20 teams in the state. The Raiders are ranked 18th in Florida, according to PrepBaseballReport.com. Trinity Christian, which posted a 21-9 record in 2018 and advanced to the state semifinal round, comes in just behind the Raiders at 19th overall. Fryrear said the matchup will be a huge test for the Raiders, who are attempting to win the first baseball district championship in school history.
Plant City’s junior-heavy team is led by lefty ace pitcher Parker Messick, who signed with Florida State University in early February. Other key players returning for 2019 include defensive stalwart Cade Shissler, righty pitchers Grant Gifford and Casey Mawhinney and backstop Hunter Emerine. Plenty of eyes will be on football star Mario Williams as the speedster enters his sophomore season. Plant City posted a 16-7 record in 2018 and took a 5-2 loss to Riverview in the district semifinal round on May 1, ending the season earlier than any of the Raiders would have liked.
Almost all of the Conquerors from last season’s state semifinal run are returning for 2019, so this battle-tested Trinity Christian team is widely expected to perform well in the Class 4A playoffs once again. Messick could face off against future Florida State teammate Dyland Simmons who, like Messick, is known for being as effective at the plate as on the pitcher’s mound.
Plant City and Seffner Christian will play at 7 p.m. tonight. Seffner Christian and Brandon will play each other at 5 p.m. Friday. Trinity Christian will also play Brandon at 10:30 a.m. Saturday. The Raiders will open the 2019 regular season on Feb. 26 when they host Jefferson at 7 p.m. For those who can’t make it to the 7:30 p.m. game Friday night, a radio broadcast will be played on FM 91.7 The Truth and is available online at ilovethetruth.com.