HSBN Miami-Dade Games of the Week for 2016

District foes Keys Gate Charter and Key West will close out the HSBN Miami Game of the Week schedule this week with a 5A-16 clash at Key West.

The two have been district opponents since 2014, with the Conchs winning all of their matchups except for one. The Knights won 1-0 on March 10, 2015. Key West won their first matchup this season, 12-4 on March 8th.

The Conchs, who are in second place in the three-team district behind Gulliver Prep, are led at the plate by Kyle Snow, who is hitting .420 with 16 runs and 13 RBIs. Jason Garcia follows at .394 (13 runs, 13 RBIs, and Christian Luna is hitting .350 with 18 runs and seven RBIs. He's tied for the lead in runs with Hunter Sellers. Hunter Matheessen has struck out 37 with a 2.10 ERA in 30 innings. Damon Taylor is 4-0 with 36 strikeouts and a 1.50 ERA in 23.1 innings, and Sellers has fanned 24 in 22 innings. Tyler Hughes is 3-1 with 20 strikeouts in 20 innings.

At 7-11, Keys Gate Charter is just two wins away from improving on last season's 7-18-1 mark. Though lacking a signature win, the Knights have beaten St. Brendan and Coral Reef this season. Willie Sanchez returned to start Friday and will be on the mound against Key West. Center fielder Ricardo Grajales, who's hitting .423, also is back. Alan Quezada is hitting .309 with 14 runs and 12 RBIs. Osmany Haya is hitting .255 with 14 runs and 10 RBIs. Emmanuel Perez has struck out 23 in 30.2 innings, and Quezada has fanned 22 in 15 innings.

The Spartans and Falcons will be looking to get the HSBN Miami-Dade Game of the Week schedule off to a roaring start when they square off Friday.

The teams have a rich history that has included eight wins for Palmer Trinity in their series over the past four years. Country Day hasn't beaten Palmer since April 16, 2012.

With a core group of returning players coming back, expect the Spartans to put up a fight against the Falcons, who feature an experienced team coming off a 21-5 season that included a trip to the regional semifinals.

Two of the top programs in the county will square off in what looks to be an exciting matchup Saturday.

Florida Christian and Belen have faced each other only once in the past four years. That was last season when Florida Christian won 10-0. So look for the Wolverines to be trying to settle the score.

The Patriots are 3-0 after beating TERRA 3-1, Somerset Academy 3-0 and LaSalle 10-9. Ruben Somelian and Robert Fabelo each had three hits against LaSalle.

Belen is 2-0 after defeating Hialeah 7-0 and Pembroke Pines Charter 11-0. Christian del Castillo, Mario Robaina and Alex Falla each had two hits against Pines Charter. Ralph Hernandez and del Castillo also had two hits vs. Hialeah.

Friday's Game of the Week matchup between Miami Sunset and Coral Gables will pit two programs unfamiliar with each other as they haven't faced each other in the regular season or playoffs in at least the past five years.

The game will give Sunset, which hasn't had a winning season since 2013 when they went 20-8, the chance, in the spotlight, to get a win against a program that has been among the top in the county in recent history. The Knights, who combined for 13 wins over the past two seasons, are off to a 2-3 start with wins over Dr. Krop and Miami Beach. They lost by just a run to undefeated Goleman.

Coral Gables, meanwhile, is searching for its first win this year and has two chances to get that before it faces Sunset later in the week. Don't let the slow start fool you. The Cavaliers, whose losses including two games decided by a run, are no stranger to success and will get the pot cooking before we know it.

Look for an exciting matchup this Friday!

It’s new power vs. old power when Gulliver Prep hosts SLAM in this week’s HSBN Miami-Dade Game of the Week. The new power, SLAM, will be facing the old power, Gulliver Prep, for the first time.

The Titans are off to a blistering 7-0 start against some top programs. They’re 4-0 in the always-trecherous 4A-7, which includes some of the top small-school programs in South Florida. Jose Garcia (.643, 8 RBIs), Jeter Downs (.533, 11 runs, 8 RBIs), Andres Santana (.421, 7 RBIs) and Brian Frias (.368) lead the offense for the Titans, who are in their third year. They won an average of 20 games in those first two years.

The Raiders opened the season 1-2 but have improved to 6-2 after a big 2-0 district win at Key West on Saturday night. Gulliver is led on the mound by Kevin Maura (3-0, 14 Ks), Robert Touron (1-1, 14Ks, 1.62 ERA) and Austin Dreher (1-1, 0.70 ERA). Jay Valdes (.529), Giovon Soto (.476, 9 RBIs) and Adrian DelCastillo (.400, 10 runs) are powering the offense.

This week’s HSBN Miami-Dade Game of the Week pits a well-established powerhouse — Southridge — against a team that’s mostly been under the radar — Mourning Senior.

The Spartans have had the upper hand in this rivalry over the past three years, winning 4-3 in 2015, 8-3 in 2014 and 5-1 in 2013, so expect a fired-up Mourning team to come out seeking to gain a victory.

At 2-6, the Sharks are seeking wins in any game, not just this spotlight game Friday. They’ve beaten Carol City 17-0 and Miami Jackson 3-1. They played competitively with one of the top teams in the county, Goleman, losing by just a run. Fabian Ortega and Anthony Antigua are hitting .333, and Richard Gavarrete .308. Marcel Guardarrama leads the pitching staff at 2-1 with 26 strikeouts in 13 innings.

Southridge is 6-4 but has a two-game losing streak it’s trying to break. The Spartans came out fired up and went 4-1 in their first five games but are just 2-3 since then. All but one of the losses are by a run, so Southridge has maintain its competitive edge in every game. A win against district foe Coral Reef on Tuesday would give the Spartans a big boost heading into Friday’s Game of the Week clash. Alex Vasquez leads the offense with a .571 batting average. Dylan Krzeminski and Branden Abreu follow at .412.

Two programs who know each other well will square off Friday when Reagan travels to Miami Springs.

The last time Reagan and Miami Springs met, the Golden Hawks came away with a 12-6 win on February 28, 2014. The year before, as 8A-14 foes, they split, with Springs winning 11-6 and Reagan taking the next meeting 5-2. Miami Springs had the upper hand the year before, winning 5-1 and 5-4.

Springs is off to a 7-5 start with a 4-2 mark in 6A-16 that has it in second place behind Goleman, which is 7-0. A key win for the Golden Hawks this season — although it wasn’t a district win — was a 3-2 victory over Southridge on February 18th. Yadel Abreu leads the offense with a .471 average and seven runs. Dylan Carter is hitting .435 with 11 runs and also has been the top pitcher at 4-1 with 32 strikeouts and a 0.68 ERA in 20.2 innings.

After going 1-6 to open the season, the Bison righted the ship by going 3-1. A 19-9 win over Miami Central sparked the turnaround. Reagan is coming off a 5-4 loss to Coral Park, however, and will be looking to get back in the win column Monday at Westland Hialeah in an 8A-16 clash. Benjamin Meza leads the offense, hitting .455. Robert Pena has driven a team-leading 10 runs. Pena also is leading in strikeouts with 23 in 18 innings.

Two of the most competitive teams in Miami-Dade are squaring off Friday in the HSBN Miami Game of the Week. Brito and Doral Academy renew their rivalry, which has been competitive over the past two years. Doral won 6-2 last year and Brito won 7-5 the year before.

Brito (10-5) is coming off a strong performance in the HSBN March Madness Shootout. The Panthers won three of their four games, defeating Western 4-3, Pompano Beach 5-0 and SLAM 8-7. The loss came against Palm Beach Central, which went on to compete in the championship for that bracket. It’s been an up-and-down season for Brito with wins and losses coming in bunches. Brito will take on Archbishop Carroll on Tuesday as it looks to continue its momentum from the HSBN tournament.

Doral (12-7) also is coming into this week with momentum having won its past two games. The Firebirds went 2-2 in the Sarasota Classic last week, beating Lyman and Bartow in the last two games after losing the first two. Up next is TERRA on Tuesday, a pivotal 7A-16 game that would put both teams at 2-3 as they fight for second place with Miami Sunset. Brian Perez leads the Firebirds on offense, hitting .380 with 17 runs and 19 RBIs. He also has hit three home runs. Lenny Delgago is hitting .340 with nine runs and 10 RBIs, and Luis Valbuena is batting .324 with 12 runs. Oscar Trujillo has struck out 42 in 33.2 innings to lead the staff.