The King’s Academy boys varsity baseball team is off to a solid 11-4 start during the current spring season. TKA has a winning 8-1 record at home and is 3-3 on the road. The team opened the season by winning six out of its first seven games. Since then, the Lions have won five out of eight games.
The four losses this season have been a 7-4 loss to Cardinal Newman High School on Feb. 19, an 8-5 setback to William T. Dwyer High School on Feb. 26, a 4-2 defeat at the hands of St. Andrew’s School on March 5, and a 6-5 loss to St. Thomas Aquinas on March 14.
Of the 18 players on TKA’s roster, five are seniors, six are juniors, six are sophomores and one is a freshman.
Statistically, TKA is led by sophomore shortstop Alec Cabrera, who is leading the team in slugging percentage (.872), batting average (.487), hits (19), RBIs (15), triples (2) and home runs (2). Senior outfielder Jayden Deveaux is leading the team in on-base percentage (.627), runs scored (22) and stolen bases (11). In pitching, a pair of juniors — Aiden Strompf and Briggs Harris — have the team’s two lowest earned run averages. Strompf’s ERA is 0.81, while Harris’s is 1.91.
The Lions wrap up their regular-season schedule with a home game on April 9 against ABF Academy Homestead. In the current standings, TKA is ranked 23rd in Florida in Class 2A.
The Florida High School Athletic Association’s (FHSAA) postseason begins on Tuesday, April 14. The state championships will be held at the Lee Health Sports Complex/Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers in mid-May.
In other area baseball news:
- Wellington High School (4-9) opened its season with eight consecutive losses, only to rebound by winning four out of its next five games. Junior catcher Ari Buckstein has the team’s best batting average (.375).
- Palm Beach Central High School (9-5) began its season on a four-game winning streak followed by a three-game losing streak. Palm Beach Central’s on-base percentage leader is junior outfielder Jordan Chassagne (.491).
- Royal Palm Beach High School, led by head coach Tim Maxwell, is 6-7 after 13 games. Miguel Guzman is leading the team in five offensive categories: slugging percentage (.559), on-base percentage (.526), batting average (.471), RBIs (9) and hits (16).
- Under the guidance of head coach Carmine Cioffoletti, the Hawks from Seminole Ridge High School lost their opening two games of the season, only to rebound by winning eight out of their next 11 games. Junior Michael Riaboukha is leading the Hawks in five offensive categories: on-base percentage (.633), batting average (.553), stolen bases (25), hits (21) and runs scored (21).
- Berean Christian School, led by head coach Patrick Moore, is 3-3 after its first six games. The Bulldogs’ top pitcher and batter is senior Elijah Brown, who leads the team in slugging percentage (.692), on-base percentage (.588), batting average (.462) and doubles (3).
