ORANGE PARK - In true championship form, the St. Johns Country Day School baseball team, the defending Class 2A champion, proved their mettle with a scintillating finish in nine innings with a walk off single in the bottom of the ninth inning by Nick Bowden and a head-first diving slide into home plate that barely evaded the catchers glove by Preston Cole as the Spartans won 8-7 over University Christian in the region 1-1A championship series game two to wrap up a fourth Final Four trip in the last five years for the Spartans and coach Tom Lucas.
"When we were down 7-2 in the fifth inning, I told them to remember that St. Johns is the defending champion and this is what we are made for," said a physically spent Lucas after his team battled back from the 7-2 deficit that came via three home runs by University Christian. "We knew they could hit the ball and we knew we had to answer. This team never quit."

Unfortunately, nearly 300 miles west in Panama City, the Clay High Blue Devils were almost duplicating the theatrics going on in Orange Park with their own comeback into extra innings in the region 1-4A championship series game two against Arnold with a dramatic ninth inning finish going to host Arnold after a ninth inning homer from Rylan McMahan gave Clay a 6-5 lead that looked to bring the region series game three back to Green Cove Springs. Arnold responded, though, in the bottom of the ninth with three singles to tie and score the gamewinner in a 7-6 thriller that ended the Blue Devils season. The region final finish was the second in the past two years for coach Josh Persinger.
In the region 1-1A game, St. Johns got behind quickly with University Christian battering starting pitcher Ethan Bissel for homers in the second and third innings for a 4-2 lead that grew to 5-2 with a third homer in the fourth that chased Bissell and brought in Mason Schnell to stop the bleeding. St. Johns got their first run off a Nick Bowden double in the first that scored Brayden Harris, then added the second run in the second off a T.J. Sunderhaus single that scored Wells.
"We were hitting the ball hard and getting it into the outfield and just not getting enough on it to clear the fences," said Sunderhaus. "This is a different team than last year's because we don't have the same power as last year's bats so we have to hit hard line drives get on base and move people on the bases."
University Christian pushed the score to 7-2 in the fifth with a two RBI double that chased Schnell and brought in Camden Brown to try and squelch the University firepower.
"We have to trust the defense to make big plays when it gets to the third and fourth arm on the mound," said Lucas.
Brown kept University scoreless to the end with the help of a spectacular leaping fly ball steal in right field from Bowden as he crashed on the fence and the eruption of the St. Johns bats behind a sliced double by Jonas Wells after a diving double from Harris with Cole on base after being hit by a pitch moved the score to 7-4 in bottom of the sixth.
"Sometimes, that's all we need, is one guy to step up and poke the bear," said Bowden. "We talked about them not knowing what we do in the sixth inning and it was happening."
Another shredded line drive that blasted through the University Christian shortstop's glove; this one by Chandler Dantzler, scored one more to 7-5 as the Spartan dugout started to percolate.
Dantzler came in to pitch after his RBI smash and got a spectacular 4-6-3 double play from Wells, Cole and first baseman George Gilliand and a final blasting strikeout that kept the volcanic momentum in tact.
St. Johns looked to quickly keep the fire burning with Sunderhaus outsprinting a third laser line drive that was deflected by the pitcher's glove to give Sunderhaus a shot at a single.
"Championship play comes in championship games, I guess, I was sprinting my butt off because we knew we had to make championship plays to win this game," said Sunderhaus.
Sunderhaus' momentum was followed by a Cole walk and long fly ball by Harris that got the game to 7-6 with an intentional walk to Bowden loading the bases. Wells survived a walk to tie the game before Dantzler struck out to end the inning at 7-7.
After a University Christian foul ball shattered an overhead light above the Spartan dugout, both teams had a chance to take a deep breath for the theatrics about happen.
"That kind of slowed everyone down a bit," said Lucas. "I was worried that the short break and the intensity was going to be lost."
With the battle on the mound now between the two team's catchers; Hunter Rodgers for St. Johns and Bubba Crouch for UC, the game slowed to five strikeouts between the two with Rodgers delivering a three-pack in the top of the ninth to preserve the 7-7 tie.
"I just had to settle in and grind," said Rodgers, who started as catcher for the prior eight innings of play. "It's just getting locked in."
For Lucas, the thought of getting to Rodgers on the mound was something that he was prepared to do.

"We knew it might come down to who has the last best arm of the night and I put my guy up against anyone else, he's a warrior," said Lucas. "But, to get up after catching for seven innings and deliver from the mound was awesome, storybook stuff."
In the bottom of the ninth, Cole and Harris both drew walks off full counts at the plate before Bowden delivered the death blow; another laser shot to left field that just got over the first baseman glove to score Cole.
"You dream of this situation all your life from Little League to now," said Bowden.
St. Johns state semifinal, also a three-game series, will start Wednesday, May 14 at 10 a.m. and run to a championship game on Thursday May 15 at 7 p.m.