Kurland Delivers Gem, But Berkeley Prep Falls 1-0 At State Semi

Rivers Kurland proved himself to be a true gamer, delivering his third complete game of the season to keep the Bucs in the contest to the very end.

The Berkeley Prep Buccaneers rolled into the state tournament with a battle-tested ace on the mound ready to lead the charge. Senior Rivers Kurland answered that challenge in taking on the tough Trinity Christian Academy Conquerors lineup, finding himself matched in a pitcher’s duel with Aaron Watson in their Class 2A state semifinal at Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers.

The smallest of margins was the difference, as Trinity prevailed with a 1-0 decision.

“I thought it was a great high school baseball game, and we had to battle, and we knew that going into it,” Berkeley Prep Manager Richard Warren said. “We knew that Watson was one of the best arms in the state, and I thought that we battled. We just came up a little short.”

Trinity tallied the only run of the day with its first swings in the bottom of the first inning. The Conquerors immediately drew first blood to play with the lead the rest of the way, albeit with the smallest of margins.

Junior Brady Harris accounted for that valuable run that was the difference. Batting second in the lineup, the center fielder connected on a 1-2 offering with one out and he lined it into the right field corner and then raced around the bases for a triple. Jordan Martinez then jumped on an 0-1 pitch and delivered a liner to left field for an RBI double.

2025 state semifinal.

Watson went the distance on the mound to earn the shutout victory. He allowed just one hit and two walks, and also hit a batter. He struck out seven and only needed 79 pitches to go the full seven innings.

Kurland was never giving the ball back until it was over. The veteran left-hander also went the distance for his third complete-game of the year and ninth overall in his high school career. Even though he allowed eight hits and walked one, he was incredibly effective in limiting the damage and keeping the Bucs in the game to the very end.

“We had two weeks to prepare, and I guess maybe we needed three, because he is pretty stinking good,” Trinity Christian Manager Jonathan Murphy said. “We know he has an elite fastball and changeup, and then he can land the breaking ball whenever he wants. There are very few high school pitchers that can land three pitches for strikes whenever they want, and from the left side. I thought our guys were grinding out some really good at bats, but we ran ourselves out of a couple of innings, and that is on me. Those are some tough decisions out there, but he is just so good and he doesn’t give in. I think you saw that today. Even when we got some traffic, he doesn’t panic. He just makes pitches. Give our guys credit; I thought they had some quality at bats. But man, he was really, really good.”

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