Aquinas fields potent lineup

St. Thomas seeking its first state baseball title since 2003

St. Thomas Aquinas has returned to the state baseball championships for the first time since 2013 and seeks its first title since 2003 this weekend at CenturyLink Sports Complex in Fort Myers.

The Raiders (25-3) will face a difficult task in a 1 p.m. semifinal Friday, facing a Lakeland George Jenkins team (26-3) that is ranked seventh in the nation by Baseball America.

But with Davidson signee Blake Hely on the mound and a lineup that has been stellar 1 through 9 in the order producing gaudy numbers, St. Thomas has proven it will be a tough out.

RBI machine and UNC-signed third baseman Caleb Roberts keeps the scoreboard active when hitting with runners on base. Roberts leads all of Florida with 49 runs driven in, 17 doubles and a .973 slugging percentage while batting .500. Middle infielders Matt Archer (.477 batting average) and Pitt signee Andres Antonini (.410) ignite the offense in the top of the order.

“The numbers that we’ve been putting up offensively have been way beyond expectations,” said Aquinas coach Troy Cameron, pointing to the schedule the Raiders have faced.

St. Thomas has gone up against Parkview from Lilburn, Ga., which currently sits atop the Baseball America rankings and beat Blessed Trinity, another ran-

“The numbers that we’ve been putting up offensively have been way beyond expectations.” Aquinas coach Troy Cameron