For the fourth time in less than a decade, the Venice Indians are state champions. Behind a big fourth inning and a great pitching performance from starter Caleb Williams and relievers Colin Cristello and Kade Hunkapiller, Venice stormed to a 5-0 victory over Bartram Trail to claim the Class 6A state title on Saturday night. The Indians earned their first state crown in Class 5A, to go along with a 6A title in 2007 and back-to-back 7A championships in 2012 and 2013. Since the FHSAA only expanded to add the 8A and 7A classifications in 2012, Venice now has the distinction of being the only school in the state to hold titles in these three classifications. “I don’t think any one is better than the other; they are all great teams and they are all great kids,” Venice Manager Craig Faulkner said. “I’m excited for this team because no one expected them to do this well, but they just kept doing it time after time as they kept stepping up to the plate. So it was awesome.” Following the victory, the team lined up along the third base line for the medal and trophy presentation. Faulkner took that opportunity to work his way down the line, hugging each player one by one and sharing a few personal words for each member of the tribe. It was a moment that meant a lot to the skipper and his team, and one that really helped to bring the euphoria into focus.

“When you get to win like this everyone is happy, and as a coach you are so proud of all of them,” Faulkner said. “You can’t play all of them the same amount of time but you are so proud that they all stuck in and they all did the work that you asked them to do. It is just a special moment between coaches and players when you get to thank them for what they’ve done.”

Making his first start of the season on the grand stage of jetBlue Park in Fort Myers, Williams showed the poise and ability of any seasoned veteran to earn the win with five scoreless innings. The sophomore spent a lot of the year pitching for the junior varsity team, but all along the coaches knew they would be counting on him down the stretch in big playoff games. “Caleb did a great job when he came up and he has ice water running through his veins,” Faulkner said. “He’s going to be a great pitcher here at Venice High School. He’s got three pitches that he throws for strikes and he is an extremely smart young man. He’s a good student, a good player and just a good citizen who does everything that we ask of him. That’s why he got the nod is because we knew he would come through for us.” Williams scattered three hits and two walks, while picking up three strikeouts. He was ably backed by a ferocious defense that made numerous diving catches to rob base hits and keep runners off the bases. Across the diamond, Bears starter Joseph Hoelle kept pace with Williams early on. Hoelle attacked the Venice batting order fearlessly, challenging hitters while showcasing his best stuff. The Indians (29-3) got the offense going with a three-run fourth inning that chased Hoelle from the contest. Scott Dubrule singled and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt from Jake Grubbs. Shane Shifflett followed with a single to right field to put runners on the corners, and Cristello dropped down a great bunt on a safety-squeeze play to drive Dubrule in for the first run of the night. Brent Killam kept things going with a liner into the left field corner for an RBI double that plated Shifflett, and Trevor Holloway added an RBI single that scored Killam for a 3-0 advantage. The Indians added two more insurance runs to pull away. Cristello drove in Dubrule with a sacrifice flyout in the fifth, and Dubrule added an RBI single to score Holloway in the sixth. Coming off an epic battle with defending state champion Mater Academy in Friday’s 6A semifinal, Venice showed no signs of fatigue in playing for the title. The Indians showed up with focus and determination, which Faulkner admitted has been their mantra all season long. “Every game they played this year they came to win,” Faulkner said. “This team was an unusual team that didn’t need a lot of motivation. They came ready to play. We tried to give them a lot of motivation, and they took to it. But they came to play every game and they are just an unusual bunch. They pulled for each other and just had a great team chemistry. They just did all the little things that we asked them to do and they are a very impressive group.” The Bears (24-7) had also survived an 11-inning battle over Forest in the 6A semifinals to advance to the state championship for the first time in program history. Bartram Trail threatened in several innings, but was unable to break through against the feisty Venice defense. Mike Cassala led the Bears by going 2-for-3 to account for half the team’s hits.