GERMANTOWN, PA — While there is no official Inter-Ac championship game like there is in the PCL, it sure felt like what happened in this one would dictate how the rest of the season played out.

With Malvern Prep taking down Germantown Academy 5-4, they are now two games up on the Patriots and the rest of the Inter-Ac with just three games to play.

GA got on the board first after a Tyler Nolan RBI single scored Lucas Albert, and that 1-0 lead held until the top of the third with Sean McGettigan on the mound for the Patriots and Collin Romanczuk on the mound for Malvern.

The top of the third is where things changed.

Ryan Capobianco singled to lead off the inning and Brady Abate worked a walk. Jackson Melconian then laid down a bunt, but the ball was thrown away allowing both Capobianco and Abate to come all the way around to score and Melconian to get to third. You can not make mistakes like that against Malvern and expect to win.

On the very next pitch, Andrew Pellicciotta ripped a triple to left field to trade places with Melconian and put Malvern ahead 3-1. Tommy Sergio had a productive at bat next as his sac fly brought in Pellicciotta to give the Friars their fourth run of the inning.

After getting a 3-6 double play to get out of the bottom of the third, Malvern tacked another run on in the top of the fourth. Owen Hammond led off with a double, and Jack Heffner bunted him over to third. The small ball continued on when Ryan Capobianco grounded out to second to score Hammon, which proved to be a crucial run.

Germantown certainly would not go down without a fight. They got a single and a walk to lead off the bottom of the fourth, and then loaded the bases with an error. Another error scored a run on what looked like a failed pickoff attempt and that put runners on second and third. Jude Gibbons cut the Germantown deficit to 5-4 with a two-run single, and the Patriots were in business.

Not for long, though.

Romaczuk got Rob Fornicola to ground into a 5-4-3 double play to clear the bases. Following a single Taig McErlane came in out of the bullpen for Malvern and allowed a single but picked up a strikeout to keep Malvern ahead 5-4.

Chase Ecker then came in relief for the Friars and did not allow Germantown to really have much life on offense. He allowed a double in the fifth but that was it, and then a 1-2-3 inning in the sixth to put Malvern three outs away. They certainly would have liked some insurance, but all they could get in the top of the seventh was Jackson Melconian reaching on an error.

Chase Ecker came in for his third inning of work looking to lock down the save. He picked up a strikeout and a fly out, but a Lucas Albert two-out single made things a bit interesting, with pinch-runner Eddie McGettigan coming on.

Ecker would not let the faze him as he had a great battle with Alex Myers that went eight pitches, but ultimately ended up with a strikeout to give Malvern a 5-4 victory.

The Friars hang on and improve to 6-1 in the Inter-Ac. They will welcome in Shipley for a non-conference game Wednesday afternoon before they head to The Haverford School on Friday.