(Malvern Prep P/CF Chase Ecker with the PAISAA State Championship trophy via Shelby Kauffman/DBN)
MALVERN, PA — Chase Ecker may be going to William & Mary to be an outfielder, but the 2025 Inter-Ac Most Valuable Player etched his name in Malvern Prep history with a gem on the mound to win a state title.
Ecker threw all seven innings on Saturday morning for the Friars, who took down Episcopal Academy 6-1 to win their third consecutive state title and their 12th overall. Upper Darby alum Freddy Hilliard has built an absolule dynasty here and it is amazing to watch how they go about their business every year.
The Friars handled Penn Charter easily with an 11-1 second round win but Germantown Academy made them work for a 4-1 semifinal win before this title. They were certainly challenged, but at the end of the day, they were the rightful champions.
It was Episcopal who struck first off of Ecker in the top of the first when Dillon Walls singled to start the game, advanced to third on an error, and came in to score on an RBI single by Jake Virbitsky for the lone Churchmen run.
Hunter West got the start for Episcopal and threw two shutout innings to start the game. He had some issues with control that he was able to get away with for the first two innings, but the third inning Malvern was able to capitalize.
West walked Jackson Melconian and hit Andrew Pellicciotta to put runners on first and second to start the third. Melconian then showed off his speed when he came around to score on a fielder’s choice that got Pellicciotta out at second base, really heads up baserunning to tie the game up at 1-1.
Owen Hammond then launched a double to center field to score Tommy Sergio all the way from first base to give the Friars a lead that they would never give up.
That knocked West out of the game and brought in Roman Notaro, the typical reliever for Episcopal. He got some help from his defense when Logan Correll gunned down Owen Hammond at the plate to keep the deficit at 2-1.
The Episcopal offense was never able to capitalize on that momentum, as the only baserunner they had over the next two innings was a hit by pitch.
Malvern Prep added another in the fifth, but it didn’t look like they would after two quick outs. Tommy Sergio hit an infield single to keep the inning alive. Owen Hammond followed that up with a single, and Malvern took advantage of an error to get their third run of the game and make it 3-1.
You can’t make those types of mistakes and expect to beat Malvern because they will haunt you.
The sixth inning is where Malvern Prep really put the icing on the cake. Again, the first two hitters were retired. It did not matter.
Charlie Smith was on the mound now and was struggling to find the zone, walking the bases loaded. Tommy Sergio then hit the dagger, a two-run single to blow it open and make it 5-1 Friars. Owen Hammond added an RBI single for good measure.
Malvern scored six runs today and had six hits. Sergio and Hammond combined for five of those hits and drove in five of those runs.
Oh, and Malvern did not strike out one time all game.
Meanwhile, Chase Ecker was still cruising with a very manageable pitch count as he did not walk a batter all game. Ecker went out for the seventh looking to close out this win and bring another trophy to Warren Avenue.
First up was Reggie King, and Ecker got him for a swinging strikeout. Next up was Will Cohen, who lined out to Jalen Bowman in center field. The last hope was Logan Correll, who put a good swing on the ball but lined out to Brady Abate in right field, and that was all she wrote.
Malvern Prep wraps up the season at 32-5 and are once again State Champions. I don’t know how many different dynasties they have had in this century, but the last three years certainly fits the mold.
As for Episcopal, this was an unbelievable season for them as they finished 18-8-1 and second in both the Inter-Ac and the PAISAA. They found the offensive spark they were looking for last year and it led them to a state title game.
Today, however, belongs to Malvern Prep.