Both Malvern Prep and Chichester have been running their conferences for years now.

Some people like dynasties, others don’t. I think it’s cool to see these programs have continued success like this, and I think it makes an interesting storyline every year to see if anyone can dethrone them.

Chichester hasn’t even lost a Del Val game since before we know what covid was, and they really have not showed any signs of slowing down. Malvern Prep as of right now has only lost one Inter-Ac game this year, back when Hunter West threw a gem to lead Episcopal to a 4-1 win back on April 14th.

For both of these teams, their seasons are really just getting started, too.

Malvern Prep 17, Penn Charter 0

By: Nick Mazzarella:

Every time they take the field, the Friars remind you why MaxPreps has them as number one in PA.

I mean come on, 17 runs scored and a combined no-hitter? It’s ridiculous. 

But to keep this one short, seven guys had an RBI, and Tommy Sergio had an insane 4-4, seven RBI day. Jack Herbein and Sameer Dhillon combined for a five inning no-hitter.

Brady Abate (2), Cole Scarbinsky (2), Bryan Cogliano (2), Luke Moore (1), Nick Schmitt (1) and Luke Capaldi (1) all drove in runs.

And with all that, Malvern Prep clinches the Inter-AC (8-1) title for the sixth straight year and now sit at an absurd 27-4 and still have four games left to play. They will play Holy Ghost Prep tomorrow at 4:00 PM for a non-conference game as they await the PAISAA State Tournament as they look to win their fourth in a row.

Chichester 8, Interboro 7

By: Ben Thorpe:

The Del Val dynasty continues!

Chichester weathered a hot start from rival Interboro’s offense to secure a comeback win and claim their seventh straight league title.

Zach Murray had three hits, Logan Werley had a three-run double that proved to be the game winner, and Cole Sanford provided five strong innings in the 8-7 victory.

Not looking to drop the title decider on their home field, Interboro put up a three-run inning in their first at bat. Tyler Green made it 1-0 with a single and Chase Norbeck’s two-run double pushed the lead to three.

Chichester answered right back with four in the second. Damian Diaz-Badillo got his team on the board with a two-run double and Murray tied things up with a single. Evan Valentine gave the Eagles a 4-3 lead with a double.

Two walks put Interboro in business in the bottom of the second. Jaxson Munro capitalized on the opportunity, hitting a two-RBI single and putting the Bucs back on top. They added another in the fourth inning after Anthony Gentile tripled and scored on a wild pitch. 

The teams traded runs in the fifth. Chichester got one back on an error before a John Cartlidge RBI double gave Interboro a 7-5 lead.

Trailing by two in the sixth, the Eagle offense worked three walks and loaded the bases for Logan Werley with two outs. He came through with the swing of the year for his Chichester team, a three-run double that gave them an 8-7 lead.

Cole Sanford locked it down from there, working two 1-2-3 innings and closing out the championship decider.

Chichester keeps the championship streak going and stays undefeated in the Del Val at 11-0. They also sit atop the District 1 5A standings with a string of out-of-conference games coming up. That stretch begins with a game at Bonner on Thursday.

Interboro will end another year winless against Chichester. Their season is far from over though. The Bucs have two games left before starting District 1 4A playoffs as they now sit at 8-3 in the Del Val. They play Academy Park next on Thursday.

Strath Haven 4, Penncrest 3

By: Nick Mazzarella:

Strath Haven squeezed by Penncrest in a tight game where the Lions could have broken it open multiple times, but in the battle of the big cats, the Panthers came out on top.

The Panthers attacked first, with Atticus Bean ripping a double to drive in the first run of the game. Zach Milligan drove in Bean on a base hit to make it 2-0. After a HBP and a walk, Strath Haven had the bases loaded. With that, Patrick Burke grounded into a fielder’s choice to make it a quick three-run lead after the first half of the inning.

The Lions struck right back though, as a leadoff double from Mike Simone was followed by a base hit by Sergio Hernandez to drive him in. With one out, Hernandez swiped two bags to get to third, and was driven in on a groundout to make it a one run game real quick. 

Now, innings 2-5 were a pitchers duel.

Liam Wray went four innings of shutout baseball during this time for Penncrest, and Travis McDonough did the same for Strath Haven.

In the top of the sixth, the Panthers extended their lead by a run on a bases-loaded walk from Quinn Kell.

In the bottom half of the inning, Brayden Davis doubled in a run to make it a one run game again. Austin Younger and Andrew Luber-Solic walked to load the bases. Lions had a chance to take the lead here with the bases loaded and only one gone. But, a ground ball to Patrick O’Connor turned into a 5-4-3 double play to kill the rally and have Strath Haven’s lead hold strong. 

And who would have thought, the Lions had another chance in the bottom of the seventh with the chance to walk off with the bases loaded and two outs and Davis up. But an aggressive decision by Penncrest ended up costing them the game as Simone tried to steal home on an 0-2 count and was thrown out by Quinn Kell on the mound.

The Lions still hold their spot at third in the Central League (10-5) just ahead of Garnet Valley. They will play Cardinal O’Hara on Friday for a non-conference game. Their next and last Central League game will be against Radnor (11-3 CL) on May 11th, which may very well be a playoff preview.

Strath Haven jumps over Ridley in the Central League and are now 8-7 in the CL. Their last shot at finishing at least .500 every year since 2019 (according to Brendan, the resident Haven alum) will be May 11th at home against Marple Newtown (4-10 CL).

Episcopal 4, Springside Chestnut Hill 2

By: Ben Thorpe:

Hunter West put together another stellar start as Episcopal Academy picked up a solid Inter-Ac win over Springside Chestnut Hill.

The Episcopal ace pitched a complete game, giving up two earned run, scattering five hits, and striking out six, including his 100th career K. JD Amoroso and Dylan Walls both had multi-hit days in the 4-2 victory.

SCH opened the scoring in their first at-bat. Connor Crittenden got them on the board with a single.

Dillon Walls got that run back and added another in the bottom of the first, hitting a two-run single with no outs. That lead wouldn’t hold long either, as Frankie Decembrino tied things up with a single in the second.

West settled things down in the top of the third, and in the bottom, his offense got him a lead he wouldn’t relinquish. Amoroso drove in a run with a single, advanced on another hit from Walls and a groundout, and came home with the fourth run after a wild pitch.

The win lifts Episcopal to 14-8 on the year. They’re out of Inter-Ac contention at 5-4 but still have a lot to play for, including a huge rivalry sweep this Friday at the Haverford School.

Chester 6, Academy Park 3

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

It’s a season sweep for Chester over Del Val rival Academy Park.

Juan Martinez was outstanding on the mound for the Clippers, striking out 13 over 5.1 innings with six hits allowed and two earned runs.

Chester scored first in the top of the second when Kevin Logan scored on a wild pitch, and they added two more on in the top of the third when Jacoby Roman knocked in Jonathan Quiros with a grounder and Kevin Logan singled in Martinez.

Academy Park responded back with two in their half of the third on an RBI double from Sean Murphy to score Chase Clark and another double from Lucas Gilbert to score Murphy.

The Clippers got some insurance runs when Kevin Logan drove in his second run of the game with a sac fly to score Jacoby Roman, and put the game away with two in the seventh.

Jacoby Roman threw the final 1.2 innings with four strikeouts to get the save.

For Academy Park, Sean Murphy also had 13 strikeouts as he he allowed five hits and three earned runs over 6.1 innings. Murphy had two hits and Damian DeLany had two hits as well.

With the win, Chester improves to 5-6 in the Del Val and will close their season out with a road game at Penn Wood on Thursday.

As for Academy Park, this loss drops them to 2-8 in the Del Val and they will host Interboro on Thursday for their next game.

Westtown 5, Friends Central 2

By: Jonah Casel:

Westtown’s quick start catapulted them over Friends’ Central in the Friends Schools League semifinals. Some sloppy defense in the first gave Trey Koplinka an opportunity to start off the scoring with runners on second and third. The catcher took the opportunity and drove in both of them with a double. 

Fisher Haggerty started for Friends’ Central and pounded the strike zone but was overwhelmed by the Moose’s offensive effort. Former Media Little League star Trevor Skowronek’s timely home run in the fifth inning knocked Haggerty out of the game and extended the Westtown lead to 5-0.

Cooper Speacht dealt for Westtown, going five innings, earning one run, and striking out eight. The Phoenix were unsuccessful in their second chance at beating Speacht this year.

Friends’ Central didn’t go down easily. In the top of the 6th they loaded the bases with no outs and scored a run on a Gavin Yeager RBI walk. Skowronek was then able to enter the game and end the inning without any more damage. The Phoenix found life, but it was too little too late.

In the seventh inning, the Phoenix continued to put on the pressure. Zac Canterino, David Manfre, and Shane McGarry all drew walks. Lucas Abreu drove in Canterino on a sac fly, and a controversial strike three call on Gavin Yeager ended the game. The umpire originally called a ball, but changed his mind to strike after a few seconds.

There was always going to be something interesting in a matchup between these two rivals! Westtown moves on to play Shipley in the FSL Championship on Friday, and Friends’ Central will try to redeem themselves later this month in the PAISAA tournament.

Germantown Academy 5, Haverford School 1

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

The tough stretch for The Haverford School has continued, as the Fords dropped their seventh straight game on the road at Germantown Academy.

Germantown opened up a 4-0 lead with a run in the first, two in the third and one in the fourth. Haverford scored their lone run in the sixth when Harrison Bongiovanni singled in Thomas Lawler, who just returned after missing a few weeks with an injury.

Gabe Danisi threw well on the mound for Haverford, allowing three earned runs over five innings with three strikeouts. Owen Murphy allowed a run in an inning in relief.

Mike Noone, Zack Lawler and Danny Getz also had hits in the loss for the Fords.

Haverford falls to 3-6 in the Inter-Ac and will look to close out the conference season on a high note when they host Episcopal on Friday.

The Fords season will not be over after that, as they will still qualify for the PAISAA State Tournament with all of the rest of the Inter-Ac teams and some other private schools like Friends Central, Shipley, Westtown, Perkiomen School and more.

We’ll have more on that bracket when we can.