(cover of Coatesville starter Jayden Guiseppe via Brendan Ricciardi/DBN)

WYNDMOOR, PA – Despite a strong solid showing offensively once again, the Monsignor Bonner Friars were not able to overcome some sloppy defense against the Coatesville Red Raiders in the first round of the PIAA 6A State tournament.

The first two innings were scoreless due to a good couple of innings from Bonner starter Mikey Klawansky and Coatesville starter Jayden Guiseppe. After two strikeouts to start the top of the third, Nuge Willard tripled to apply some pressure for Coatesville.

On the next pitch, the Red Raiders would get on the board as Shane Monaghan reached on an error. Coatesville would continue to make the Friars’ error hurt, as Dylan Jeffers walked, then Monaghan came around to score on a wild pitch.

On the day, Bonner would make five errors.

Adam Clark came up next, and his single scored Jeffers to increase their lead to three. After Klawansky walked Jayden Guiseppe, his day was done, and Danny Buckton came in.

Buckton quickly ended the inning, striking out the first batter he faced.

Bonner looked ready to punch back in the bottom of that inning, with Cory Sheridan and Sergio Hernandez hitting a pair of one-out singles to left. After a fly out, Ryan Friel, who has been sensational recently, knocked Sheridan and Hernandez in with a single to center, cutting the deficit to one.

Sophomore Gavin DiRita stepped up next, and after seeing two balls, he hit a triple to right field to score Friel. DiRita then scored on a passed ball, giving the Friars a 4-3 lead before a ground out ended the inning.

Coatesville responded back, tying the game in the top of the fourth after Sean Kinzeler walked and scored on an error. The Friars wanted their lead back, and after Cole Romano walked, Cory Sheridan tripled in the bottom of the fourth to put the Friars up 5-4.

As one might expect given how the game had gone so far, the Red Raiders offense answered back immediately. Shane Monaghan hit a leadoff double, and Dylan Jeffers singled. With one out, Jayden Guiseppe doubled to score them both, giving Coatesville a 6-5 lead.

A pair of errors loaded the bases for Coatesville, and after a strikeout, AJ Rubincam singled to score two. Buckton then struck out the next batter, keeping the Red Raiders’ lead at 3.

Bonner could not answer back in the bottom of the fifth despite a triple from Ryan Friel. Buckton held Coatesville scoreless in the top of the sixth with a 1-2-3 inning.

With six outs left for the Friars, they applied pressure as Owen Lockhart doubled and Cole Romano reached on an error. Joey Graziani came up with runners on the corners, and he hit a sacrifice fly to center to score Lockhart. Back-to-back outs would hold the Bonner offense there, down 8-6.

Buckton recorded two quick outs, but the Coatesville offense would threaten after a hit by pitch and a single. Coach DeBarberie then made a call to the pen, bringing in senior Johnny Ortegae, who recorded the final out.

Down to their last three outs, the Friars refused to go down easily. Shane Monaghan entered the game to pitch for Coatesville. After a ground out, Ryan Friel collected his third hit of the game on a double to center field.

Friel ended the postseason going 15/21, good for a .714 average. He had exactly three hits in all five Bonner playoff games. Insane.

Gavin DiRita then singled to score Friel, and Bonner was knocking on the door down one. However, Coatesville was able to record the last two outs via a fly out and line out, both to left field.

Bonner’s terrific season has come to an end. The PCL and District 12 6A champions, their lineup was among the most impressive in the area. This lineup is also very young, with Sergio Hernandez and Ryan Friel having great junior seasons, and very encouraing sophomore seasons from Gavin DiRita, Owen Lockhart, and Cole Romano.

Losing the PCL Offensive Player of the Year in Michael Coleman is always tough, but their core will remain strong.

Danny Buckton has had an amazing junior season, but the Friars’ staff will have to rely on new arms with the loss of Johnny Ortegae, Mikey Klawansky, Joey Graziani, Cory Sheridan, and Jack Redding.

As for Coatesville, they will have a rematch against Neshaminy on Thursday after Coatesville beat them in the third place game last week.

(cover photo of Ryan Friel via sirr.prodd on Instagram)

WYNDMOOR, PA – The Monsignor Bonner Friars, champions of District 12 6A, are facing off against the Coatesville Red Raiders, the District 1 third-seed, in the first round of the PIAA 6A playoffs.

Senior Mikey Klawanksy will likely take the hill for the Friars. The Alvernia commit was outstanding in the PCL championship, firing six shutout innings and striking out six.

The Red Raiders will likely give the ball to sophomore Jayden Guiseppe. The lefty had a solid outing in Coatesville’s loss to North Penn last week, allowing one run in 5.2 innings while striking out seven. Guiseppe will not light up the radar gun, probably remaining in the low 80s with his fastball, but his command has been excellent.

Danny Buckton has been superb in his relief role this year, including back-to-back great outings against Father Judge. If Klawansky does not reach the fifth or sixth inning, the junior will likely be the first out of the pen.

Senior Cory Sheridan may come in late in the game for Bonner. Although the Rutgers commit has not been able to pitch much this year, he went out for a 1-2-3 inning to close the PCL championship game and could be available again.

East Carolina commit Shane Monaghan has had a fantastic year at shortstop for the Red Raiders. Some multi-hit games from the junior have propelled Coatesville to some big wins over Quakertown and Downingtown East.

Junior Adam Clark was the hero for Coatesville in their win over Neshaminy last week. In the bottom of the seventh, the catcher singled to left field to walk off the game.

Coatesville has a head coach that has seen just about everything as Hal Zeigler has the most titles in District 1 history with five, most recently back in 2013 according to Dave Burman. He is 418-282 overall.

Steve DeBarberie has not been around quite as long but he does have two PCL championships to his name and has made four straight state semifinals.

Bonner’s offense has been a force to be reckoned with recently. In their eleven-run win over Central on Saturday, junior Ryan Friel totalled seven bases, including a double and a home run, while sophomore Gavin DiRita tripled to record his fourth total base.

Friel is 12/17 in the playoffs so far, good for a staggering .706 average.

Gettysburg commit Michael Coleman had a three-hit game, collecting two RBIs.

This game is being played at La Salle College High School at 1 pm. The winner will face off against the winner of Parkland and Neshaminy in the quarterfinals.

(cover photo of Jack Redding via @sir.prodd on Instagram)

PHILADELPHIA, PA – Following their Philadelphia Catholic League championship win over Ryan last week, the Monsignor Bonner Friars are facing off against the Central Lancers, champions of the Philadelphia Public League, in the PIAA District 12 title game Thursday afternoon at 3:00 at La Salle University.

Bonner will likely throw several guys in this game. In their win over La Salle on Friday, Johnny Ortegae (La Salle commit), Danny Buckton, and Joey Graziani (Ursinus commit) threw a relatively low number of pitches. We would expect Ortegae to start, especially with the extra day of rest due to the rain.

All those guys, along with senior Cory Sheridan (Rutgers commit), who closed the championship on Saturday, should be available after missing the entire season up until that point. Having him available for this playoff run is a huge boost.

Bucknell commit Tyler Seidman will likely take the mound for the Lancers. The senior lefty had a great outing last week against Franklin Towne, allowing zero runs and striking out nine.

However, Seidman also showed some command issues in this start, walking six. He was at 108 pitches after just five innings, and the Bonner offense should utilize his inefficiency to get him out of the game sooner rather than later.

Bonner’s offense was on fire during the PCL tournament. Junior and First Team All-Catholic selection Ryan Friel was 9 for 13 during the three-game stretch. Friel leads all of Delco with a .481 average and has a 1.195 OPS as well.

Third Team All-Catholic selection Gavin DiRita mashed a three-run home run in the first inning against La Salle and followed that up with 3 RBI on Saturday. His emergence has really lengthened the power in this order.

Junior Sergio Hernandez and PCL Offensive Player of the Year Michael Coleman have set the tone at the top of the order batting leadoff and second, respectively. Hernandez is hitting .385 with a .954 OPS and Coleman is hitting .388 with a 1.104 OPS.

The Friars outscored their opponents 29-4 in the PCL Tournament.

For Central, Tyler Seidman has also had a big impact on offense hitting leadoff. Dickinson commit Aidan McElhatton has hit well in the three-hole and has been consistent on the mound for the Lancers.

The winner of this game will take on the winner of today’s District 1 third place game between Neshaminy and Coatesville. There’s a very good chance that if the Friars win, they will host the first round of states like they did last year when they beat Upper Dublin.

HAVERTOWN, PA – In a do-or-die game for one of the last spots in the PIAA 6A state tournament, the Pennsbury Falcons beat the Haverford High Fords with an unreal performance from Keller Bradley.

Bradley, who is committed to Vanderbilt, was lights out against the Haverford lineup. In 6.2 innings of work, the 6’6” junior allowed two hits, one walk, and had a whopping seventeen strikeouts.

Haverford starter Gavin McClafferty threw four innings, the first three being solid. The senior allowed three hits and struck out one.

The Falcons opened the scoring in the top of the fourth inning. First, Evan Hawkes walked and reached second on a defensive indifference, and Ryan Weber reached on an error. Then, Weber would get to second on another defensive indifference, bringing Pierce Perry to the plate.

After seeing a first-pitch ball, Perry singled to center field to score Hawkes and Webber. Next up would be Brendan Zuckerman.

Zuckerman smashed a fastball to left field, clearing the fence and the bases. The score was now 4-0, where it would sit for the rest of the game.

Haverford recorded two hits from the bats of junior Sam Sturman and senior Ryan Cassidy. Sturman singled on a ground ball to left in the bottom of the fourth, and Ryan Cassidy singled on a grounder to center in the sixth.

After McClafferty, Coach Brian Miller brought in a pair of lefty juniors to shut down the Pennsbury lineup.

Jayden Luistro allowed zero hits and struck out two in his 1.1 innings, while Lucas Rothstein gave up one hit while punching out one in 1.2 innings.

With two outs in the bottom of the seventh, Keller Bradley was pulled following his 108th pitch, and Mason Keith came in for the game for the Falcons. The East Stroudsburg commit ended the game quickly, striking out the last batter in four pitches.

Just like that, Haverford’s season is over. Although this postseason did not go as planned, do not let that overshadow an incredible regular season. The Central League co-champions went 18-1, with their only loss coming to Lower Merion. Having ace Jimmy Boyle miss the last two games with a concussion was a brutal blow for this team.

The Fords are graduating four starters in the lineup and one pitcher. They have a lot of juniors in the lineup who have stepped up big this year, such as Sam Sturman, Shane Durkan, Owen Klick, Andrew Brown, Charlie Pusztay, and Rocco Kelleher. Jimmy Boyle returns next year as a junior on the mound as well and sophomore Cam McCormack has been phenomenal this year, so expect him to improve further as he becomes an upperclassman.

(cover photo of Gavin McClafferty via Nate Witzel/DBN)

HAVERTOWN, PA – In a battle for a spot in the PIAA state playoffs, the Pennsbury Falcons are traveling to Delco to face the Haverford High Fords.

Taking the mound for Haverford will likely be senior Gavin McClafferty. McClafferty threw four strong innings in Haverford’s win over Souderton last week, allowing two runs and striking out six. Jimmy Boyle is unavailable for this game due to an injury.

Junior Lucas Rothstein will likely throw a long relief appearance once McClafferty’s day is done. Also, look out for sophomore Cam McCormack to pitch late in the game like he did against North Penn as well.

Junior Keller Bradley will likely get the ball for Pennsbury. This kid is unreal.

Bradley’s fastball reached an absurd 94 mph, and he throws it along with a mid-80s changeup, a low-80s slider, and a low-80s curveball.

The Vanderbilt commit was lights out in his start last week against Lower Merion. He threw seven shutout innings, allowing only three hits and striking out eleven. Not to mention, the kid is 6 feet 6 inches.

Pennsbury’s lineup features a few notable college recruits. Senior Evan Hawkes (Swarthmore commit) hits leadoff and controls center field. Dylan Hirsh (Bloomsburg commit) hits third and sits behind the plate. WPI commit Ben Seidler is in left field.

Rounding out Pennsbury’s list of position players is shortstop Ryan Webber. Webber is committed to Army West Point, and he had 3 RBI in the win over Lower Merion last week.

Junior Sam Sturman had a good day at the plate for the Fords in their loss to North Penn on Friday, hitting three singles.

Haverford will rely on its upperclassmen against a tough arm. Seniors Ryan Cassidy and Nick Elvanian, along with Sturman and junior Shane Durkan, are at the top of the lineup. Cam McCormack provides the thump in the middle of the order, he hit a three-run homer in the second round win over Souderton.

The Fords will need a strong pitching performance to win. Keller Bradley will not give up many runs, so Haverford needs to limit mistakes defensively and with their pitching.

The game is being played at Haverford. The loser’s season will be over. The winner will earn a bid to the state tournament and will play for seeding against the winner of Methacton and Perkiomen Valley on Thursday where the winner of that game gets the #5 seed and the loser gets the #6 seed.

(cover photo of Logan Correll via Brendan Ricciardi/DBN)

MALVERN, PA – Have a day, Reggie King! The junior and recent First Team All-Inter-Ac selection mashed two doubles as the Episcopal Academy Churchmen defeated the Perkiomen School Panthers in the PAISAA semifinals by a 4-2 final.

The early innings were quiet on the scoreboard, thanks to Episcopal starter and Lehigh recruit Logan Correll and Perkiomen starter and Northwestern recruit Justin Fryer.

Correll had a great day on the mound. He allowed four hits, two runs, and recorded five strikeouts in 5.1 innings with his senior season on the line.

The scoring opened in the top of the fourth inning. Fellow First Team selection Spencer Schuh singled, then Reggie King hit a one-out double to left. With ducks on the pond, Second Team choice Will Cohen singled to score Schuh.

The Churchmen were not done there. Logan Correll singled to right to score King, and then he and Cohen advanced on an error.

The final run of the inning came when Ian Ferrell hit a sacrifice fly, and Correll was thrown out trying to advance to third, securing a 3-0 lead.

The next inning and a half were scoreless.

Coming to the plate to lead off the top of the sixth was Jake Virbitsky. The catcher ripped a triple to left field to apply pressure to Northwestern commit Justin Fryer.

Then, Reggie King scored Virbitsky on a double to center, which was immediately followed by a bunt single from Will Cohen. Three straight outs would keep the score at 4-0.

Perkiomen responded in the bottom of the sixth with two runs of their own. The first came via a sacrifice fly from Penn State commit Avery Smith, and the second from a bases-loaded walk from freshman Cole Tucholski.

With one out, Roman Notaro entered the game. The junior got out of the jam quickly with a double play, holding the score at 4-2.

Episcopal was then held scoreless in the top of the seventh.

After Dino Liberi walked, Coach Grandieri made the call to bring in sophomore Charlie Smith.

Smith recorded two quick outs, and it looked like the third out would be easily attained. They refused to go down easily, however, as Ryan Sink walked and Ian Perez reached on an error.

With two outs and bases loaded, Avery Smith, their star hitter, stepped up. The count quickly moved to 1-2 before Charlie Smith recorded a strikeout to end the game with a final score of Episcopal 4, Perkiomen 2.

Episcopal will face off against Malvern Prep, who defeated Germantown Academy, in the PAISAA championship at Malvern Prep Saturday morning at 10:30.

(cover photo of Johnny Ortegae via Shelby Kauffman/DBN)

UPPER CHICHESTER, PA – The sixth-seeded Monsignor Bonner Friars and the first-seeded La Salle Explorers are meeting at Maplezone Sports Institute to face off in the Philadelphia Catholic League semifinals.

Bonner is here following their 5-3 upset victory over the third-seed Father Judge. La Salle is here after their 6-2 win over Devon Prep, who defeated the seventh-seed Neumann-Goretti as the tenth-seed.

Taking the mound for Bonner will likely be La Salle University commit Johnny Ortegae. The 6’4” senior has been solid all year, but he has not seen much action recently, only having thrown 1.2 innings in the last couple of weeks. The righty was awarded to the Second Team All-Catholic this year.

Expect to see Danny Buckton in relief, who threw four shutout innings against Judge out of the pen.

La Salle has two great choices for who could start the game: Chris Cavalcante (Old Dominion commit) and Jack Pye (William & Mary commit). Both First Team All-Catholic pitchers, Cavalcante was also awarded the PCL Pitcher of the Year.

The Explorers have two great choices here. Cavalcante started on Sunday against Devon Prep, but with the delay, he has had enough recovery time for a full start.

Pye’s last appearance was a win over St. Joe’s Prep two and a half weeks ago. Both pitchers have a similar chance of throwing, and we will see tomorrow who will start the game.

Bonner’s offense has been led by a string of three lefties in their lineup: Michael Coleman (Gettysburg commit), Ryan Friel, and Gavin DiRita. Coleman and Friel were First Team All-Catholic selections, and DiRita was a Third Team All-Catholic selection; Coleman also was awarded PCL Offensive Player of the Year.

Sergio Hernandez also sets the tone at the top of the order.

Headlining La Salle’s offense is PCL MVP Caden Schmidt. Batting right behind him is UMass Lowell commit Luke Borgmann, who won PCL Defensive Player of the Year for his work behind the dish. Virginia Tech recruit Aimon Chandler left that Devon Prep game with an injury, so we’ll see if he is able to go.

La Salle has an incredibly deep lineup as we saw #9 hitter Ronnie Raby homer to dead center against Devon Prep.

This matchup is going to be a dogfight. Both programs have built a solid history at the top of the PCL.

Two teams loaded with talent meet in the PCL semifinals, while the other semifinal game is being played right next to them; this is guaranteed to be epic.

The winner of this game will compete against the winner of Archbishop Ryan and Archbishop Wood in the PCL championship on Saturday at 11:00 at Widener University.

In order for Bonner to make the state tournament, they will not only have to win this game, but also win the PCL title on Saturday. Bonner has lost in the state semifinals four years in a row.

BOOTHWYN, PA – After a convincing 6-1 victory over Phoenixville, the Strath Haven Panthers are going southwest to face the Chichester Eagles in the PIAA District 1 5A quarterfinals.

The Panthers’ pitching was stellar in Monday’s win. Seniors Luke D’Ancona (a Boston College commit) and Rob Mattai allowed one unearned run in their combined seven innings.

Funny enough, the last team to earn a round one victory over Phoenixville before facing the one-seeded Chichester was Marple Newtown last year, who went on to win the district championship.

Pitching for Strath Haven today will likely be Caden Shuster. The senior is coming off solid outings against Springfield and Marple Newtown. The righty stands at a towering 6’4”, which is sure to make hitters uncomfortable.

Whether it be starting or in relief, expect to see Jasper Hals on the mound at some point today as well for the Panthers.

Although the Eagles have given starts to many arms in the past couple of weeks, Cole Sanford or Zach Murray will likely get the start for Chichester. 

Both righty juniors have also had noticeable impacts, hitting and in the field. Sanford has been batting leadoff and playing second base, while Murray has been hitting second and playing shortstop.

Senior third baseman Alex Kester has been mashing baseballs in the third spot of the Chichester lineup, and right behind him in the lineup is sophomore Evan Valentine.

Throughout the season, Strath Haven has relied on the bats of senior Dickinson commit Ben Milligan and junior Eli Price. Both guys recorded a hit in Monday’s win, and Price had a second hit and an RBI. Matt Caputo also went 3/3 with 3 RBI and Atticus Bean has been a late riser this season for the Panthers.

Although D’Ancona is heading to college as a pitcher, he has also been swinging it well all year.

This game is certain to be a dogfight. Two good Delco teams face off in the district tournament—what more could you ask for?

The game is being played at 4 PM at Chichester today, if weather permits. The winner will play against the winner of the fourth seed, Upper Dublin, and the fifth seed, West Chester Rustin on Friday.

If Chichester wins, that game would be at Chichester. If Strath Haven wins, it would be played at the site of whoever wins that Rustin/Upper Dublin game.

(cover photo of Cam McCormack via Nate Witzel/DBN)

HAVERTOWN, PA – The Haverford High Fords jumped on Souderton quickly with three runs in the first inning on a Cam McCormack homer, and some insurance in the later innings was all they needed to close out the win.

Gavin McClafferty got the rock for the Fords in this one. He threw four solid innings, striking out six and only allowing two hits and two runs. While many thought Jimmy Boyle would get the ball in this one, Haverford elected to go with McClafferty and save Boyle for Friday’s district quarterfinal with #8 North Penn.

After a 1-2-3 top of the first from Gavin McClafferty, the Fords went on a two-out rally following a flyout and strikeout. Shane Durkan drew a five-pitch walk, and Sam Sturman drew a four-pitch walk, bringing sophomore Cam McCormack to the plate. McCormack blasted the first pitch he saw, a fastball, well over the right field fence to quickly give the Fords a 3-0 lead.

Souderton would get on the board in the top of the third when Cody Ricko singled to score Brett Pollock and Charlie Hunsicker.

Haverford added another run in the bottom of that inning when junior Shane Durkan scored on a passed ball.

Following a scoreless fourth, Lucas Rothstein entered the game for the Fords. He was lights-out in his first two innings of work, striking out two.

The Fords were at the plate with a 4-2 lead in the bottom of the fifth. Ryan Cassidy worked a leadoff walk, and after a popout, Shane Durkan was hit by a slider.

Both advanced on a wild pitch for ball two while Sam Sturman was at the plate. After the count went to 2-2, Sturman hit a groundball up the middle to centerfield to score Cassidy and Durkan. The score was now 6-2.

This would conclude the scoring for the Fords.

Souderton was down to their last out in the top of the seventh following a ground out and a strikeout. However, the Indians were looking for some magic, working two walks, another RBI single from Cody Ricko, and one more walk.

After that, Coach Miller made a call to the pen. He brought in junior Rocco Kelleher to try to get the final out of the ball game.

After falling behind 2-0, Kelleher managed to get the count back to even at 2-2. A strike three called on a slider from Kelleher ended the game—final score: Haverford 6, Souderton 3.

The Fords look to push this momentum into the quarterfinals on Friday, when they will face the North Penn Knights at home. The Knights are fresh off a 10-0 mercy-rule victory against Council Rock South.

Even if Haverford were to lose that game, their season would not be over. They would go to the states playback round on Tuesday for another shot at making the PIAA 6A tournament.

WEST CHESTER, PA – Following a dominant 11-2 victory over Spring-Ford in the first round, the Garnet Valley Jaguars are on the road to face the seventh-seed West Chester Henderson Warriors.

Ryan McGhee was the obvious choice to take the mound yesterday, as the lefty has had a great season at the top of the rotation. As for who the Jaguars will give the ball to tomorrow, it is unclear. 

Honestly, I have no clue who will start tomorrow. The five leading contenders for the start are Cody Wiest, Joe Anzalone, Dylan Orr, Cole Reber, and Connor Criswell. Orr and Criswell are unlikely due to throwing on Monday, but they only threw one inning each. Keep in mind that although only one of these guys will start, it is likely that the majority of them will make an appearance.

Henderson will send out sophomore Anthony Barthol. The lefty has been dominant, going the distance in his last couple of outings.

Seniors Nolan Carroll and Brady Thompson (committed to Ursinus and Washington College, respectively) lead the Jaguars’ offense, which has done very well even with Richmond recruit Chris Schaller’s absence.

Junior shortstop Cole Lombardo has made his presence known, with an average of .438 and an OPS of 1.122 on the year.

Senior shortstop Liam Schwinn has thrived at the top of the lineup for the Warriors. The righty is committed to Stockton, and he went 4/5 with 3 RBI’s against Bishop Shanahan.

Seniors Ethan Franks and Alex Cortes live right behind Schwinn, hitting second and third, respectively. These three will look to keep their senior season alive with strong games.

Garnet Valley has to get Anthony Barthol out of this game early. Barthol has displayed his ability to go deep into ballgames, and Henderson is very successful when they can delay going to the pen for as long as possible.

Pitching will be a joint effort for the Jaguars’ staff. Expect to see a lot of pitching changes by Coach Shiller.

The game is being played at 4 PM at West Chester Henderson. The winner will face the winner of Methacton and Central Bucks South.