The early theme so far of these playoffs in all conferences seems to be rivalry games early on.

O’Hara upset Bonner in the first round of the PCL Tournament, and Penncrest and Strath Haven will play in the first round of the PIAA District 1 Tournament on Monday.

And now, with The Haverford School taking down Abington Friends on Friday afternoon, they will head to Newtown Square to face rival Episcopal on Tuesday in the PAISAA quarterfinal round.

Episcopal took both of the regular season meetings. They won at home on April 21st for our game of the week 10-6 after four in the bottom of the sixth. They also won 5-4 last Friday, May 8th.

Anything can happen on Tuesday.

Haverford School 10, Abington Friends 0

(picture of Gabe Danisi via John Rayer/DBN)

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

The Haverford School set the tone early against Abington Friends, and never let the Kangaroos have a chance is one.

I would like to quickly make a side note that Kangaroos is an unreal high school team name. Let’s get more weird names like that.

Danny Getz hit a two-out, two-run single in the first to drive in Zack and Thomas Lawler. The real party came in the second, when the Fords scored seven runs.

That included a two-run Zack Lawler homer and a Nicky Vanni solo homer.

The Fords would add their tenth and final run on a Caleb Siever groundout to score Thomas Lawler, who went 3/3 with two doubles.

On the mound, Gabe Danisi threw three scoreless innings with just one hit allowed and three strikeouts. Jacob Horwitz threw a 1-2-3 inning with two strikeouts in the fourth, and Owen Murphy finished it off in the top of the fifth.

As mentioned above, Haverford School now plays Episcopal in the PAISAA quarterfinals, and the winner of that plays the winner of Malvern/SCHA on Thursday.

While we would assume that Episcopal ace Hunter West is pitching for the Churchmen, the Fords could turn to any one of Danisi, Horwitz or Murphy to start that game. It could be very similar plan to today, as no pitcher threw more than 33 pitches.

It’s a tough week to plan for because to become state champions, you will have to win Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.

That game will be at 4:00 on Tuesday at Episcopal.

Penn Charter 10, Friends Central 0

(photo of Brice Staples via Bjorn Beck)

By; Jonah Casel:

Penn Charter had no trouble defeating Friends’ Central at home to advance to the second round of the PAISAA tournament.

Gavin Yeager started for the Phoenix, and had an efficient first inning, but Penn Charter blew the game open in the second by scoring five runs. The Quakers never looked back from there and continued to pile on, even when Yeager was replaced by Fisher Haggerty in the fourth inning.

Gavin Ruta led the way for Penn Charter, driving in three runs and walking off the game to clinch the mercy rule in the fifth inning. BJ Hall drove in two, and Brice Staples notably blasted a triple in the second inning.

Staples also started the game and was lights out. He only allowed one hit and three walks, while striking out seven in five innings. The injury-riddled Phoenix never stood a chance today.

Friends’ Central could not muster up any offense, and their only hit came off the bat of Senior DH Shane McGarry in his final high school baseball game. The Friends’ Central senior class will leave big shoes to fill for the returning players.

Penn Charter will say goodbye to their home field for the remainder of the PAISAA tournament, as they travel to second-seeded Shipley for a second round matchup. Friends’ Central’s season is over, and they can only hope for a healthier 2027.

Episcopal 12, The Hill School 0

(graphic via Episcopal Instagram)

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

Episcopal is scorching hot going into the playoffs, as they have now won seven in a row to hit the 20-win mark as they end the regular season at 20-8.

They have also now scored 9+ runs in each of the last four games, including double digits in three of those.

Under the lights at The Hill School, the Churchmen struck early and often, putting up four on the board in both the first and second innings.

It seems like the Churchmen let their whole roster get some work today, as every starter was replaced at some point. Dillon Walls was the only Churchmen with two hits. Michael Schaffer and Matt LaTour both drove in two runs, while Dan Castro, August Corcoran, Baxter Schuh, Ty Cohen, Reggie King and Dylan Gustafson all drove in one run.

On the mound, Ryan Lomas threw three perfect innings with a strikeout to start the game. Kyptyn Williams allowed just one hit over two scoreless innings with three strikeouts, and Baxter Schuh closed it out.

The Churchmen as mentioned end the regular season at 20-8. They will be the #4 seed in the PAISAA State Tournament, and will host The Haverford School on Tuesday.

Should they advance, they would play the winner of Tuesday’s Malvern Prep vs Springside Chestnut Hill game.

After Bonner took home the PCL Champion plaque in 2025, Delco will not be sending a team to the semifinal round in 2026.

Technically, Devon Prep isn’t Delco, but if you see that dugout you’d think differently. The roster and coaching staff has Delco all throughout it.

With Devon Prep being the highest seed of the four teams we cover at #6, this wasn’t necessarily a shock, but it is still a bummer nonetheless.

#1 La Salle will host #4 Neumann-Goretti, who took down #5 St. Joe’s Prep 7-4. #3 Wood will take on #2 Conwell-Egan, after PCL Most Valuable Player Brady Guzzie struck out 12 in a one-hit shutout to beat Judge 6-0.

La Salle 5, O’Hara 0

(photo of La Salle’s Cooper Weiss via John Rayer/DBN)

By: Gabe Danisi:

La Salle came out and took care of business Wednesday, shutting out Cardinal O’Hara 5-0 in a PCL Quarterfinal that wasn’t as close as the hit totals might suggest. Win or go home, and for O’Hara, the season ended here.

The Explorers got things going right away in the first. Kaden Cortez reached on a dropped third strike and advanced on a passed ball and error. Brycen Clarke followed with a fly ball that the left fielder dropped, scoring Cortez to make it 1-0. Then Luke Borgmann crushed a triple to center to score Clarke and push it to 2-0. Just like that, La Salle had the tone set in a game where every run felt enormous.

O’Hara had chances but couldn’t cash in. The Lions actually out-hit La Salle six to five on the day, with Nate Evert, Colin Thomas, Connor Clark, Joey Thompson, Jack Quinn, and Jayson Gniewoz each picking up a hit — but they couldn’t string anything together when it mattered. The closest they got was the third inning when Joey Thompson singled with runners at second and third, but La Salle’s Cooper Weiss escaped without giving up a run. In a quarterfinal, you can’t leave runs on the bases like that and expect to survive, especially as the #10 seed against the #1.

La Salle kept adding on. Michael O’Connor tripled in the sixth to score two and push it to 4-0, and a Matt Wambold error brought home the fifth run later in the inning to put it completely out of reach at 5-0.

On the mound, Weiss was quietly excellent — six innings, five hits, zero runs, three strikeouts, and one walk. He didn’t do anything flashy, just threw strikes and let his defense work behind him, and in a playoff game that’s all you need. La Salle didn’t commit a single error all game. For O’Hara, Jack Quinn had a solid outing and pitched well enough to get a win — six innings, two earned runs, five hits, five strikeouts, and one walk. The Lions defense hurt him at the worst possible time.

Ronnie Raby was a menace on the bases for La Salle, stealing three of the team’s six stolen bases on the day. Borgmann led the Explorers with two hits including the first inning triple that set the tone, while O’Connor drove in two from the seven hole.

O’Hara falls to La Salle in the PCL Quarterfinals, done in by early mistakes they couldn’t recover from. For the Lions, the season is over and they finish at 9-13. La Salle moves on to face a surging Neumann-Goretti on Monday in the semifinals.

Wood 6, Devon Prep 1

(photo of Wood’s Brady Sell via Brendan Ricciardi/DBN)

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

Archbishop Wood’s Brady Sell, a Lafeyette recruit, was named the PCL Pitcher of The Year for 2026, and he certainly looked the part today.

Sell allowed just three hits and one unearned run with ten strikeouts over 6.1 innings in this win for Wood. Jack Coughlin retired the final two hitters in the seventh.

Wood scored in the first inning on an RBI groundout off the bat of AJ Hopkins and had traffic on the bases for the first few innings, but did most of their damage when they scored five runs in the bottom of the fourth.

Chase Cavallaro made it 2-0 with an RBI single and Caden Vacca added another single to make it 3-0. The gut punch for Devon Prep was a three-run double with two outs by Averell Walls to blow it open and make it 6-0 Vikings.

Devon Prep responded for one run on a Christian Leckman RBI groundout after Billy Degler doubled, but that was the lone run for Devon. Ryan Wheeler and Leckman also had hits.

Johnny Doogan allowed nine hits and five earned runs with two strikeouts to start the game. Liam Jung threw two clean innings of relief, but the damage had been done at that point.

Devon Prep ends the season at 9-8, and Wood will head to Conwell-Egan on Monday for the semifinal round.

Episcopal 9, Radnor 0

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

The Episcopal offense has scored 23 runs in the last two games, which is a great sign with the playoffs beginning soon.

They put up four in the top of the first before Radnor could even pick up a bat. Spencer Schuh scored on a balk for the first run, and Dillon Walls drove in JD Amoroso with a single to make it 2-0. Michael Schaffer and Baxter Schuh would also add RBI singles in the inning to extend that lead to 4-0.

The Churchmen would go on to score one in the second, two in the fourth and two in the fifth to win this non-conference game easily.

JD Amoroso, Baxter Schuh and Dillon Walls all had two hits. Walls drove in two runs, while Michael Schaffer, Baxter Schuh and John Gonzalez also drove in runs as well.

On the mound, Dan Castro was stellar. He started the game and allowed just two hits over four scoreless innings for Episcopal with two strikeouts. Jacobo Jackson threw two hitless innings with three strikeouts in relief.

For Radnor, Austin Havertine and Griffin Sonier had hits in the loss. Havertine and Sean Mutschler both threw two innings of relief with no earned runs. Matt Medina threw 1.2 innings of relief with one hit and four strikeouts.

Episcopal improves to 18-8 on the year. They will be the #4 seed in the PAISAA State Tournament and host the winner of Friday’s game between The Haverford School and Abington Friends next Tuesday, 5/19. It looks like they have a couple more tune up game’s scheduled for this week first as they head to Shanahan on Thursday and The Hill School Friday night under the lights.

As for Radnor, the District 1 5A bracket will not be released until Thursday night, but it certainly looks like they will be the #4 seed and get a first round bye. The Raptors are 12-7-1 overall and went 12-4 in the central league. If the bracket holds, they will host the winner of Monday’s Rustin/Hatboro-Horsham game on Wednesday, 5/20.

Delco Christian 2, Calvary Christian 1

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

There’s a very good chance that Delco Christian and Calvary Christian play this exact same game next Tuesday in the first round of the District 1 2A playoffs.

Because of Josey Lyren and Micah Dutton, that game would be played at Delco Christian.

Both teams came into this game at 8-3, with the winner taking over the #2 seed. Delco Christian scored their first run on a Nathan Burd RBI double that scored Matteo DeBellis in the bottom of the third.

Calvary Christian tied it up in the top of the fifth, and the game remained tied 1-1 going into the seventh. Maden Longley led off the seventh with a single, and Josey Lyren worked a walk. After a wild pitch advanced them to second and third, Gabe DiGregorio was intentionally walked to load the bases.

Micah Dutton didn’t waste any time, singling on the first pitch to knock in Longley and end this game with a bang.

Dutton was the walk-off hero, but Josey Lyren was the story of this game. He struck out 13 hitters over seven innings with just four hits allowed and one unearned run.

Longley and DeBellis both had two hits in the win.

Delco Christian finishes the regular season at 10-10 and 9-3 in the Bicentennial League. I would be surprised if anything else changes, so it certainly looks like these two teams will face off again next Tuesday, once again at Delco Christian.

Malvern Prep 7, Perkiomen School 1

By: Nick Mazzarella:

Can you believe that Malvern Prep has nearly double the amount of wins as the New York Mets?

In yet another dominating fashion, the Friars pick up their 30th win of the season. Like many times before, they scored first, as Bryan Cogliano singled in two runs to continue a norm that is hot starts for the Friars.

In the second, Jack Herbein allowed what would be his only run of the game on a sac fly. After that, he and the rest of the staff were lights out.

Half an inning later, the Friars offense struck again. Cole Scarbinsky drove in one on a double. This was followed by a blast to left field from Cogliano for his third and fourth RBI’s of the day to extend the lead.

An inning later, they tacked on two more, ending the scoring for the day.

And for the rest of the game, the Friars pitching took care of it. Kayden Wallace, Collin Romanczuk, and Tyler Ryan combined for four innings of one hit, shutout baseball with five strikeouts.

And with that, Malvern Prep picks up their 30th of the year, and will wrap up the regular season on Saturday morning against St Georges Tech before getting a first round bye for the PAISAA playoffs. They will host the winner of Friday’s Westtown and Springside-Chestnut Hill game on Tuesday, 5/19.

WC Henderson 7, Haverford 4

By: Jaidyn Rivera:

The Haverford Fords fell to Henderson Warriors in today’s out of league match up 7-4 despite out hitting them eight to five.

Henry Lilgendahl led the Fords in todays game with three hits. 

The Warriors opened the scoring in the top of the third inning with two singles that scored two runs. 

Lucas Rothstein started the game for Haverford. The lefty allowed zero hits and two runs over 2.1 innings, striking out three and walking two. Grayson Boebert pitched three innings in relief today for the Fords allowing only 2 hits and 5 runs (2 earned) while striking out three and walking six. 

Lilgandahl showed pop in the lineup for the Fords today and led the Fords with 2 RBI’S and going 3-3 on the day at the plate. Sean MacGillivray and Boebert also drove in runs for the Fords. Shane Durkan had two stolen bases in todays match up. 

In this out of league game, both teams were just trying to tune things up before the playoffs start for them. Haverford will be the #1 seed in the District 1 6A playoffs, and there is actually a chance that these two teams meet again next Wednesday.

Henderson is the #17 seed and right now would play #16 Boyertown, where the winner would go to Haverford.

The bracket will be finalized Thursday night.

Garnet Valley had already clinched their spot in the PIAA District 1 playoffs, but they had a non-conference game vs West Chester East that was scheduled for Wednesday and moved to today as a tune up game.

The Jags have been playing really good baseball lately, winning their last four going into this game and finishing the season in third place in the Central League at 11-5.

With their second extra inning win in the last two days, Garnet Valley feels good heading back into the playoffs.

Garnet Valley 4, West Chester East 3

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

Not only did Garnet Valley win this game in extra innings, but they erased a 2-0 deficit in the top of the seventh to do so.

The Jaguars saw their first six runners of the inning reach base in the top of the seventh. Ashton Yau reached on an error, while Garret Hosterman and Connor Criswell singled.

Branden Capone followed that up with a single to score Yau and Hosterman to tie the game up at 2-2. Next up was Kevin Coleman, who added another single to score pinch runner Evan Harris to make it 3-2.

Garnet surely would have liked some more insurance run, but they settled for a 3-2 lead, and West Chester East tied it on a sac fly in the seventh.

Cole Hoffacker led off the bottom of the eighth and wasted no time, ripping an inside the parker to center field to take the lead on the first pitch. Now leading once again, a rare pitching appearance from Harrison Maull ended with the win as he allowed just a walk in the eighth to finish it off.

Asher Weingarten was stellar on the mound for the first four innings, allowing just three hits and a run while striking out four. Connor Criswell allowed a run over two innings with a strikeout in relief.

Branden Capone, Monday’s walk-off hero, had two hits including that two-run single. Harrison Maull had two hits while Zach Gordon also had a hit.

Garnet Valley finishes a stellar regular season at 14-6. We don’t know who their first round matchup will officially be against just yet, but we do know that Ryan McGhee and the Jaguars will host a first round playoff game in the District 1 6A bracket next Monday, May 18th.

They are currently the #12 seed, and if the current rankings stay the same, they will play #21 Central Bucks West. That is still subject to change, but based on the rankings, they appear locked into a home game at the very least.

Springfield 7, Unionville 1

By: Gabe Danisi:

Springfield came out swinging Tuesday, putting up 14 hits in a 7-1 win over Unionville that was never really in doubt after the third inning.

Unionville actually drew first blood in the second. Indy Riggs singled, stole second, and came around to score on a Gavin Griffith double to left — though Griffith got thrown out trying to stretch it to a triple. Longhorns up 1-0 early.

Springfield answered right back in the third. Jake Lennon singled to lead things off, and after a sac bunt moved him to second, Danny Meakim lined one to center to tie it at 1-1. Then TJ Valletti followed with another single to center to flip the lead, 2-1 Cougars.

The fifth inning was where Springfield really put it away. Owen Keough singled, Danny Meakim singled, and Nick Corse dropped down a bunt single — but a first baseman’s error let Keough score and put two runners in scoring position. Then Valletti stepped up and crushed a triple to center to clear the bases, pushing the lead to 5-1. Just like that, Unionville was cooked.

Springfield tacked on another in the sixth when Meakim doubled, and Valletti came through again — this time grounding into a fielder’s choice that scored Lennon to make it 6-1. A seventh-inning single by Jake Lehman brought home the final run for the 7-1 final.

Meakim was everywhere — 4-for-5 with a single, double, and two more singles, doing damage all over the lineup. Valletti did the heavy lifting with four RBI, going 2-for-4 with the big triple. Keough and Lennon each had multiple hits as Springfield spread it around all day.

On the mound, Denny Monastra was sharp to start, going three innings and allowing just one run on two hits with two strikeouts. Jack Rae took over from there and was dominant, tossing two scoreless innings and striking out four while surrendering just one hit. Valletti closed it out in the seventh, retiring the side to finish things off. For Unionville, Brendan Heyer took the loss, giving up five runs on 10 hits across four innings with three strikeouts. Alex Gonzalez came on in relief and went two innings, allowing one run while striking out five, but the damage was already done.

Springfield takes the win and finishes their regular season at 13-7 after going just 5-15 last year, a remarkable turnaround. The Cougars will also be hosting a playoff game next Monday, though the opponent has yet to be determined.

As of right now, they are the #7 seed and would host the reigning state champion Upper Dublin Cardinals who are #10.

Sun Valley 5, Oxford 2

By: Jaidyn Rivera:

In their last game of the season, the Sun Valley Vanguards looked to end on a good one, and they came through with a 5-2 win over Oxford on this wonderful Tuesday afternoon. 

The Vanguards opened up the scoring at the top of the first inning after Ryan Messick tripled down the right field line, scoring Jaden Comisiak.

Oxford then tied the game 1-1 in the bottom of the first on a single to center field.

Messick singled, giving him his second RBI of the game, giving Sun Valley the lead once again, 2-1, in the top of the third. 

With an error in the bottom of the fifth by the Vanguards, Oxford tied the game up at two with little game left. 

The Vanguard took the lead in the top of the seventh, 5-2, with three runs. Luke Williams drove in Logan Howe with a single, Jaden Comisiak scored on a wild pitch which made Williams advance to third, and Daniel Miller scored Luke Williams on a single to right field. 

On the bump for the vanguards was Austin Miazza and was he lights out. Miazza went 7 innings allowing only 4 hits, 2 walks, 2 runs (1 earned) and 7 strikeouts.

Messick led the ways for the Vanguards collecting 2 RBI’s and went 2-3 on the day at the plate. Jaden Comisiak and Luke Williams also collected two hits each at the plate for the Vanguards. Austin Jennings collected 3 walks today for the Vanguards. The Vangurds had a great eye at the plate in todays game collecting 7 walks.

The Vanguards end their season on a good one finishing 7-13 on the year. Sun Valley went just 3-15-1 last year, so that is a great step in the right direction with a young core.

Chichester 17, Academy Park 2

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

Chichester has not lost a Del Val league game since before the pandemic, and if that streak is ever going to end, it won’t be in 2026.

Chichester finishes off a 12-0 Del Val season with a home win over Academy Park. The Eagles scored two in the first inning, but fully took over this one with 12 in the bottom of the second.

Five different players on Chichester had 2+ hits. Zach Murray (2), Evan Valentine (2), Cole Sanford (2), Luke Werley (2), and Gavin Derrickson (3). In addition to that, six players drove in two or more runs. All of those players above, and Logan Werley (2).

On the mound, Dominic Ricco threw the first 2.1 innings with one earned run while Braydon Sweigart threw the final 1.2 with no hits and no runs along with three strikeouts.

Lucas Gilbert had the lone hit on the day for Academy Park.

Chichester finishes their regular season 14-6 overall and will be the #1 seed in the District 1 5A bracket. We don’t know who they will be playing just yet, but they will be playing the winner of the #8 and #9 seed and their game will be at Chichester next Wednesday, 5/20.

As of right now, they would play the winner of #8 West Chester East and #9 Upper Merion.

Interboro 15, Penn Wood 0

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

Interboro was pretty much locked into their playoff seed already, but this win certainly won’t hurt their confidence.

The Bucs scored 12 runs in the first inning and coasted to a three-inning mercy rule win. Nicholas Daino and Chase Norbeck drove in nearly half the runs in this game for the Bucs; Daino drove in four on two hits and Norbeck drove in three on two hits.

Nate Vazquez also drove in two runs while Austin Dean had two hits and drove in a run. On the mound, Jaxson Munro threw a scoreless inning with two strikeouts, while Joel Schimpf retired all six hitters he faced with five strikeouts in relief.

Interboro finishes their regular season at 13-7, and it looks highly likely that they will head to Holy Ghost on Tuesday, 5/19 for the first round of the District 1 4A bracket. That bracket only has four teams, so a win over Holy Ghost would mean a trip to the district title against either Pope John Paul II or Springfield Montco.

Delco Christian 10, Renaissance Academy 1

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

Delco Christian clinched their playoff spot when they beat Dock Mennonite on a walk-off Monday afternoon, but they handled business against Renaissance Academy in this one anyway.

The Knights controlled this game as they scored two in the first and three in the third, but really put the exclamation point on with five in the fourth. Matteo DeBellis and Izaac Amann both had two hits, with Amann driving in two runs and DeBellis driving in one. Micah Dutton also drove in two runs, while Nathan Burd and Josey Lyren drove in one.

On the mound, Cyrus Mulder was marvelous. He allowed just two hits and one unearned run over seven dominant innings, striking out seven.

As of right now, Delco Christian will be the #3 seed and would face #2 Calvary Christian in the first round of the District 1 2A bracket next Tuesday. An interesting note is that these two teams are both 8-3 in their conference and play each other tomorrow, so it sure seems like the winner of that game will be the #2 seed while the loser will either be #3 or even #4.

That game against Calvary Christian on Wednesday will be the last regular season game for the Knights.

Friends Central 10, Roman Catholic 1

By: Jonah Casel:

In their final home games, Friends’ Central seniors Caleb Bachman and Lucas Abreu each hit very impressive milestones in their high school careers.

Bachman led off for the Phoenix, lacing a single to right field for his 110th career varsity hit, one more than any other Friends’ Central baseball player had ever collected. Bachman’s high school career has been an incredible success, ever since his Freshman year when he walked off Westtown in extra innings to send his team to their first of a four-peat championship run. 

The lefty catcher will play his college baseball at Lafayette, but not before leaving everything out on the field on Friday at Penn Charter in the first round of the PAISAA playoffs.

Abreu, a senior pitcher and utility player, blasted his first career home run to right field in the bottom of the second. Great timing by Abreu to get his first in his final home game! He’s had a breakthrough season for Friends’ Central and his heroics were appreciated today. 

In addition to the home run, Abreu started the game at pitcher and allowed no hits, no runs, only one walk, and struck out seven in four innings of dominance. Abreu will bring his hot streak to college baseball at Chesapeake next season.

Friends’ Central controlled the game completely from the start. The Phoenix batted 14 different players including subs, and 13 of them reached base successfully at least once. 

Shane Zakrzewski, Peter Buonadonna, and Luis Selles each collected a hit, but their efforts were too little too late for Roman Catholic.

Friends’ Central looks to get past Penn Charter on Friday for the chance to play their rivals, Shipley, in the second round. Roman Catholic’s season is over, they finished with a 5-14-1 record overall.

Downingtown East 3, Conestoga 0

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

It was a struggle for the Conestoga offense against a Downingtown East team that will be heading to the District 1 6A playoffs and looks to be hosting a game as well.

The Cougars scored two in the fourth and one in the fifth, which was plenty of runs to beat a Conestoga team that had just three hits on the day. Brendan Soura, John Bauer and Sam Kissinger all had hits on the senior day for the Pioneers.

It was a pretty cool start to the game as Ryan Bauer, who missed the season with an injury, threw out the first pitch of the game on senior day before coming out.

Brendan Soura then allowed just one hit across three shutout innings of relief. Liam Scheffer also was great in relief, with just one unearned run across three innings with five strikeouts.

It was a tough year for Conestoga, as their expected top three pitchers in Luke Hunter, Ryan Bauer, and John Bauer all either did not pitch or barely pitched this season due to injury. No team can really expect to rebound from that.

Conestoga finishes the season at 7-13 and will not be postseason bound in 2026 in year two under Anthony Greco after an appearance in 2025.

(image of Colin Thomas via Shelby Kauffman/DBN)

For the last decade or so, calling Bonner and O’Hara a rivalry on the diamond was purely based off the fact that these two teams don’t like each other, because the games all went in Bonner’s favor.

Until today.

With the season on the line, Bonner made the gutsy decision to start sophomore Colin Thomas on the mound looking to beat Bonner for the first time since 2018, and it paid off better than they could have ever imagined.

(Brendan Ricciardi)

O’Hara 4, Bonner 0

By: Nick Mazzarella:

O’Hara takes down the reigning PCL champs and rival Bonner in the wild card round.  A Jake Steigerwalt double in the top of the second drove in the first two runs of the game and put O’Hara on top. 

Colin Thomas came back out and spun a 1-2-3 shutdown inning to set up more scoring for the Lions in the top of the third. Nate Evert doubled to drive in Jack Quinn and extend O’Hara’s lead to three. 

And again, Thomas went back out and tossed a shutdown inning, as he had the Friars number all game long. Thomas tossed 5.1 innings, allowing only one hit and striking out eight in the process. For a sophomore in his first playoff start, his poise was incredible.

Sean Vaughn grounded out to drive in O’Hara’s fourth run and that’s all they needed.

Bonner’s offense couldn’t find its pulse, with a Jack Brown single being the only hit of the day. Danny Buckton allowed six hits and four runs (one earned) as Bonner made three errors in the field as well. Jake Gorman came in relief for him in the fourth, and tossed four shutout innings to try and give the Friars a chance.

Adam Schrieber tossed the final inning and two thirds to close out the game and get the shutout against their rival. Bonner made things interesting as they loaded the bases in the bottom of the sixth, but Schreiber got a groundout right back to himself for the third out to close out the inning.

Nate Evert and Joey Thompson both had two hits in the win for the Lions, who had ten as a team.

Bonner sees its season come to a close early after winning the PCL last season as they finish at an even 10-10. That feels pretty accurate given how up and down their season was.

Cardinal O’Hara stays alive and will go on to face #1 La Salle on Wednesday. That game will likely start at 4:00 PM with Jack Quinn expected to pitch.

Haverford 7, Ridley 0

By: Gabe Danisi:

Haverford High and Ridley met Monday at 200 Mill Rd, and it was never really close.

The Fords rolled to a 7-0 shutout win behind a dominant pitching performance and a big second inning that put the game away early.

Haverford got on the board in the first without even getting a hit. Owen Klick singled, stole second, and came around to score on a catcher’s error to make it 1-0.

Then the second inning happened. Gavin Andrewson singled to start things off, and after some small ball and a hit by pitch loaded the bases, Klick lined a two-run single to left to make it 3-0. Then Shane Durkan stepped up and absolutely crushed one to right field — a three-run shot that blew the game open at 6-0. Five runs on three hits in one inning, and Ridley’s Jake Mansfield was done after four.

Durkan added a sac fly in the fifth to score a courtesy runner and push it to 7-0, finishing the day with four RBI on just one hit. That’s efficiency.

On the mound, Rocco Kelleher was filthy. The righty threw four dominant innings — no hits, no runs, seven strikeouts, one walk. Jimmy Boyle came on in relief and picked up right where Kelleher left off, tossing three scoreless frames with five more strikeouts, including an incredible milestone as he threw his 250th career strikeout.

The two combined to hold Ridley to just two hits on the day, coming from Jayden Carney and Nick Pollag.

Klick led the Haverford offense going 2-for-4 with two stolen bases, and Durkan’s homer was the knockout punch this one needed.

Haverford becomes the first team since the 2013 Strath Haven Panthers to go undefeated in the Central League. They will be the #1 seed in the District 1 6A bracket and will get a first round bye.

The bracket will be revealed this Thursday, but what we do know is that the Fords will host a playoff game next Wednesday, May 20th, against the winner of the 16/17 game. As of right now, that would be the winner of Boyertown and Cheltenham, but there are still some games to be played.

Haverford will host West Chester Henderson for a non-conference tune up game on Wednesday as both teams will be getting ready for the 6A playoffs.

As for Ridley, they fall to 7-9 in the Central League, and it is unclear whether they will make the playoffs or not. They were #24 heading into the day, but the teams below them are 7-11 Avon Grove and 6-9 CB East. As mentioned above, we will fully know the answer on Thursday night.

Garnet Valley 3, Lower Merion 2

By: Jaidyn Rivera:

It came down to the wire on today’s beautiful Monday afternoon, as Garnet Valley walks it off, 3-2 against Lower Merion in elevn innings.

The game was tied up 2-2 going into the bottom of the eleventh, when Brandon Capone came up and drove in the winning run on a single. 

Pitching was very strong for both sides as Ryan McGhee and Colton Turner both threw well for the Garnet Valley Jaguars, with a combined 10 strike out through 11 innings and one earned run. Brian Heck, Charlie Lovett, and Justin Heck also pitched well for the Lower Merion Aces, as they had a combined 12 strike outs in 10.2 innings. 

Late in the game, Cole Lombardo put Garnet Valley on the board first in the bottom of the sixth inning when his bunt single was thrown away, allowing Brandon Capone to score. 

Leo Ufberg later grounded into a fielders choice which led to the Aces to tie the game up in the top of the seventh. 

The Aces then took the lead in the top of the eighth. Brendan O’Gara hit a sacrifice fly to left field, scoring Charlie Parsons, bringing in the leading run giving the Aces the advantage at 2-1. 

Harrison Maull singled to center field to score Ryan McGhee, who also singled, which helped Garnet Valley answer back and tie the game at two in the bottom of the eighth.

Cole Hoffacker led off the eleventh with a single, and Ashton Yau bunted him over to second. A Garret Hosterman groundout moved him over to third, and then Capone ended it with a base hit,

Garnet Valley finishes the Central League season at 11-5 and will host a first round playoff game next Monday, May 18th. Who that matchup will be against is still to be determined, but as of right now, it would be #21 Central Bucks West as GV is the #12 seed at the moment.

Lower Merion ends the Central League season at 7-9, but they still are in a playoff position. They are currently hanging on by a thread as they are the #23 seed out of 24 teams. We will find out for certain on Thursday if they are in or out.

Radnor 5, Penncrest 2

By: Jonah Casel:

Radnor went on the road against a Central League opponent on a Monday afternoon and came home with likely a first round playoff bye.

Daniel Kellis started and dealt for the Raptors, punching out eight and allowing only one run in his four innings of work. Radnor’s offense was able to secure a win, with a lot of credit to Kellis’s excellent pitching performance.

Henry Murphy took the bump for the Lions, and had a solid day. He gave his team the opportunity to win the game, allowing three runs in five innings, but Penncrest couldn’t make it happen on offense.

Radnor started early, scoring three runs in the first three innings, and Penncrest could not salvage a comeback. They brought the deficit to one after scoring runs in the fourth and fifth inning, but Radnor tacked on in the final two innings thanks to RBI singles from Andrew Quigley and Sean Mutschler respectively.

Austin Havertine put on a show today, notching three hits, an RBI, and a save on his stat sheet. He was a big reason why Radnor won this game, and he has really stepped up on offense this season after rarely being needed to swing the bat in 2025. Blake Havertine also added two hits and allowed a run over two innings of work with three strikeouts.

Penncrest scored two runs, but they were held to only three total hits. There wasn’t much that they could do against the Raptors’ pitching staff today, and Radnor has absolutely earned their first round playoff bye assuming the bracket does not change.

Mike Simone, Austin Younger and Braden Davis had hits in the loss for Penncrest.

As the season nears its end, Radnor will host Episcopal on Wednesday, and Penncrest is off until Saturday, when they will play a morning scrimmage against Plymouth Whitemarsh.

As of right now, we assume that Radnor will play their first game next Wednesday, May 20th. That game as of right now would be against the winner of Rustin and Hatboro-Horsham.

Penncrest we do know will host a first round playoff game on Monday, May 18th. As of right now, that sure looks like the rubber match between rival Strath Haven, as the teams split their matchups in the regular season.

Marple Newtown 4, Strath Haven 0

By: Blake Karabin:

As the final regular season game of 2026 for both Marple and Strath Haven has now been completed, Marple Newtown did what they could in their last game to make the District 1 5A playoffs, while Strath Haven is officially in.

Today, Marple took home the 4-0 shutout victory on the road behind their pitching.

Aiden Carney started for Marple and went 3.1 innings. He struck out five and allowed no runs on three hits and four walks. Following him was Joey Dwyer, who pitched the other 3.2 innings and struck out two while not allowing a run on a hit and three walks.

Sal Brady and Zach Marro led the offense for the Tigers in this one. Brady went 1-3 with a double and RBI. Marro went 1-2 with two RBI’s, including an RBI single in the top of the first.

Marple got going early in the top of the first, scoring three, and never looked back from there. Kevin Agger made it 1-0 on an RBI single and that’s how their day got started.

As for Haven, it was a solid day for the pitching staff. Patrick Burke started and threw five innings. He struck out six and walked two, while allowing three runs on four hits. Travis McDonough and Patrick Tolson relieved Burke. McDonough pitched an inning and allowed a run on two hits. He also added a strikeout to his name. Tolson finished up the Panthers’ efforts today with an inning on the mound. He allowed no runs on no hits and no walks.

Haven’s offense today was quieted by Marple. The bright spots came from Quinn Kell, Atticus Bean, and Patrick Burke. All three of them went 1-3 with a walk and a single.

Strath Haven will be heading to the playoffs once again as they finish the season at 8-8. They seem pretty locked into the #11 seed which would mean a matchup Penncrest. They could potentially move up to #10 and a matchup with Springfield, but I would guess they stay at 11.

As of right now, Marple Newtown is not in the final 12. That could still change with the confusing formula, but they end the Central League season 6-10 and Hatboro-Horsham is ahead of them at 5-10. One way or another, we will find out on Thursday.

Conestoga 13, Upper Darby 4

By: Ben Thorpe:

Conestoga scored early and often against Upper Darby on Monday, wrapping up Central League play with a 13-4 win.

A six-run second inning set the tone. Brendan Soura, Landon Jones, and Luke Herrell all picked up RBIs in the frame. Soura, Justin Schwartz, and John Bauer all had multi-hit days. Bauer had two-RBIs as well, joining Jake Bonelli and Owen Wisler as Pioneer batters with multiple RBIs.

Austin Campbell and Jayvohn Tran were the top hitters for UD. Thomas Chung and Yerlin Feliz also added RBI’s.

Finn Nieberle started for Conestoga and picked up the win. Nolan Campbell closed it out for the Pioneers.

This was the final game of Upper Darby’s 2026 campaign. They finish winless in the Central League and will look to build for next year.

Conestoga wraps up Central League play with a 6-10 record, which puts them on the outside of the District 1 6A playoffs. The Pioneers close out the season with a home game against Downingtown East on Tuesday.

Springfield 10, Harriton 0

By: Bryson Ungar:

And just like that, the Central League regular season has come to an end. Springfield keeps turning heads and got a nice win over Harriton today, building momentum heading into the playoffs. While the exact seeding is still uncertain, Springfield has undoubtedly locked up a postseason spot and will be a contender in districts for sure as they will host a playoff game.

For Harriton, it’s an unfortunate way to close out the year. They finished the season 3–13 in Central League play after a difficult stretch run. Despite the tough ending, the program retains a strong core and is expected to welcome several exciting underclassmen to varsity next season.

Today was an explosive day for the Cougars offense. This game was a little different then these two teams’ first meeting, when Springfield won 3-1. 

Sam Bohnenkamp got the start for the Rams. Bohnenkamp led the Rams on the mound this year, posting a 1.47 ERA in 43.0 IP. He truly has found a way to keep Harriton in pretty much every game he’s pitched in this year, but today Springfield knew what he had coming. 

Shane McCaffrey got things started in the second when he singled to score one. 

The Cougars then struck again in the bottom of the fourth after a catcher’s interference. Owen Keough continued the fun singling to right, then Danny Meakim singled to center. Nick Corse then drew a walk, and it was a 5-0 game. 

It feels like I write this every game, but as usual, Harriton’s offense was again nowhere to be found. They only managed 3 hits today. Calvin Costello, Gaven Bowman, and Ryan Slone accounting for them. The Rams also had another game with more errors than hits (4-3).

By now it was the bottom of the sixth, and Springfield was not done yet. TJ Valletti grounded out, scoring one, Johnny Hopkins singled to right scoring two more, and Shane McCaffrey of course doubled, scoring two more. It was truly an amazing display of offense by the team. 

In total the Cougs collected 11 hits. Hopkins and McCaffrey both with multi-hit games. Each of them also drove in two runs. 

Drew Kraus got the start for the Cougars and did not disappoint. He went 5.0 IP on three hits allowed, and struck out nine. Jack Rae provided a dominant inning of relief as well. 

As we know, Bohnenkamp started for Harriton. The senior went 5.0 IP allowing eight hits and two earned runs. He also fanned six. Nate Swalley then came in. Best of luck to those two guys the rest of the way, as they were two of Harriton’s main contributors.

With this capping the end of the regular season, Springfield (10-6) will await their playoff matchup being announced. As of right now, it appears to be the reigning PIAA 5A State Champion Upper Dublin Cardinals.

Malvern Prep 11, Westtown 0

By: Nick Mazzarella:

There go the Friars again.

The Friars pitching staff pitches their eighth shutout of the season, while the offense scores 10+ for the 14th time. The Friars scored a run in the first on a Brady Abate home run.

And surprisingly, Malvern Prep was shutout for back-to-back innings, but then got right back to it, scoring 10 in the fourth.

Seven guys had an RBI, and Cole Scarbinsky led the way with a three-RBI game including two doubles. Jason Kay went four innings, allowing three baserunners, and striking out nine. Stephen Postek went 3/3 with 2 RBI, while Nick Schmitt and Luke Moore also had two hits and drove in a run.

Gavin Antenucci closed out the game, securing yet another shutout for the Friars.

Malvern Prep wins their 29th game of the season, and are now 29-4, and will play away at Perkiomen School on Wednesday at 4:15. This is a regular season game, but the Friars will be the #1 seed in the PAISAA Tournament looking for their fourth straight state championship.

Delco Christian 8, Dock Mennonite 7

By: Ben Thorpe:

Delco Christian started strong and finished stronger, scoring three in the first and seventh to clinch a walkoff win over Dock Mennonite.

Trailing 1-0 in the bottom of the first, Matteo DeBellis and Justin Ma led off with singles. Nathan Burd got the Knights on the board with a triple. Burd then scored on a passed ball to make it 3-1.

The teams traded two-spots in the third. Drew Bradica tied things up for Dock with a two-RBI single in the top of the inning. 

In the bottom, Josey Lyren got the lead back for Delco Christian with a single and Burd scored on a wild pitch for a 5-3 lead.

Dock made their move in the sixth, scoring three to take the lead. Bradica came through with the big hit again, a two-run single. They added another in the seventh on a balk.

Delco Christian found themselves trailing 7-5 with three outs remaining. They would need none of those outs.

Ma led off with a walk, Burd followed up with a single to bring up Maden Longley. Longley provided the swing of the day for the Knights, a triple that tied the game.

Josey Lyren came up after that. He took the golden opportunity and won the game with a single.

Delco Christian now sits at 8-10 on the year. They’re firmly in the District 1 2A playoffs. The Knights play Renaissance Academy on Tuesday and as of right now look headed to a 2024 and 2025 district title rematch against Faith Christian in the first round. That would be Tuesday, 5/19.

Chichester 10, Sun Valley 0

By: Nick Mazzarella:

Chichester’s offense didn’t hold back today. 

Five guys had RBI’s, and seven guys had a hit. 

In the second inning, the Eagles got their first few runs. Gavin Derrickson drove in the first two runs of the game on a base hit. Braydon Sweigert then drove him in to hang a quick three runs on the Vanguards.

And from then on, the Eagles just tacked it on nearly every inning. Two in the third, four in the fifth, and one in the sixth before the game was called due to mercy.

The Eagles had RBIs from 5/9 hitters, as Gavin Derrickson, Braydon Sweigert, Logan Werley, Luke Werley, and Damian Diaz-Badillo all had a RBI.

Derrickson and Logan Werley both had two RBIs, and Luke Werley had a 3-3 day. Cole Sanford gets the W, pitching four innings, four hits, and six strikeouts. Sanford also collected his 100th career strikeout, so congrats to him.

Zach Murrary and Derrickson closed out the game with back to back shutout innings.

Logan Howe, Daniel Miller, Riley Comisiak and Jaeden Larch had hits in the loss for Sun Valley. Jaden Comisiak allowed one earned run over two innings in relief.

Sun Valley now sits at 6-13, but have still doubled on their win total from last season with a lot of young talent returning. They will be away at Oxford Tuesday for their season closer at 4:00.

Chichester’s strong season continues at 13-6, and they will wrap up their regular season Tuesday at home against Academy Park at 3:45. They will be the #1 seed in the PIAA District 1 5A bracket, and as of right now, would host the winner of #8 West Chester East and #9 Upper Merion next Wednesday, May 20th if the current bracket holds.

Episcopal ?, Coatesville ?

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

Episcopal will be the #4 seed an earn a first round bye in the PAISAA State Tournament starting on Friday, but before then, they have a couple tune up games to get ready.

This one came under the lights at Coatesville, and the Episcopal offense came to play in a big way.The Churchmen scored multiple runs in four innings, including four in the first, three in the second, five in the sixth and two in the seventh.

Dillon Walls hit a two-run double while Reggie King and Trey Schwaninger added RBI singles in the top of the first, but Coatesville answered with three in the bottom of the first to make it a game again.

Baxter Schuh blasted a three-run double in the top of the second, and the game was never really close again from then on. Schuh ended the day by driving in four runs, while Dillon Walls drove in three. JD Amoroso had two hits and walked three teams, which Walls also did.

Reggie King added a second RBI on the day, and the Episcopal lineup was patient all day as they worked 12 walks.

Episcopal ace Hunter West started the game and allowed three earned runs over 4.1 innings with five strikeouts. That likely lines him up to start the first Churchmen playoff game, which we were told would be Tuesday, May 19th, but that is not finalized.

What we are fairly confident in is that they will play the winner of #5 Haverford School and #12 Abington Friends, which would be another rivalry playoff game here in Delco, and who doesn’t love that?

Charlie Smith threw 1.2 perfect innings of relief with four strikeouts, and Matt Roberts finished off the win.

Two of the top teams in the area will meet up for a non-conference game on Wednesday when Episcopal heads to Radnor. I am curious how many starters from each side will play as both teams have clinched byes in their respective playoffs, but we’ll see.

You can argue what the best Delco Baseball rivalries are. Bonner/O’Hara, Chichester/Interboro, Strath Haven/Marple, there’s plenty to go around.

I won’t say that Haverford School/Episcopal is the best, but I do think that it often feels like it means the most because of how short the Inter-Ac season is. The season is only ten games, so the two games that they play together make up 20% of their regular season.

In 2026, that 20% went to Episcopal.

(Brendan Ricciardi)

Episcopal 5, Haverford School 4

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

Episcopal and The Haverford School played two tight rivalry games this season, but in both games, Episcopal came out on top.

The Churchmen took down Haverford 10-6 in our game of the week back on April 21st, and win this one 5-4 thanks to a JD Amoroso sac fly in the top of the seventh to break a 4-4 tie.

Episcopal scored two in the top of the first on a Spencer Schuh RBI groundout to score JD Amoroso, and a Reggie King RBI single to score Dillon Walls.

Haverford would get their first run on a Harrison Bongiovanni RBI groundout scoring Nicky Vanni in the bottom of the second, but EA responded right back in the third as Schuh drove in another run with a sac fly to score Walls.

The Fords had another answer, as they brought the power out. Zack Lawler and Braydon Scanlan both homered, and just like that, it was tied up at 3-3.

JD Amoroso broke that tie with an RBI single in the fifth to score Matt LaTour, both another Haverford homer, this time by Mike Noone, tied it up.

Ty Cohen led off the seventh with a double, and Matt LaTour did his job with a sac bunt to move him over to third. The small ball worked to perfection as JD Amoroso’s sac fly scored him to take the lead.

Charlie Smith went out to try and close it out for Episcopal, but an error and a walk put the tying and winning runs on base.

Haverford attempted a sac bunt, but a great play by Episcopal catcher Ty Cohen got the force out at third base to nail the lead runner.

Smith would retire the next two hitters via fly outs to bring home a 5-4 win.

JD Amoroso and Spencer Schuh both drove in two runs for the Churchmen, while Reggie King drove in the other. Dan Castro allowed three runs on five hits across four innings with two strikeouts. Charlie Smith allowed just one hit and one run over the final three innings with two strikeouts.

For Haverford, Jacob Horwitz allowed four runs on five hits across five innings while striking out four. Owen Murphy allowed a run over two innings with two strikeouts in relief.

Braydon Scanlan had two hits including a homer, with Zack Lawler and Mike Noone homering as well.

Episcopal improves to 15-8 on the year and finishes their Inter-Ac season tied for second place with Germantown Academy at 6-4. Next up for them is a home game with Holy Ghost on Saturday morning at 11.

As for The Haverford School, it has been a tale of two seasons for them. They started the season 12-4 but have lost eight straight to fall to 12-12 as they end the Inter-Ac season at 3-7. The only game on their schedule at the moment is a home game vs Central next Saturday 5/16, but based on recent history, I would think the PAISAA State Tournament would begin before then. We’ll have more info on that bracket soon.

Penncrest 7, O’Hara 0

By: Brendan Ricciardi

Penncrest lost a tight one to rival Strath Haven on Tuesday, but they rebounded in this one to get back on track against O’Hara.

Michael Schade was the story in this one, as the senior pitcher threw six shutout innings with five hits allowed and six strikeouts.

Penncrest scored their first run in the bottom of the second when Sander Robinson knocked in Andrew Luber-Solic with a groundout, but Penncrest really took over when they scored three in the bottom of the third.

All of those runs came with two outs, including a two-run single from Henry Murphy.

Penncrest would score one run in each of the last three innings to bring home the win. Sergio Hernandez had three hits to lead the Penncrest offense. Henry Murphy and Travis Younger both drove in two runs.

For O’Hara, Michael Brown threw three innings allowing one earned run and a strikeout. Freshman Joey Thompson continued a great debut season as he went 3/3 including a triple.

Penncrest improves to 12-7 on the year with this non-conference win. They are 10-5 in the Central League and will host Radnor on Monday for their last conference game. They are already headed to the playoffs, and could very well earn a first round bye should they beat Radnor on Monday.

As for O’Hara, they fall to 8-12 on the season as their regular season has come to an end. They will head to Bonner on Monday at 4:00 for the first round of the PCL Tournament.

Bonner beat O’Hara back on April 15th 1-0, you can watch the broadcast of this game on the Delco Baseball Now YouTube channel.

Malvern Prep 9, Springside Chestnut Hill 2

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

Malvern Prep had already clinched the Inter-Ac outright after defeating Penn Charter on Tuesday, but they win this one on the road handily to put the icing on the cake.

The Friars put seven on the board in the first two innings, including five right off the bat to take control of this game. Jalen Bowman and Brady Abate doubled back-to-back to start the game, and it was all Friars from there.

Brady Abate would also homer in the game, driving in two runs. Nick Schmitt also drove in two runs in the win. Grady Forsberg, Cole Scarbinsky and Luke Moore drove in a run. Jackson Melconian had two hits and a walk.

On the mound, Collin Romanczuk allowed just one hit over four shutout innings with six strikeouts. Kayden Wallace allowed a run in an inning of relief and Paul DiBona threw the final two.

Malvern finishes the Inter-Ac season at 9-1 and is now 27-4 overall. Their next scheduled game is home vs Westtown on Monday. As mentioned above, we should have the PAISAA Tournament bracket sometime soon and will let everyone know when we have that.

Holy Ghost 14, Chichester 6

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

In the battle of Delco Baseball Now interns David Szczepanski (Holy Ghost) and Dylan Johnson (Chichester), Szczepanski takes this one between the two Villanova journalism students.

Things started off great for Chichester after Zach Murray tripled to begin the game and Luke Werley grounded out to knock him in, but the game turned quickly as the Firebirds put six on the board in the bottom of the first.

Side note: Firebirds is without a doubt one of the best high school team names around. A lot of names are terribly boring (yes offense).

It looked like Holy Ghost was going to run away with this game as they lead 10-1 in the bottom of the fourth and almost hit mercy rule territory, but Chichester stormed back for five in the top of the fifth to make things interesting.

That included RBI singles from Damian Diaz-Badillo and two-run singles from Josh Stephenson and Logan Werley.

That was as close as Chichester would get, however, as Holy Ghost scored four in the bottom of the sixth to win this one 14-6.

The teams actually tied in hits with 14 each, but Holy Ghost was much more efficient.

Josh Stephenson had three hits for Chichester. Logan Werley, Evan Valentine, Gavin Derrickson and Damian Diaz-Badillo all had two hits. Werley and Stephenson drove in two runs.

Chichester falls to 12-6 overall, but this was a non-conference game, so it doesn’t affect their playoff chances. They are still 11-0 in the Del Val and assuming they beat Academy Park on Tuesday, they will be the #1 seed in the District 1 5A bracket again.

Before that, there will be a big rivalry game with Sun Valley on the road Monday.

I don’t think I realized as an eighth grader at Strath Haven back in 2013 just how special and rare it was to see what the Panthers did that year.

Watching Kevin Mohollen crush baseballs was a lot of fun, as Strath Haven went undefeated in the Central League before getting stunned in the first round by the #19 seed North Penn in the 4A bracket, back when there were only four classes. That North Penn team went on to win the the state championship in improbable fashion, which made that pill a bit easier to swallow.

The reason that for mentioning all of that is very simple: that was the last team to go undefeated in the Central League. Strath Haven went 14-2 in both 2021 and 2023. Haverford and Radnor both famously went 15-1 last season.

With a win on Monday at home against a Ridley team that will likely need to win to make the playoffs (the formula is confusing so they still may get in), Haverford can write their name in the history books.

(Brendan Ricciardi)

Haverford 11, Conestoga 0

By: Shelby Kauffman:

Well, this marks four losses in a row for the Pioneers, and while it’s not impossible, they’re going to need a win at Upper Darby on Monday, and some help to make a playoff appearance. (I wish I could tell you what needed to be done for them to make it, but I have no idea. The formula is hard.)

Anyway, despite already clinching the Central League title, the Fords took what was there’s, and took home a 11-0 shutout down in Berwyn.

The offense got going in the second inning when Sam Sturman crushed a two-run homer to left field to put Haverford on the board. 

Just a few batters later, Bobby Menear added a sacrifice fly in the nine hole to make it 3-0 and give Haverford the lead, they would never give up.

An inning later, the floodgates opened.

Haverford exploded for five runs in the top of the third, highlighted by Sam Sturman’s second blast of the day, an absolute bomb of a three-run shot to left that broke the game wide open. 

Bobby Menear stayed hot at the plate as well, lining a two-run single to cap the five-run frame and extend the lead to 8-0.

On the mound though, the Fords kept rolling. Lucas Rothstein was lights out on the mound, as he has been all year. The Haverford starter allowed just one hit across four scoreless innings, striking out five. 

The man of the game, undoubtedly though, was Sam Sturman, finishing 2-for-2 with two home runs and five RBI in a monster performance.

Owen Klick added two hits as well, in an all around awesome offensive performance from the Fords.

With the win, the Fords are one home win against Ridley away from becoming the first team to go UNDEFEATED in the Central League since Strath Haven in 2013.

Conestoga falls to 5-10 in the Central League and will have to beat Upper Darby Monday to have any chance of staying alive.

Marple Newtown 11, Harriton 0

By: Bryson Ungar:

Well, we just witnessed the nail in the coffin for Harriton’s tough late-season stretch.

The Rams have now lost nine straight games since April 15th, and the struggles simply have not gone away. During that skid, Harriton has scored just five total runs, which is insanely hard to believe for a team that showed promise earlier this season. Meanwhile, their opponents have piled up 69 runs over that same stretch. Tough way to go out for their seniors on senior day. 

For Marple, it was a unique afternoon and evening as the Tigers played two games today. The Tigers had been on a four-game losing streak but snapped it today. This being the first. The Tigers played Harriton on April 23rd and won 12-0. Today was nearly an identical result. And the pitching matchup was also identical. Chase Magee got the start for Marple, and Nate Swalley started for Harriton. Both pitchers started in the first meeting. 

Marple got going right away in this one after an error scored two runs, and Cole Buckley drew a walk scoring one more. They also added another run in the third after Sal Brady lined a double to center field. 

The Tigers then had a four-run fourth inning highlighted by a slew of errors from Harriton and a Kevin Agger double. Harriton had more errors than hits today. They had 4 hits and 8 errors.

Marple didn’t stop there and ultimately elevated the game to an 11-0 lead. The Tigers tallied nine hits on the day. Buckley led the way with three RBI’s while Kevin Agger had three hits. Zach Marro also had two hits. 

Ted Heckman went 3-3 for the Rams at the plate providing some life to the lineup. Hudson Weissman had the other base knock.

Magee was dominant in his outing today. He went the full distance and only allowed four hits and struck out four. Nate Swalley started for the Rams and gave up 5 runs. Harriton then had to call on their ace Sam Bohnenkamp and even he couldn’t really get the ball rolling. 

Harriton (3-12) has one more game left against Springfield (9-6), who have proven themselves to be a legit contender. Marple (5-10) will play one more game against Strath Haven (8-7) after a double header tonight.

Marple did make the playoffs last year at 6-10, so theoretically it is still possible that they make it in. Obviously, they have to beat Strath Haven on Monday to even have a chance.

Marple Newtown 4, Delco Christian 0

By: Bryson Ungar:

Marple truly got the best of both worlds today after winning two games in a unique doubleheader. It’s pretty rare you see teams play twice in the same day in high school ball if it’s not a tournament, but that was the case today. Marple got a nice win over Harriton, in a 4pm start in Rosemont, and then quickly commuted back home for a under the lights 7:30pm start time. 

The out of conference games are always nice because usually teams will give some young guys some varsity opportunities. Marple got another win here tonight.

Jackson Burger continues an exciting senior season after he homered in the bottom of the third giving Marple a lead. Burger also earned the win for Marple on the mound giving up zero hits and zero runs over 5.0 IP. He also struck out 7. Sean Pancoast and John Matthews also provided shutout bullpen innings. 

Josey Lyren took the loss for Delco Christian, as he went 5.0 IP and surrendered 4 runs on five hits, also striking out 7.

Justin Ma led the way for the Knights with a hit, while Burger went 2-3 for Marple. Sean Pancoast, John Matthews, and Cole Buckley all pitched in as well. 

Delco Christian will welcome Dock Mennonite on Monday for their next game. Marple will welcome Strath Haven.

Bonner 7, Chichester 2

By: Nick Mazzarella:

Overall, this was certainly not the way Bonner wanted the season to go, but they manage to salvage and finish the regular season at .500 after winning six of their last seven.

Pitching controlled the first portion of this game, as both pitching staffs had a shutout going until the fourth. In the fourth is where the Friars jumped, and hung up a crooked number. 

A base hit from Sean Erickson drove in Cole Romano to break the seal and put the Friars up. A bases loaded walk from Michael Murphy drove in another. A wild pitch allowed Emmanuel Gibbs to come home. A walk, a double, and a single later and the Friars had tacked on six in the inning.

Another Erickson single in the sixth made it 7-0.

A Damian Diaz-Badillo double gave Chichester their only two runs of the game in the seventh.

Bonners pitching held it down, allowing only two runs and striking out 10 guys. Jake Gorman threw two scoreless innings, Jack Coleman threw three scoreless innings, with both of those guys allowing just one hit. Owen Lockhart threw the final two.

Chichester now sits at 12-5, and will face Holy Ghost tomorrow on the road at 5:00 PM for a non-conference game.

Bonner finishes their season at 10-10, a step back from the last few years, but hey, at least Kevin McGonigle is raking. The Friars will host rival O’Hara in the Wild Card round of the PCL Tournament on Monday at 4:00.

The game will be broadcasted on the Delco Baseball Now YouTube channel, and if it’s anything like the 1-0 game from April 15th that ended in a Luke Albarano walk-off single, we are in for a treat.

Chester 12, Penn Wood 5

By: Ben Thorpe:

A strong start set the tone for Chester in another Del Val win. The Clippers scored three in the first and two in the second on the way to a 12-5 victory.

Johnathan Quiros started the game with a single, advanced to third, and scored the opening run on a Juan Martinez ground ball. Two more came home that inning on an error and fielder’s choice.

Starting pitcher Jacoby Roman helped himself out in the second with a two-run double that made it 5-0. A Martinez single in the third drove in what would end up being the winning run.

Khalil Barksdale picked up his second and third RBI’s, a team high on the day, in the fifth. His double pushed the lead to 9-1.

Penn Wood made it interesting with a four-run bottom of the sixth. Saiheim Johnson-Robinson started the scoring with a single. James Cunliffe and George Preston both drew bases loaded walks to cut the lead to 9-4 and Jaiden Davis’ bunt made it 9-5.

Chester answered right back though. A two-RBI single from Emil Smith Jr. was the highlight of the Clippers three-run top of the seventh and put the game away.

Roman delivered a good start for Chester, only giving up four hits, one earned run, and striking out three in five innings.

While district playoffs look out of reach, Chester has finished .500 in the Del Val. Absolutely something to build on for the Clippers.

For Penn Wood, they’ll look to end the season on a good note at Interboro as they fall to 1-10 in the Del Val and 3-10 overall.

Interboro 15, Academy Park 0

By: Ben Thorpe:

Interboro only needed three innings to secure another Del Val victory. They used a nine-run second inning to secure a 15-0 win over Academy Park.

Austin Dean was the player of the day for the Bucs, coming through with two hits and four RBI. Seven other Interboro batters picked up RBI’s on the day as well:

Anthony Gentili, Chase Norbeck, Tyler Green, Trent Siebenaler, Jayden Pfaff, Calvin Monro and Nate Vazquez.

Jayden Pfaff had an active day on both sides of the ball. Pfaff went 1/1 with two walks and two RBI at the plate and was the starting pitcher for Interboro. 

He threw 2.1 scoreless innings and struck out four. Dean closed it out.

Interboro is now 8-3 in the Del Val and wraps up their regular season at home against Penn Wood. Academy Park falls to 2-9 and will wrap up their 2026 campaign on Tuesday at Chichester.

La Salle 12, O’Hara 4

By: Nick Mazzarella:

O’Hara’s three-game win streak comes to a screeching halt after having to play the #4 team in the state in La Salle.

Pitching couldn’t get it done today, but there were some positives on offense.  Connor Clark had a two hit day, and four different guys had an RBI (Colin Thomas, Jack Quinn, Vinny Mancini, Jayson Gniewoz.)

O’Hara falls to 4-8 in the PCL, and will wrap up their regular season tomorrow against Penncrest on the road at 3:45 PM.

O’Hara will head to rival Bonner on Monday looking for revenge in the first round of the PCL Tournament. The winner of that game will advance to face Conwell-Egan on the road on Wednesday.

The only other team that we cover in the tournament is Devon Prep, who is the #6 seed and will head to #3 Archbishop Wood on Wednesday. Carroll did not make the playoffs after they ended with the same record as O’Hara but lost the head to head.

Kennett 2, Sun Valley 0

By: Nick Mazzarella:

Well, thats the dagger for the Vanguards folks.

Sun Valley is eliminated from making the playoffs after a late run could have gotten them in, but just didn’t have enough gas after Wednesday’s Oxford game was rained out. 

Not much to write home about for this game, but Austin Miazza tossed a gem, going six innings of zero run ball, allowing just one hit and striking out seven. This game was tied 0-0 through six innings before Kennett scored two in the top of the seventh.

Sun Valley actually outhit Kennett 4-2 in this game. Jaden Comisiak had two hits, Logan Howe and Daniel Miller each had one.

It may not be Thanksgiving Day, but Sun Valley will face their biggest rival in Chichester on Monday, May 11th, at home at 3:45 PM.

I’m not sure that anyone, except for Radnor Head Coach Mark Jordan, saw this year coming out of Springfield.

On our preseason podcast preview, Jordan told us that Springfield was going to be very good this year. For a team that was 3-13 last year and 6-10 the year before, I was not so optimistic, but he was clearly right.

The Cougars are heading to the postseason for the first time since 2022, when they were in the 6A bracket and lost to Council Rock North 4-1.

Their last season winning a playoff game was 2017, and I would know, because my Strath Haven team was a victim of theirs that year. I still have nightmares of what my now MSBL teammate Mike Smith did to us that day.

Anyway, I’ll save the rest of my trauma for the podcast, but for now, let’s dive into the five games that were able to played today with the weather.

(Brendan Ricciardi)

Springfield 7, Radnor 1

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

After losing their last two games to Penncrest and Strath Haven, many were wondering how the Cougars would respond.

Beating the reigning DBN player of the year Austin Havertine on the road at Radnor is certainly a good response.

Sophomore lefty Nolan Dulski was brilliant in this game, allowing just five hits and one earned run over seven innings with four strikeouts. The game was scoreless through two innings until Danny Meakim singled in Nick Russo to put Springfield up 1-0, but the inning was just getting started.

Nick Corse drove in Jake Lennon on a sac fly, and Johnny Hopkins came up clutch with a two-out single to score both Meakim and Owen Keough.

In the bottom of the fourth, Austin Havertine led off the inning with a triple, and his brother Blake knocked him in with a sac fly, but that was the only scoring for Radnor on the day.

With a 4-1 lead in the seventh, Springfield got some breathing room with a three-run triple off the bat of TJ Valletti to ice it.

Austin Havertine allowed eight hits, which is uncharacteristically high for his standards, but he still battled with just one earned run (three unearned) and seven strikeouts.

Danny Meakim, Johnny Hopkins and Kai Scheetz all had two hits. Both of these teams are heading to the playoffs, and while Springfield won both matchups this year, a third matchup would be a lot of fun.

Springfield improves to 9-6 in the Central League. They probably won’t earn a first round bye, but they can definitely secure the first playoff game ever at Halderman Field. They wrap up the conference season on Monday at home vs Harriton.

As for Radnor, their six-game winning streak comes to an end. They are still in second place at 11-4 in the Central League and as of right now are still in line for a first round bye, but with the loss, that is a little less certain than it was before today.

They will travel to Penncrest on Monday for their last conference game. There’s a very real chance the winner of that game gets a bye and the loser does not, so it has high stakes.

Devon Prep 8, Roman 0

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

Devon Prep has now won four in a row and six of their last seven, and with this win, they will avoid the wild card round of the PCL Tournament.

Liam Jung was outstanding on the mound for the Tide, throwing six shutout innings with just three hits allowed and ten strikeouts. He did not walk a single hitter, either.

Devon scored their first two runs in the top of the second inning and according to GameChanger, Caleb Tesfaye and Austin Conaty both scored on the same wild pitch. I don’t know how accurate that is or if it was just the same at bat. If it was the same pitch, that’s pretty sick.

This was a tight 2-0 game for a while until Devon used four runs in the top of the fifth to pull away. That included back-to-back run scoring errors to make it 4-0 followed by a two-run single from Caleb Tesfaye.

A Nate Ficoturo RBI single in the sixth and another RBI on a groundout from Tesfaye capped off the scoring for the day, and Colin Carey retired the side in order in the seventh to close it out.

Devon Prep ends the PCL season at 6-6 and will be the #6 seed in the PCL Tournament where they will take on #3 Archbishop Wood on the road. Based on the PCL website, that game would be on Wednesday, May 13th. Assuming probably a 4:00 start like usual.

Lower Merion 8, Upper Darby 4

By: Bryson Ungar:

Lower Merion keeps finding ways to win with their season on the line. Brian Heck and the Aces took advantage of a struggling Upper Darby team this afternoon. After today’s win, the Aces are currently in prime position to clinch a 6A district bid. With a win on Monday, that would be pretty much locked up.

A large chunk of games in the area got rained out, but thanks to the Royals’ relatively new turf infield, we got some great action in this one. 

Lower Merion wasted no time getting on the board. Two-hole hitter Nick Dragut opened the scoring with a solo home run, his second of the week, to right field. The Aces added two more runs in the top of the second inning when Aiden O’Quinn launched a two-run homer on a full-count pitch, extending the early lead.

Lower Merion kept on adding runs, but Upper Darby actually catalyzed a few strong offensive innings. Austin Campbell walked, and Yerlin Feliz singled to put multiple runners on base. Jayvohn Tran then also singled to load the bases. Now it was a big opportunity for the Royals and with Thomas Chung up, he knew he had to deliver. On the first pitch he saw, he cranked a single past the shortstop scoring two. 

Lower Merion then bought back some runs in what was now a 4-2 ballgame. Aiden O’Quinn brought in a runner off a sac fly. Then Nick Dragut doubled to right scoring one, and an error responsible for one more. 

Darby kept trying to give answers to the Aces offensive surge. Brandon Kramer cut the lead back down to a 7-3 ballgame after a single. 

By this point it was just back and forth. One team would score, and another would then find a response. Lower Merion scored their final run in an unusual way after Parker Gregg popped out to third in foul territory. Trevor Roman then scored after an error by the catcher. That rarely happens. 

The last run of the game came from Jack Tran on an RBI double. Props to Upper Darby for finding ways to get runners across the plate. Brendan O’Gara led the way for the Aces at the plate with a three-hit day. LM with nine as a team. For Upper Darby, Yerlin Feliz and Tran both recorded multi-hit games. 

Pitching was competitive on both sides. Brian Heck, the newly crowned all-time strikeout leader for Lower Merion, got the start and only gave up one hit across 2.0 IP and fanned three. Will Cohen, Charlie Lovett, Ethan Hoffman, and Nic Dragut all came in out of the bullpen as well. Lovett and Hoffman threw scoreless innings. 

Tommy Chung started for the Royals, allowing five hits on two earned runs while also sitting down four. Feliz and Trask both had solid relief outings. 

Lower Merion (7-8 CL) will look to solidify their district spot on Monday against Garnet Valley (10-5). Upper Darby (0-15) will try to go out with a win in their final game on Monday against Conestoga (5-9). 

Garnet Valley 10, Ridley 0

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

Garnet Valley had a playoff spot already locked up before today, but with this win, they are in a very good position to host a first round playoff game as well.

It is still possible for them to get a first round bye if they beat Lower Merion on Monday, but still probably unlikely with the logjam of teams ahead of them. The formula is super complicated.

The Jags scored one in the bottom of the first when Kyle Klein’s sac fly scored Cole Lombardo, who was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning.

Garnet Valley took advantage of Ridley’s defensive miscues in the third when they scored three runs on back-to-back errors to open up a 4-0 lead.

The game was put fully out of reach in the bottom of the fifth when Garnet Valley scored six more runs to hit the mercy rule.

Cole Hoffacker had an RBI single, Ashton Yau had a two-run double, Cole Lombardo had an RBI single, Ryan McGhee had an RBI single, and Harrison Maull ended it with an RBI single.

This is a very dangerous Garnet Valley team heading into the playoffs. They obviously have a great offense, but their pitching has been excellent of late, throwing back-to-back shutouts this week led by ace Ryan McGhee.

This one was all Colton Turner, who allowed just three hits over five scoreless innings with two strikeouts.

On the Ridley side of things, Jared Pugh turned in a quality start with one earned run over four innings, but Garnet Valley really got after their bullpen.

Tim Calamita, Aidan Wong and Jake Mansfield had hits in the loss for the Raiders.

Garnet Valley is now tied for third place in the Central League at 10-5 with this win, and will look to lock up a home playoff game and potentially even a first round bye when they host Lower Merion on Monday.

As for Ridley, their hot streak has come to an end, but they are still battling for a playoff spot. They fall to 7-8 on the year and will have to travel to undefeated Haverford on Monday for their next game.

It is still too early to tell, but they could get in the playoffs at 7-9. I wouldn’t necessarily bet on that with the teams around them, but it is definitely possible.

Conwell-Egan 1, Bonner 0

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

There’s a reason why Conwell-Egan Junior LHP Brady Guzzie is considered one of the top pitchers in the state of Pennsylvania, and Bonner found out why today.

The University of Virginia recruit struck out 13 over seven shutout innings with just four hits allowed and one walk.

Egan scored their lone run in the first inning, and that was all that they needed.

Jack Coleman had two of the four hits on the day for the Friars. Cole Romano and Sean Dugan also had hits, while Gavin DiRita walked. Danny Buckton threw a great game and unfortunately suffered the loss. He allowed five hits and one earned run over six innings with seven strikeouts.

This loss stings for Bonner, because they are now forced to play in the wild card round as they lose the tiebreaker to Devon Prep. Both teams finished the PCL season at 6-6 but Devon beat Bonner 3-1 earlier in the season.

They will first host Chichester for a non-conference game on Thursday.

It sure looks like we are getting a highly anticipated Bonner/O’Hara rematch in the first round. Bonner will be the #7 seed, that is already decided. O’Hara is currently the #10 seed, but could move up with a win over 10-1 La Salle depending on what the tiebreakers are.

That seems fairly unlikely with how good La Salle has been, but still possible. Should O’Hara lose to La Salle on Thursday, we’ll get Bonner/O’Hara in the first round on Monday at Bonner.

Bonner beat O’Hara 1-0 back on April 15th behind a Luke Albarano walk-off single, so hopefully we can get another great game like that.

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.

No split title this time.

After both Haverford and Radnor went 15-1 in 2025, they split the Central League title. That launched months of talk about Central League playoffs, who was the “real” champ, and everything else under the sun.

In 2026, with their best hitter Cam McCormack missing nearly the entire season with an injury, the Fords left no doubt about who the best team in the league was.

Haverford 15, Upper Darby 0

By: Bryson Ungar:

It was a beautiful senior day celebration for the Haverford Fords, the No. 1 ranked team in the area.

The Fords continued the celebrations after a 15–0 win clinching them the outright Central League title. The game ended after three innings due to the mercy rule, putting a fitting exclamation point on a special day and performance. With today’s loss, Upper Darby remains winless in the Central League. 

Haverford wasted no time to put their mark on the scoreboard, breaking things open in the bottom of the first inning. Rocco Kelleher got it started with a two-run single, and an error soon after brought home another run. Pete Manaras followed with a two-run double, while Charlie Pusztay added an RBI groundout. Andrew Brown capped the inning with a sacrifice fly to build an early 7-0 lead. 

The Fords extended their lead by another three runs in the bottom of the second thanks to RBI doubles by Kelleher and Bobby Menear. Everyone on this Fords team truly finds a way to contribute. 

By now it was a 10-0 game and the offensive parade would not stop. Upper Darby had an array of errors, Menear and Pusztay were even hit by a pitch. 

Upper Darby was only held to two hits. David Cornett and Yerlin Feliz accounted for them. Rocco Kelleher led the way for Haverford with two hits and Lucas Rothstein worked a walk-off walk to wrap it up.

Jayden Luistro got the start for the Fords and did not disappoint. In his first outing against a league opponent, he went 3.0 IP only allowing 2 hits and striking out 5. Jack Trask got the start for the Royals and Cornett came in out of the pen. 

With the win today the Fords improve to 15-2 and keep adding on to a tremendous season. They are a serious contender in the 6A district and state playoffs. We already knew that, but it’s for sure been solidified. 

Haverford (14-0 CL) will take on Conestoga (5-9) on Wednesday. Upper Darby (0-14) will look to get a win against Lower Merion (6-8) also on Wednesday, who they lost to on April 10th, 11-1.

Penncrest 2, Marple Newtown 1

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

In what will likely go down as the latest finish off the Delco Baseball season, Penncrest took down Marple Newtown under the lights at Marple in a nine inning thriller.

With the two teams tied 1-1 in the ninth, freshman Austin Younger blasted a homer to score courtesy runner Cam Cacciola to put Penncrest ahead, but apparently missed touching home plate and was called out on an appeal, so just the one run scored.

Braden Davis went out to lock down the win, and he did so with a 1-2-3 inning to finish this one out.

Penncrest originally got on the board in the top of the third when Andrew Luber-Solic walked with the bases loaded to score Christian Nunez. Marple Newtown would score the tying run on an Aidan Liberty sac fly in the fourth to score Zach Marro.

The pitching in this game was excellent for both sides. Henry Murphy allowed just the one run over 3.2 innings for Penncrest, while Connor Finan threw 2.1 scoreless innings of relief with just one hit allowed and five strikeouts. Braden Davis allowed one hit over the final three innings with three strikeouts.

Aiden Carney threw three shutout innings of relief for Marple Newtown in the loss, Carter Patterson allowed just one run over three innings as well. Jackson Burger, Sal Brady and Kevin Agger all had two hits for the Tigers.

Austin Younger ended the day with three hits and a walk for the Lions, while Henry Murphy had two hits.

Penncrest was already playoff bound, but this win puts them at 10-4 and they still have a chance at earning a first round bye in the District 1 5A playoffs. They will host Strath Haven on Tuesday for their next game.

As for Marple Newtown, they fall to 4-10 in the Central League. Theoretically, they are not out yet as they made the playoffs last season at 6-10. They will certainly need to win both of their last two games to even have a chance, and that starts on Wednesday when they travel to Harriton.

Garnet Valley 3, Conestoga 0

By: Nick Mazzarella:

Whew, have a day Ryan McGhee.

The Jags get a complete game shutout out of their ace en route to a win over the Pioneers. Garnet Valley got basically all they needed in the first, scoring two on RBI’s from Harrison Maull and Kyle Klein.

McGhee basically took care of the rest, as he went all seven, allowed only four hits, and struck out six.

In the fifth, the Jags tacked on a little insurance when McGhee knocked in a run by grounding into a double play. Probably not the way you want to draw it up, but a run is a run.

And that’s all she wrote, as McGhee took care of everything, and the offense did their job.

Conestoga falls to 5-9 in the CL and will face Haverford (13-0 CL) at home on Wednesday at 3:45.

Garnet Valley leapfrogs Springfield for fourth in the CL, and now sit at 9-5 in the CL. They will face Ridley (7-7 CL) at home on Wednesday at 3:45

Lower Merion 5, Ridley 2

(image of Justin Heck via Shelby Kauffman/DBN)

By: Nick Mazzarella:

This week’s GOTW goes in favor of the Aces, who pick up a solid win after dropping back to back games.

Ridley got their first of two runs in the first inning, off a ground-rule double from Jayden Carney to drive in Aiden Wong. The Aces took the lead in the third off of a double from Aiden O’Quinn to drive one in, then followed by a single from Charlie Parsons to give Lower Merion an early lead. 

In the fourth, Tim Calamita hit a sac fly to drive in the tying run, but would also be Ridley’s last time scoring for the game, as the Aces pitching had them under wraps.

Justin Heck went five innings, two runs (both unearned), three hits, and five strikeouts while picking up the W. In the fifth, the Aces took the lead on a solo jack from Nick Dragut, that we were told was measured at a staggering 422 feet.

Not only did Justin Heck throw five excellent innings, he also hit two doubles, AND did so after chipping his tooth in the third inning on a comebacker. What a gamer.

And finally in the seventh, the Aces tacked on two for insurance off RBI’s from O’Quinn and Brendan O’Gara. Peyton Spiegler, who came into the game in the sixth, closed out the game with two innings of shutout baseball.

Aiden O’Quinn, Charlie Parsons and Justin Heck all had two hits for LM. Evan Nangle had two hits for Ridley.

Ridley falls back to .500 and 7-7 in the CL, they will play away at Garnet Valley (9-5 in CL) on Wednesday at 3:45

Lower Merion tacks on a win and now sit at 6-8 in the CL, they will play away at Upper Darby (0-13 CL) on Wednesday at 3:45.

Strath Haven 13, Springfield 6

By: Blake Karabin:

A beautiful day for baseball as the Springfield Cougars played host to the Strath Haven Panthers in a late season Central League clash. 

Strath Haven pulled out a huge victory and have now won back-to-back games as they try to sneak their way into a playoff spot.

The bats were hot for this 13-6 victory. Atticus Bean, Connor Musumeci, and Ralph Lardieri led the charge each collecting hits and RBI’s. 

Atticus Bean went 3-4 with an RBI. Bean recorded two singles and an RBI triple. As for Musumeci, he went 1-3 with 5 RBI’s and two runs scored. Lardieri went 2-2 with two runs scored, one RBI, and a walk.

Today’s scoring started early and never let up. In the top of the first, Zach Milligan singled home Quinn Kell.

Solid outings from the Panthers’ pitching staff as well this afternoon. Patrick Burke, Quinn Kell, and Patrick Tolson all took the bump in this matchup. 

Burke started and got the win. He went 4.2 innings and allowed four runs (three earned), nine hits, and two walks, while striking out one. Kell followed in relief, hurling 1.1 innings. No runs were allowed on one hit in his appearance. Finally, Patrick Tolson finished the job. He threw an inning and allowed two runs on three hits and struck out three.

All together, solid performance from the Strath Haven Panthers.

For Springfield, the offense was highlighted by Johnny Hopkins and Landon Ragan. Hopkins went 4-4 with two RBI’s and two runs scored. Ragan recorded two hits and two RBI’s in his 2-3 effort.

On the mound in this one, it was Drew Kraus, Jack Rae, Nick Russo, and Connor Manuel.

Kraus started today’s game, but was given the loss. He pitched 1.2 and allowed five runs on six hits, while walking two and striking out none. Rae then followed up behind him and hurled 2.1 innings. He allowed one run on four hits and one walk. The third pitcher for the Cougars, Russo, went 1.2 innings and allowed six runs (5 earned) on three hits and two walks. He also struck out one Panther. The fourth and final pitcher was Manuel. He hurled 1.1 innings, allowing one run on two hits, while striking out two.

As we begin the final two games of the regular season, Strath Haven (7-7 in CL) will look to get into the playoffs as spots are at a premium. Their next game will be Tuesday as they head to Penncrest for a classic rivalry.

Springfield (8-6) will also be on the road for their next game. They will be traveling to Radnor on Wednesday, as they look to close out the regular season strong and gain momentum for the playoffs.

Radnor 8, Harriton 0

By: Bryson Ungar:

Blake Havertine continues to dominate against Harriton, after another great performance as Radnor cruised to an 8-0 win. The Raptors have now outscored Harriton 17–1 across their two meetings this season.

On March 25, Havertine tossed 5.0 innings, allowing just one run on one hit while striking out 10. He followed that up with another strong outing today, going 5.0 scoreless innings, giving up three hits and striking out five. The Franklin & Marshall commit once again set the tone. 

It looked like we were in store for a true pitchers duel between Havertine and Cole Feldman, but that thought was short lived. 

Radnor broke through in the bottom of the third inning when Caden Szychulski launched a solo home run to left field. Austin Havertine followed with a triple that brought in two more runs, and Blake Fein added to the scoring with an RBI groundout.

After the four-run third, Radnor stayed in control. Hayden Goldenberg drove in a run with a line drive, and Blake Fein later doubled to left to plate another in the fifth. In the sixth, Austin Havertine singled to center to drive in a run, and Blake Fein capped the scoring with an RBI single to right.

Harriton was held to only four hits today. Eli Bloch was the lone bright spot in the lineup going 2-2 with a walk. Hudson Weissman and Jaxon Magner also added hits. It seems district playoffs might no longer be in reach for the Rams with the way their offense is playing. Hopefully they can build some momentum down the stretch. 

Cole Feldman got the start for Harriton and kept the Rams competitive early, working 4.0 innings while allowing four hits and two earned runs. He also recorded seven strikeouts before turning things over to the bullpen. Myles Freed and Jaxon Magner followed in relief and combined to finish out the game.

For Radnor, Blake Havertine as we know had a dominant start, holding Harriton scoreless over five strong innings. Sean Mutschler and Andrew Quigley took over from there and preserved the shutout, each delivering a clean inning to close out the Raptors’ 8–0 victory.

Next up for Harriton (3-11 CL) is a game against Marple Newtown (4-10) on Wednesday who they look to beat after a 12-0 loss a few weeks back. Radnor (11-3) will face a tough opponent in Springfield (8-6) also on Wednesday. 

Bonner 13, Lansdale Catholic 0

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

Make that five wins in a row for Bonner, and four in a row that the offense scored 10+ runs.

This time, the Friars scored five in the first and eight in the second to steamroll Lansdale Catholic at home. It was a pretty spread out offensive effort for the Friars, who recorded nine hits from nine different players.

Owen Lockhart drove in two runs, as did Emanuel Gibbs. Jack Coleman, Gavin DiRita, Ryan Friel, Luke Albarano, Michael Murphy and Chase D’Ambrosio also drove in runs.

On the mound, Jack Coleman threw two scoreless innings with just one hit allowed to start the game, and Ryan Brady threw three shutout innings with two hits allowed and a strikeout in relief.

This Bonner season is starting to look eerily similar to last year as they started slow but have been red hot on offense to end the season. They will be heading to the PCL playoffs as they are now 6-5 in the league, but will look to avoid the play-in round. They will head to Egan on Wednesday for their next game.

Devon Prep 7, St. Joe’s Prep 5

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

Devon Prep has been playing very good baseball of late as they have won five of their last six, but this one might be the most impressive of them all.

Taking on the previously 8-2 St. Joe’s Prep Hawks, the Tide got five strong innings on the mound from Johnny Doogan, and two hits a piece from their two freshmen breakout players in Joe Gabrielle and Ryan Wheeler.

Gabrielle, who it feels like has two hits in every single game recap that I write about Devon Prep, also had a double and an RBI. Wheeler had a triple and an RBI and scored two runs.

The Tide scored four in the second inning and three in the third, which was enough to win this one. Billy Degler and Christian Leckman also drove in runs.

Johnny Doogan allowed three hits and three unearned runs with four strikeouts in the win. Degler threw the final two innings to close this one out.

Devon Prep improves to 5-6 in the PCL. As of right now, the Tide are the #7 seed and would have to play in the wild card round. However, they do hold the tiebreaker over Bonner. So if Devon beats Roman on Wednesday and Bonner loses to Egan, Devon would take that #6 seed over.

O’Hara 8, Sterling 2

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

O’Hara led 3-0 after three in this non-conference matchup in New Jersey before they exploded for five to take this game over for good.

O’Hara had five different players with two hits; Colin Thomas, Jack Quinn, Vinny Mancini, Jayson Gniewoz and Jake Steigerwalt all delivered two. Manicini drove in two runs, while Thomas and Steigerwalt drove in one.

Nate Evert also drove in two runs in the win for O’Hara.

Michael Brown started the game and struck out three over two scoreless innings. John Welde allowed two unearned runs over the next two innings, and Sean Vaughn allowed just one hit over two scoreless in relief as well. Dom DiPietro tossed a scoreless seventh to close it out.

O’Hara improves to 8-10 on the year and still sit at 4-7 in the PCL. They have already clinched a playoff spot, and they will look to improve their seeding when they host La Salle on Wednesday.

Interboro 16, Chester 0

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

This was a makeup game after the game was postponed last week, and Interboro put 16 on the board in the second inning to win in mercy rule fashion.

Interboro got seven hits from seven different players in the win. They also got RBI from Scott Poluchuck (3), Trent Siebenaler (2), John Cartlidge (1), Jayden Pfaff (1), Noah Vazquez (1), Jaxon Munro (1), and Zander McGowan (1).

Austin Dean threw 2.2 scoreless innings on the mound with five strikeouts in the win.

Interboro improves to 8-2 and is in a great position to make the District 1 4A playoffs. Next up for them will be a home game with rival Chichester on Tuesday looking to take a game from the season series.

As for Chester, they fall to 4-6 in the Del Val with the loss. They will head to Academy Park on Tuesday looking to sweep the season series.

Shipley 13, Delco Christian 2

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

Shipley pounced early with four in the first, two in the second and four again in the third in an eventual 13-2 mercy rule win.

Delco Christian scored both of their runs in the bottom of the fourth. Nathan Burd hit an RBI double and Maden Longley drove in Burd with a groundout.

For Delco Christian, this loss against a good Shipley team obviously is not fun, but it was non-conference so it does not affect their playoff odds.

They fall to 7-9 overall but they still sit at 6-3 in the Bicentennial. Next up for them is a road game at Renaissance Academy on Wednesday.

Neumann-Goretti 2, Carroll 1

By: Nick Mastripolito

In a rubber duel on Archbishop Carroll’s senior night, the Neumann Goretti Saints took down the Patriots and ended their postseason hopes. 

The Patriots sent out pitcher Jack Stadnicki who returned for his first game back from concussion protocol and the Saints pitched Steven Vanore. 

Neither team had a hit through the first two innings, but that changed quickly when Ryan McGaughey singled up the middle. The Patriots scored in the third inning on an error at third base for the first run of the game. 

It did not take long for the Saints to answer back, with two runs scored via two errors on the Patriots. 

Carroll could not answer back with their season on the line, ending innings 5 and 6 with ground ball double plays. In the seventh inning, Vanore headed back out to the mound to finish things off. 

Senior Gavin Moore led off the inning with a single, but did not come around to score as the Patriots were sent down in order following Moore. 

Both teams pitched stellarly in this one, but Steven Vanore pitched a gem.  

The Neumann Goretti Saints are set to take on Father Judge tomorrow as their next game. They sit at 10-5 (6-4 PCL) and are 5th in the Philadelphia Catholic League Standings. 

The Archbishop Carroll Patriots will face off with Lansdale Catholic on Wednesday for their final game of the year. The Patriots are 5-12 (3-8 PCL) and are 11th in the Philadelphia Catholic league standings, mathematically eliminated from playoff contention.

The 2026 Bonner Friars are starting to look awfully look the 2025 Bonner Friars of late on offense.

Last season, Bonner started off slow out of the gate before entering the PCL Tournament as the #6 seed where they ultimately ran the table and beat Ryan 10-0 in the title game.

Just last week, Bonner was sitting at 4-9 on the season after a loss to Neumann-Goretti. Since then, they’ve won four straight games, three of which they scored 10+ runs in.

They are currently the #6 seed in the PCL playoff bracket once again with two games to play.

Bonner 11, The Haverford School 2

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

While it is true that this was not a conference game for Bonner, the confidence seems to keep growing for this group of late.

Before we even get into the offense, we have to start with Jake Gorman, who threw five hitless innings in the win for Bonner. He struck out seven while allowing one unearned run in the process before Michael Murphy and Sean Dugan closed it out.

On offense, Gavin DiRita and Ryan Friel look like they are ready to go on a run like they did last postseason. DiRita reached base four times and scored all four times as well. He had two hits and two walks. Friel had two hits including a double and drove in two runs.

Owen Lockhart had the biggest day of all, going 3/3 with 4 RBI.

This game was just 3-1 Bonner going into the bottom of the fifth before the Friars opened it up with three in the fifth and five in the sixth to put this one out of reach.

Danny Getz, Braydon Scanlan and Aiden Zwilling had hits in the loss for the Fords, who have now lost six in a row after a 12-4 start to the season.

Bonner improves to 8-9 with his win and will host Lansdale Catholic on Monday for their next game.

As for Haverford School, they fall to 12-10 and will travel to Germantown Academy on Tuesday looking to end their skid.

O’Hara 9, Conestoga 6

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

After a six-game losing streak in the middle of the season, O’Hara has started to shake that off, winning three of their last four.

This time it was a home non-conference win over Conestoga, using five pitchers in the process to get the win:

• Colin Thomas: 2 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 K
• Jack Quinn: 1 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 K
• Michael Brown: 2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 K
• Sean Vaughn: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 K
• John Welde: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER

Quinn also led the way offensively with two hits and a walk while driving in two runs and scoring two runs. Vinny Mancini had a two-run double as well.

With the game tied 3-3, O’Hara put up four in the bottom of the fourth to take control of this game and added two insurance runs in the sixth as well.

For Conestoga, they had a well-balanced offense with eight different players having at least one hit with Mikey Evitts driving in a run. This game was a bit sloppy defensively as each team had four errors, so a lot of runs were unearned.

With the win, O’Hara sits at 7-10 and 4-7 in the PCL. Their playoff fate is still undetermined for now, but they will play their last PCL game on Wednesday when they host La Salle. First, they will travel to Sterling for a non-conference game on Monday.

Conestoga falls to 6-10 in the loss and is hanging around the district playoff picture at 5-8, but will likely need to go 3-0 the rest of the way to find themselves in. That starts with a road game at Garnet Valley on Monday.

Devon Prep 8, Central 2

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

Bonner isn’t the only PCL in this newsletter who has been playing much better baseball in the second half, as Devon Prep has now won four of their last five games.

This time a home non-conference game over Central behind six excellent innings on the mound by Colin Carey and a clean seventh from Caleb Tesfaye.

The Tide scored four in the bottom of the first and kept it rolling with one in the second, two in the third and one in the sixth to win this one.

Freshman Joe Gabrielle came from out of nowhere to become arguably the most consistent hitter in the Devon Prep lineup of late as he added another two hits and drove in two runs. Austin Conaty also had two hits and a walk while Ryan Wheeler and Stephen Land had a hit and an RBI.

The Tide improve to 7-7 on the year as a whole and are sitting at 4-6 in the PCL. They have a tough non-conference game at home against St. Joe’s Prep on Monday as they look to make the playoffs for the second straight year.

Malvern Prep 14, St. Joe’s Prep 1

By: Brendan Ricciardi:

Malvern Prep scored two in the second, five in the third, and took this game over fully with seven in the fourth to bring home a mercy rule non-conference win.

Kayden Wallace threw the first four innings with three hits and one earned run allowed while striking out four, while Jason Kay threw a clean fifth to wrap it up.

It was a well-balanced offensive attack for the Friars, who had 11 hits from 10 different players. Sutton (not Scott, sorry about that) Dvorak was the only Malvern player with multiple hits as he had two. Luke Moore drove in three runs while Gabe Naylor and Grady Forsberg drove in two.

Forsberg, Moore, Dvorak, Nick Schmitt and Brady Abate all had doubles.

Malvern improves to 26-4 while sitting at 7-1 in the Inter-Ac. They can win the league title outright at home against Penn Charter on Tuesday.

Friends Central 6, Lansdale Catholic 1

By: Jonah Casel:

In their final home game of the 2026 season, Friends’ Central was victorious over a PCL opponent and they controlled the game all the way through.

The Phoenix only failed to score runs in one inning, and their pitching staff was excellent. Lucas Abreu started, threw three innings, and allowed only one hit and no runs. Zac Canterino pitched in relief and gave up one run, and David Manfre got a five-out save.

Friends’ Central was fantastic in the clutch, scoring five of their six runs with two outs. Caleb Bachman was on base in all four of his plate appearances, Vaughn Jones hit a single and a double, and Gavin Yeager hit a two-RBI double to extend the lead to five in the bottom of the sixth.

Freshman Miles Mammele played behind the dish today and was excellent for the Phoenix. Caleb Bachman has been a consistent catcher for as long as he’s been on the team, and Mammele has big shoes to fill once Bachman graduates.

For Lansdale Catholic, Luke Maholick drove in their only run as a pinch hitter on a double blasted to center field. Nick Wilkin started the game and went four innings while allowing one earned run and two unearned runs.

The Phoenix needed this win heading into their FSL playoff matchup against Westtown on Tuesday. Friends’ Central looks for revenge after Westtown upset them earlier this season for the first time in nearly seven years. That matchup is one to look out for, and it’s anyone’s game.

Sun Valley 8, Interboro 3

By: Nick Mazzarella:

ROLL ‘GUARDS.

The Vanguards pick up their fourth straight win, and this is coming off a 11-game losing streak, so talk about never losing confidence. 

Sun Valley kept up the hot hitting, as they scored two in the first inning after an error scored Logan Howe and Ryan Messick.

In the third, Sun Valley tacked on more. With no outs and two men on, Messick doubled home Jax Casamento and Howe, and was followed by Luke Williams driving in Messick for a quick three runs. 

In the fourth, Howe came home to score on a passed ball to extend the lead to six runs. And in the fifth, they did it again, driving home another two for a real comfortable lead.

On the bump, Austin Miazza was through five shutout innings to help the offense keep the lead. In the sixth, Miazza allowed singles to Scott Poluchuck and Joel Sheridan which made it a five run game. But Miazza dug deep and struck out the next two guys to limit the damage.

Miazza went six innings, three runs (two earned), eight hits, and six punchouts.

Howe came in to close out the game in the seventh and sat them down with two strikeouts.

Interboro is now 10-6 (7-2 Del-Val), and will face Chichester (10-0 Del-Val) who sits atop the Del-Val at home on Tuesday at 3:30.

Sun Valley has now doubled on their win total from last year, and now sit at 6-11 and are 4-11 in the Ches-Mont as they will face Oxford (2-11 Ches-Mont) on the road on Wednesday at 4:00. The Vanguards chances at the 5A bracket may be slim, but they could pull a Flyers and make the playoffs when it seemed over.