As the spring picks up and the athletic teams themselves begin to hit their strides, fans can see how the remainder of the season will play out.
Fords baseball currently sits at 12-6-1 just after their 6-3 win over Springside Chestnut Hill on Friday 4/12, but even more significant in this win was the coaching milestone of Coach Bob Castell, who secured his 500th career win.
Notable player performances that made the game such a success included Sixth Former Connor Scanlan, Fifth Former Brenner Green, and Fourth Former Jaidyn Rivera, who combined for an explosive four home runs.
On the other side of the diamond, the team also dominated the game, especially on the mound. Sixth Former Kevin Reavey had an impressive seven strikeouts and, combined with Sixth Former Fred Jordan’s two strikeouts, kept SCH’s scoring to a minimum.
Coach Castell joined the community in 1992, coaching varsity football for twelve years and middle school wrestling for thirteen years. He is currently head varsity baseball coach and lower school physical education teacher.
“This group is hungry. We know our goals.”
Eddie Kohn ’24
Since taking charge of the baseball team, Coach Castell has captured two Inter-Ac championships (2000 and 2010) and four PAISAA state titles (2011, 2013, 2016, and 2022). Coach Castell has also accumulated 500 wins, solidifying him as one of the greats in the school’s coaching history.
As Coach Castell picks up his historic win, the team has its eyes on a different goal. After falling short of defending the state championship title last year, the team looks to change the narrative going into this postseason.
Sixth Former Eddie Kohn said, “This season is different because we have a group of seniors who all bring different things to the table. The leadership has clearly taken a step up because we all have seen how that has negatively affected us in the past. This group is hungry. We know our goals.”
Fifth Former Pat White shared a different opinion. “Our best strength is definitely our pitching staff. I would say we have the best staff in the league,” he said. “The pitchers are always reassuring the team that if we get them two or three runs then our defense will hold them below that. Not to say we are bad at it but the weakest area is probably hitting. That being said, if a couple of our batters get hot at the same time, then we will be one of the best-hitting teams in the league as well.”
As the Fords continue to build momentum heading to the postseason, they picked up another big win, toppling our unofficial rival Malvern Prep on Friday, May 4, in a thrilling 2-1 victory with key plays from Brenner Green ’25 with both of the team runs from solo home runs, and Kevin Reavey ’24 who had ten strikeouts.
After an exciting first inning, fans buckled up for a high-scoring game. At the bottom of the inning with the Fords at-bat, Scanlan hit a single, then Green hit a heavy home run to carry himself and Scanlan home, taking an early 2-0 lead. In terms of raw excitement, that was as far as the game went.
With an early advantage, the Fords wouldn’t score again, and they wouldn’t need to. It was a matchup between two pitchers: Reavey versus Friars’ senior D.J. Peterson. Both pitchers were playing their best, resulting in a low-scoring game, but it was anything but slow, and tensions were palpable.
In the second inning with Friars at-bat with an out, senior Grant Kennedy hit powerfully toward left field for a double. Reavey then had a face-off with senior Cole Kirschner, with both players being full on their counts. With a missed swing on Reavey’s payoff pitch, the Friars got a second out. On the next pitch, Friars junior Chase Ecker connected on a low hit that Reavey grabbed and threw to first base for their third out.
The Fords faced a similar fate in the same inning. Two men on first and second base were forced back to the dugout after Fifth Former Zac Fuscaldo’s low hit was grabbed by D.J. Peterson and thrown to first base for a third out.
“[There was] a lot of tension. There were some times where a lot of runners were left on base by both teams… [there was] definitely clutch pitching.”
Fred Jordan ’24
The top of the third inning worried the Fords. With the Friars at-bat, two outs, and empty bases, junior Andrew Pellicciotta hit a home run, closing in on the Fords with a 2-1 score. The next batter struck out to end the half.
The top of the fourth inning didn’t go smoothly for either team. First-at-bat Friars senior Mason Clark had a strong start, hitting a double. While the next two bats resulted in outs for the Friars, Clark took advantage of the chaos and stole third base, creeping in on a tie game. With Kirschner at-bat, his goal was to allow Clark it home. Fortunately for the Fords, Kirschner hit a low bat, and it was thrown to first base for the Friars’ third out to end the half with the same 2-1 lead.
The game progressed slowly, frozen at 2-1 until tensions rose again at the top of the sixth inning. With one out, Friars sophomore Brady Abate walked to first base. The next batter, Clark, struck out, but Abate stole second base. In the next bat, Reavey threw a low ball, hitting Friars’ senior Jonathan Holt in the foot and allowing a walk. Luckily, Kennedy struck out to end the half.
To finish the game off, Jordan pitched in the seventh and final inning. He threw two high hits, and both were caught. Friars’ sophomore Jackson Melconian hit low and barely caught first base. Skillfully, Jordan ended the game by striking out Friars’ senior Tague David, ending the game with a 2-1 score, where every point was scored by home run.
“[There was] a lot of tension,” Jordan said. “There were some times where a lot of runners were left on base by both teams… [there was] definitely clutch pitching.”
For an equally tense game against a life-long rival, Episcopal Academy, the Fords will be playing at home on Friday, May 10th.
Coach Castell’s legacy-defining milestone victory has also boosted the team’s momentum, and a fire burning under the team for a deep run into this year’s playoffs seems inevitable. This group is determined to do something, and the pieces are there to do it.
