Fords Baseball finished with an overall record of 15-13, though this record does not fully reflect their Inter-Ac or PAISAA tournament performances. The Fords finished the Inter-Ac season with a 3-7 record. However, notable individual recognitions came from the Inter-Ac games, as Fourth Former Zack Lawler made the all-Inter-Ac first team, and Fifth Former Danny Getz made the all-Inter-Ac second team.
Despite the tough Inter-Ac regular season matches, Fourth Former Ethan Stern finds much to be proud of.
“This season showed a lot about who we are as a team. I think finishing any season with a winning record is a sign of success for the program. We definitely battled through adversity this year, but we never stopped competing, and it showed when it mattered most during the playoffs,” Stern said.
Going into the PAISAA state tournament as the #5 seed, the Fords opened against the #12 seed Abington Friends and won with a convincing 10-0 score. The dominant performance set the tone for their postseason run.
The quarterfinals were a statement game for the Fords. The #4 seed Episcopal Academy had beaten them twice during the regular season, 10-6 on the road and 5-4 at home, but when it mattered the most in the PAISAA quarterfinal, the Fords pulled out a grueling 2-0 victory.
Stern recounted the atmosphere.
“Going into the game, we knew that we all had to perform our best if we wanted to beat EA, and I think everything came together. The bats got hot when we needed them most, the energy was there from start to finish, and the pitchers shut the door,” Stern said. “It was an all-around team win.”
“Next year, we’re going to stack more wins together and continue our progress.”
– Ethan Stern ’28
After a big win against Episcopal Academy, the semifinal brought a matchup against the #1 seed Malvern Prep, a team that had beaten the Fords 12-2 and 7-1 during the regular season. Unfortunately, the Fords lost 10-0, ending their strong run. Friars baseball went on to beat Germantown Academy 2-0 in the PAISAA championship, ending with a 34-4 record.
“Losing in the semis hurts no matter who it’s against, but I think we learned a lot from it and it’s going to be used as fuel for us next season,” Stern said.
Despite the loss to Malvern to end the season, the improvement from last season is hard to ignore. After finishing the 2024-25 season 9-16 with a second-round PAISAA exit, the Fords went 15-13 this year and reached the PAISAA semifinals.
“I think one of the biggest takeaways is how important coming into every game with as much energy as possible is because we’ve seen how much of a difference it makes,” Stern said. “ I’m proud of how all the guys did this season, and I had an absolute blast going out with them every day. Next year, we’re going to stack more wins together and continue our progress.”
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