Last year, the Aces’ baseball team came up just short. The team began the season’s playoffs with a thrilling victory. In their first trip to the postseason in eighteen years, the Aces defeated Neshaminy 4-2 in the first round of the District 1 playoffs. With high hopes and a surge of adrenaline, the team was eager to take on the one-seeded Spring Ford Rams. However, the game didn’t go as planned. The Aces fell behind 2-0 in the first inning and were never able to recover the lead. The team’s best season in years ended in disappointment.
However, just because last season didn’t finish the way the team hoped, that doesn’t mean the team lost any of their faith. In fact, the Aces’ baseball team is more confident and prepared for this season than ever before.
Head coach Colin Quinn certainly believes in this year’s team, confidently announcing, “I believe if we can play LM baseball the way that I know we are capable of, a state playoff run is in the picture.” Quinn, heading into his third year leading the program, certainly has his reasons to be confident. At the plate, hitters like shortstop Jack Scholz ’24 aim to lead a high-powered offense. On the mound, an all-senior pitching rotation of Van Willner ’24, Isaiah Negron ’24, and Angus Penn ’24 will provide a powerful three-headed punch. With all these players returning for their final high school season, the group looks to build off of the stellar 2023 campaign. Last season, Scholz led the team in both hits and runs scored, while the three pitchers each picked up varsity wins.
Negron echoes the same sentiment as his coach, stating, “I feel very confident with this team. We have a lot of talented guys that can take us a long way.”
But any success this season won’t come without challenges. Five spots in the batting order, which were filled by last year’s graduating class, must be replaced. While this may seem like a difficult hurdle to overcome, Coach Quinn believes the team will be just fine, by saying, “We have had a tremendous farm system. There are guys that were on both varsity and JV last year that are really going to make a big impact this year.”
To achieve the goal of reaching the state playoffs, the coaches have made changes this offseason. Most significantly, the team now begins every practice with a guided meditation. In doing so, Quinn hopes to make sure players “separate themselves from whatever is going on and really focus on the task ahead…It really helps to set the tone.” It seems that the players are supporting this new approach. Outfielder Calvin Rendle ’25 offers, “It really allows me to lock in and just focus on baseball.”
The Aces will also look to clean up some of the mistakes that plagued the team last season. Last year, the team struggled with hitting off-speed pitches. Coach Quinn says the team has attempted to correct this by implementing new drills that allow players to “identify different pitches and figure out when they’re coming in the count.” He continues, “This will help our batters be more successful in the box.”
This confidence doesn’t guarantee results on the field, but one thing is for certain–this year, the team is as prepared and committed as ever. When the Aces kick off their regular season at South Ardmore Park on March 18, opponents should watch out for a team just as determined and hungry for success as last year.
