Varsity baseball opened up the season on Monday, Mar. 21 in a 20-1 win against Paint Branch. 

Juniors Tyler Cornett and Brandon Son helped lead the way with their big performances. Pitcher Rob Carpenter got the opening day nod and pitched four and a half innings and allowed just one run. Relief pitcher Devon Graham came in to close the door on Paint Branch and kick off the season 1-0. Senior AJ Grainger started his season strong by going 2-2 with a single and a double with 3 RBIs. Grainger hopes to keep himself going as the season kicks off. “I need to keep my stats up so I can continue to contribute and help this team moving forward,” Grainger said.

The team looks to have a bounce-back year after a disappointing 3-7 finish last year during the Covid season.  It is worth noting that the disappointing record from last spring was affected by the baseball team only playing Blair, B-CC, Whitman and Churchill, all of which are some of the best programs in the state, due to the condensed Covid season. 

The team is more optimistic about their upcoming season. After three scrimmages against Magruder, Richard Montgomery and the private school Linganore, the team still has yet to lose. 

Junior shortstop Josh Erd has high expectations for the team. “There is not a single team on our schedule who we cannot beat, and I think we have a team that is built to succeed and compete with anyone we play,” Erd said. 

The team also has multiple players committed to play in college. Senior catcher James Walsh is committed to play at the Coast Guard Academy, and both senior pitcher/outfielder Rob Carpenter and senior pitcher/third basemen Liam Miller are committed to play at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). Other seniors such as second baseman Brady Weiss, pitcher/outfielder Jackson Brunner, first baseman/ outfielder Jack Mehler, and outfielder Dason Miller will all make significant contributions to the team throughout the season. “We all have the same goal so this season should be a great one especially because it’s our senior year.” Brunner said.

The team also has a strong junior class. Shortstop Josh Erd, pitcher/outfielder Ryan Kunst, pitcher/outfielder Brandon Sun, third baseman Prahlad Shelvapille, catcher Nick Jayner, and secondbasemen are all excellent players who could all be significant contributors this season. 

The team played Blair on Friday, Mar. 25, too late to be included in this article. In the middle of the season, the team will face their greatest challenges, playing Whitman, Richard Montgomery, Walter Johnson, BCC, Whitman again, Blair, and Churchill in a seven-game span. The team closes out their regular season on May 6 against Northwood. 

The team’s main goal is to make a push come the playoffs. After several disappointing playoff performances, the boys look to flip the script. The boys are hungry and determined to make a lot of noise this season in the playoffs.