the index · sports
Page 15
June 2022
Guided by manager Kai Jacobs, baseball clinches PAISAA title CHARLIE KEIDEL ’24
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ixth Former Kai Jacobs managed the soccer, basketball, and baseball teams for a combined eight seasons before heading into the baseball season this spring. He had not yet won an Inter-Ac or State Championship. On Saturday, May 28, that all changed when the baseball team took down Malvern Prep in the state championship game at Villanova Ballpark.
“I always felt like a lot of teams I worked with had this potential. Everything happens for a reason... all the adversity this team went through made victory even more special.” KAI JACOBS ‘22 “I always felt like a lot of the teams I worked with had this potential,” Jacobs said. “But everything happens for a reason, and I feel like all the adversity this team went through made the victory even more special.” What this team has gone through in just this season makes this triumph even more impressive. When the group returned to full strength late in the spring, the team began to find its stride. Many of them felt like their home win over Episcopal Academy was a major turning point. Jacobs felt that the win over Episcopal signified something much bigger. “[Episcopal was] competing for the Inter-Ac championship with Malvern. When we knocked them out of contention, we knew we could compete in the PAISAA tournament,” Jacobs said. The Fords finished the Inter-Ac season with a record of 3-7 and were seeded seventh in a field of twelve teams who would compete for the PAISAA championship.
“I think we all knew that we were capable of going into the playoffs though, so we wanted to show people.” MARK QUATRANI ‘23
MIKE NANCE
Haverford beats Malvern Prep at the PAISAA Championship Many players felt the urge to prove that five innings. Due to their low seeding, the they were better than their seeding suggested. Fords were the away team in all but one of “I think we all knew what we were capa- their matchups in the state tournament. ble of going into the playoffs though, so we Their closing pitcher, Kevin Reavey, in both wanted to show people,” Fifth Former Mark the Episcopal and Penn Charter games, Quatrani said. helped shut the door in the final two inJacobs said, “The seven-seed moti- nings, where both Episcopal and Penn Charvated us to work harder and show we were ter had chances to walk it off and send the better than the seed implied.” Fords home. The Fords opened the tournament Matched up with Malvern Prep in the with a resounding 5-0 win against Mercers- state championship with both Ian White burg Academy, where Sixth Form leader and Colby McNeely unavailable to start Colby McNeely pitched seven scoreless in- for the Fords, the coaching staff turned to nings en route to a relatively trouble-free Fifth Former Jac Campbell. Jac’s outing in win. They then drew Episcopal Academy the state championship was spectacular. He in the quarter-finals, where sophomores Ian held the high-powered Malvern Prep offense White and Kevin Reavey stepped up, hold- to only one run in seven innings. The ofing the Churchmen to only three runs over fense struggled early but picked it up in the seven innings, while the Fords offense pow- fourth inning to score the two decisive runs. ered to a 6-3 victory. The win proved that The Malvern offense couldn’t seem to pick the Fords could go all the way. up Campbell’s trademark off-speed pitch, as The team then matched up with Penn they continuously flailed at the pitches and Charter, where Colby McNeely again started produced weak contact that the Fords defor the Fords, this time limiting the Penn fense handled without error. Charter offense to only three runs through The Fords won by a score of 2-1 in one
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DR. MIKE NANCE
of the most thrilling contests this year.
“It was not a perfect season by any means, but everyone put the past behind them and started playing for each other. I’ll remember this team’s resilience, toughness and determination.” MARK QUATRANI ‘23 “Our win represents overcoming a lot of adversity to get to the top. Everyone stepped into their role on the team, and we all came together to make a playoff run,” Quatrani said. “It was not the perfect season by any means, but everyone put the past behind them and started playing for each other. I’ll remember this team’s resilience, toughness, and determination.”
