SCH's Zion Spearman takes a lead after his first-inning single on Friday against Malvern Prep. Spearman, one of three players on the SCH roster from Philadelphia's famous 2014 Little League World Series team, batted second and went 2-for-4 with a run scored. (Photo by Jonathan Vander Lugt)

by Jonathan Vander Lugt

There is nothing usual about this year’s Inter-Ac baseball season.

Through two weeks of conference play all six teams are 2-2, with tiebreaker scenarios about as convoluted as you would expect.

The league is right back where it started, and, after losing a pair this week, Springside Chestnut Hill head coach Joe Ishikawa is hoping his team can get off on a better foot heading into his team’s last six league games.

“You had to pick this one to come out to, didn’t you?” he asked after his team’s 7-2 loss to Malvern Prep last Friday. “We are not performing in a manner that is reflective of who we are or the talent we have.”

Facing Division I prospect Billy Corcoran, the Blue Devils put up a quick run in the first, but failed to capitalize on a bases-loaded, one-out scenario (one that MLB teams score an average of 1.5 runs in) in the next inning.

SCH would go on to leave a runner on base in each of the fourth and fifth innings. In the sixth, when the score was still just 2-1 Malvern, a pinch runner for Aidan Frye committed baseball’s cardinal sin – thrown out on the bases – and a combination of Blue Devil hurlers went out and dealt the Friars a five-spot in the next half-inning.

“We’re far from playing our best baseball up to this point, but we’ll bounce back,” Ishikawa said. “We’ve got some resilient guys.”

To his team’s credit, SCH tacked on another run when Joe Jaconski, after reaching on a two-out error, scored on a single that Pat Elliott blistered to left center. Chance Ishikawa popped up to end it in the next at-bat, but the consolation run was welcome if ultimately unsatisfying.

“Sometimes you fall short, and today was an example of that,” Joe Ishikawa said. “We’ve had 14 games this year, and we’ve had only maybe four or five bad innings.”

SCH's Carter Davis delivers against the Malvern Prep Friars on Friday. Davis uses a funky side-arm delivery to keep hitters off-balance, and leveraged his talents to four and two thirds innings of 2-run ball against MP. (Photo by Jonathan Vander Lugt)

He feels like his team has run into a bit of bad luck – those innings, distributed normally over a season, would likely be rendered irrelevant at least once or twice – but all of them have directly factored into their games’ results.

“We played a team that committed seven errors that still beat us,” Ishikawa said. “That’s like committing five turnovers in football and still winning. You can’t give good teams like Malvern opportunities. If you leave the open even a little bit for them, they’ll run through it.”

That said, there were positives.

Junior Carter Davis started for SCH and pitched well, in large part because his funky delivery and long, wiry limbs make his pitches seem a little faster than they are. He throws sidearm after a blustery windup and gets a little bit of extra oomph on his fastball because he releases it a few feet closer to the plate than most.

The advantages are small, but over 70 or so pitches they add up. He kept MP off balance to the tune of four-and-two thirds innings of two-run ball while striking out three.

“Carter did an excellent job, and this was his first varsity Inter-Ac start,” Ishikawa said. “He’s a tough kid. He’s one of the most psychologically strong kids that I’ve coached.”

In addition, his battery mate Sam Aslansan, a junior, caught a phenomenal game behind the dish. Along with his numerous blocks on pitches in the dirt, he showed off his arm by throwing out one runner in the fourth and back-picking and catching another Friar baseman an inning later.

All this came with stitches in his mouth after he – as Ishikawa put it – “blocked a pitch with his face” the week prior.

Elsewhere, senior hurler and First-Team All Inter-Ac returnee Aidan “Curly” Frye will anchor the SCH rotation. Low pitch counts allowed him to throw in all three SCH conference tilts prior to the Malvern Prep game, and Ishikawa will obviously rely heavily on his ace for the rest of the year.

“I think the whole league relies on their,” he said. “Every team has one really big arm, and you saw it out here today (with Corcoran). Ultimately, the championship is going to be decided on how many games a number two can win.”

Blue Devil junior Sam Aslansan kneels behind the plate Friday. Aslansan had a quiet day at the plate, but his play behind it almost certainly kept a few Friar runs off the board. (Photo by Jonathan Vander Lugt)

Up next, SCH will host the Episcopal Academy Tuesday before heading to the Haverford School Friday. Frye should be good to go by the time the Churchmen come to Chestnut Hill.

“Everybody can beat everybody this year,” Ishikawa said. “We’ve beaten teams that have beaten Malvern, but they got us today. Every game is up for grabs.”

That, above all, should make for a fun few weeks.

“That’s why we’re here,” Ishikawa said.

Around the Area

Penn Charter split the week with a 5-2 win over SCH and an 11-7 loss to the Haverford School. Will Samuel got the win against the Blue Devils with five and two thirds innings of strong pitching. PC travels to Malvern Prep to round out the league season’s first half on Tuesday before hosting Germantown Academy Friday.

Speaking of the Patriots, Tim Ginter’s Germantown Academy team won each of its conference games (3-2 and 9-2 over Malvern Prep and Episcopal Academy, respectively) for their best league week in years. Their top two starting pitchers – Colton Smith and Jack Popolizio – got the wins. GA hosts the Haverford School Tuesday before its game at Penn Charter Friday.

La Salle College High School has continued its perfect start to the conference season – the Explorers now sit at 6-0 in Catholic League play – with a 12-4 win over Conwell-Egan Catholic Tuesdaay and an 18-3 blowout over Bonner-Prendergast the following day. Eric Marasheski and Anthony Basciano each homered for La Salle, which plays St. Joe’s Prep at the field on Temple-Ambler campus Tuesday.

Germantown Friends School sits at 4-2 in Friends League play – tied with three other teams for the second-best conference record – after it split the week with a 4-3 win over George School Tuesday and a 5-4 loss to Friends Select on Thursday. The Tigers host Friends Central Tuesday before traveling to Westtown on Friday.

Information from TedSilary.com was used in this article.