For the second straight season, the Emmaus High School baseball team enters the year as defending Eastern Pennsylvania Conference champion, having beaten Nazareth 6-5 in 10 innings in the championship game in 2022.

The Hornets, however, fell one game shy of wearing gold twice as they lost to Liberty 6-1 in the District 11 final.

Emmaus won 1-0 over Owen J. Roberts in First Round of the state tournament, then lost in the quarterfinal round to Hazleton to finish the season 22-6 overall and 13-3 in the EPC.

Head coach Jeremy Haas and his staff saw six players graduate following states last season. Colin Foley, Anthony Viola, Tyler LePage, Luke Deschenes, Jaden Gallagher and Dominick Chiego all played their last games in green and gold.

Some of the upperclassmen returning this season that will be relied upon once again include Colin Wilson, Ryan Latchford, Noah Hogan, TJ Geist, Jackson Merk, Zach McEllroy and Josiah Williams. Some newcomers that may be put into the lineup in 2023 include Cole Moreau, Shane Ohl, Chad Kauffman, Cohen Schadler, Wiley Fleck, Chad Kauffman and Emmit Budick.

Haas sees some good things out of his group heading into the season, along with some areas they need to continue to work upon.

“Our pitching depth and overall athleticism and depth as a team is a strong point for us,” said Haas. “We need to see growth in all areas, though. There are young guys that will have to grow up quickly.

“We will aim to compete every day whether it is a game or at practice,” Haas said. “Our goals are to qualify for league and district tournaments.”

Hornets top Blue Mountain in opener

The Emmaus High School baseball team picked up right where it left off from last season, with positive momentum. The Hornets opened their 2023 regular season on top with a 12-2 victory Saturday afternoon in a nonconference home game against Blue Mountain at Church Lane Park.

The Eagles got on the scoreboard in their first at-bats, scoring an early run to take a 1-0 lead. Emmaus answered with its first run in the bottom of the second inning. After Blue Mountain took back the lead with a run in the top of the third, the Hornets broke the game open with nine runs in their next two at-bats, bringing home five runs in the third and four in the fourth to go on top 10-2.

Emmaus tacked on two more runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to earn the double-digit win.

Juniors Noah Hogan and Cohen Schadler both finished with four RBIs each, with the former hitting his first home run, a three-run shot in the third. Two other juniors played a role in the win as Chad Kauffman went 2-for-4 at the plate with two runs scored while classmate Wiley Fleck went 1-for-2 with a double and three runs scored.

Three pitchers combined to throw seven innings in the victory. Senior TJ Geist was credited with the win in relief, entering the game in the top of the second, allowing just two hits in three innings. Both teams ended the day with five hits.

Emmaus gets in to conference competition this week. The Hornets had a home game against Allen Tuesday and travel to Dieruff on Thursday. They conclude the week with a nonconference game Saturday at Cedar Cliff.