Spring sports officially started on March 4, and that marks the beginning of a new season of Rams baseball.

Looking at the season ahead, head coach Blake Knecht said, “Our main goals this year are to continue to build on our success and keep growing as a program.”

Senior pitchers Luke Moscynski, Cole Sinnott, and Matthew Tracey also commented that their goals were to improve each day in practice and build around the team’s strengths.

Taking a quick look back to last season, the Rams finished with a final record of 13-7 and were Division Co-Champions. Additionally, the Rams beat Hamburg in the first round of Districts, but lost to East Pennsboro in District Quarterfinals.

“We’ve come up short in Districts the past two years and both years we’ve lost to East Pennsboro, so we want to win the whole thing and hopefully do it by beating [East Pennsboro],” senior first baseman Timothy Grimsley said.

So, without a doubt, the Rams want to win the division outright and get past Districts.

Furthermore, with the start of a new season, comes adversity that teams have to endure. That adversity being losing a total of 10 seniors from last season.

Sinnott said, “Without a doubt, losing last year’s seniors. The chemistry we had last year was something special, and losing so much talent offensively and defensively is tough for any team.”

Additionally, Sinnott explained that the upperclassmen on the team need to be leaders. And with a lot of underclassmen showing potential, it’s refreshing to Sinnott to know this after the team lost so many seniors after last season.

Another tough aspect of this season is how the weather has kept the team’s practices inside. Knecht said, “Like all other spring sports, the weather dictates how much [we] can get done to prepare for [our] scrimmages and games. With snow still on the ground and the cold weather, it’s a challenge to get a feel for what you have when you can’t get outside.”

However, the team has been able to fulfill what they need to do for when they have the ability to get outside.

“Overall, this off-season, as a program, I thought we did an okay job. Our freshmen showed up and dedicated themselves to get better, which is a plus. The weather and gym space is always a hiccup in scheduling workouts and such, but our guys got good work in to prepare for the season,” Knecht said.

Looking ahead at the season’s opponents, Knecht made it clear that there are not many easy games, whether within the division or against other opponents.

Knecht added, “Our division will be very competitive with games against Littlestown, West York, and Bermudian Springs who all had a successful season last year. Also, our non-league games against Berks Catholic, Red Lion, and Gettysburg will be tough challenges.”

Something that has helped the team prepare for the season, according to Knecht, is the abundance of players that practice from the fall to the start of the season. That results in the players being more prepared when the season starts.

Looking at the season ahead, Sinnott said, “I’m really excited to keep the [Rams] Baseball culture the same. Working hard, being relentless, keeping an ‘earn everything’ mentality. Guys realize that we have to earn everything and nothing will be handed to us.”

“Also, as a senior, playing with [teammates] that I’ve played with for my whole life (or over a long period of time), it will be sad whenever the season comes to an end, but I’m excited for [the season] to begin.”

Knecht added that he is always excited to see the team compete and, especially this year with losing a lot of players from last year, the team is excited to go out, play ball, and show other people what the team is made of.

“I’m excited to take on a new role as a senior. It’s definitely been different to be one of the older [players] on the team. Right now, I’m just looking forward to March 22, our first regular season game against York Catholic,” Tracey said.