Phoenixville earns excellence award

Coming off a season where they made plenty of noise in the conference standings, the Phoenixville High School baseball team made an even bigger impact in the classroom.

Earlier this week, the Phantoms were named recipients of the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Team Academic Excellence Award for the spring 2017 season.

The ABCA honored over 200 programs from every level of college and high school baseball with the award, which recognizers teams coached by ABCA members that posted over a 3.0 on a 4.0 scale for the 20162017 academic year. Phoenixville was the only school in Pennsylvania to earn the honor.

“This is a significant accomplishment for the PAHS baseball team,” said PAHS Principal, Dr. Craig Parkinson. “Our student-athletes continue to work very hard in the classroom, understanding and respecting that nothing great can happen on the field without a strong academic foundation. Coach Herman has developed a high level of pride and dedication in his players and is creating a baseball program that will continue to grow and see many more accomplishments in the years to come. We are fortunate to have students who have a love for learning, both on and off the field.”

For the year, Phoenixville finished 10-6 in the Pioneer Athletic Conference’s Frontier Division and finished 11-9 overall. The Phantoms ruffled plenty of feathers with a marathon 12-11 win over Spring-Ford and also had impressive wins over Liberty Division foes Owen J. Roberts and Boyertown. Phoenixville’s season came to a finish with a 7-3 loss against Springfield-Delco in the opening round of the District One Class 5A playoffs.

By season’s end, Kevin Cushing was named to The Mercury’s All-Area Second Team while Nick Opalkowski, Luke LeBeau, Matt O si se k-Byrne and Trip Shoemaker al learned Honorable Mention nods.

“In the Phantom Way of baseball, we preach academics and discipline above all else and it is a great honor to receive

a such a high team award in academics,” said Phoenixville head coach Neil Herman. “This award is a tes--

tament to the players and their hardwork. This award is not just about the baseball team, it is a school-wide award. The faculty and administration work on a daily basis to help our students reach their potential academically.”

BARRY TAGLIEBER — DIGITAL FIRST MEDIA Phoenixville head coach Neil Herman looks on from the dugout during a game a couple seasons ago. Herman’s Phantoms earned national recognition, as the team was named a recipient of the ABCA Team Academic Excellence Award for the spring 2017season.