DE Preseason High School: Teams to Watch
March 4, 2025
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Delaware Preseason Teams to Watch (Alphabetical Order)
Appoquinimink Jaguars 
2024 Record: 8-10
The Jaguars had somewhat of a disappointing season in 2024, missing the DIAA playoffs entirely. There is some intrigue with the pitching staff, highlighted by the return of Alex Epperly (Widener) and Austin Schurman (Alvernia), who will be a big-time two-way contributor for the Jags. Sophomore Brody Fleming had an impressive summer and fall campaign and can turn into a substantial rotational piece for the Jaguars this spring. The question marks rise once again with the depth of Appo’s offense, with many losses in the lineup including Sameer German and Reynaldo Carrier.
Conrad Red Wolves 
2024 Record: 9-9
Conrad always seems to have an above average squad that can pull off an upset against just about everyone, and we expect no different in 2025. Brady Wardell (Maryland) is back for one final season to lead the Redwolves pitching staff with junior Nicky Dello Buono poised for a big role this spring. The biggest question for Conrad will be who will provide depth following the top two arms, especially in tougher weeks where they face multiple top ten squads. Offensively, this team should have no issue scoring runs. There are pieces that have moved on to the college ranks, but they still retain some senior leaders in Dylan Pirrung (St. Mary’s College of MD) and Max Hansen. There is some excitement when looking at Justin O’Connor and Sawyer DeLuca, who were both freshmen who were two of the top Redwolves hitters last season. With a front-end ace in Wardell paired with an intriguing offense, this could be a team that makes some damage.
Dover Senators 
2024 Record: 14-6
You want to talk about an offense that could be fun in 2025, look no further than the Dover Senators. This lineup is filled with one of the stronger junior classes in the First State, highlighted by Ryan Perkins and Carter Bean. Depth should be provided by numerous upperclassmen and a couple underclassmen that’ll fill out the lineup. Jeremy Drago should finally be healthy after missing multiple seasons with a prolonged injury, and we will have to see how the Senators utilize the two-way on both sides. The biggest worry for us with the Senators is the pitching staff, as two of their top arms have departed following last season in Julian Christman (Lake Forest transfer) and Austin Chambers (Combine Academy transfer). Senior Kole Turner will most likely be the #1 arm for Dover with junior Jackson Crowe logging some more innings compared to last season. If the Senators’ pitching staff can limit some damage, Dover’s offense should get them to double-digit wins.
Indian River Indians 
2024 Record: 10-9
Indian River brings back a very strong squad, retaining most of their roster that led them to the playoffs last season. On the offensive side, Chase Ruley (Salisbury) will provide the leadership at the top of the lineup alongside Jack Cappo (Moravian), with depth provided by Landon Erbe and Ricky Wiggins. On the mound, multi-sport athlete Dylan Grise is poised for another breakout season while leading the rotation. Trey Hill and sophomore Ty Weber are two names to keep eyes on throughout the rotation that will be pivotal to the Indians success as they look to take that next step.
Middletown Cavaliers 
2024 Record: 12-9
Middletown pulled off one of the biggest upsets in the DIAA playoffs last spring and put together a noteworthy season before running into the state runner-ups. The list is endless in terms of key losses for Middletown as they lose almost all of their starters from last season. They do bring back two names that should lead this squad; senior southpaw Grady Anderson (Widener) on the mound, and junior Brady Stenvik in the lineup. Middletown will look for some underclassmen to step up and play big roles if they look to mirror their success from previous years.
Polytech Panthers 
2024 Record: 11-8
Polytech will be an interesting team in 2025. The Panthers improved from a seven win team in ‘23 to eleven in ‘24, granting them a playoff appearance. If there is one thing the Panthers should feel excited about, it’s the pitching staff. Staff ace from last season Elijah Benton (UMES) is back alongside fellow senior southpaw Blake Knight. The biggest addition for the Panthers though is the addition of sophomore flamethrower Cameron Allen, who transfers in from Caesar Rodney. Just like Appoquinimink, we raise some question marks regarding Polytech’s offense though, which prevents us from putting them any further up in the rankings.
Red Lion Christian Academy Lions 
2024 Record: 14-6
Red Lion had a much improved season last spring, making the playoffs for the first time since 2021. The leader of RLCA on both sides will be senior Dominic Liguori (Washington College), who is one of the only seniors projected to be on the roster this year. This squad is full of two-way players who will play significant roles on both sides, highlighted by another strong junior class in Brayden Redmond, Caleb Sutton, Logan Hill, and Anthony Contessa. After some concerns last year behind the plate, sophomore Chandler Smith will take over the catching duties and should help an above average pitching staff. Red Lion had a very young team last season, and with another year of experience under their belt, expect RLCA to do some damage.
Sanford Warriors 
2024 Record: 17-3
The Warriors return a majority of last year’s roster but with one major loss; DIAA Co-Player of the Year and one of the best pitchers in Warriors history, Brady Fox has headed to the collegiate level. Not all bad news for the Warriors, as they do return two key arms who both had fantastic seasons in 2024, Alex Gannon and John Malloy. On the offensive side, Owen Ripple (Averett) and Ryan Timmons (Washington College) should lead the charge with a strong mainstay for the next two years up the middle in Cole Ruhland. It’s been a while since Sanford has been without Brady Fox, so we will see how much that impacts their success in 2025.
St. George's Tech Hawks 
2024 Record: 10-9
The good news; the Hawks only lose one key piece of their roster from last season. The bad news; that one piece is Nathan Arterbridge, arguably the best player in the entire state. The pitching staff remains intact as Garrett Overby (Wilmington) returns to lead the staff with household names such as Logan Burns, Joseph Russo, and Timothy Whichard. Those four names will also be the ones providing key depth throughout the lineup alongside senior Brayden Fields (Neumann) who looks for one final standout season for STG. A pair of Salem CC commits in Chase Hortiz and Julien Velazquez will also fill out the remainder of the lineup. Losing Arterbridge is substantial, but they do return a majority of their squad, which should still lead to another playoff berth.
Woodbridge Vikings 
2024 Record: 12-7
Another team that saw major improvement in 2024, the Raiders doubled their wins from ‘23 and made the DIAA playoffs, before falling in a tough 1-0 contest. This was a younger team last season that found success, and another year of experience should translate to similar if not better success. Seniors Austin Griffith (Del Tech) and Logan Moran should provide senior leadership to the lineup, with depth provided by Connor Watkins and Ryan Scott. The ace of the Raiders' staff last season may have only been a freshman, but Evan Woodall quietly put together a very impressive season with wins over multiple top ten squads. Behind Woodall, another incoming freshman could help anchor the staff in Daulton McCabe. An experienced lineup with a younger pitching staff once again in 2025, Woodbridge has all the pieces in place to make another playoff appearance.