After historically strong season, Quaker Valley baseball expects growth to continue

By: Ray Fisher
Saturday, June 14, 2025 | 11:47 PM

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Quaker Valley’s baseball squad finished as the WPIAL Class 3A runner-up and a PIAA quarterfinalist in 2025.

It marked the first time in more than a decade that a QV baseball team reached the WPIAL championship game. It also was more than a decade since the Quakers advanced to the state quarterfinals on the diamond.

“The future is bright,” coach Rich Garbee said.

The club ended up 16-8 overall after compiling a 4-13 record last year with nine losses in its last 10 games.

“This has been a year of growth for QV baseball,” Garbee said. “We expect it to continue. We will always work on the fundamental areas that are keys to winning baseball — defensively make routine plays and communicate, pitchers throw strikes and get ahead in the count, hitters attack fastballs, and everyone runs the bases aggressively.

“Beyond talent,” he continued via email, “trust, sacrifice and believing in yourself were behaviors that I believe were important to the success we had this year, and you find with any winning team in any sport at any level. Easy to write, very hard to achieve.”

QV won four of six playoff games, but the two losses were gut-wrenching.

The Quakers pounded Bedford, 22-6, in the first round of the PIAA tournament then lost a 6-5 decision to South Park in the quarterfinals.

After senior CF Ryan Finamore smacked a grand slam against South Park in the top of the sixth inning to give QV a 5-1 lead, the Eagles rallied with a run in the sixth and four in the bottom of the seventh to capture the victory.

“I thought we competed hard, which is all you can ask as a coach,” Garbee said. “Was it our best game? No. However, I am very proud of this team. They represented their community, family, school and themselves with class and dignity.

“Overall, as a coaching staff, we are very pleased with the progress that was made this year in all areas of the game and by each individual on the team.”

QV was rolling in the district tournament, defeating Ligonier Valley, 4-2, Avonworth, 1-0, and Mohawk, 5-2, in advancing to the finals where the Quakers lost a 1-0 decision to Riverside as Zack Hare tossed a perfect game for the Panthers.

QV started out 6-2 this spring and took a 12-6 record into the playoffs thanks to a four-game winning streak at the end of the regular season.

The Quakers accounted for 10 or more runs nine times and racked up a total of 175 runs, or 7.2 per game, along with a .293 batting average as a group.

QV pitchers tossed four shutouts and limited opponents to 4.4 runs per game.

Finamore, junior 3B Todd Kagle and senior SS Oscar Roig led the club in hitting. Finamore finished with a .451 batting average, .613 on-base percentage, .765 slugging percentage and 1.378 OPS. He accounted for 10 doubles, two home runs and 18 RBIs and scored 25 times.

“I am definitely very proud of this team,” Finamore said. “Every fall, coach Garbee sits the team down and we discuss past years, successes and what we like to call lessons. Coach teaches us that we either win or we learn. A loss is never a part of the picture. We set goals. This team took every goal very seriously. We worked (hard) in practices, but most importantly in the gym this past offseason getting quicker, faster and stronger.

“I’ve really felt our team this year was very connected and everyone had a role to play and played it very well. We didn’t have the biggest, strongest, fastest kids, but I feel we definitely had the most mentally tough baseball players in the WPIAL. Although we came short of the WPIAL championship and may have not made it as far as we wanted in the state run, I couldn’t be happier with the effort that was shown. This team is definitely something I will remember and take forward with me in my future.”

Kagle had the top batting average on the team at .462 while Roig ranked third at .387.

“We had a great run,” Roig said. “I wish we could have gone all the way, but sometimes that’s just how baseball goes. We made the WPIAL final and the state quarterfinals. A year ago, we would have never thought that would have been possible.”

Kagle also led the squad in hits (30), RBIs (39), slugging percentage (.923), doubles (10), home runs (6) and OPS (1.456), and was second in OBP (.532).

“We had a lot of fun this year,” Kagle said. “We competed throughout the year. It was sad to see the way it ended.”

Roig led in plate appearances (99), singles (22), runs (35) and walks (22), and ranked with the team leaders in slugging percentage (.480), at-bats (75), hits (29), on-base percentage (.525) and OPS (1.005).

“In any season where you see success, there are always a number of players who contribute, especially in baseball,” Garbee said. “Our ‘core four’ — Jack Cindrich, Ryan Finamore, Oscar Roig and Nolan Wagoner — is where it all starts. They all pitch, play any position we ask of them and bring energy and leadership every day.

“Kyle Rader and Wyatt Hamm fit their roles perfectly as a DH and a strategic runner for us. My hat is off to all six seniors. They will all be successful, and I can’t wait to see what the next four years brings for them.”

Garbee said Kagle, sophomore Kolton Johnson and juniors Brad Semonik and Henry Zupanc all had breakout seasons.

“And that bodes well for our 2026 prospects as they are sophomores and juniors,” Garbee said. “Our freshmen class has been a delight to watch this year as all of them have dramatically improved. We can’t wait to see what their offseason work does for them as they continue to grow and mature.”

Johnson (.298), Zupanc (.296), Rader (.293) and freshman Cameron Neal (.286) all batted close to .300.

Wagoner and Cindrich were the mainstays on the pitching staff.

Wagoner was 3-2 with one save. In 531/3 innings, he fanned 42 batters while allowing 55 hits, 20 earned runs and only one round tripper. Wagoner also contributed at the plate with a .263 batting average, 22 RBIs and 12 runs scored.

Cindrich carved out a 4-1 record on the mound. He pitched in 262/3 innings, surrendering 32 hits and 21 earned runs while striking out 15. Offensively, Cindrich scored 15 times and drew 18 walks.

Other integral hurlers for the Quakers included Johnson (3-1), Finamore (2-1, 2 saves), Roig (2-1, 2 saves), Kagle (1-1, 1 save) and freshman Holden Kirkham (1-0). Finamore struck out 28 and gave up 13 hits and six earned runs in 142/3 innings. Roig chalked up 28 strikeouts in 21 innings.

“Looking at it now, there’s a lot to be upset about,” Roig said, “but stepping back and looking at the bigger picture, we’ve come a long way, and we’ve left the team in a better position to go compete in the following years. Although we fell short, this has been the best year of baseball in my life.”

The QV pitching corps finished with a .731 winning percentage and 149 strikeouts in 1552/3 innings of work.

Optimism dominates the 2026 prospects for the QV baseball program.

“We will have five starters returning plus 10 seasoned sophomores who will be competing for the open starting slots,” Garbee said. “Not to mention another 8 to 10 incoming freshmen who we are expecting. We will get a look at them in the fall when we run our minicamps and scrimmages.

“We would hope that they will use the success we have seen this year as a springboard to focus on their individual growth. The offseason is where change takes place; I am confident they will put the work in.”

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