Krasner Leads Chaminade Over USchool In Regional Quarters

Coming into Saturday’s 2A regional semifinal Chaminade-Madonna had defeated University School twice this season. They did so, however, in very different fashion. The first time was a 7-0 shutout, and the district championship game last week was one for the ages, an 8-7 thriller.

So coming into their 2A regional quarterfinal on Saturday, neither coach knew exactly what to expect.

With both teams at full strength on the mound, it was logical to assume runs would be at a premium, and it turns out, they were.

Chaminade scratched out runs in the first and fifth innings, and that would be enough with their cae Spencer Krasner on the mound, as the Lions advanced to the regional semifinals with a 2-1 win.

“Today was an old-fashioned pitcher’s duel, with two kids on the mound that really, really thrive in these situations, and love to compete and battle it out,” said Lions Manager Jerry Albert. “Spencer had to reach down a few times to work out of jams, and USchool’s Aidan Jacobs battled all day. It was a fun game to be part of.”

Chaminade actually fell behind in this one early, as the Sharks scored a run off Krasner in the top of the first.

The Lions answered in their half of the inning, when Joshua Wright worked the count to 2-2, then fouled off two pitches, before launching a solo home run.

“A terrific at-bat from Josh early in the game,” said Albert. “Aftwer that, Spencer was able to settle down and really take control of the game.”

After the two first inning runs, Krasner and Jacobs exchanged zeroes into the fifth inning. Isaiah Fernandez led off the inning with a single. A sacrifice bunt from Josh Andel moved courtesy runner Alejandro Fernandez to second. After a flyout, Nolan Loonan drove in what would become the winning run, with an RBI double into the gap.

“That at-bat from Nolan was outstanding,” said Albert. “he just kept fouling off pitch after pitch until he got one he can handle, and drove it into the gap. It was a big moment in the game.”

The game remained 2-1 into the seventh, and after Krasner reached his pitch count limit, Albert called in Spencer’s younger brother, Tyler, a sophomore, to get the final two outs. The younger Krasner struck out the first batter he faced, then got Isaac Rosa to fly out to end the game.

“Spencer did all he could to go the distance, but the pitch count rule made us go to the bullpen,” said Albert. “It was cool that his younger brother could come into such a big spot and get the job done. It was a really ince one-two punch.”

Even with the win, Albert ackowledged the season the Lions opponent had.

“Danny (Rovetto) does a great job over there, and that team grinded all year long. I give them credit for how they battled, and for the season they had.”

Now, Chaminade will move on to face the team that has been on top of the HSBN Palm Beach Power Rankings all season, St. John Paul. The two teams have not faced each other in 2026, but their styles are similar. Both teams are built around strong starting pitching, and timely hitting.

“When you get to this point in the playoffs, it is important that you do all the little things right,” said Albert. “This win today puts us in a nice position as we turn our attention to next week’s regional semifinal series.”

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