Senior John Paone earned two wins, struck out 17 in 12 postgame innings...
By John Bishop
GROTON, Mass. — As the whoops and hollers of Lawrence Academy’s 5-3 victory over Belmont Hill in the Independent School League championship began to die down, head varsity baseball coach Chris Margraf attempted to gather his thoughts. But with the win still fresh and glad-handing in full swing, slowing things down was almost as difficult as facing LA’s standout senior pitcher, John Paone.
Almost.
Asked about the pivotal moments in the Spartans title-clinching performance, Margraf worked to pinpoint what could only be called a frenetic win for the hometown team.
“Best-laid plans never work out,” said Margraf, who now holds three ISL baseball titles in his career at LA (2011, 2022, 2025). “We’ve struggled at the plate, but we’re good defensively and we have unbelievable pitching.
“But I think the key to this game was when they were up 2-0. We didn’t get down on ourselves, and we found a way to win. We did that against Tabor, and we did that against St. Mark’s.
“So, we’re resilient," added the bench boss. "You find a way to win no matter what.”
Of course, resiliency is heightened when you have a pitcher good enough to earn a spot at Duke. Against Tabor Academy on Wednesday, May 14, Paone was dominant, leading LA to a 4-2 win in the quarterfinals. He threw a complete seven-inning game, striking out 10 and allowing just three hits.
Then on Sunday, following Saturday’s gritty 3-2 complete-game semifinal victory over St. Mark’s by junior Logan Forgie, Paone literally put the team on his shoulders and carried the Spartans to the ISL title.
“Paone stepped in and just did unbelievably well,” Margraf said.
Paone took the mound in relief of Sam Campbell '25, who bridged a key inning between Paone and starter Jordan Henriquez '25. In total, against Bell Hill Paone pitched five innings, struck out seven and earned the win.
Not to be overlooked was the senior’s RBI single following a controversial call that overturned what appeared to be a game-sealing home run by fellow senior Laz Giardina. The long ball was ruled foul, but Paone’s timely hit kept momentum on LA’s side.
His hitting heroics proved to be the icing on the cake, as —with the final out recorded — the senior basked in the spring sunshine at Baker Field, with legendary coach Richmond Baker himself watching from behind the backstop.
“We were so excited to get that hit after the [home run] was ruled foul,” Margraf said, moments before his interview ended in a celebratory Gatorade shower. “You have to find creative ways to score runs, and you have to have big hits.”
With that said, Margraf wore the contents of the cooler with pride and continued his lap around left field, shaking hands and soaking in the success of Lawrence Academy’s 2025 season.
