St. John Neumann baseball ranked top five in the state

During St. John Neumann baseball practice, it’s all about being the best with every guy on the roster holding each other accountable.

“They all push me,” senior shortstop Ryder Woodson explained. “I mean every single one of us. You make an error in practice you’re going to get some talk from your buddies calling you out saying let’s go.”

That’s because a lot of these guys have played together for years.

“We’ve grown up together,” Woodson said. “I mean we’ll fight for each other. We love each other.”

“This group made the decision early in the year that they were going to be selfless and really care about each other,” head coach Charlie Maurer said.

Next season, 12 players are off to play college baseball. Woodson is heading to North Carolina State. He’s not alone in playing Division I baseball. Others on the roster are committed to Miami, Florida State and USF to name a few.

“There’s been years where we have three or four really talented players and some really good high school players,” Maurer explained. “This year, I feel like every game it’s a new game new hero.”

The Celtics (19-4) are currently ranked fifth in the state, according to the FHSAA. They’re poised for a deep postseason push after battling through a gauntlet schedule, where they took on the best in the state and country.

“Once you know you can play with them and beat those teams and you’ve seen every arm, you’ve seen every bat and you’ve seen the best in the country when it gets into a knockout game, there’s no fear there because you’ve seen it,” Maruer said.

Last season, the Celtics were state semifinalists. This season, they want to change that by winning the program’s first state title.