Berks Sports Report Paul Roberts
Ben Kulp has been a mainstay in Wilson’s rotation for years. The 6’2, 215-pound righty was an All-County selection a season ago for his work on the mound. The West Chester commit is now looking to do damage at the plate. Kulp hit just .213 last spring. “It’s critical for me to get my bat going this year,” he acknowledged. The senior cleanup hitter went 3-for-4 in a 14-5 victory at Exeter on Wednesday afternoon. Kulp homered, doubled, and knocked in six runs. He also earned the win with nine strikeouts over six frames. Kulp allowed four runs on five hits and a walk. “Just trying to be more consistent hitting my spots. I struggled a bit out of the slide step. Overall, I was pretty proud of what I did,” he said.
Kulp got the second inning started by drawing a walk from senior Mason Goodhart. The (1-1) Bulldogs got on the board thanks to a pair of errors. Brandon Weller, an all-division catcher last season, tried to pick off a runner at first base with two outs. His throw sailed into right field giving Wilson a 1-0 lead. Jack Gabel, who’s also headed to West Chester, ripped a RBI double off the left field wall in the third to make it 2-0. Max Maoury, the No. 9 hitter in the lineup, provided a two-out single through the left side of the infield in the fourth to put the Bulldogs on top 3-0.
The (2-2) Eagles got their first hit off Kulp in the bottom of the fourth. An infield single by East Stroudsburg commit Jake Hafer was followed by a line drive single up the middle by Jake Franek. After Weller was hit by a pitch, Brenton Feathers delivered a two-run single to left field. Kulp limited the damage by picking a runner off of second base and getting a pop up to first base to end the inning. Rhys Stadelmeyer began the fifth with an infield single. Following a balk and a wild pitch, Kulp stroked a single to center for a 4-2 edge. Goodhart was charged with four runs, three earned, on six hits in 4.1 innings. He walked two batters and struck out one. Ethan Ramos, a junior righty, took over on the hill.
Wilson erupted for six runs in the sixth to blow it open. After another RBI double by Gabel, Stadelmeyer got a ground ball to the right side past a drawn-in infield which brought in two runs. Kulp then crushed a three-run homer to left-center off of southpaw Jacob Hohl. “The whole at-bat I was just trying to stay back, knowing he’s a slider kind of pitcher. Mainly just thinking contact and got lucky on that one,” explained Kulp. Ramos gave up five runs on a pair of hits and three walks in one inning. Hohl allowed one run on three hits and a walk in two-thirds of an inning.
Exeter got within 10-4 in the sixth on a two-run homer to left-center by junior Matt Woram. The Bulldogs tacked on four runs in the seventh off of sophomore lefty Braedon Duncan. Kulp hammered a two-run double off the wall in left field. Matt Mallis added a pinch-hit, two-run single. Wilson finished with 15 hits and no errors. Gabel was 2-for-4 with two runs and two RBI. “He definitely has a lot of confidence up there. I love him in the leadoff spot,” replied Kulp. Stadelmeyer, Gabe Spohn, and freshman third baseman Pat Lengle also had two hits apiece. Hafer, a second team All-State pick last year, was responsible for two of the Eagles’ six hits. They committed two errors.
Wilson and Exeter both returned five starters this season. The Eagles went (16-8) in 2025, while the Bulldogs ended up (14-8). Wilson has an extremely challenging non-league schedule. The Bulldogs host North Penn on Thursday at 4:15pm. The Knights won 22 games and the District 1 championship last year. They fell to Cedar Cliff 1-0 in 13 innings in the PIAA-6A Final at Penn State. “It’s a big game for us. It will really show us where we sit in the state,” noted Kulp.
