photo by: Henry Wiley/Special to the Journal-World

Free State's Eli Berns, left, high-fives teammate Nathan Young against Harrisburg at Lawrence Free State High School on Saturday, March 28, 2026, in Lawrence.

Free State baseball had as good of a season as possible in 2025, winning 28 games, the Sunflower League and the 6A state title.

But for the Firebirds still on the team, they’re not resting on their laurels. The reminders of last year’s success have only made the team hungrier to repeat it in 2026. And as the Firebirds turn toward Sunflower League play, the team is ready for what is to come.

“It’s really cool seeing all the new banners in the outfield,” senior Ben Graves said. “It’s cool to see the history of the school and what we did last year. It just motivates us even more to have another year like that.”

What really helps keep the team motivated is the fact that they know they have the talent on the team to accomplish what the Firebirds did last year.

The pitching staff is strong, with high-level talent and depth. They’re led by Zane Shaw (who nearly threw a perfect game on Friday), a Nebraska commit, with depth from pitchers who are going to be playing college baseball. In Free State’s first five games, the Firebirds have shut out three opponents and given up a total of eight runs.

Last year’s team usually kept to a rotation of Shaw, Graves and Blaine Larkin, who is now pitching for Central Missouri. With Larkin’s departure, the Firebirds have turned to Darin Fehr and Kyle Sikes to pitch more, and both have pitched in two of Free State’s three shutouts this season.

The Firebirds had good retention throughout the team, and that has helped them keep the same level of expectations. Players on the team saw what it took for the Firebirds to go 28-2, and they understand what needs to happen to accomplish that again. Still, some of the most experienced players on the roster have made sure to keep the team focused on the task at hand.

“It’s really just about staying focused throughout the day,” junior Finn Moore said. “It’s long days. Staying focused is hard, but you have to do it.”

Offensively, the Firebirds believe they have a chance to be even better than they were last year. They’ve scored nine or more runs in four of their five games, including 15 runs in the season opener. Graves said the team has more power in the lineup this year, which could help bring in more runs.

“We have a lot more to get better at, but we’re winning games, and we’re having good at-bats and scoring runs,” Graves said. “We’ll get better as the season goes on, but I’m pretty happy with how the season has gone.”

The big key for the Firebirds will be consistency. Winning the 6A state title was the highlight of the season, but an equally difficult accomplishment was winning the Sunflower League in 2025. Free State lost only one league game, and Graves said it “took everything” for the team to do so. It’s a gauntlet of a league, and the Firebirds will need to bring more energy to repeat as league champions.

“We have a lot of new faces who need to step up,” junior Ryker Mahnke said. “One of our goals since summer workouts has been Sunflower League champions. We have to get those new faces familiar with what we do.”

The good news is the Firebirds feel the team has a strong bond, which provides a helpful environment to bring newcomers up to speed. As they go through a stacked schedule of games against good teams for the next month, the bonds between teammates can be the difference as the Firebirds hope to repeat as league and state champions.

“Everyone on our team just loves to be here,” Moore said. “Everyone wants to be here. Everyone is excited to come to practice. That’s the best thing about it, there’s no bad days mentally. Everyday you’re going to have something going on, but everyone wants to be here on the field.”