Two reasons stick out: 1, the Warriors believed they should have won more. 2, success there is not judged by what one does in the regular season, but in the postseason.

When a program has endured just one losing season its entire history, while making 36 straight playoff appearances and six state championships, that is just the way it is. The word standard is used a lot at Montoursville and the 2026 team keeps measuring up.

It has the district championship banner which proves it.

Montoursville captured its latest title when it defeated Athens, 9-3 and won a second straight District 4 Class AAAA championship. Now, the Warriors hope to again take the standard statewide, opening the state tournament Monday against Wyoming Area at Williamsport’s Millionaire Mountain.

Carson Menne of Montoursville connects on an RBI single in the 5th against Athens in Williamsport last Thursday evening. Montoursville won the District IV AAAA championship 9-3. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

“We only had four losses but we call that a skid, so I think that says something about our standard here at Montoursville,” right fielder Carson Menne said. “It feels good to overcome that and get to this point.”

“It’s just a standard we have,” designated hitter Austin Davidson said. “We were able to come through and win a district championship and that feels amazing.”

Montoursville has experienced a lot of amazing times, especially since 2018 when it has won five district titles, reached two state Final 4s and played in last year’s state championship. The names change year after year, but with the help of four Montoursville coaches who are alumni, the tradition gets passed down and the results do not.

Since Eck returned to coach his alma mater in 2018, Montoursville has played in the district final each season. It has reached states in all but two seasons during that time, missing out by three combined runs.

So, when Montoursville gathers for its first practice each season, Eck lays out the goals. Whether the team is young, experienced, pitching-heavy or hitting heavy, the expectations are the same.

“I’m super proud of these guys. The hard part is we have super high expectations and the expectation every single year is to win a district championship,” Eck said. “We know that it’s not going to happen every year but that’s what our expectations are. If you don’t reach it, you don’t reach it but your expectations shouldn’t be any less than that. That’s kind of what we’ve built.”

Through the ups and downs this season, Montoursville remained focused. The Warriors experienced some impressive highs, including a 10-0 pasting of then-undefeated Waverly, but also some frustrating lows culminated by a 3-2 loss at Danville which cost it a share of the HAC-II crown.

Once Menne scored the winning run in the eighth inning against back-to-back District 4 Class AA champion South Williamsport in a 6-5 regular season finale win, however, all that was forgotten. The good and bad were erased and it was all about pursuing the next opportunity.

“For the past four years I’ve been here, every day we come in for the first day of practice and get a talk about how the expectation is to win a district championship and we’ve been able to make it all four years,” Menne said. “To win it the last two has been a blessing.”

Montoursville faced obstacles even before playing its first game. The annual early season terrible field conditions at Giles Field reached a climax and Montoursville never set foot upon it until after playing its first five games on the road. Its first outdoor experience at all was playing Midd-West in the season opener.

Two days later, Montoursville traveled to frigid Mount Carmel and faced a team coming off its own state final appearance. The Warriors lost, 9-6, but just two games into the season Eck made a bold prediction, guaranteeing they would repeat as district champions.

It was not cockiness, just belief in his players. Conversely, they feel that trust and the train gathered momentum, eventually leading it back to the district summit.

“I left there thinking they threw their two best arms; they swung the bats pretty well, we gave them an 8-spot and we were still in it,” Eck said. “I know Mount Carmel is one of the better teams in the area. If we’re doing that and we’re not even playing good ball, we’re going to be OK.

“These guys buy in. We talk all the time about just do simple better. That’s what we try and do.”

Montoursville did it quite well against Athens, Logan Kirby and Zack Neill throwing well, the defense making some excellent plays; batters moving runners and delivering key hits. Down the regular season stretch, Montoursville was searching for its identity and rediscovered it against Athens.

It all led to jubilant players dogpiling in front of the Millionaire Mountain pitcher’s mound, district champions again. The thing is, because Montoursville has achieved this so many times, casual observers can be tricked into thinking it’s easy.

In fact, it is the complete opposite. Winning, period, is extremely hard and that rises exponentially when pursuing championships. And because it has built one of the state’s premier baseball traditions, Montoursville also wears a collective bulls-eye each season with opponents eager to knock it off.

That the Warriors have overcome those district challenges so many times says a lot about the players, coaches and so much more. Expectations are one thing but it takes relentless dedication to reach them and only because so many Warriors have paid that price have they been able to taste gold.

“We’ve had great players and great coaches around us, but it’s not easy. I think people think you’re just going to do it every year and it doesn’t work like that,” Eck said. “I do not take it for granted. We watched in football the last two years; watched it in basketball this year, how close they are but winning it is a whole other story.”

The same applies at the state level. One goal has been reached; one mountain climb. Now another goal remains out there; another summit to try and scale.

Whatever happens Monday, Montoursville again has enhanced its tradition. Whatever happens, when the 2027 Warriors gather next March, the discussion will be the same.

Just like the standard.

“Coach gives his prediction every year. It’s been spot on the last two years. I don’t expect it to be any different next year with the expectations,” Davidson said. “We just have to live up to it. We have high standards and we’re playing up to them.”