MOORESTOWN, N.J. (BVM) — Heading into the Cal Ripken division’s 2020 Southern New Jersey Babe Ruth League 10-year-old state tournament, Moorestown’s 10U baseball team — the team that won the state’s 8U level title two years ago — had well-earned high hopes of becoming the first team to win the state championship twice.

Since the delayed start of the season in mid-June, the team made up of a dozen local 10-year-olds — who started playing together when they were 7 —racked up an impressive 23-3 record.

“This team is on an epic journey so far on the season,” team manager and coach Adam Gerber said.

Gerber also noted that the team has won all five tournaments they entered this year. They are a completely local team, often competing and winning against select travel teams from other areas across the country.

“With all that has been going on with COVID, what these kids have accomplished is nothing short of amazing,” Gerber said.

Equally amazing is Gerber’s hard work and commitment through the quarantine-extended offseason. It helped keep the team in top shape for peak performance on and off the field, and ready to compete with a winning record on a national level.

The quarantine order came in mid-March when the team usually starts preparing for the season, and it was a shock to everyone – including Gerber.

“At first it hit hard,” Gerber said. “I gave it some thought and sat down with my family and said, ‘we can either get depressed and lazy…or do the opposite. We can work harder and longer to do the best we can to get good grades and stay in shape.’”

Then, he got on a Zoom call to deliver the same message to his team. Gerber didn’t just talk the talk, he walked the walk, and made sure every team member walked with him.

The coach set up and required daily, at home workouts, while also holding daily team Zoom meetings that required each player to prove they did their homework and workout. The meetings also gave Gerber the opportunity to observe individual form and do some coaching from afar.

In April, when the season normally begins, the team found out they might not play this year due to the pandemic. But the workouts and daily Zoom meetings continued. Finally, on Father’s Day weekend in mid-June, they headed off to Hershey, Pa., for the season’s first tournament.

The team left Hershey with a 5-0 record, and they never looked back after that. Gerber’s squad went on to win all four subsequent tournaments, including the Cal Ripken district 4 finals in Cherry Hill, N.J. This win qualified them for the state tournament in Berlin, N.J.

“This has been a great outlet and opportunity for the kids and their families,” Gerber said. “This season has been an emotional roller coaster of highs and lows for all of us. It’s exciting to see the kids on such a great run.”

This year’s Cal Ripken district championship is the sixth for Gerber in his 10 years of coaching Moorestown teams. He coached his two older sons in the past and plans to retire when his youngest son, Alex — a current member of the team — turns 12.

“I have dedicated much of my time, and my family’s life to youth sports,” Gerber said.

Gerber, whose day job is managing his family’s packaging company in Philadelphia, is quick to mention that his wife, Missy, also helps behind the scenes — often behind the camera for team photos.

All of Moorestown rallied around and cheered for the hometown 10U team which kept baseball alive in 2020. While they didn’t finish with another state championship, falling to Marlton and host Berlin, their 23-win season was impressive nonetheless.