May 21, 2013 Volume-V
Issue-10
NJSIAA 3 6-7 Tournament Preview
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TRN Topples Jackson Memorial for OCT Title
Rumson Boys Lacrosse 8 Makes History
Rumson Girls Lacrosse 10 Wins SCT Wall Ends CBA's 13-Game 11 Winning Streak in MCT Semis
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eek 4/28-5/4
Player of the Week Joe Sadler, Jr., 1B, Holmdel
Sadler helped the Hornets to a 3-0 week by continuing a season-long rampage that has put him among the Shore Conference leaders in multiple categories. He had two doubles and three RBI in a 12-3 win over Rumson-Fair Haven, followed that by going 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI in a 13-10 win over Manasquan, and then went 2-for-3 with a home run, three RBI and two runs scored in an 11-9 upset of St. John Vianney. For the week, he was 6for-9 with 7 RBI, 3 doubles, and a home run. Through May 1, Sadler was leading the Shore Conference in hits (27) and doubles (10), was in the top 10 in average at .540, tied for third in RBI (17), tied for sixth in runs scored (15), and his home run against St. John Vianney tied him with Toms River South’s Russell Messler for the Shore Conference lead with five.
Sofield helped the Lions make their push to win the Class B South title with a 4-1 week by getting it done at the plate and on the mound. After a last-inning loss to Jackson Memorial on Sunday, the Lions beat Lakewood 12-1 as Sofield went 3-for-4 with two doubles, three RBI and a run scored, then followed that with a 2-1 win over Barnegat in which Sofield allowed one run on two hits in five innings and struck out seven. In an 11-0 win over Monsignor Donovan that gave the Lions the title, he was 3-for-4 with two runs scored and an RBI. He capped the week by allowing only three hits and striking out seven over six innings in a 5-2 win over Barnegat in the Ocean County Tournament on Saturday.
Kurt Van Benschoten, Sr., SS/3B, Point Boro
Honorable Mention (tie) James Sofield, Jr., P/2B, Jackson Liberty
The Panthers had a 3-1 week behind Van Benschoten, as he was 3-for-5 with a double and four RBI in a 13-1 win over Manchester, went 3-for-4 with two doubles in a 9-8 win over Barnegat, and finished the week by going 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI in a 4-1 win over Central up at SUNY-Oneonta in New York. The Panthers' lone loss was a 9-4 setback to Monsignor Donovan.
Pitcher of the Week Mike Rescigno, Sr., RHP, Red Bank Catholic
Honorable Mention (tie) Tyler Mellot, So., RHP, Toms River South
The Caseys' Maryland-bound ace threw a two-hit shutout on Saturday against a St. Rose team that was 13-0 and the last unbeaten team left in the Shore Conference. Rescigno, who also had a single in RBC's 2-0 win, struck out nine and walked three on 108 pitches in a game that was scoreless until RBC scored twice in the top of the seventh inning on a twoout, two-run double by Brendan Madigan. He only gave up two singles and allowed only four balls out of the infield in the win. Rescigno improved to 4-0 with the win and lowered his ERA to 0.97. Earlier in the week, he helped the Caseys at the plate by belting a two-run homer in the sixth inning that was the difference in a 6-5 win over Manasquan to keep a winning streak going that has reached 12 games. strikeouts in 13 2/3 innings this season.
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In his first varsity start, Mellot threw a complete-game six-hitter, striking out six, and did not allow an earned run in a 2-1 win over Toms River North in a Class A South match-up of teams ranked in the All Shore Media Top 10.
Brian Cottrell, Sr., RHP, Brick Memorial
In a 4-3 win over Central in 10 innings in the Ocean County Tournament, Cottrell allowed one earned run on seven hits in 9 2/3 innings, striking out seven and walking four, while also going 1-for-3 with two walks and the game-winning run scored.
eek 5/5-5/11 Player of the Week Joe Dudek, Sr., 1B, CBA
The North Carolina recruit (pictured at left) packed half a season into one game to help the Colts clinch the outright Class A North title with a 17-3 win over Manalapan last Tuesday. He went 3-for-5 with three home runs and 10 RBI, both single-game career-highs for Dudek. He hit a pair of three-run homers and slugged a grand slam to give him 20 RBI and four home runs for the season. He then added a double and a run scored in a 9-2 win over St. Rose in a nondivisional game for CBA's 10th straight victory.
(Photo by Bill Normile)
Pitcher of the Week Rich Power, Sr., LHP, Monsignor Donovan
Power helped the sixth-seeded Griffins make a run to the Ocean County Tournament semifinals by upsetting third-seeded Brick thanks to an eight-inning shutout in a 2-0 win on May 5. Power threw a four-hitter, striking out seven and walking two. He got the gameending strikeout on a full count with a pair of runners on base to seal the win, and also reached base on an error to start the decisive rally in the top of the eighth. He also had a solid week with the bat, going 2-for-4 with a double and two RBI in a 5-4 loss to Manchester, and finished 3-for-4 with a double, four RBI and three runs scored in a 13-3 win over Point Beach.
Power had a streak of 24 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings going until giving up a run in the bottom of the seventh in a 1-0 loss to Toms River North in the OCT semifinals on
Honorable Mention Matt Guarino, Jr., 1B, Jackson Memorial
Guarino continued his outstanding season to help the Jaguars remain unbeaten against Shore Conference competition and finish undefeated in Class A South while also advancing in the Ocean County Tournament. He went 2-for-3 with a home run in a 7-5 win over Toms River East in the OCT quarterfinals, hit an RBI single in an 8-2 win over Southern, and then threw six innings of four-hit ball and slugged a two-run homer in an 8-1 win over Toms River South. He capped the week by going 3-for-4 with a double, two runs scored and an RBI in a 9-5 win over Colts Neck.
Ed White, Sr., 1B/P, Manchester
White went 2-for-3 with a home run that proved to be the difference in a 5-4 win over Monsignor Donovan in which he also threw a complete game, and he threw another complete game and did not allow an earned run while also going 3-for-3 with two doubles and a home run in a 4-2 win over Lacey.
Monday night. Heading into the start against the Mariners, he was 4-1 with a 1.12 ERA and 38 strikeouts in 32 innings before striking out nine and allowing four hits in the loss.
Honorable Mentions Joe Jacques, Sr., RHP, Red Bank Regional Tom Broyles, Sr., RHP, Monmouth Regional Matt Simonetti, Sr., RHP, Manalapan Kevin Welsh, Jr., RHP, Neptune; Latrell Jones, Jr., RHP, Neptune Paul Schifilliti, Sr., RHP, Toms River East
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rought to you by Baseball U, every week during this 2013 Shore Conference baseball season, All Shore Media will select a player and a pitcher of the week for their performance in the previous week.
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5/21/13
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Not This Time: TRN Topples Jackson Memorial for OCT Title
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By Matt Manley - Staff Writer
ith no one out and the bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh inning of the Ocean County Tournament final at Toms River East on May 14, Toms River North junior righthander Steve Slagmolen had a lot of history running through his head and very little of it was pleasant. The last time the Mariners took a lead into the seventh inning against the Jaguars was 19 days ago, and a three-run advantage turned into a heartbreaking one-run loss.
In the last three at-bats in which Slagmolen faced Jackson Memorial senior catcher and University of Virginia recruit Matt Thaiss - who waited on deck with none out and the bases loaded two of them ended with Thaiss hitting the ball over the fence. The last time a Toms River North team beat Jackson Memorial was in 2010, when Slagmolen was in eighth grade.
Despite a host of haunting memories, the only thing Slagmolen had to remember was how to pitch, and once he rediscovered his fastball following three straight walks to open the frame, he used it to write Toms River North a piece of history it will never want to forget.
Slagmolen struck out pinch-hitter Nick Dabrio and Thaiss for the first two outs of the seventh and induced senior shortstop Spencer Young into a game-ending, fielder's choice groundout to shortstop to deliver Toms River North a 2-0 win over Jackson Memorial, its first win over the Jaguars in its last nine games and its first OCT championship since 2002. The loss also snaps a 15game winning streak for Jackson Memorial. "When we won (Monday against Monsignor Donovan) all we wanted to know was that Jackson won their game, because that's who we wanted to play," Slagmolen said. "We got them, and we finally showed we can beat them."
Slagmolen pitched the final two innings of a combined twohitter with senior starter Ron Marinaccio, who cruised through the first five innings on 68 pitches, but came out of the game with soreness in his pitching elbow, according to Mariners coach Ted Schelmay. Slagmolen, whose save Tuesday night was his second of the season, pitched a perfect sixth inning before losing his command to begin the seventh and walking the seventh, eighth, and ninth hitters in the Jaguars' lineup.
"It was strange because I've pitched a good number of innings this year, and I really haven't walked many people," Slagmolen said. "I was confident I could throw strikes and after I walked the first two guys, I felt like a made a couple of good pitches that were just off the plate. I don't know what it was, but after we got together on the mound, I knew I had to trust my fastball to get the next few hitters."
With the bases loaded, Jackson Memorial coach Frank Malta then sent junior pinch-hitter Nick Dabrio to the plate for his first at-bat of the season. Dabrio had been sidelined with a lower back injury and according to Malta, has been practicing for approximately the last week-and-a-half. Slagmolen struck him out with a fastball, but it was only the first out with one of the Shore Conference's most dangerous hitters coming to the plate.
"Nick has been like a caged animal, and I wanted to find an opportunity to let him loose," Malta said of Dabrio. "(Senior centerfielder and leadoff hitter) Eddie Guippone didn't have great at-bats tonight. I didn't like the way he was out on his front foot,
and I thought it was a chance to give Nick a shot to make something happen for us."
Thaiss entered the seventh-inning at-bat 2-for-3 with a home run off of Slagmolen, according to Slagmolen himself. After falling behind 1-0, he got a strike call on the outside corner and got Thaiss to foul off a fastball to go ahead 1-and-2. Thaiss laid off a high 1-and-2 fastball and when Slagmolen went back to the high heat on 2-and-2, Thaiss swing through it for the second out of the inning.
"Me and Thaiss have a bad history, at least for me," Slagmolen said. "I wanted to go right after Thaiss, and I wanted to go after him hard. I wanted to stay with my fastball and make him hit the ball."
"That was the hardest I've ever seen (Slagmolen) throw the ball," Marinaccio said. "I think at that point, he had to stop thinking and just throw the ball over the plate and challenge guys. He has the ability to blow any hitter away, and he just had to trust himself."
Sophomore second baseman Brandon Janofsky got Jackson Memorial started in the fifth with a lead-off single to left field, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by freshman third baseman Kyle Johnson and advanced to third on a ground out by Guippone. Marinaccio then hit Thaiss on the foot with a curveball on 2-and-1 to put runners on the corners and Young laced a dangerous line drive toward the middle that Silvestri snared with a back-handed catch to end the threat.
Marinaccio was on the mound in the 8-7 loss to Jackson Memorial on April 24, when the Mariners squandered a 7-4, seventh-inning lead thanks to two untimely errors and eventually a game-winning, two-run single by Guarino. The senior righthander and University of Delaware recruit evened his record at 33 with the win Tuesday and struck out seven while walking three and allowing two hits - singles to Thaiss and Janofsky. Over the first three innings, Marinaccio gave up just one baserunner on a walk and struck out five out of seven batters over the second and third innings.
"Ronnie getting beat the last time at Jackson took a big chunk of heart out of him, me and everybody else because I have never had that happen to me, and I've been around longer than these guys," Schelmay said. "He wanted the ball the next time against Toms River East, shut them out, and he wanted the ball again tonight, and he stepped up and did the job." While Marinaccio was sharper this time around against Jackson, the defense behind him was the major difference. Five errors doomed Toms River North in a 7-0 loss to the Jaguars on April 4 before the two seventh-inning errors cost the Mariners later in the
Toms River North scored another unearned run off Guarino in the fourth when left fielder Mike Miraglia reached on a dropped pop-up by Burst and scored on a two-out single by Sclafani. Guarino jumped ahead of Sclafani 0-and-2, but the junior shortstop stayed back on a 1-and-2 offering from the Jaguars left-hander and lined it into left field to bring in Miraglia from second base and put the Mariners up 2-0.
Blum and Sclafani each finished the game with two hits, with Blum going 2-for-4 and Sclafani 2-for-3 with the lone RBI in the game.
Blum's solid day at the plate followed a 14-strikeout, one-hit gem on Monday night against Monsignor Donovan. In four tournament games against Pinelands, Brick Memorial, Monsignor Donovan and Jackson Memorial, the Mariners pitching staff did not allow a single run and surrendered a total of only eight hits. Blum threw 14 scoreless innings with 24 strikeouts, five walks and only three hits allowed, while Marinaccio allowed five hits and five walks in 12 innings with 15 strikeouts. "Coach just pointed out to us that we hadn't allowed a run in the whole Ocean County Tournament," Marinaccio said. "Our mentality is if you don't give up a run, you can't lose and four games without allowing a run, that's pretty good."
Senior right-hander The RBI hit was the second clutch hit Ron Marinaccio in as many nights out of the No. 9 hole by Slagmolen nailed down the tournament Sclafani, who dunked in the gameshutout with two scoreless innings, the last of which was the most winning RBI single in the bottom of the seventh inning to send dramatic. Toms River North to a 1-0 win over Monsignor Donovan in the semifinals. "We've been playing good baseball, I'm telling you," Schelmay said. "We have four shutouts in a row, we're catching the baseball, "Batting in the nine spot, I know I'm going to see pitches to hit and we're pitching well. I'm very proud of the guys because this and I just try not to do to much," Sclafani said. "I can be was a total team effort and that's what it takes." aggressive because I know I'm probably going to see pitches to hit, and the key is just staying within myself."
Toms River North had a chance to add to the lead in the top of the seventh inning when center fielder Cory Cordasco ripped a single to right field for the Mariners' third hit of the inning off Young, pitching in relief of Guarino. Blum got the green light to score from second, but Jackson Memorial right fielder Brian Delesky made a strong throw in the air and Thaiss caught the ball a step up the line, dove back to the plate and applied the tag on
by:
Matt Manley
www.allshoremedia.com
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Before taking the mound, Marinaccio sparked Toms River North's offense by drawing a walk to start the top of the first inning against Guarino. He moved to second on a bunt by right fielder Quintin Garvin and went to third on a groundout by senior Karl Blum. Senior designated hitter Anthony Ferlise then hit a chopper to third, where Johnson fielded a tough hop but made a low throw to first that Burst could not handle, allowing Marinaccio to score the game's first run.
"I thought that was a real momentum-changer for us and I think it had some carry-over to the bottom of the inning," said Malta, whose team has won three games in the last at-bat. "You got the feeling our guys were kind of waiting around for that seventh inning and when we got out of the top of the inning, there was definitely life in the dugout. We had the scenario we wanted, but give Slagmolen credit. He made some big pitches when he had to."
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Marinaccio was dominant over the first three innings and pitched out of a couple of jams in both the fourth and fifth innings. Thaiss singled and Young walked to begin the bottom of the fourth and junior clean-up hitter and starting pitcher Matt Guarino sacrificed back to Marinaccio to move the runners to second and third. Marinaccio came back with a strikeout, a six-pitch walk to senior first baseman Jordan Burst and finally, a strikeout of sophomore right fielder Joe DeMaio to end the threat.
"Our defense has been solid pretty much all year, just not against Jackson," Sclafani said. "Our message to Ronnie and especially to Steve was that we had their back today and anything hit to one of us, we were there to pick them up."
Blum in time for the crucial out.
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"Steve's the one pitcher on our team who has matured," said Schelmay, who visited the mound twice in the seventh inning to speak with his junior hurler and his defense. "Thaiss is a good player, I give him all the credit in the world, but tonight was Steve's night. He's been waiting for a big opportunity in a big game, and he did it for us. And he's had the big wins for us after tough losses all year, so he's done the job for us."
month, but the defense did not commit a single error on Tuesday night. Of the 11 outs in play, nine were groundball outs handled by the Mariners infield.
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Needing just one more out, Slagmolen induced a hard ground ball to shortstop by Young. Junior shortstop Carmen Sclafani fielded the ball cleanly off of a tricky hop, and flipped it to second baseman Jordan Silvestri, who tagged the bag and ran to the pitchers mound to mob Slagmolen in celebration.
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By Scott Stump - Managing Editor
ith the NJSIAA playoffs starting on May 20 with a slate of 25 games involving Shore Conference teams, it’s time to take a look at who has the best shot to hoist the big trophy in Toms River on June 8.
The one returning NJSIAA Group champion from last season is Manalapan, which captured its second straight overall Group IV title with a Cinderella run for the ages. The Braves hope to duplicate that feat as the No. 15 seed in Central Jersey Group IV, where they will take on presumptive bracket favorite Jackson Memorial in the first round.
Freehold is looking to defend its Central Jersey Group III crown and has a tough first-round assignment on the road against sixth-seeded Middletown South. Raritan is the returning Central Jersey Group II champion and will head way down south to face sixth-seeded Delran in the first round.
For the public schools, the first round is Monday, followed by the sectional quarterfinals on Friday. The sectional semifinals are scheduled for May 28, with the sectional championship games coming on May 31. The Group semifinals are on June 4, and then the Group championship games are spread across the three Toms River schools on June 8 for public and non-public schools. The nonpublic playoffs start on Friday, followed by the quarterfinals on May 28, the semifinals on May 31 and then the sectional championship games on June 4.
The question is whether they can advance past the quarterfinals with Cottrell not on the hill. It could be a fun quarterfinal if Brick takes care of business at home because it would be a Brick-Brick Memorial grudge match with a trip to the semifinals on the line. If that comes to fruition, there is the chance it could be an all-Class A South semifinal between the winner of the Brick schools and Jackson Memorial. The Jaguars are in a tough part of the bracket with Manalapan to start and the winner of two other dangerous contenders, Sayreville and Steinert, in the quarterfinals. Jackson has very solid pitching depth behind undefeated senior Anthony Rocco and a deep lineup led by Matt Guarino, Matt Thaiss and Spencer Young that has pulled out several lateinning wins, so this team is built for the postseason. However, it all starts with getting out of that first round against a Manalapan team that has struggled to put up runs in tournament games so far, but is still clearly dangerous given what it did last season. The Jaguars look like the favorite to win this section, but as we saw last year, anything can happen. As always, it depends how the pitching lines up. Jackson Memorial is still alive in the SCT, where it is the defending champion. Also, Montgomery has a solid ace in Cornell recruit Paul Balestrieri, so if the top two seeds make it to the final, the Jaguars may have to deal with him with a title on the line.
Central Jersey Group III
Shore Conference teams in bracket: (15) Middletown North; (13) Ocean; (11) Freehold; (10) Colts Neck; (6) Middletown South; (5) Jackson Liberty; (2) Wall.
Bracket breakdown: It’s kind of crazy to think given that Wall graduated seven of its eight starting position players and it’s top two pitchers from Here is a look at all the brackets involving last season, but Shore Conference teams. the Crimson Knights are Central Jersey Group IV the favorite Shore Conference teams in bracket: (15) to win this Manalapan; (14) Brick Memorial; (12) bracket. If Marlboro; (8) Howell; (6) Brick; (2) Jackson Wall's Luke Malone they are good Memorial. enough to go on the road and take out a red-hot Christian Brothers Academy team, Bracket breakdown: This is always one of the most hardwhich they did last week in the Monmouth County Tournament, fought public school brackets in the state. Manalapan is the twothey are good enough to win this bracket. Plus, they have three time defending champion, and we’ll see if the Braves can pitchers who can give them a complete-game win in a summon the magic as an underdog one more time. Jackson was tournament – Luke Malone, Tyler Swiggart and Steve Coltrain – also the No. 2 seed last year and was upset 5-2 by 10th-seeded which is more than a majority of the teams in this bracket can Manalapan in the quarterfinals, so the Jaguars will be motivated say. to reverse that result in one of the juiciest first-round match-ups in any bracket. Jackson Memorial should see Manhattan recruit However, Wall may have to work just to get out of the first Matt Simonetti in the first round, so it should be a battle to round against No. 15 seed Middletown North because the Lions finally vanquish Manalapan’s outstanding run. have senior ace Chris Stark, a Maine recruit, ready to go. He has been on the wrong end of more hard-luck losses than any pitcher Montgomery is the top seed, so if Howell gets out of the first in the Shore Conference and boasts a 0.95 ERA, so Wall will round against Hunterdon Central, the resurgent Rebels will have have to work to get the win unlike most 2-15 games. to deal with the Skyland Conference power and possibly ace
Evan Gillespie depending on how the pitching lines up. Marlboro has a chance to pull the upset on the road against South Brunswick if it can muster enough offense and continue to get solid pitching, but fourth-seeded Hillsborough, last year’s Group IV runner-up, should be a formidable obstacle in the quarterfinals.
Brick Memorial may be the No. 14 seed, but the Mustangs certainly have a chance to take out No. 3 Rancocas Valley in the first round because they will have senior ace Brian Cottrell on the mound. It also helps that Rancocas Valley’s most dangerous hitter, Maryland recruit Nick Cieri, is out with a shoulder injury.
The underdog lurking is Freehold, which has stumbled in its two tournaments so far and only has this one left to play for. The defending CJ III champions always have a chance with the 1-2 punch of senior starters Jake Yanez and Mike Bolton, but the question is whether the Colonials can muster enough offense against top pitching to give either of those two any margin for error. Leadoff hitter Jason Lundy, a Fordham recruit, is having an outstanding season, but generating any offense around him has been a challenge against quality pitching. Middletown South’s pitching staff, led by seniors Perry
Kulaga and Rob Grilli, had been great most of the regular season before a few bumpy outings recently. Much like Freehold, the question is whether the Eagles’ offense can push across enough runs against quality pitching to make a run. Jackson Liberty is also in that same boat with three solid starters in Tyler Pallante, James Sofield and Dan Serreino. The Lions are coming off a 1-0 victory over St. Rose in the SCT, which may give them the psychological boost they have needed to win close, low-scoring games. Ocean and Colts Neck are two teams that can make forgettable seasons thus far go away with darkhorse runs. Ocean has two solid pitchers in Ryan Lillie and Kevin Buell and an offense led by Jerome Cevetello that is dangerous. Colts Neck’s offense has struggled more than expected in the preseason, but the Cougars have been playing well heading into the state tournament and could be a threat if that lineup all gets going at once.
Central Jersey Group II
Matawan's Justi
Shore Conference teams in bracket: (15) Holmdel; (12) Long Branch; (11) Raritan; (9) Point Boro; (8) Monmouth; (3) Matawan.
Bracket breakdown: This bracket is as wide open as it gets, just like last year when Raritan won it. Second-seeded Spotswood looks like the slightest of favorites, but anything is possible in this grouping.
Holmdel doesn’t have that hammer at the top of its rotation, so the Hornets will need to outslug teams behind junior Joe Sadler, but they have to deal with Spotswood in the first round. An improved Long Branch team could be trouble with Ashwin Mudiraj on the hill but is still a big underdog to get any further than the quarterfinals.
Defending champion Raritan has been up and down all season so it depends on which team shows up. If the Rockets get solid pitching from Bruce Strickland and Rob Ronan and the lineup delivers behind Strickland, they are a threat, but they have to take a long bus ride to Delran and find a way just to get out of the first round.
Point Boro has a lineup with pop behind Ryan Prout, Deven Del Priore and Kurt Van Benschoten, so whether or not the Panthers can get out of the first round and then take a shot at top-seeded Bordentown depends on their pitching. Also, the Panthers will almost certainly have to deal with a player who can swing this whole bracket – Monmouth Regional ace Tom Broyles. The unbeaten Broyles has been dominant all season. If that continues in the first round and the Falcons can get a solid pitching performance from the staff against top-seeded Bordentown in the quarterfinals, look out. They will be very dangerous and a threat to return to the championship game after losing to Freehold in last year’s final. I think Monmouth is very capable of winning this bracket. A few weeks ago, Matawan looked like it could make a serious run at winning this bracket, but the injuries are just piling up for the Huskies. Starting shortstop Mike Creamer is out, and senior
Jackson Memorial's Sp
n Harnett
Henry Hudson is a threat in the first round with ace Jim Trivett on the mound, but a deep run may be a lot to ask. Shore Regional is a team that could potentially surprise some people because the Blue Devils dealt with Group II and top non-public teams all season in Class A Central. They have been playing well coming into the tournament and could be dangerous with an offense led by T.J. Sempkowski, Matt Cosentino, Chris Vaccaro and Andrew Schulz. If Shore can get some quality pitching, I wouldn’t be shocked to see them make a run to the semifinals.
Keyport is another threat because of a strong lineup led by Corey Romanetz, Nick Smutz and Connor Thomson, and Joe Ruth, but will need the pitching staff to bring it up a notch in order to get deep into the tournament. Point Beach has struggled to score in recent weeks and will need to rejuvenate its offense behind Alan Nieto and Michael Allegretta for Pt. Beach if it is going to have a chance to upset Middlesex, but the Garnet Gulls have made runs before in this tournament so don’t count them out.
South Jersey Group IV
Shore Conference teams in bracket: (8) Toms River North; (12) Toms River East; (14) Toms River South
Bracket breakdown: This is a brutally competitive bracket as always, and Toms River South drew the short end of the stick more than its fellow Toms River schools by getting paired with third-seeded Toms River North's Karl Blum Washington Township in the first round on the road. The Minutemen just won the prestigious Diamond Classic tournament in South Jersey and are considered the top team in South Jersey across all schools. The Indians will probably have to find a way to solve Mark Scarpa in the first round, as he is 6-1 with a 1.67 ERA. Toms River South has enough pitching depth to piece together a game and stay right in it with the Minutemen, and leadoff man Russell Messler, a junior outfielder, is capable of
South Jersey Group III
Shore Conference team in bracket: (10) Central.
Bracket breakdown: Clearly, the Golden Eagles are dangerous because they have a front-runner for Shore Conference Pitcher of the Year leading their rotation. Junior Andrew DiPiazza is 7-0 with a 0.79 ERA and a Shore-leading 89 strikeouts this season. Everything hinges on if Central can pull out a win without him starting, as they only have four victories outside of DiPiazza’s. If he dominates Gloucester Tech in the first round, they will need senior Eddie Corrigan to pitch big in the quarterfinals, mostlikely against second-seeded Moorestown. That would allow them to bring back DiPiazza and really make a run at a title. Top-seeded Delsea looks like the team to beat overall in this bracket.
South Jersey Group II
Shore Conference teams in bracket: (13) Barnegat; (7) Manchester.
Bracket breakdown: Both Shore Conference teams are darkhorses in this bracket, where the top two seeds, Buena and Sterling, look like the prime contenders. Barnegat is a young team that is probably a year away and has struggled to score runs against topnotch pitching, but the Bengals’ own staff is solid and should give them a shot to steal a win. Manchester is dangerous because of the 1-2 punch of seniors Jeremy Carney and Ed White at the top of the rotation. Again, the question is whether Manchester’s offense can be consistent enough to go deep into the tournament. Cedar Creek just lost to non-playoff qualifiers Southern and Pinelands on Saturday, so the Hawks should be able to reach the quarterfinals, where they will most likely have to deal with second-seeded Sterling.
Non-Public South A
Shore Conference teams in bracket: (14) Msgr. Donovan; (12) St. John Vianney; (6) CBA; (4) Red Bank Catholic.
Bracket breakdown: This is the Bracket of Doom. Everywhere you look, there is a top 20 team in the state and a Division I recruit on the mound. Just getting out of this section alive means you are a top 10 team in the state. Monsignor Donovan is a darkhorse because of its pitching, led by senior lefty
pencer Young Photo by: www.billnormile.zenfolio.com
Red Bank Catholic has a big gun of its own on the mound in Maryland-bound senior Mike Rescigno and could meet Immaculata in the quarterfinals unless St. John Vianney pulls the upset. CBA has a dangerous Camden Catholic team in the first round that is coming off a darkhorse run to the finals of the Diamond Classic in South Jersey. If the Colts get out of that game, they could then have to deal with Bishop Eustace.
They also will have to find a way without Wake Forest-bound senior ace John McCarren, who is out for the season with an ankle injury. The CBA staff of Matt Pidich, Luca Dalatri, Joe Dudek and Chase Stopyra will have to take it up a notch, and an offense led by Dudek, Ryan Ramiz, Mike Caputo and Anthony Critelli will have to produce against a series of outstanding pitchers.
The main heavyweights in this bracket are top-seeded Gloucester Catholic and No. 2 St. Augustine. If RBC or CBA can break up either one of those teams making it to the final, that would be a big statement. Gloucester Catholic has Rescigno’s future Maryland teammate Mike Shawaryn at the top of its rotation, while St. Augustine’s Barry Buchowski is one of the top hitters in South Jersey.
Non-Public South B
Shore Conference teams in bracket: (4) Mater Dei Prep; (1) St. Rose.
Bracket breakdown: St. Rose looks like the favorite to take this bracket as the top seed and has the pitching depth to do it with Brad Currao, Joey Delacruz and Jimmy Gowen. Their Achilles’ heel in tournament games has been offense, as they were ousted from the MCT and SCT in a pair of 1-0 St. Rose's Brad Currao losses. However, they probably won’t see pitching better in this bracket than they did against Manalapan’s Matt Simonetti and Jackson Liberty’s Dan Serreino in those losses. They also can go guns blazing into this without worrying about lining up pitching for other tournaments.
If Brendan Lynch, Conor Gammond, Travis Petillo, Currao and Co. can jumpstart the offense, St. Rose is as good a bet as any team in the Shore to take home a sectional crown.
Rich Power, but it has not shown the ability to muster offense against top opponents. The Griffins have Bishop Eustace, a Top 10 team
Mater Dei Prep will most likely have to face Rutgers Prep in the quarterfinals, and the Seraphs are going to need a strong pitching performance from either Bobby Klatt or John Stanziale to get their third crack this season against St. Rose, which beat them twice in Class B Central. Mater Dei has been on a losing skid heading into the playoffs and will have to regroup just to get by a tough Rutgers Prep team that played a challenging schedule this spring.
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St. John Vianney has to face Immaculata, which was the only team to have beaten Jackson Memorial all season until a week ago. Their ace is Brandon Wagner, a senior committed to Howard College, a top junior college in Texas. The Lancers’ lineup led by Anthony Santoro, Joe Rotelli and Evan Pidich Pietronico will have to solve him, while a pitching staff led by Dan Schirmacher will try to keep their offense at bay.
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Bracket breakdown: Top-seeded Middlesex is the heavy favorite in this bracket, averaging 10 runs per game and allowing two. It looks like everyone else is playing for second, so if a Shore team can give the Blue Jays a run, that’s about all you can ask for.
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Shore teams in bracket: (15) Henry Hudson; (11) Shore; (10) Keyport; (5) Point Beach
The team most equipped to go deep into this tournament is Toms River North because of its outstanding pitching staff led by Division I recruits Karl Blum (Duke) and Ron Marinaccio (Delaware) and also featuring talented junior Steve Slagmolen. That group threw four straight shutouts to win the Ocean County Tournament and is capable of going on a similar run here. The main wrinkle is that the Mariners are also still CBA's Matt alive in the SCT and face rival Toms River South in the quarterfinals on Wednesday, so the question is how they will line up their pitching. If they get past Cherokee on Monday, they will almost certainly be facing top-seeded Eastern on Friday and will need one of their big guns on the mound to give them a shot in that game.
in South Jersey, in the first round, and will have to most likely deal with ace Devin Smeltzer, a junior who already has an offer from South Carolina and interest from several other major programs from the South.
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Central Jersey Group I
wrecking another team’s gameplan all by himself.
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standout Shawn Johnson is banged up heading into the postseason. They still have the talent to get it done behind ace Justin Harnett, closer Robbie Marshall and top offensive force Dan Incle, so don’t count the Huskies out by any means.
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Boys Lacrosse SCT Final: Rumson Makes History
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By Bob Badders - Staff Writer
ith h is to r y wa itin g f or b oth teams to embr a ce it, th er e wa s mo r e th an u s u a l o n th e lin e M a y 1 4 at M o n mou th U n iver s ity.
With the deepest Shore Conference Tournament field to date and a strong tandem seeded ahead of twotime defending champion Rumson-Fair Haven, this was supposed to be the Bulldogs' most difficult road. Except it wasn't. The standard-bearers in the Shore Conference walked off Kessler Field with their legacy firmly intact.
Junior attackman Colin Shea scored a game-high five goals, junior attackman Dominic Padula scored three goals and added three assists and junior defenseman J.T. Jennings led a lock-down defensive effort for third-seeded Rumson, which dominated from start to finish against top-seeded and previously undefeated Southern for a 14-5 victory in the SCT final for its unprecedented third consecutive conference crown.
"Southern is a great team, but we came out on fire," Jennings said. 'Winning three in a row, there's nothing better than that.
"We just played with our whole hearts in it," Shea said. "We wanted to make history, and from the bench to the starters we all played well."
Senior attackman Michael Clarke scored once to go along with four assists, junior middie Chris Hubler scored twice in the first half and senior middies Hunter Rotchford and Mike Villane each notched a goal and one assist to pace a balanced Bulldogs offense. Senior goalie Dylan Rotchford wasn't tested often thanks to a huge possession advantage for Rumson (14-2), but finished with 10 saves to continue his outstanding season.
"These kids were ready to play," said Rumson head coach Reid Jackson. "We did some fine tuning and
threw in a couple wrinkles (Monday), but they were ready."
Junior attackman Brendan Mullen scored three times for Southern (14-1), senior attackman Tyler Lipositz dished out two assists, sophomore middie Shawn McManus had a goal and one assist and sophomore attackman Dylan Jinks also scored. Sophomore goalie Brendan Lefanto made six saves.
"Rumson is a great team and we didn't come out and play well early," said Southern head coach John Pampalone. "We had a lot of unforced errors and they kind of rolled, and in this game it can go quick. They jumped on us, and we weren't able to stop it. By the time we were able to settle down, against a team like Rumson you're not going to be able to come back."
Rumson struck first on an unassisted goal by Hubler on which he drove hard from very high in the offensive zone and finished inside at 9:03. Shea struck just over 90 seconds later by using a pick to curl around the cage and fire a shot through a screen for a 2-0 lead. Hubler's second goal off a ground ball that he swept in from 15 yards out pushed the advantage for 3-0 and Padula's goal at 4:05 off a nifty feed from Shea made it 4-0 before Southern could get its feet under itself. Clarke made it 5-0 off a feed from Villane 15 seconds later.
Southern got a pair back on two goals from Mullen, but Chris Sutphen's goal off a restart with 4.5 seconds left in the first quarter put Rumson back up by four and kept the momentum squarely on its side entering the second quarter.
The phenomenal midfield play of Hubler, which stood out as well in the Bulldogs' semifinal win over Jackson Memorial, led to Rumson's seventh goal that began another run to start the second quarter. Hubler's stick check freed the ball in the Southern offensive end and he led the fast-break the other way, dishing to Padula, who then found Shea for a 7-2 lead.
Senior attack Michael Clarke
"That's why Hubler's going to (Johns) Hopkins (University)," Jackson said. "We joke and call him the ugliest lacrosse player out there, but that kid is a player. He can get everything done, and he makes it happen. People underestimate his abilities." Rotchford drove from the top of the box, got free to his left and scored with a high shot at 8:12 for an 8-2 lead. Rotchford then dished to Padula for a 9-2 lead.
Dylan Jinks broke the run when he fired home a pass from McManus to make it 9-3, but Rumson again closed strong on unassisted goals by Clarke and Villane in the final 2:02 for an insurmountable 11-3 halftime lead. The ability of Rumson's midfielders - mainly the
"We're an attack-driven offense," Pampalone said. "Our middies have played well all year, but we kind of got outworked in the middle of the field. We didn't come up with a lot of ground balls and when you give Rumson or any great team extra possessions, they're going to put the ball away."
Rumson's gameplans on both ends of the field played out perfectly. In the defensive end they opted for a man-to-man look rather than the zone the Bulldogs employed against Jackson Memorial. Jennings was assigned to Jinks - who scored over 50 goals as a freshman and leads the Rams with 41 goals and 23 assists - and held him to only a second-quarter goal.
"They are very respectable shooters," Jennings said. "We implemented a zone against Jackson and here we obviously had to go man so they couldn't open up on us. It was just great team defense. Our two, three slides were there, and we had lots of communication. It was a good gameplan for them."
"J.T. is one of those players that's a game player," Jackson said. "The bigger the game, the better J.T. gets."
"We thought we matched up well with them personnel-wise," Jackson added. "We made one adjustment after the first quarter and after that we had pretty much what we wanted."
On offense Rumson used arguably its biggest asset to take neutralize Southern's ability to defend one-onone with standout poles Nick Jinks and Frank Thissen. The Bulldogs spread the ball evenly with seven different Rumson players scoring a goal.
"A fundamental thing I got from a coach in Camillus, N.Y. (just outside of Syracuse) is dodge, pass, pass and that's all we do," Jackson said. "The more you do it, the more you're going to break down a defense."
"We like to be diverse," Shea said. "Everyone can dodge, everyone can feed and everyone can shoot, so if someone is having a bad day someone else will step up. All of us were playing pretty well today."
Shea scored all three goals in the third quarter for a 14-3 lead. Southern scored both fourth-quarter goals (McManus and Mullen) for the final margin.
Shea recalled Rumson's early-season 8-6 loss to Jackson Memorial that ended the Bulldogs' 29-game Shore Conference winning streak. The Bulldogs had defeated the Jaguars in the previous two SCT finals and a bit of rivalry was starting to develop. The loss hurt, but served as an additional motivator for the Shore's elite program that has been fighting off challengers much more often than chasing any team over the last few seasons. "We knew we could beat Jackson, but that day we
"We have another tournament but the safety net is gone," Pampalone said. "We lose and that's the end of the season, so we need to move on quickly, learn from this
by:
Bob Badders
www.allshoremedia.com Photo by:
Dave Thorne www.davethorn ephotography .com
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"We have good momentum going into the state playoffs, and I hope it continues," Shea said. "I hope our whole team stays healthy throughout and plays well. We do that and we can take home states."
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Rumson has plenty of playoff experience but has run into state power Summit in two of the last three seasons. Summit is now in Group 2, but North Jersey power Mountain Lakes heads a group of teams that will make things difficult for the Bulldogs. But a shot at a sectional title and even an overall Group 1 championship is not out of reach for Rumson.
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Both squads will now turn their attention to the state tournament. Southern is the top seed in Group 4 South and Rumson is the No. 1 seed in Group 1 South.
and get ready for South Jersey Group 4."
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"Their face-off guy is very good, and we watched a lot of film on him," Jackson said. "We said we have to win the game between the restraining lines, and we did because our guys hustled every play. Senior Goalie Dylan Rotchford We did two-handed ground ball sprints in practice the day before. You have to work every day."
didn't play our best and we didn't possess the ball," Shea said. "I think that's when we started realizing how possession is the key to victory and that's what got us here. It was a bad loss but it also got our heads straight, and I think that's what really helped us out."
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first line of Hubler, Rotchford and Villane to win ground balls and keep the Bulldogs firmly planted in the Rams' end was again a huge advantage. Southern junior FOGO Billy Dowd, who leads the Shore in face-off percentage, was against fantastic in winning 12 of 17 draws. But it rarely led to a possession advantage because of Rumson's strong midfield presence as well as its defense's ability to quickly clear the ball.
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Rumson Girls Lax Knocks off RBC for SCT Title
umson-Fair Haven defeated Red Bank Catholic, 14-9, to capture the Shore Conference Girls Lacrosse Tournament championship on Thursday at Monmouth University. Nicolette Dunphy and Mary Scarrone each scored four goals for the Bulldogs, Bridget Curran scored twice and Maddie Mullen made nine saves. Amanda Casten led the Caseys with five goals while Grace Fallon added a goal and three assists. Sabrina Abres made 14 saves.
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Photo by:
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According to Malone and Crimson Knights coach Todd Schmitt, any of those previous gems will now have to take a backseat to the game the senior captain turned in Friday against the red-hot Colts.
Malone pitched a five-hitter and struck out seven in a nine-inning complete game as third-seeded Wall scratched across two runs in the top of the ninth to knock off CBA, 7-5, in extra innings to end the Colts' 13-game winning streak and advance to Tuesday's championship game against top-seeded Red Bank Catholic at 7 p.m. at FirstEnergy Park in Lakewood.
"We've had some good pitching performances here over the years and some of them were by Luke this year, but with the kind of game it was, the big outs, the battling, that one ranks right up there," Schmitt said. "Luke is such a fierce competitor and he's never going to give in. When things weren't going well, he just beared down and made pitches, and that's what he does so well."
Wall scored the go-ahead runs on an RBI infield single by junior center fielder Tim Willey that scored left fielder Nick Martinez from third with the winning run and junior first baseman Jack Gifford from second when second baseman Mike Caputo and shortstop Anthony Critelli collided trying to field the ball, which was chopped over the head of senior right-hander Matt Pidich.
Willey's infield chopper was the only hit for Wall in the ninth. Pidich walked the bases loaded around a sacrifice bunt, but found his command in time to strike out junior second baseman Branden Biegert for the second out. Willey then battled his way to a full count after falling behind 1-and-2, and on the seventh pitch of the at-bat, hit a chopper that carried over Pidich's head and between the mound, second and shortstop. When Critelli and Caputo collided, Gifford came dashing home with the second run.
"I was just thinking about making contact, but it was tough because (Pidich) was wild and throwing pretty hard," Willey said. "I had to foul off one pitch, and he threw another high fastball that was tough to lay off of. On 3-2, I know he's pretty much going to try to put the ball over the plate, but with the way he was throwing, I couldn't load up and swing because it might be a ball. So I just put the bat on it, put my head down and ran."
On a team with a starting lineup of juniors and sophomores, Malone has been the senior voice in the huddle. As much as he has vocally led the Crimson Knights, his bat and left arm have done most of the talking this season. His win Friday improves his record to 7-2 and with three days to recover from his 117-pitch performance, he will now prepare to face the Caseys on Tuesday.
"I always want the ball in games like this one and today was big for us," Malone said. "We only have four seniors and I'm the only one who played last year, but that's deceiving because we have young guys who compete and want to win. These guys know how to play, and it's my job as a senior leader to be an an emotional leader and to
"Anytime you have a big inning, you hope to follow it up with a zero in the field," Kenney said. "We took the lead and right away, two guys walk, we make a couple of mistakes and just like that, we're down a run again. It's frustrating, but there's a lot of game left. We were down 1-0 and we scored four runs to take the lead, so we just had to do it again."
More than anything, Malone's performance Friday was about the adjustments he made. CBA senior starting pitcher Joe Dudek launched a game-tying solo home run on a curveball from Malone to tie the game at 5 in the sixth inning. After feeding Dudek - a University of North Carolina recruit - a Outside of the two steady diet of breaking errors in the four-run balls during his first Senior left-hander Luke Malone with CBA fourth, Wall's three plate appearances, head coach Todd Schmitt defense was stellar in its Malone changed his plan support of Malone. against the left-handed Orender made two standout plays, the first a bare-handed slugger when he came to bat with two out and a runner play while charging a ground ball by Critelli to nab the on first in the bottom of the eighth inning. CBA shortstop just before Dudek came to the plate for his home run. He later robbed Caputo of a lead-off single "I started him with curveballs and he seemed to have when he made a diving catch to his glove side on a some trouble with them early in the game," Malone said. scorching line drive. Orender also handled the final out of "The last one wasn't a bad pitch, but he was ready for it the game, a sharp groundout by senior center fielder and when a hitter like that gets a pitch he's looking for, it Chris Cordova. goes 400 feet."
Malone pounded fastballs on the outer part of the plate and with a 2-and-2 count on Dudek, he painted the outside corner just above the waist to punch the CBA clean-up hitter out and end the inning.
"Most teams try to mix it up against Joe, but (Malone) was featuring one pitch each at-bat," CBA coach Marty Kenney said. "I don't know where the idea came from that he can't hit a curveball, but teams keep throwing them, and he keeps hitting them. To his (Malone's) credit though, he challenged him with fastballs in the last atbat."
Prior to bouncing back from the Dudek home run, Malone had to recover from a four-run CBA third inning that saw the Colts push three unearned runs across the plate thanks to two Wall errors, one of which was on Malone himself. After that third-inning hiccup, Malone allowed only three hits the rest of the way and the lone run came on the Dudek blast.
Before Malone had to respond, the Wall offense backed him up with a four-run inning of its own in the top of the fourth. Gifford and sophomore catcher Dan Wondrack drew walks to start the inning and Willey slapped a single through the left side to score Gifford with one out, making it 4-2 CBA. Dudek then hit sophomore third baseman Ryan Orender with a pitch and another run scored on a wild pitch to make it 4-3.
"Mistakes are going to happen but you keep playing," Malone said. "I was down after that inning and the defense kind of abandoned us for a little while, but when the guys came back with four runs, that really gave me a boost."
Malone then tied the game when he reached on an error that allowed Willey to score from third and Wall then took the lead when CBA pitched out on an attempted squeeze play, but the ball got past catcher Brandon Martorano and allowed Orender to score.
While Dudek could not throw up a zero following his team's big inning, Malone retired the next seven batters
Right fielder Matt Tancredi also made a critical play to end the bottom of the eighth, snaring a sinking line drive by Martorano with a sliding catch and throwing to first for a double play with Cordova running on the pitch.
Caputo and Critelli had the only two hits in CBA's four-run third inning. Caputo lined a two-run single to center field to put the Colts up 2-1 and advanced to second on the throw. After Malone's throwing error on a drag bunt attempt by right fielder Ryan Ramiz, Critelli lined a ball over the head of Tancredi for an RBI double that scored Ramiz.
CBA pitching issued six walks Friday, four of which came around to score. With senior right-handed ace John McCarren on the shelf for the remainder of the season with an ankle injury, the Colts will have to go deeper into their rotation and may have felt the effects of the McCarren injury Friday, according to Kenney.
"Looking at our schedule, there was the potential for us to play nine games in 12 days, and that puts stress on a pitching staff, with or without John," Kenney said. "Obviously, you have to win to get the chance to play nine games, so maybe an off day will do us some good, but there's no question that we're a different staff without John. It makes us have to use some more position players and that's always a challenge in terms of getting them work in practice, but we'll do the best we can."
Wall is back in the final for the second time in four seasons after losing to Manalapan in the 2010 final. RBC lost each of the last two championships, so the two programs on the field Tuesday night will be looking for redemption of sorts, although Wall does so with a starting lineup of players who were mostly playing at lower levels of the program last year.
"I said before the year that I thought we had a pretty good team that was going to compete in the division and maybe win some tournament games," Schmitt said. "Did I think we'd be 18-3 and in the Monmouth County final with a bunch of juniors and sophomores? No, I didn't.
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all senior left-hander Luke Malone has had better statistical games then the one he pitched on May 17 at Christian Brothers Academy and if his memory serves him, he has even thrown nine innings in a game before the Monmouth County Tournament semifinal marathon against the Colts on Friday.
he faced before Dudek's home run.
lead by example. These guys have been on board from day one and that's why we're here."
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By Matt Manley - Staff Writer
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Wall Ends CBA's 13-Game Winning Streak in MCT Semis
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