Edison senior Dom LaPelosa struck out 15 en route to a 3-2 win over Colonia on May 11, 2021.
Central Jersey Sports Radio will have live play-by-play coverage of both GMC Tournament Semifinal games today from Ray Cipperly Field at East Brunswick Tech, presented by Bellamy & Son Paving.
NEW: Game times have been moved back one hour to allow extra time for the field to dry after nearly constant rain since Friday afternoon.
Mike Pavlichko and Justin Sontupe will call all the action starting at 12:35 am with the pregame show.
Thanks to local sponsors Baseball Warehouse of Highland Park, Edison Boys Baseball, Ideal Tire of Edison, and Derby Appliances.
Here’s a closer look at the semifinal matchups:
(10) NORTH BRUNSWICK (16-8-1) vs. (5) SOUTH BRUNSWICK (13-8), 1:00
How they got here: North Brunswick def. (8) Metuchen 3-2 in the first round, def. (16) JFK 8-2 in the quarterfinals. South Brunswick def. (12) Woodbridge 12-2 in the first round, def. (4) Middlesex 8-1 in the semifinals.
Starting Pitchers: Zach Konstantinovsky for North Brunswick (6-0, 1.33 ERA). Joey Tuttoilmondo for South Brunswick (3-0, 1.84 ERA)
Team Notes:
For North Brunswick, Konstantinovsky has done it at the plate and on the mound, and he’ll get the chance to do it again. In addition to going a complete game seven innings against Metuchen in their first-round game – allowing two earned runs and striking out seven – he was 1-for-2 at bat with an RBI and two walks. He’s hit three home runs on the season to lead the Raiders. In the semifinals against JFK, Tyler Sommer was 1-for-3 with a two-RBI double, while Anthony Partazana stole two bases.
For the South Brunswick, Joey Tuttoilmondo also got the first round win on the mound, throwing 106 pitches in a complete game mercy-rule shutout, going the full six innings, striking out eight, and walking just one. Neel Telivedara knocked in three runs, and Nolan Watlington brought home two, in the opener against Woodbridge. Against Middlesex in the semis, Jared Lauri had a 2-for-4 day, including a three-run homer that gave the Vikings a 4-1 lead in the fourth.
Tournament History:
South Brunswick is seeking its fourth trip to the finals, where they are 2-1 all time. They lost to Old Bridge 2-1 in the title game two years ago, the last tournament played since last year’s was cancelled when the season was wiped out by COVID.
North Brunswick hasn’t been to the finals since 2010. Their only two appearances came that year, and the year before. The Raiders were blanked by St. Joseph in the 2009 final 6-0, and lost 9-2 to South Brunswick in the 2010 title game.
Did you know? Of the four potential finals matchups this season, the only teams that have ever met each other in the title game are North Brunswick and St. Joe’s, in 2009.
(6) EDISON (16-6) vs. (2) ST. JOSEPH-METUCHEN (16-9), 3:30
How they got here: Edison def. (11) JP Stevens 8-4 in the first round, def. (6) South Plainfield in the quarterfinals. St. Joseph def. (15) Old Bridge 4-0 in the first round, def. (10) Spotswood in the quarterfinals.
Starting Pitchers: Dom LaPelosa for Edison (4-1, 2.33 ERA). Andrew Goldan for St. Joseph (5-0, 0.51 ERA).
Team Notes:
For Edison, Dom LaPelosa got the win in relief in the opener against JP Stevens, when Sal DellaFave struggled to find his control, walking two and hitting two batters in just 2 1/3 innings of work. LaPelosa gave up just one earned run in 4 2/3 innings innings out of the bullpen. That was followed by an eight strikeout, no earned run effort by freshman sensation Jaxon Appelman, who will be available today, if needed, though he could be saved for the state tournament, which begins later this week. Ty Mellinger has been hot in the tournament, hitting 4-for-7, while Evrin Virola knocked in three runs in the quarterfinals against South Plainfield. Della Fave has been the slugger all season long, leading the team – and for a good part of the year, the state – with seven home runs on the season.
St. Joseph’s Andrew Goldan has been outstanding since returning a couple weeks into the season following tendinitis issues. Against Old Bridge in the oepning round, he pitched 6 2/3 innings of shutout ball to get the win. Colin Leyner closed out that game, and the Spotswood win in the quarters. The Falcons have allowed only three runs in their two tourney wins so far. Robbie Carvelli has been serving up runs all year long; he was 2-for-3 in the opener with two RBIs, a triple and a home run. Tyler Delvecchio knocked in two runs with a 2-for-3 evening against the Chargers, while Christian Azcona knocked in three on a 2-for-4 night.
Tournament History:
Edison has won more GMC Tournament titles than anyone else in the league, with eight crowns, and they’ve made more appearances in the finals than anyone else too, reaching the ultimate game nine times. But those all came in a stretch of 12 years from 1990 to 2001, and they haven’t been back since beating Spotswood for the title 20 years ago.
St. Joseph is tied for East Brunswick with seven finals appearances, second only to Edison. The Falcons have won six titles, their most recent in 2017 when they shutout Monroe 1-0. Their 2004 title game win over Carteret ended a long drought; they had not previously reached a GMC final since the tournament began in 1986, and hadn’t been to a Middlesex County final before that since 1968.
Did you know? The last time Edison reached the GMC Tournament final, current North Brunswick head coach Mark Blevins was playing third base for the Eagles? If both the Eagles and Raiders win today, Blevins would end up coaching against his alma mater in the finals, slated for Sunday, June 6th at East Brunswick Tech.