South Plainfield head coach Scott Gleichenhaus (left) and winning pitcher, senior starter Jack Massett. (Photo: Mike Pavlichko)
Knowing it had pitching and defense, South Plainfield wasn’t happy to say the least with its first two games of the 2022 season, a 4-3 loss to Monroe, followed by a 17-5 defeat.
What they got against Edison in their next series were the same two games, except the Tigers ended up on the right side of both this time.
South Plainfield (2-2) capped off a home-and-home sweep of Edison Thursday afternoon with a 9-2 win over the 7th-ranked Eagles (0-2), as heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio.
After a 1-2-3 first inning, the Tigers batted around in the second. They got a single, walk and a bunt for a hit to load the bases, then a two-RBI double by DH Steven Zultowski followed by a bases-clearing two-RBI double by right fielder Tyler Balent to take a 4-0 lead, adding a fifth-run on an infield hit by second-baseman Zack Robinson.
South Plainfield would add four more in the fourth inning, when they would again send nine men to the plate, including a bases-loaded three-RBI double by catcher Luke Bickunas.
While there was no one star offensively – all but one starter got a hit and scored – the Tigers got a gem on the mound from senior Jack Massett, who allowed just two runs on four hits, struck out five and walked no one.
South Plainfield has now won five straight against Edison in the regular season, with their last loss coming exactly three years ago to the day, early in the 2019 campaign. However, the Eagles beat the Tigers in last year’s GMC Tournament quarterfinals.
Click below for postgame reaction from South Plainfield’s 9-2 win over Edison: