Bridgewater-Raritan junior Matt Fattore connects for his first career home run in a 5-1 win over Howell in Bridgewater on April 14, 2023. The Panthers are this week’s new No. 1 team. (Source: GameChanger screenshot via @brbaseball on Twitter)
There was major upheaval in the Bellamy & Son Paving Week Two high school baseball rankings, with a new No. 1, three teams dropping out, three new teams ranked, and everyone else shifting around.
The new top team is Bridgewater-Raritan (6-1). The Panthers picked up wins this past week over two teams that were state-ranked in the preseason – Ridge on Tuesday (3-0) and at Hunterdon Central Tuesday (4-2) – en route to a 3-0 week that saw them move all the way up from 6th place. They were No. 10 in the preseason, and their lone loss came out of conference, 10-3 to Roxbury.
BR should be a good bet to get the top seed in the Somerset County Tournament, which will be seeded Monday night at 7:00. Follow @cjsportsradio on Twitter for updates and check our website for a full story later in the evening.
Making the jump from fifth to No. 2 is Old Bridge (6-1). The Knights had a 4-0 week, capped with a home-and-home series sweep of North Brunswick, including Saturday’s walkoff 3-1 win in 10-innings.
Ridge (5-2) dropped from first to third, going 3-1 this past week, with wins over Pingry, Watchung Hills and Scotch Plains-Fanwood out-of-conference, with their loss coming to Bridgewater.
Debuting at No. 4 is Sayreville (5-2), one of four 5-2 teams in the GMC White, but the only one to have beaten all of the other three at least once, splitting with Middlesex and Edison, and sweeping Woodbridge. The Bombers were 2-1 this week, with a split against Edison and a win over Woodbridge
Woodbridge (5-2) then checks in fifth, with a 3-1 week that included a loss to Sayreville, a home-and-home sweep of JP Stevens, and a 9-8 win over Middlesex at home Saturday.
Making its debut at No. 6 is Franklin (4-3), which is 3-0 against Somerset County competition, having wins over Gill St. Bernard’s, Rutgers Prep and Montgomery, even though they sit fourth in the Skyland Conference Raritan Division, two places behind the second-place Cougars, who are 3-2 overall but 3-1 in the division; Franklin is 2-2, but those losses have come to Phillipsburg, North Hunterdon and Lawrence, all outside the county.
St. Joseph-Metuchen (3-2) drops from third to seventh, having only played one game this week, a non-conference win over Gloucester Catholic, 11-6.
North Brunswick (3-4) fell from second to eighth after a rough 1-3 week that started fine enough with a 1-0 win over Monroe, but was followed with three straight losses. They fell to Notre Dame Wednesday, then were swept two games by Old Bridge.
The Raiders and Falcons play a home-and-home Monday and Tuesday this week, opening at North Brunswick’s Community Park at 6 pm Monday, followed by a 4:00 game in Metuchen that can be heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio. Click here to listen.
East Brunswick (4-3) dropped two places to ninth, after a 2-2 week. They beat Piscataway, lost to South Plainfield, then split a home-and-home with Monroe, winning at home Thursday, then losing down there Friday.
And Spotswood (7-0) is the third new team in the rankings this week, one of just three CJSR-area teams to remain undefeated; Dunellen and Piscataway Magnet – both 4-0 and in the GMC’s new Silver Division – are the others. The Chargers have swept home-and-homes with Metuchen, North Plainfield, and Piscataway, and also have a win over North Plainfield. They have four shutouts on the season, and are outscoring opponents 78-11 through seven games.
Dropping out are No. 8 Monroe (2-4), ninth-ranked Pingry (3-3) and No. 10 Immaculata (1-4). The Falcons and Big Blue both went 1-2 this week, while the Spartans dropped game at Hunterdon Central and Hillsborough.
Below are the full Week 2 Bellamy & Son Paving High School Baseball rankings:
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