Woodbridge gets set to take on South River in GMC Tournament first round action on May 6, 2024. (Photo credit: @WHSCasey on Twitter)
In a GMC Tournament that saw three first-round upsets Monday, lower seeds had no such luck against the top three teams in the field.
Top-seed South Plainfield, second-seed Old Bridge and third-seed Woodbridge all won Monday afternoon and evening, and will play in the quarterfinals of the county tournament on Wednesday.
(1) South Plainfield 11, (17) Perth Amboy 1
The Tigers won their eleventh straight game, rolling past the Panthers 11-1. South Plainfield (16-3) led 10-0 after two innings, and each team scored one in the fourth of a five-inning, ten-run rule affair.
Mike Castagna went the distance, throwing just 70 pitches through five, scattering five hits and giving up just a single, solitary unearned run, while striking out nine.
Brandon Bickunas knocked in three runs on a 2-for-3 day with a single and a double, while Dan Kapsch, Jayden Alvarez, Ryan Balent and Steve Sudlack each knocked in a run as well.
South Plainfield will play 8th-seed South Brunswick Wednesday in the GMC Tournament quarterfinals on Field 1 at North Brunswick Community Park, in a game that will be broadcast live on Central Jersey Sports Radio.
The Vikings beat 9th-seed St. Thomas Aquinas Monday 3-2 in 14 innings to advance.
Click below to hear South Plainfield head coach Scott Gleichenhaus talk about the Tigers’ win:
(2) Woodbridge 9, (18) South River 2
The Rams threw their ace Julius Rosado on Saturday in a 4-0 win over 15th-seed JFK in the play-in round, but he’s not just an amazing pitcher; the kid can hit.
He had three of them Monday for South River, but that was nearly all the Rams could muster off Woodbridge ace Eddy Nunez, who went the distance in the Barrons’ 9-2 victory. Nunez allowed four hits – the other off the bat of James Zsorey – struck out eight and walked just one. Only one of the two runs he allowed was earned.
Shawn Kish went 3-for-4 with three singles and two RBIs, while Xavier Diaz also knocked in two.
The Barrons now go on to play 10-seed Sayreville Wednesday in the GMC Tournament quarterfinals at North Brunswick Community Park. That game is scheduled for 7 pm on Field 2. Alec Crouthamel will have coverage on Twitter (@aleccr12) and after the game on cjsportsradio.com.
Click below to hear Woodbridge head coach Mike Monaco talk about the Barrons’ win:
(3) Old Bridge 6, (14) St. Joseph-Metuchen 4
The Knights beat the Falcons for the third time this season, but it was a bit more dramatic than the first two games, 4-0 and 5-0 shutouts in early April.
Old Bridge got five runs in the third and added another in the fifth before St. Joe’s got on the board in the sixth, cutting it to 5-1. The Knights got it back in the bottom of the sixth, and led 6-1 heading to the top of the seventh, where things started to get interesting.
Joe’s got three runs, chasing starter JT Meyer from the game with one out. H allowed one run before Aiden Kipper came in out of the pen, and allowed two more as the Falcons cut it to 6-4. That’s when Donaghue brought in Justin Hascup – a potential starter Wednesday in the quarterfinals – and with second and third and two out, with the go-ahead run at the plate in Danny Internoscia, Hascup induced a ground ball right back to him, throwing to first to close the game out on just five pitchers.
Old Bridge will play 11th-seed North Brunswick in the GMCT quarterfinals on Field 1 at 4 pm Wednesday, in a game that can be heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio. The Raiders got a no-hitter from Kyle Anderson in a 2-1 road upset over 6th-seed Monroe Monday.
Click below to hear Old Bridge head coach Matt Donaghue talk about the win:
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