Meyer is masterful, Smith shows power as Old Bridge cruises to 10-0 win over Sayreville to reach GMC Tournament final

The Old Bridge baseball team wasn’t overpowering Saturday, but they hit to the right spaces and got solid pitching.

And it all added up to a 10-0 win for the third-seeded Knights over tenth-seed Sayrville, a five-inning mercy rule win as heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio. Old Bridge will meet top-seed South Plainfield in Saturday’s 2 pm final at Ray Cipperly Field in East Brunswick.

Old Bridge (16-6) got four in the first off Thomas Schlaline, nickel-and-diming the Bombers (10-8) to death.

After a leadoff groundout by John Smith, Chris Crosta, Frank Papeo and Justin Hascup all hit singles to load the bases. Akhil Penkala singled to make it 1-0, MJ Altman walked to make it 2-0, and Evan Smith singled again to make it 3-0. JT Meyer popped out, and Christian Cavanaugh hit the sixth single of the inning to make it 4-0, but a second run was cut down at the plate to end the inning.

After a 1-2-3 second for Schlaline, who looked like he had recovered, Old Bridge got four more in the third.

Hascup led off with a single, and a double by Penkala made it 5-0. After Altman singled to put two on, Sayrveille head coach Tim Ballard made a pitching change, but relieve James Kehoe gave up a three-run homer to Evan Smith on his second pitch, making it 8-0.

In the fourth, Old Bridge put Sayreville on the brink. Papeo led off with a walk, and after a flyout to left by Hascup, Penkala singled. Altman doubled to make it 9-0. Then pinch-hitter Noah Balbuena drove in the tenth run with a single.

And in the fifth, last chance for Sayreville, the Bombers got two on, but failed to score.

JT Meyer gave up five hits in five innings and struck out seven to get the win and improve to 6-1. Schlaline took the loss, falling to 2-4. He allowed seven runs on nine hits in two innings, and faced three batters in the third.