Franklin seeks first SCT finals berth in 45 years when Warriors, Immaculata clash Monday

It’s a story of two teams with vastly different histories in the Somerset County Tournament.

One of them has won 14 times in 22 trips to the finals. Those are the Immaculata Spartans.

The other has been just once – in 1980. Those are the Franklin Warriors.

But just ask the 2023 edition of the Rutgers Prep baseball team how much that really matters? Four games below .500 at the time of the seeding meeting – which, to be fair, was just two weeks into the season – the Argonauts upset everyone in their path, and knocked off Ridge to win it all as the 12 seed.

So why can’t 11th seed Franklin get there?

To do it, they’ll have to stop second-seed Immaculata, which shared the Skyland Conference Delaware Division with top-seed Ridge.

Monday afternoon, Franklin and Immaculata will go at it at 1 pm at TD Bank Park in Bridgewater, in a game you can hear on Central Jersey Sports Radio, followed by the other semifinal at 4:00 between Ridge and fourth-seed Rutgers Prep.

Mike Pavlichko and Dylan Allen will call all the play-by-play; click here to listen. You’ll also be able to watch the game with our play-by-play on our YouTube channel.

Here’s a closer look at the first semifinal game of the day:

(2) Immaculata (12-7) vs. (11) Franklin (10-7)
1 pm on Central Jersey Sports Radio (LISTEN LIVE) (Watch on YouTube)

PROBABLE PITCHERS:
Immaculata: Ryan Auten (4-1, 4.00 ERA)
Franklin: Dylan Shah (1-3, 3.00 ERA)

PREVIEW INTERVIEWS:

Immaculata head coach Kevin Cust

Franklin head coach Derrick Castillo

HOW THEY GOT HERE:

Immaculata: The Spartans had a bye to the second round as one of the top four seeds, and had to rally from three runs down in the seventh to beat seven-seed Hillsborough, 10-9 back on Thursday at Diamond Nation. And they did it all without the benefit of a hit, with a combination of walks, batters hit by a pitch, and a passed ball.

Franklin: After winning its opening round game, 16-1, over 14-seed Bound Brook in five innings, the Warriors pulled off two upsets to get here. First, they beat six-seed and defending champion Bridgewater-Raritan, 4-3 on Monday. Then, it was a dramatic, 12-10 victory over third-seed Watchung Hills that took eight innings, and three hours and 40 minutes, according to Franklin head coach Derrick Castillo.

TOP HITTERS:

Immaculata: As a team, the Spartans are hitting .287, with five regulars over .300, led by Owen Schilling at .365 with 23 runs batted in. But a number of other players also lead in key statistical categories. Justin Labrador (.344) leads the team with four doubles. Schilling and Connor Quinn each have three home runs, And senior Colin Kassai, batting .271, leads the team in walks with 12. Immaculata also is known for the timely hit – or even walk – so they can take advantage in a big situation,

Franklin: The Warriors are hitting just a bit better – .295 – than the Spartans, and they have even more guys hitting better than .300, showing a balanced lineup from top to bottom. Mike Schiermayer is the top-hitting regular at .385, with a team best 20. Izaiah Robinson – Castillo calls him “perhaps the most impressive player we have” – leads the team with two home runs and 23 stolen bases. Stanley Madera and Rodrick Ray each are tops with 15 runs batted in.

LAST FINALS BERTH:

Immaculata hasn’t been to the finals since before COVID – in 2019, when they won the second of back-to-back titles, but they’ve won the most SCT titles in the event’s history, with 14 in 22 appearances. They won ten of 12 in a stretch from 1997 to 2008, the most dominant run of any program in Somerset County.

Franklin has only made it once, in 1980, falling to Ridge, 7-1.