Category: Baseball

by Mike Pavlichko

Big day for No. 8 South Plainfield, as McCarthy no-hits No. 7 Old Bridge in 4-1 win, Massaro sets Tiger all-time hit record

Put this one under the category of the old adage “Nobody cares how, just if.”

The South Plainfield baseball team didn’t have the best day in the field, committing four errors, one of them leading to a run, but the Tigers still won their GMC Red Division matchup against Old Bridge Tuesday afternoon at home, 4-1 – and they did it in style.

Aidan McCarthy threw a complete game no-hitter with nine strikeouts, while Dom Massaro went 3-for-4 and set the school’s all-time hit record, with the 127th of his career.

For McCarthy, it was his first no-no that he could recall – at least at the high school level – while Massaro broke a record that stood for 14 years, set by Steven Petriello in 2012.

The 8th-ranked Tigers took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first on a passed ball that scored Massaro, and a sac fly by Ed Budzinski. Massaro scored again in the fourth on a ground out to short by McCarthy to make it 3-0, then made it 4-0 in the fifth on a bases loaded walk to Joe Stanzione that scored Andrew Bena.

The 7th-ranked Knights got their lone run in the top of the sixth. Matt Chin hit a grounder to short that got behind Anthony Cicenia, allowing Nicholas Agostino to score.

And despite the fourth South Plainfield error in the game coming with two outs in the top of the seventh, allowing Brady Meyer to get to second, McCarthy got Harry Denney to fly out to Massaro in center field to end it.

South Plainfield (7-5, 6-4, tied for 2nd GMC Red) and Old Bridge (5-6, 5-4, 3rd) split their series, with the Knights winning 9-3 on their home field back on Friday.

Click below for postgame reaction from South Plainfield seniors Aidan McCarthy and Dom Massaro – as well as head coach Scott Gleichenhaus – with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko:

by Mike Pavlichko

INSTANT REPLAY: North Plainfield 2, South River 0

Senior Bennie Sokowlowski scattered three hits over seven innings, striking out 11, while fellow senior Vic Ceda hit a sol home run in the sixth to give North Plainfield a 2-0 win over South River, earning a split of their two-game, home-and-home, GMC Blue Division series.

Click below to listen to Mike Pavlichko call all the play-by-play live from Krausche Field in North Plainfield on April 20, 2026.

by Mike Pavlichko

Sokolowski dominates on the mound with 11 Ks as North Plainfield edges South River, 2-0, to split series

The only run Bennie Sokolowski needed in support from his teammates in maroon pinstripes on a sunny-but-chilly, windy Monday afternoon at Krausche Field came in the first inning.

Give him a run – a single, solitary run – and he’ll take it from there.

The North Plainfield senior threw his third complete game of the young season, striking out eleven while allowing just two hits, in a 2-0 win over visiting South River, in a GMC Blue Division game heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio.

Sokolowski was dominant and efficient for the Canucks (8-5, 4-5 GMC Blue). Even though he hit four batters in the game – all of whom were as close to the plate as they could legally be – his control was on point, as was his changeup, fooling hitter after hitter. At one point, Sokolowski had recorded eight straight outs via the K, spanning the third, fourth and fifth innings, with just an infield hit, walk and hit batsman scattered in between.

He almost got in trouble in the first, plunking the Rams’ leadoff hitter, Josh Devers, in the back. But Devers was erased on a fielder’s choice, then Jimmy Sanchez got picked off, and Sokolowski induced a ground ball to first by Hunter Krainski to end the inning.

And North Plainfield got all it needed in its half of the first. Mark Fultz led off with a hard single down the right field line, and after Jake Zotollo got hit by South River starter Julien Borusevic, and a ground ball to shortstop moved the runners to second and third, a groundout to third by Ian Lamiera made it 1-0 Canucks.

With Sokolowski dealing and Borusevic fairly cruising as well – scattering just two more hits, a single and a double, over the next four innings – that’s how it stayed until the bottom of the sixth, when Vic Seda led things off with a first-pitch solo home run to left centerfield, just in case.

Not that Sokolowski needed it. The top of the seventh was like just about any other inning he threw Monday evening. Fly out, ground out, hit batter and a strikeout – his eleventh of the game – to end it.

The insurance homer was Seda’s first of the season, and the second in his varsity baseball career.

Both pitchers threw complete games: Sokolowski got the win to improve to 4-0, while Burosevic is now 2-2 with the loss. Sokolowski also lowered his already-minuscule ERA down to 0.42, allowing just two earned runs all season in four appearances and 33 innings pitched.

South River falls to 8-4 with the loss, 7-3 in the GMC Blue.

Click below for postgame reaction from Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko with seniors Bennie Sokolowski, Vic Ceda, and head coach Ben Donaghy:

by Mike Pavlichko

Top teams roll on again in Week Three, but bottom-half turmoil brings Old Bridge, Rutgers Prep into Bellamy & Son Paving baseball rankings

For a second straight week, the top four teams continued to win – leaving Immaculata, Ridge, Middlesex and Edison right where they’ve been – but everyone else keeps beating each other up, and two new teams join the Bellamy & Son Paving Top Ten for Week Three.

Immaculata (7-2) remains in the No. 1 position after a 2-1 week. In Skyland Conference play, the Spartans swept Bridgewater-Raritan – 13-3 at home, and 5-2 on the road – Tuesday and Thursday, before falling 7-3 to Delsea in a non-conference game on Saturday.

Holding at No. 2 is Ridge (10-1), which went 3-0 in the week gone by. They swept a Tuesday-Thursday series from Watchung Hills – 12-10 on the road, and 13-3 at home – before an 8-3 win over Bernards Saturday completed the perfect week.

Immaculata and Ridge square off this week in a huge two-game set that will have a lot of say in which team – at least at this point – takes the inside track for the top-seed in the Somerset County Tournament. The seeding meeting is Wednesday, May 6th.

Middlesex (10-1) continues to roll as well. The Blue Jays went 5-0 this past week, sweeping Metuchen 2-1 on the road Tuesday, and 6-2 at home Thursday. Middlesex then beat Voorhees Saturday, 11-2, in their Autism Awareness Challenge game at North Brunswick Community Park, and took a 13-2 decision over JFK Saturday, before beating Wood-Ridge (Bergen County) on the road Sunday, 15-1.

Edison (7-2) holds at No. 4 this week, going 2-1 in the week gone by. The Eagles opened the week in fine fashion with a complete-game, 13-strikeout no-hitter from Connor Murphy in a 4-0 home win over St. Joseph-Metuchen heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio. They beat the Falcons again in Metuchen on Thursday, 5-3, before falling 10-4 to Columbia Sunday in their Autism Awareness Challenge game.

WATCH: The final out of Connor Murphy’s no-hitter against St. Joseph-Metuchen

Holding at five is Monroe (7-4). While the Falcons went just 2-3 this week, they closed the weekend with a huge win. After falling to Hightstown in a non-league game on Monday, they then got swept by Woodbridge, 8-0 and 2-1. But they rebounded nicely with an 8-4 win over St. Thomas Aquinas in North Edison on Saturday, then Sunday, in their Autism Awareness Challenge game, Monroe knocked off the No. 18 team in the state, perennial power Red Bank Catholic, 5-2. To date, it’s the only win by a GMC school over a team ranked in the NJ.com statewide Top 20.

(Ridge has the only other one, a 7-4 Opening Day win over West Morris, currently ranked No. 14).

Staying in sixth is Colonia (7-2), which split four games this week. They started with a 14-4 win at Metuchen Monday, in a makeup from earlier in the year, then split with South Brunswick, taking an 8-6 home loss Tuesday before winning on the road Thursday, 13-4. The Patriots then lost to Spotswood on Saturday, 3-1.

Back in at No. 7 is Old Bridge (5-5), which was ranked in the preseason, but fell out in Week One. The Knights went 2-2 last week with a tough schedule. After beating East Brunswick 11-10 Tuesday, they came back Friday and beat South Plainfield 9-3 in a game heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio. Saturday, they lost to state No. 4 Seton Hall Prep, 3-2, then fell 4-3 to Westfield Sunday in the Autism Awareness Challenge.

Down one spot to eight is South Plainfield (6-5), which also went 2-2 last week. The Tigers split with St. Thomas Aquinas, winning 6-4 on Tuesday, but losing on the road Thursday, 7-5. After Friday’s loss at Old Bridge, the Tigers rebounded with a 4-2 win over Millburn in the Autism Awareness Challenge in North Brunswick on Saturday.

Making its season debut at No. 9 is Rutgers Prep (7-2). The Argonauts climb into the rankings on the strength of a 4-0 week, which began with a pair of 10-0 wins over Montgomery Tuesday (away) and Thursday (at home). On Friday, they beat Union Catholic in the Autism Awareness Challenge, 17-10, then won at Hopewell Valley on Saturday, 12-4.

Carteret (9-1) holds in tenth, on the strength of a 3-0 week. The Ramblers swept Piscataway in a Monday-Wednesday two-game set – 9-2 at home on Monday, then 10-9 away in the second game – before beating North Brunswick 13-0 Saturday in the Autism Awareness Challenge at Community Park.

Two teams dropped out this week. No. 8 Watchung Hills beat Cranford Saturday 5-4, but took a pair of losses to Ridge, 12-10 and 13-3, while South Brunswick also went 1-2 in the week gone by. The Vikings split a pair with Colonia – winning an 8-6 road game Tuesday, but losing 13-1 at home Thursday – then lost Saturday to Metuchen, 8-3, in their Autism Awareness Challenge game.

Below is the complete Bellamy & Son Paving H.S. Baseball Top Ten for Week Three:

by Mike Pavlichko

South River, North Plainfield wrap up GMC Blue Division set Monday night, under the lights

Back on Friday, South River welcomed North Plainfield in to town for a GMC Blue Division matchup and sent the Canucks home with a 16-0 victory.

But even with that win, the Rams’ fifth straight, head coach Mike Lepore, Jr., hasn’t won over 300 games in his career by having his teams sit back and relax. He knows that when his team visits Krausche Field Monday night for a 6 pm game under the lights to wrap-up the two-game series, they won’t go into it with a 16-0 lead.

No, it’ll be 0-0.

You can hear Monday night’s game live on Central Jersey Sports Radio with Mike Pavlichko calling all the action. Pregame is set for 5:45. Click here to listen.

On the other hand, North Plainfield and new head coach Ben Donaghy knows the same thing. His team is starting on a blank scorecard, not down 16-0.

South River (8-3, 7-2 GMC Blue) is just a half-game behind first-place Carteret – which they split with earlier this month – and North Plainfield (7-5, 3-5) may be three spots back in fifth, but the two have somewhat similar overall record, and both can do some damage at the plate.

The Rams are led by sophomore Julien Borusovic, both in the batter’s box and on the mound, and he’ll be in both places Monday night. He’s 2-1 with a 1.75 ERA, part of a staff that has been throwing efficient complete games early on, and has a team ERA of just 0.39. Meanwhile, Borusovic is hitting .500 on the year through 32 at bats with 15 runs batted in. Hunter Krainski (.379) and Noah Barrero (.333, 11 RBI).

Meanwhile, North Plainfield is hitting .309 as a team, led by sophomore Ryan Soto at .455 and senior Helson Sosa at .417 with eight runs batted in, while senior catcher Jake Zotollo is hitting .385 with 12 RBIs.

On the mound, senior Bennie Sokolowski will get the ball Monday, 3-0 with a scant 0.54 ERA. And the veteran can hit, too: .385 with a team-best 12 RBIs, as well as nine stolen bases, part of a Canuck offense that has stolen 53 on the season so far.

Click below to hear preview interviews with both head coaches and Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko:

South River head coach Mike Lepore, Jr.
North Plainfield head coach Ben Donaghy
by Mike Pavlichko

No. 5 Monroe goes on the attack early, hangs on to stun state-ranked Red Bank Catholic, 5-2, in Autism Awareness Challenge; plus all weekend Challenge scores

Monroe head coach Sean Field knew what kind of challenge his Falcons would be in for when they picked up Red Bank Catholic for their Autism Awareness Challenge game this weekend at North Brunswick’s Community Park.

What he didn’t know is that his team would enter the weekend having lost four of their last five games, coming off a two-game sweep at the hands of Woodbridge.

They got back on the right track with an 8-4 win at St. Thomas Aquinas Saturday, then got thrown a curve when a rainy forecast moved their game with the Caseys to Mannino Park in Old Bridge.

But on the way to the game, Field said to his assistant, “You know, if we could get up on these guys early…”

Turns out, that’s just what they did.

The Falcons – who are 7-4, and the No. 5 team in the Bellamy & Son Paving Top 10 – scored five times in the top of the first, then hung on til the seventh, when starting pitcher Aadi Shah allowed two runs on a two-out single. But he got out of it, and the Falcons hung on for a 5-2 win over the perennial state power Caseys, who were ranked No. 18 in the state Top 20 heading in.

After a leadoff walk, a double, and a strikeout to start the game, Alex Marcus made it 1-0 with a single. Ben Faigin, who’d doubled, scored on a passed ball for the second run. Michael Cinque doubled for the third. Matt Linke scored on a dropped third strike to Rob Profaci to make it 4-0, and Christian Luciani drove in the last run on a sac fly to right.

That was all the scoring until the seventh, when Red Bank Catholic (6-2) loaded the bases with one out via a double, single and a six-pitch walk. After Shah got a swinging strikeout for the second out, Luke Lonczak singled to right field, plating two, but Shah then got Charlie Stumberger to ground out to second.

Now, the Falcons are back on a two-game win streak, with St. Thomas Aquinas coming down to Monroe Tuesday to finish their two-game GMC Red Division set.

Click below for postgame reaction from Monroe head coach Sean Field with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko:

Here’s the weekend roundup of baseball scores from the Autism Awareness Challenge:

THURSDAY:

  • Roselle Park 10, Bound Brook 3
  • South Amboy 22, Rahway 10
  • Scotch Plains-Fanwood 13, East Brunswick 3
  • Piscataway Magnet 17, East Brunswick Magnet 6

FRIDAY:

  • Middlesex 11, Voorhees 12
  • Rutgers Prep 17, Union Catholic 10
  • Spotswood 5, Somerville 4
  • Delbarton 11, Randolph 10

SATURDAY:

  • Barnegat 11, JP Stevens 1
  • South Plainfield 4, Millburn 2
  • Sparta 9, Steinert 3
  • Ramapo 15, Holy Spirit 6
  • Jackson Twp. 10, Livingston 4
  • South River 14, Weehawken 2
  • Carteret 13, North Brunswick 0
  • Metuchen 8, South Brunswick 3

SUNDAY:

  • Monroe 5, Red Bank Catholic 2
  • St. Joseph-Metuchen 7-6
  • Sayreville vs. Mainland (called in 3rd inning due to rain)
  • Gloucester Catholic 8, Governor Livingston 7
  • Columbia 10, Edison 4
  • Gill St. Bernard’s vs. Notre Dame, 4 pm
  • Westfield 4, Old Bridge 3
  • St. Thomas Aquinas vs. Oratory Prep, 7 pm
by Mike Pavlichko

Timely hitting, pitching, send Old Bridge past No. 7 South Plainfield, 9-3, and put Knights ahead of Tigers in GMC Red

Matt Chin and Adrian Lutomski each knocked in three runs and Erich Schikschneit pitched 4 2/3 solid innings in his first start of the season Thursday, as Old Bridge got past South Plainfield, 9-3, in a GMC Red Division game at Fred Cole Field heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio.

It was that mix of the big hit in the right spot – including a four-run fourth where the Knights batted around – and pitching out of jams that gave the Knights the win, moving them just ahead of South Plainfield in the division with three weeks to go before the GMC Tournament seeding meeting on May 8th.

There’s a lot of baseball to be played between now and then, but in the Red, every win counts, and this one was a big one to open a two-game set between the teams that will finish in South Plainfield Tuesday afternoon.

The first inning was a prime example of getting big pitches in big spots, as South Plainfield got runners on first and third with two out before Schikschneit got a ground ball to second to end the inning.

In the bottom, Old Bridge pounced. Chris Crosta led off with a single, Brady Meyer followed, and Chin drove in his first two runs with an RBI double down the left field line for a 2-0 lead.

The Tigers got one back in the bottom of the third on a groundout to second by Aiden McCarthy, scoring Dom Massaro to make it 2-1, but Old Bridge made it 3-1 during their turn at bat on a single by Chin.

Then, the Knights broke the game pen in the fourth, when they sent nine men to the plate.

Nick Natale hit a one-out single, Michael Chiarella did the same then Lutomski doubled down the left field line – just like Chin’s – to drive in both runs and make it 5-1 Knights. After a strikeout by Ryan Bannerman, Old Bridge added two more runs with two out. Crosta made it 6-1, scoring Lutomski with a triple, and Meyer knocked him in from third with a sac fly to right, giving Old Bridge a 6-1 lead.

South Plainfield got one back in the fifth on a single by Andrew Bena, who started the game on the mound for the Tigers but was lifted with two on and two out in the bottom of the fourth. But Old Bridge added two more in the bottom of the fifth, on back-t0-back sac flies by Lutomski and Bannerman.

The Tigers added one more in the top of the sixth, when Joe Stanzione scored from third on a 6-4-3 double-play ball hit by Gabe Garcia.

But all through the game, Schikschneit faced some tough situations and got out of them, stranding nine South Plainfield baserunners. Facing first and third with two out in the third he struck out eight-hitter Alex Pigna. And the rest? He made numerous Tiger hitters miss, chasing a wicked breaking ball.

Schikschneit got the win for Old Bridge (5-3 5-3 GMC Red) to improve to 2-1, while Bena took the loss for the Tigers (5-5, 5-4), falling to 1-1.

The win moved the Knights into second in the GMC Red Division by a half game over South Plainfield, tied with Monroe, both at 5-3 in Red play.

Click below for postgame reaction from Erich Schikschneit, Matt Chin and head coach Matt Donaghue, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen:

by Mike Pavlichko

As GMC Red beats each other up, Old Bridge and South Plainfield tussle in Friday matchup at Fred Cole Field

With the exception of Edison – which is playing some excellent baseball right now – the entire Red Division in the Greater Middlesex Conference has been beating itself up.

After the first-place Eagles at 7-1, the next five games are no more than one or two games over or under .500 as we near the end of Week Three of the season. And the last two teams over .500 will meet Friday afternoon at Fred Cole Field off Route Nine, as Old Bridge entertains No. 7 South Plainfield.

You can hear that game live on Central Jersey Sports Radio at 4 pm, with pregame set for 3:45. Mike Pavlichko has the call, and you can listen by clicking this link.

Old Bridge (4-3) took two losses to start the season to Edison, but is 4-1 since, their lone loss coming to St. Thomas Aquinas last Thursday, 3-2. But they split the series with the Trojans, picking up an 11-10 win in eleven innings last Friday, then won by the same score in East Brunswick on Tuesday in eight.

In fact, all but the Knights’ season opener have been decided by one or two runs, and they are 3-1 in one-run games, 2-1 in extra innings.

South Plainfield (5-4) had won three straight before a 7-5 loss to St. Thomas Aquinas on Tuesday. It’s been a series of streaks for the Tigers, who swept St. Joseph-Metuchen 11-1 and 6-2 to open the season, but they lost their next three: two to first place Edison, with a defeat at the hands of Cranford sandwiched in between.

They then swept Woodbridge and won the opener against St. Thomas at home before dropping Thursday’s matchup in North Edison, 7-5.

And all of that is just about what you expect in the GMC Red Division: quality teams, duking it out, all week long.

Click below to hear preview interviews with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko and both coaches:

South Plainfield head coach Scott Gleichenhaus
Old Bridge head coach Matt Donaghue
by Mike Pavlichko

So far, so good for South Brunswick baseball, as Perna helps lead Vikings to 5-2 start under Urbano

There was a lot of change in the South Brunswick baseball program in the off-season, and it wasn’t just the coaching staff.

Veteran GMC skipper Lou Urbano had to change the culture. Which is all fine and good in the fall and winter, but what actually happens on the field can sometimes be a different story.

Well, the Vikings got off on the right foot, sweeping Perth Amboy in their season-opening GMC White Division series, with 13-2 and 8-6 wins. The competition got a little stiffer when they faced Sayreville next, and the two split a pair, winning the opener 1-0, but dropping the next game, 5-1.

Next up: Middlesex, the defending state Group 1 champion. They split again, winning the opener 3-2, dropping the second meeting 6-2.

Tuesday brought a visit to North 2, Group 3 runner-up Colonia. And South Brunswick handed the Patriots their first loss of the season.

So far, so good, with a 5-2 start, already topping last year’s win total.

Many have contributed to the recent resurgence of Vikings baseball, but few more than Collin Perna. A senior playing his fourth-year of varsity baseball, Perna is hitting an eye-popping .532 on the season to lead the team, while junior Jack Whitlock is hitting .500, with five runs batted in and the team’s only two home runs.

And on the mound, Perna is the ace: already 3-1, with 26 strikeouts in 15 2/3 innings, and an ERA of just 1.34.

It’s still early, and there’s a lot of baseball to be played, but Perna and Urbano know there’s something different about this team. South Brunswick isn’t that far removed from the 2021 season, in which they went 14-10 and reached the GMC Tournament final, ultimately falling to St. Joseph-Metuchen.

South Brunswick finishes the two-game set with the Patriots at home Thursday at 4 pm before heading to North Brunswick Community Park Saturday for a 7 pm Autism Awareness Challenge game against Metuchen. Find the event’s full weekend schedule here.

Click below to hear Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko talk with South Brunswick senior Collin Perna and head coach Lou Urbano about the Vikings’ early-season success: