Category: Baseball

by Mike Pavlichko

Autism Awareness Challenge is back for another year: CJSR has live Sunday night broadcast of Old Bridge vs. St. Joseph, plus dates and times for games rescheduled due to weather

The Autism Awareness Challenge was set to return to North Brunswick Community Park again in 2025 – to benefit Mike Garlatti’s Teamwork Unlimited Foundation – but the weather has played havoc with the schedule, with only a handful of games getting played at North Brunswick Community Park..

Many were moved to other locations with turf, including Central Jersey Sports Radio’s scheduled broadcast of No. 6 Old Bridge and St. Joseph of Metuchen. Originally set for 7 pm in North Brunswick, that game has now been moved to a standalone contest at Old Bridge and will begin at 5 pm. Catch Mike Pavlichko and Chris Tsakonas calling all the action, with pregame set for 4:45. Click here to listen.

Some of Sunday’s baseball games have been moved, others are still up in the air, and a further updated is expected later Saturday afternoon or evening.

Here’s the full, day-by-day look at results and the upcoming schedule of games, updated at 1:30 Saturday afternoon. We’ll have additional updates as they become available, and you can also find them on Teamwork Unlimited’s social media channels, such as on Twitter and Instagram.

THURSDAY, APRIL 10

Baseball
Columbia 16, Carteret 3
East Brunswick Magnet 10, Piscataway Magnet 3

Softball (moved from Friday)
Woodbridge 4, Sayreville 2
East Brunswick 10, North Brunswick 1
6:30 pm – Rahway 16, Piscataway 10
6:30 pm – Edison 15, Middlesex 7

FRIDAY, APRIL 11
NO GAMES – RESCHEDULED TO TO WEATHER

SATURDAY, APRIL 12

Baseball – at North Brunswick Community Park
4 pm – Colonia vs. Voorhees – PPD
4 pm – Sayreville vs. Sparta – PPD
7 pm – South River vs. Weehawken – moved to Saturday, May 24, at 11 am at North Brunswick Community Park
7 pm – North Brunswick vs. Steinert – PPD

Baseball – at JP Stevens, Edison
12 pm – Middlesex vs. Robbinsville
3 pm – South Amboy vs. Rahway

Baseball – at Edison HS
12:30 pm – Monroe vs. Livingston
3:30 pm – Jackson vs. Randolph

Softball
JP Stevens vs. Colonia – PPD
Monroe vs. St. Thomas Aquinas – PPD
Perth Amboy vs. JFK – PPD
Carteret vs. East Brunswick Magnet – PPD
Woodbridge Academy vs. Piscataway Magnet – PPD
Timothy Christian vs. South Amboy – PPD
Union Catholic vs. Scotch Plains-Fanwood – PPD
Calvary Christian vs. Perth Amboy Magnet – PPD
South River vs. Linden – PPD
Spotswood vs. Metuchen – PPD

SUNDAY

Baseball – at Rowland Park, South Brunswick
10 am – Gill St. Bernard’s vs. South Brunswick
1 pm – Governor Livingston vs. Delbarton
4 pm – Morris Knolls vs. Red Bank Catholic
7 pm – St. Thomas Aquinas vs. Notre Dame

Baseball – at Carl Sandburg Middle School (Fred Cole Field)
5 pm – Old Bridge vs. St. Joseph-Metuchen (CJSR – LISTEN HERE)

Baseball – at JP Stevens HS in Edison
10 am – JP Stevens vs. Barnegat
1 pm – Edison vs. Scotch Plains-Fanwood

Baseball – at Spotswood HS
12 pm – Spotswood vs. Somerville
3 pm – Ramapo vs. Holy Spirit

Baseball – at Union Catholic HS
9 am – South Plainfield vs. Millburn
12 pm – Rutgers Prep vs. Union Catholic
3 pm – Metuchen vs. Bernards

by Mike Pavlichko

Old Bridge earns split in split series with Edison, 6-2 behind solid start from Penkala

Old Bridge senior Akhil Penkala last took the mound for the Knights in his sophomore season, splitting a grand total of six innings over two games.

But you couldn’t tell as he worked into the seventh inning Tuesday of a GMC Red Division game at Edison.

While Penkala wasn’t overpowering, the righty went the longest he’s every gone on the mound at the varsity level. And while his team’s offense pieced together a run here, and a run there, he held Edison mostly at bay.

The Knights topped Edison 6-2 Wednesday in a game heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio, to snap a three-game losing streak and improve to 3-3 on the young season.

At the plate, senior John Smith drove in three runs, the first on a 4-3 double-play in the third, the other two with a one-out single in the fifth.

Smith hit a two-out double in the first, then scored on an RBI single by Erich Shikschneit, giving Old Bridge a 1-0 lead. They added a run in the third on that DP Smith hit into, but Edison got it back when Brody Ferrer – who lead off with a walk – was sacrificed home on a fly ball to left by Anthony Calantoni.

Old Bridge picked up another run in the fourth, when Anthony Jannucci led off with a double, then came in from third when Jared Volpe hit into a double play. Then, in the fifth, the Knights got two more to make it 5-1. Brody Nugent and Chris Crosta both got on via infield errors, then scored on a single by Smith.

The Knights got one more on the top of the seventh when Volpe hit a ball right through the third baseman’s legs into left field, scoring Shikschneit.

Then, in the bottom of the inning, Penkala came out to finish out, but only lasted two batters, after Dom Innocenti led off with a triple to left and Connor Murphy scored him with a double to left-center. That’s when Noah Balbuena came in and closed the deal, getting two fly ball outs, then after a single, got a fly out to center to end it.

Edison falls to 2-3 with the loss; freshman starter Brayden Roma took the defeat, but only allowing three earned runs. Penkala picked up the win.

Click below for postgame reaction presented by the Sportsplex at Metuchen with Old Bridge pitcher Akhil Penkala and head coach Matt Donaghue:

by Mike Pavlichko

Only a week into the season, critical early games could heavily influence SCT seeding

The Skyland Conference Delaware Division has a reputation of being one of the toughest in the state, and the way things have gone so far, some very early matchups could have a profound influence on the seeding of the Somerset County Tournament.

Seeding day will be here before you know it: on Monday, May 5th, with the first round opening up two days later.

But just in the Skyland Delaware alone, there are two huge series this week being played on back-to-back days. Weather and field conditions forced Tuesday games to be played Wednesday.

Right off the bat, Immaculata and Ridge will be doing battle Wednesday and Thursday, with the opener of that series in Flemington on Wednesday, then in Basking Ridge the following day. The Red Devils were initially scheduled to host Tuesday.

The Spartans and Ridge are ranked No. 1 and No. 2 this week in the Bellamy & Son Paving Top Ten. Both are 3-0 overall, with ‘Lata ascending to the top spot after sweeping defending division and SCT champ Bridgewater-Raritan last week, 2-1 in 13 innings on Opening Day, then 5-0 a couple of days later. Ridge rose three places after sweeping North Hunterdon, 8-2 and 3-2, Tuesday and Thursday last week.

Immaculata may have its best team in years, just as they move up from the Raritan Division, which means they get to play and make their case on the field against teams likely to compete for a top-seed, rather than, say, argue for what they might have done if they played the likes of the Panthers and Red Devils.

If the Spartans can pull off a sweep this week, there’s still a lot of baseball to be played, but they’d likely have the inside track to the top seed if they continue that level of play. On the other hand, a couple of wins for Ridge puts them squarely in the mix there, too.

Despite the 0-2 start, Bridgewater-Raritan can inject itself back into that conversation pretty quickly with at least a split against a Hillsborough team that has started the year hot at 3-1, 1-1 in the Delaware after earning a split themselves with Hunterdon Central, another tough foe, just not in play for the Somerset County Tournament. For the Raiders, it’s a chance for them to make their mark in their first games of the year against a county opponent.

While the Panthers have been bugged by some early-season nagging injuries, a couple of losses here surely wouldn’t derail the season, though it might make it tough to get that No. 1 seed in the SCT. But don’t forget that Rutgers Prep won the tournament as a 12-seed in 2023, having started the season just 1-6.

Also unbeaten early in the season is Gill St. Bernard’s, the only Somerset squad besides Ridge and Immaculata without a loss yet. They swept two games from Pingry last week, 5-2 and 7-0, sandwiched in between a 12-0 rout of Morris Catholic and a 9-4 win over Montclair-Kimberley. Three of the four games were on the road; the Pingry win on Thursday was at home.

Meanwhile, back in the Delaware, Ridge and Bridgewater-Raritan will meet next week, and Hillsborough will play the Red Devils on April 22 and 23. Immaculata and the Raiders will meet April 29 and May 1.

Yes, even after this week, there’s a lot of baseball yet to be played.

by Mike Pavlichko

Edison vs. Old Bridge home-and-home finale moved to Wednesday due to rain in forecast

Starting the season 0-2 wasn’t ideal for the Edison baseball team, which dropped its first two games to last season’s GMC Red Division champions, South Plainfield.

But the Eagles bounced back Saturday evening, rallying from three runs down in the seventh against defending GMC Tournament champion Old Bridge, then scoring four in the eighth to go ahead.

Junior Robert Roma closed it out for Edison (1-3), which will look to pick up right where it left off when the two teams meet Wednesday afternoon at 4 pm on the Eagles’ red-and-gold field, in a game you can hear on Central Jersey Sports Radio. Pregame starts at 3:45 as Mike Pavlichko and Dylan Allen have the call; click here to listen.

The game was originally scheduled for Monday, but moved due to rain in the foreacast. Edison fell 2-1 to Monroe Tuesday in a regularly scheduled GMC Red Divsion affair.

Roma was supposed to go against Old Bridge (2-3), which planned to have its ace, Justin Hascup, on the mound as well. But both went Tuesday, instead, as Roma started against Monroe, and Hascup started what ended up a 4-3 loss to South Plainfield.

Instead, the Eagles will go with Roma’s younger brother, freshman Brayden Roma. Old Bridge has yet to announce a starter.

The Knights and Edison started out on opposite ends of the spectrum. While Edison dropped its first two before picking up a win, Old Bridge started 2-0, with a Red Division win against East Brunswick, then a 7-3 crossover victory against Spotswood. But they’ve lost their last three now, falling to the Bears 3-1 on the road before Saturday’s 10-6, eight-inning loss to the Eagles, and Tuesday’s defeat at the hands of the Tigers.

Click below to hear preview interviews with both head coaches ahead of Wednesday’s game. (Note: Both were recorded Sunday before the originally scheduled game):

Edison head coach Vinnie Abene
Old Bridge head coach Matt Donaghue
by Mike Pavlichko

Edison baseball honors Muldowney with trio of first pitches from Lehman, Appelman, Brownlie

The idea of Jim Muldowney not being around Edison and Eagles baseball is still something that’s hard to fathom.  But on Thursday afternoon, the late, great former baseball coach was honored in another unique way.

Before the Edison baseball team’s home opener against South Plainfield, three men of varying ages stepped out to the pitchers’ mound on the red and gold field to pay tribute to the man known as “Diamond Jim,” who passed away last May.

They included Bill Lehman, who graduated with Muldowney in 1973. They played on the baseball team together, and Lehman – an All-State and All-American selection his senior year – was drafted right out of high school by the Chicago White Sox.

WATCH THE FIRST PITCH CEREMONY ON OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL!!!

There was Brian Appelman, who won GMC Tournament championships in 1992 and 1993 playing for Muldowney, and now is the Eagles’ pitching coach under Vinnie Abene.

And there was Bobby Brownlie, who won GMC Tournament titles in 1998 and 1999 before becoming a bonafide star for another legend – Fred Hill at Rutgers – then was drafted by the Cubs. He now works for agent Scott Boras.

Former Edison baseball coach Jim Muldowney (right) with current AD Dave Sandaal (left) at the opening of the new Edison High School baseball field in 2020.

“I couldn’t pick between these three guys” to throw out the first pitch, Athletic Director Dave Sandaal told the crowd over the P.A. during a pregame ceremony. “They’ll all tell you they’re the best ever,” he joked.

So, he had all three of them throw their first pitch at the same time, to three different catchers lined up behind home plate.

Afterwards, we got a chance to catch up with all three.

Click below to hear from former Eagles Bill Lehman (’73), Bobby Brownlie (’99), and Brian Appelman (’93) – current Edison pitching coach – after a pregame first pitch ceremony honoring the late Jim Muldowney:

by Mike Pavlichko

INSTANT REPLAY: No. 4 Immaculata 2, No. 1 Bridgewater-Raritan 1 (13 inn.)

In a marathon, four-hour, 11-minute Opening Day affair, Luca Catanzarite’s two-out single to centerfield scored the winning run as fourth-ranked Immaculata got by top-ranked Bridgewater-Raritan 2-1 in a 13-innings.

Click below to listen to Mike Pavlichko and Alec Crouthamel call all the action, as heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio from Diamond Nation in Flemington on April 1, 2025.

by Mike Pavlichko

How’s that for an opener? No. 4 Immaculata edges No. 1 Bridgewater-Raritan 2-1 in 13-inning walk-off Opening Day marathon

And they have to meet again Thursday!

In a marathon, 13-inning game Opening Day game at Diamond Nation in Flemington, freshman Luca Catanzarite – who almost won the game with a single in the eleventh – hit one to centerfield gave No. 4 Immaculata a 2-1 win over No. 1 Bridgewater-Raritan, ending one of the wildest season openers anyone’s seen in a while.

The game heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio featured just 15 hits between the two teams, but a combined six errors – five for Immaculata – and 35 runners left on base. Of those, 21 were stranded by the Panthers, who left the bases loaded three times: once in the third, and twice in extra innings, in the 11th and 13th.

The Spartans’ game-winner came when Catanzarite – on an 0-2 pitch with two out – hit a soft liner to center that Kellan Komline charged in on and dove for. But he couldn’t come up with it, scoring Nehemiah Diaz from third.

Hear the game-winning call as it sounded on Central Jersey Sports Radio!

After a Dan Brea groundout, Diaz worked out a six-pitch walk, then stole second with Connor Quinn at the plate, who eventually struck out looking. Diaz made it to third on a wild pitch that was ball four to Jackson Lewis, then scored on Catanzarite’s hit.

Connor Price took the loss in relief for Bridgewater-Raritan, while Michael Drelich got the win for Immaculata.

The Spartans took a 1-0 lead in the first on a sac fly to right by catcher Owen Schilling. The Panthers answered back in the third when Komline hit a ground ball to third, and reached on a fielder’s choice. But a throwing error on the play allowed Price – who started the game at DH, then entered at third, and eventually pitched the 13th – to score from second.

In between there were all manner of threats for both teams. But each time, the pitchers were able to get out of it. Sometimes with a dramatic strikeout, sometimes with a defensive gem, like Lehberger’s throw from left field to end the 11th inning, gunning down Dan Brea at the plate, on a single by Catanzarite that could have won it.

No one scored for ten innings. The lights came on. Ridge and North Hunterdon had started on another field at the same time, and the Red Devils came to watch the Panthers afterward. Then it got cold. They left around then 12th inning. The Hunterdon Central softball team stuck around to watch after their game, too.

The Spartans finally won it, four hours and eleven minutes after the first pitch had been thrown by Wake Forest commit and Del Val transfer Ryan Auten, who went three innings on a standard early season pitch count, striking out eight, walking three, allowing one hit and one unearned run.

Komline also looked good for his part, striking out five, while walking three and giving up just one run in four innings of work. And Jack Lanum, who was excellent on the mound last year during a 30-win campaign that saw the Panthers win every title possible – the Delaware Division, the SCT, North 2 Group 4 and the state Group 4 championship – threw five scoreless innings in relief.

Click below for postgame reaction from Immaculata’s hero, Luca Catanzarite, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen

by Mike Pavlichko

No. 1 Bridgewater-Raritan, coming off best season ever, gets right back to work with trip to rising No. 4 Immaculata on Opening Day Tuesday

By every single metric, the 2024 season was one for the record books at Bridgewater-Raritan.

They won the Skyland Conference Delaware Division and the Somerset County Tournament. They won the North 2, Group 4 sectional title in the state tournament, then went all the way, taking the state’s Group 4 championship.

The encore begins Tuesday.

That’s when the top-ranked Panthers will travel to Flemington to take on No. 4 Immaculata in a big battle on Opening Day that you can hear right here on Central Jersey Sports Radio. First pitch is set for 4 pm at Diamond Nation with pregame at 3:45 as Mike Pavlichko and Alec Crouthamel call all the action. Click here to listen.

Jayson Labrador of Immaculata hits against Ridge in the semifinals of the Somerset County Tournament on May 20, 2024. (Photo: Mike Pavlichko)

If Bridgewater-Raritan is the team that’s arrived, Immaculata is coming right up behind, and this season, the two are in the same division. One of the toughest in the state, the Skyland Delaware also includes Ridge, Hunterdon Central, Hillsborough and North Hunterdon.

The Panthers said goodbye to a number of seniors in 2024, including Matt Fattore, Devin Goldberg, Joe Spirra, Frankie Verano, Mike Lentini and Cory Rible, the latter of whom was Bridgewater’s closer last year. They won every game in which he pitched.

There are some veterans back, too, including infielder and pitcher Jack Lanum, first-baseman Matt Cichocki, and catcher JR Rosado among the seniors, and junior Kellan Komline, who’ll get the Opening Day nod. While he may not blow hitters away, he was 5-0 last year in nine appearances with a 0.66 ERA in 42 2/3 innings pitched.

Komline and Lanum combined for 12 wins last year, with a collective ERA under one, in over 80 innings pitched, and one or the other led the team in virtually every statistical pitching category.

Immaculata lost some big boppers, too, including Troy Rabosky and Josh Thompson, who each hit over .400 last year, with Rabosky connecting for four homers and knocking in 28 runs. But they have plenty of ammunition back, including Jayson Labrador – who hit .344 last season and drove in 12 runs – and a host of others like Colin Kassai (.338, 22 RBIs) and Owen Schilling (.304, 15 RBI).

There’s plenty of pitching back, too – though ace Nick Bozzo graduated – but the rotation has been boosted by the addition of Ryan Auten, who transfers in from Delaware Valley. The left-handed Wake Forest commit threw 37 innings as a sophomore and was 3-2 last year with a 2.46 ERA, striking out 65 while walking just 18. He’ll get the ball on Opening Day against the Panthers.

Click below to hear previews with both head coaches of Tuesday’s Opening Day matchup between No. 1 Bridgewater-Raritan and No. 4 Immaculata:

Bridgewater-Raritan head coach Max Newill
Immaculata head coach Kevin Cust

by Mike Pavlichko

INSTANT REPLAY: No. 9 Spotswood 16, South Amboy 5

Ninth-ranked Spotswood exploded for six runs in the second and eight in the third inning of a 16-5 win over visiting South Amboy. The Chargers got a grand slam from Sebby Saracino in the third – his first career varsity home run – and four scoreless innings from senior starting pitcher Carter Cumiskey.

Click below to listen to Mike Pavlichko call the play-by-play as heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio on March 29, 2025 from Spotswood.

by Mike Pavlichko

Spotswood bats erupt for 16-5 win over South Amboy in first game on Chargers’ new turf field

New turf, new season, same old Spotswood baseball.

On Opening Day for both teams, the No. 9 Chargers exploded for six runs in the second inning, and eight in the third – fueled by a Sebby Saracino grand slam – en route to a 16-5 victory over visiting South Amboy Saturday, in a GMC crossover game heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio.

It was also the first game on Spotswood’s new turf field, and they christened it not only with a big win, but with a blast from the past.

Pitcher Willie Beard and catcher Anthony Addone from the 2007 GMC Tournament and state championship team – which was inducted into the Spotswood Athletics Hall of Fame in 2022, along with Beard as an individual – teamed up for a ceremonial first pitch.

Willie Beard throws the ceremonial first pitch to Anthony Addone – battery mates from Spotswood’s 2007 GMC Tournament and state championship team – to christen the Chargers’ new turf field on March 29, 2025. (Photo: Mike Pavlichko)

Then the game began, and it was almost like going back in a time machine 18 years, as Spotswood got on the board with two in the bottom of the first.

Sarracino’s slam in the third was the first home run of his varsity career, and he finished the day with a career high five runs batted in.

Starter Carter Cumiskey was excellent as well, able to stay fresh with the weather unseasonably warm – 74 at game time and over 80 by the time the final out was recorded – as the senior pitched four shutout innings, allowing one hit and just two base runners – a second reached on an error – to get the Opening Day win.  He struck out four and pitched three one-two-theee innings.

South Amboy got its five runs in the top of the fifth, helped by a hard liner off the third baseman’s glove and a chopper that left shortstop Ryan Orth with no real option to make a play.  But they needed seven runs to keep the game going, and fell just short.

Starter Micah Nemeth took the loss in relief for the Governors. 

Spotswood did what it wanted to do at the plate, scratching and clawing when they needed to early, and getting some big hits when they needed them. Besides the Grand slam, the Chargers also got two ground rule doubles, one from Will Buchan and another from freshman catcher Tyrus Lazar.

Click below to hear postgame reaction from Spotswood’s Sebby Saracino, Carter Cumiskey, and head coach Glenny Fredricks, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen: