Tag: Bayonne

by Dom Savino

Scary good 5th-seed Bayonne stands between Bridgewater-Raritan and first title since ’10 with even longer drought of their own

The last time Bayonne baseball played for a sectional title, its head coach — David Hoffman — was a young assistant on the staff. Hall of Fame coach Phil Baccarella was still the skipper.

Oh, and none of the team’s current players had been born yet.

Bayonne will look to hoist its first sectional championship trophy since 2002, when the fifth-seeded Bees (24-6) visit second-seed Bridgewater-Raritan (23-6) on Friday in the North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4 title game.

Central Jersey Sports Radio will provide a live broadcast of the game, starting with pregame coverage at 2:45 p.m; first pitch is set for 3:00. Mike Pavlichko and Dom Savino will call the action. Click here to listen.

State-ranked Bayonne enters with a resume even better than its seeding. The Bees won their league for the third time in the last four years and finished as runner-up to Saint Peter’s Prep for a Hudson County title.

Winners of 16 of its last 18 games, Bayonne’s offense has caught fire in the sectional tournament, plating 31 runs on 28 hits. Only the Bees’ secondnd-round game — a 3-2 nail-biter over Phillipsburg — was decided by fewer than nine runs.

Like its opponent, Bayonne is an experienced ballclub, with a lineup composed entirely of seniors. Georgia Tech commit Aidan Paradine leads the veterans, ranking among Hudson County’s leaders in average (.449), home runs (7), and RBI (40).

The team’s top pitcher, though, is a junior. UMass Lowell commit Nolan Geisler has posted a 0.99 ERA as the staff ace. The right-hander is well-rested for the title game, making his only appearance of the tournament to earn the save against Phillipsburg. Geisler headlines a deep pitching staff that has rolled out six arms in the tournament so far.

Dom Savino caught up with Bayonne head coach David Hoffmann to discuss the Bees’ offensive surge and the significance of his alma mater’s return to a sectional title game:

by Mike Pavlichko

Bridgewater-Raritan’s veteran group a model of consistency heading into North 2, Group 4 final

When you only lose back-to-back games once in a season, and the second of those came after a stinging defeat by a single run to eventual Somerset County Tournament champion Rutgers Prep in the semifinals, you know your team is rock-steady.

Second-seeded Bridgewater-Raritan hopes to bring that consistency again Friday afternoon when the Panthers host fifth-seed Bayonne in the North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4 title game in Bridgewater.

Central Jersey Sports Radio will have all the live play-by-play of the game, starting with pregame at 2:45 pm, with first pitch at 3:00. Mike Pavlichko and Dom Savino will call all the action. Click here to listen.

The Panthers (23-6) are led by a veteran lineup, with junior Matthew Fattore hitting .390 with a team-leading 27 RBIs, just five points behind Devin Goldberg, pacing B-R with a .395 average, 34 hits and 39 runs scored.

Pitching has also been solid, with head coach Max Newill expected to at least have a better idea who will go after Thursday afternoon’s practice. Noah Matheson has pitched to a 2.69 ERA, while Matt Fattore has pitched to a 0.37 ERA in 19 innings, and either could go for the Panthers.

It’ll be a matchup of two state-ranked teams, with Bridgewater checking in at No. 18 in the latest rankings, while the Bees (24-6) are at No. 15, an atypical five-seed.

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko talk with Bridgewater-Raritan head coach Max Newill: