Bryson Auten – Central Jersey Sports Radio

It was one of those type of games that in football, you might say the last team to have the ball will win, or in basketball the team with the last shot will win.

In a back-and-forth second Somerset County Tournament semifinal of the day at TD Bank Park in Bridgewater – as heard and seen live on Central Jersey Sports Radio – top-seed Immaculata scored three runs in the sixth, then ended the game catching a Bridgewater-Raritan runner stealing, picking up a 7-6 win in the SCT semifinals, and sending the Spartans to the finals for a second year in a row, with a chance to defend their 2025 title.

The Spartans (19-4) will face second-seed Watchung Hills (14-7) Wednesday at 6 pm at TD Bank Park in the county final. You can hear that game live on cjsportsradio.com, or watch live on our YouTube channel.

The two teams split a pair in the regular season this year.

Immacualata got two on the board in the bottom of the first, when Luca Catanzaraite led off with a single and Justin Labrador followed with one of his own. Owen Schilling then hit a ground-rule double to make it 1-0, and Owen Rivenbark followed with a ground ball to short, driving in another run to make it 2-0 Spartans.

But the Panthers would tie it up with two in the top of the second. Kevin Kelly got aboard with a leadoff single, and Connor Price quickly knocked him in with an RBI double to cut the deficit to 2-1. Stephen Pikulin walked, and Josh Moore reached on an infield hit to load the bases; Rivenbark at third fielded it, and tried to tag Price heading to third, but missed, and his throw to first was late to catch Moore. Cody Rible, the nine hitter, then tied it at 2-2 with a fielder’s choice to short.

Immaculata would get the lead back in the bottom of the second, though. DH Bryson Auten singled to lead off the inning, and moved to second on a sac bunt to the third base side by Jackson Lewis. Catanzarite knocked him in with his second single of the afternoon, making it 3-2 Spartans, and that would be all for Bridgewater starter Gavin Butch, as head coach Max Newill brought in Nico Moore, who ended the inning, getting a fly out to right and a 4-3 groundout.

And then, it was Bridgewater’s turn for some more runs.

Andrew Schmeider started the rally with a single, then Michael Lobosco walked and Nick Spirra reached on a 6-4 fielder’s choice, but Kevin Kelly got plunked to load the bases with one out. After Connor Price struck out, Pikulin came up with the bases loaded, and roped a double to clear the bases, putting the Panthers up 5-3.

They had a chance for more after Josh Moore got hit by a pitch, putting runners at the corners with two out, but Raymond saw Moore breaking for second on a decoy for the runner at third. He tossed to first, Pikulin broke for home, and first baseman Andrew Wheeler threw home to Owen Schilling, who applied the tag for the final out of the inning.

No one would score again until the bottom of the fifth. Rivernbark struck a one-out double for Immaculata, then was brought in on an RBI single by Andrew Wheeler. Conor Quinn, though, grounded into a fielders’ choice to end the inning, but the Panther lead was cut to 5-4.

Bridgewater-Raritan would get its two-run lead back in the top of the sixth, when Kellan Komline worked a one-out walk, and was driven in by a Schmieder triple to the wall in left. But that was all they’d get, as Lobosco followed with a ground ball to first, reaching on a fielder’s choice as Wheeler threw home and Schilling got the tag down to get Schmeider. Spirra grounded to short to end the inning.

And then came the decisive bottom of the sixth. After Bryson Auten struck out to end the inning, nine-hitter Jackson Lewis singled, and Catanzerite reached on a sharp liner to third that went off Kevin Kelly’s leg. Justin Labrador then delivered a triple to the the gap in left center that went all the way to the wall, bringing in two to tie the game at six. Schilling then scored Labrador on a sac fly to right to take a 7-6 lead, before Rivernbark grounded to second to end the inning.

Still, it got tense in the seventh, with Immaculata holding a precarious one-run lead. Kelly struck out to start the inning, but Price singled to left center. Brandon DeMatos came in to pinch run, and stayed at first while Pikulin struck out. Then, on an 0-2 pitch to Josh Moore, DeMatos took off for second. But Schilling made a great throw to second, Catanzerite applied the tag, and the game was over, sending the Spartans back to the title game to defend their title.

Reliever Bryson Auten got the win for the Spartans, while Nico Moore took the loss. Auten went 3 1/3 innings, and allowed just two hits and one run, walking one and striking out three.

Click below for postgame reaction from Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Alec Crouthamel with Immaculata head coach Kevin Cust, senior Owen Schilling and freshman Bryson Auten, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen:

Ryan Auten is the senior pitcher heading to Wake Forest, but it was his freshman brother, Bryson, who got the win Tuesday on Opening Day for Immaculata.

Cole Raymond made his first start, after coming out of the bullpen last season, and went 3 1/3 innings without allowing a hit or a run, and just three baserunners. But Bryson Auten got out of a two-on, one-out jam in the fourth out of the ‘pen, then finished things off for a 3-0 win for No. 2 Immaculata at No. 8 Hillsborough on Opening Day, in a game heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio.

Bryson got the win – as the game was scoreless when he entered – thtrowing 3 2/3 innings, allowing just one hit, striking out six.

Early-season baseball in the Northeast is hardly pretty, but with a game-time temprature of 81 degrees, and a solid breeze that turned into a gusty wind from time-time-time, it was more like early May baseball, and the play reflected it, with both starting pitchers having good control.

Raymond struck out five and walked two, while Hillsborough starter Shane Borer – who barely threw more than six innings all year last year – went 5 2/3 innings, allowing just two earned rund on four hits, walking one and striking out five.

And the defense was solid, too, even though Immaculata was charged with two tough errors, neither of which came back to bite them.

Scoreless into the fifth, Immaculata got a run in each of the last three innings. In the fifth, No. 7 hitter Connor Quinn reached on a one-out double down thwe left field line. Owen Rivernbark walked, and Quinn moved to third on a 5-4 fielder’s choice, then came home on a wild pitch to leadoff hitter Luca Catanzarite.

In the sixth, Immaculata picked up another run on an RBI single up the middle by Brian Cilento, who drove in Nehemiah Diaz from third. He’d reached on a single, and stole second and third during Cilento’s at bat to earn him an easy trot home.

Then, in the seventh, the Spartans got one more for insurance. Quinn singled to lead off the inning, advanced to second on a wild pitch, and later stole third. After Rivenbark walked, Gino Spigarelli grounded into a 4-6-3 double play to bring in Quinn with his second run scored of the game.

Hillsborough threatened in the fourth, getting runners on second and third, but ‘Lata brought in Bryson Auten to get out of the jam, and he did just that in his first high school pitching appearance, getting Samuel Malone to fly out to right, and Matt Battoglia to strike out looking to end the inning.

They had another chance in the fifth, with Anthony Guerrero reaching on a one-out walk, and evenutally advancing to third on a couple of wild pitches by Auten, but the freshman wound up striking out the side to escape unscathed.

Hillsborough (0-1) faces Montgomery Wednesday before visiting Immaculata (1-0) – which is off Wednesday – to finish the two-game set out at Dimaond Nation.

Click below to hear postgame reaction from Alec Crouthamel with Immaculata head coach Kevin Cust, pitcheer Bryson Auten and first baseman Conor Quinn, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen: