Tag: Edison

by Mike Pavlichko

Early look at Big Central Football 2026: Sayreville, St. Thomas Aquinas to duke it out in National Silver, while Edison, Franklin, North Brunswick hope to make strides

The National Silver may no longer feature the team with the longest Big Central win streak – a distinction that now belongs to Bernards – but St. Thomas Aquinas should be right up there with Sayreville in challenging for the division title in 2026.

The Bombers showed big improvement in Year Two under alum Mark Poore, who went from 4-6 to 9-2 in 2025, falling by one to Old Bridge in the Central Jersey Group 5 semifinals. But the Trojans also should be improved with more continuity under second-year head coach Shamir Bearfield. Franklin has boosted its coaching staff and should present a real challenge in the division, while Edison and North Brunswick are looking for bounceback years.

Here are the preliminary schedules for the National Silver Division teams – in order of 2025 finish – compiled from the official league schedule and other online sources to the best of our knowledge as of the date of publication, along with a few notes on each squad. Division games are starred.

Sayreville Bombers (9-2, 4-0, National Sliver Division Champions)
Head Coach: Mark Poore, 3rd season (13-8)

  • Week 0: Plainfield
  • Week 1: Ridge
  • Week 2: Edison*
  • Week 3: Franklin*
  • Week 4: at St. Thomas Aquinas*
  • Week 5: Old Bridge
  • Week 6: at Somerville
  • Week 7: at North Brunswick*
  • Week 8: Piscataway

Like Old Bridge – which the Bombers lost to in the Central Jersey Group 5 semifinals last season – Sayreville had just one regular season loss, and that came 43-15 to Montgomery after a 7-0 start. But they will have much to replace this season, including senior runningback Shaun Jackson, who finished his career just 23 yards shy of a two-thousand yard rushing campaign in 2025. Poore will look to rising junior Sherwin Appiah (401 yards, 8 TDs) and rising sophomore Dion Osae (534 yards, 3 TD) to fill the gap for a squad that carried it to the tune of 3,335 yards and 40 scores on the ground last season. And tough standouts like DL Julian Perez (5 1/3 sacks, 1 FR) and Adrian Ciesla (3 1/2 sacks) there are some young-uns who contributed last year on defense expected to be back, like risking juniors Kellan Bowers, Grady Walsh and Christian Woodard, each of whom recorded two sacks last season, with Woodard also recovering two fumbles.

St. Thomas Aquinas Trojans (5-6, 3-1, 2nd place National Silver)
Head Coach: Shamir Bearfield, 2nd season (5-6)

  • Week 0:  at Sheepshead Bay (Brooklyn)
  • Week 1: Westfield
  • Week 2: at Franklin*
  • Week 3: at Old Bridge
  • Week 4: Sayreville*
  • Week 5: at Somerville
  • Week 6: North Brunswick*
  • Week 7: at Edison*
  • Week 8: St. Joseph-Metuchen
  • Week 9: OPEN

Shamir Bearfield didn’t get hired until May after a period of turmoil for the Trojan program where Tarig Holman was not retained, and STA’s initial hire changed his mind. So last year’s 5-6 record comes with a little bit of an asterisk. But there’s no doubt Aquinas has the talent to compete again the way they did when they won 32 Big Central Conference games in a row, starting with the late Brian Meeney as head coach with the last win of the COVID season in 20210. Just start with quarterback Zymere Weaver, a sophomore who threw for 2,236 yards and 24 TDs – with just three picks – last year. But while he hit five difference receivers for over 300 yards apiece last year, only one – junior Tristan Bester (338 yards, 4 TDs) will be back, the rest having graduated. The defense returns a ton, including five of the eight players who logged sacks and all four players who totalled five interceptions as a group last year, though the loss of top tackler and linebacker Anwar Witherspoon will be tough to replace with just one person.

Franklin Warriors (4-6, 1-3, 3rd place National Silver)
Head Coach: Blair Wilson, 5th season (11-28)

  • Week 0: Ewing
  • Week 1: Colonia
  • Week 2: St. Thomas Aquinas*
  • Week 3: at Sayreville*
  • Week 4: North Brunswick*
  • Week 5: at Piscataway
  • Week 6: Edison*
  • Week 7: at South Brunswick
  • Week 8: at Woodbridge

It’s a challenging schedule for the Warriors, who opened last year 3-0, but only won one of their final seven games. Wilson has beefed up the coaching staff, bringing on two former head coaches: Derrick Eatman from North Plainfield, and Ibrahim Halsey from South Brunswick, who will coach against his former Vikings in Week Seven. The talent is there to make the push, too, with sophomore QB Jah’naad Cady throwing for 1,040 yards and 13 TDs last year. And on the ground, only one runningback last year – who had two carries – graduates from a group that ran for 1,420 yards last season. He’ll have plenty of targets to throw to as well. A host of solid defensive players should be back, too; freshman Jaden Dublin impressed last year with three sacks and four TFLs, along with a fumble and an INT, while top tackler Maurice Langford registered 62 (23 solo) along with a sack and a fumble recovery.

Edison Eagles (2-8, 1-3, 4th place National Silver)
Head Coach: Matt Yascko, 4th season (10-20)

  • Week 0: Union
  • Week 1: Woodbridge
  • Week 2: at Sayreville*
  • Week 3: North Brunswick
  • Week 4: at Summit
  • Week 5: East Brunswick
  • Week 6: at Franklin*
  • Week 7: St. Thomas Aquinas*
  • Week 8: at Rahway

The Eagles were in a lot of games last year, but just couldn’t get over the hump, or close them out, including a dramatic 33-28 home loss to Franklin where the Warriors scored at the final horn, and two late-season losses right before the cutoff, by one at South Brunswick and two at Paterson Eastside. Flip a few of those this year, and it’s a different season for Edison, whose schedule is manageable. Top rusher Shaun Garland, who had 555 yards and seven TDs (and can also catch the ball) is back for a team that rushed for over 1,700 yards as a group, and has four starters back up front. Garland should also be a big factor defensively, after racking up four sacks, eight TFLs and a forced fumble last season. Other, younger players, however, will have to step up into key roles.

North Brunswick (0-9, 0-4, 5th place National Gold)
Head Coach: Mike Cipot, 10th season (58-32)

  • Week 0: Snyder
  • Week 1: at South Brunswick
  • Week 2: Monroe
  • Week 3: at Edison*
  • Week 4: at Franklin*
  • Week 5: Carteret
  • Week 6: at St. Thomas Aquinas*
  • Week 7: Sayreville*
  • Week 8: East Brunswick

After a 4-6 season that was a downturn for North Brunswick after six straight seasons of seven or more wins, The Raiders went winless last season. But that’s where the program came from when head coach Mike Cipot resurrected it nearly a decade ago, so he’ll be looking to do that again; such is they cyclical nature of high school sports. But he’ll have to find a new quarterback after his nephew, Zach, threw for over a thousand yards last year. The top three receivers – junior Sal Fama-Linn (625 yards, 2 TD), sophomore Kaji Brown (286 yards, 1 TD) and junior Jayvon Dozier (176 yards, 2 TD) should all return for whoever is throwing it to them; sophomore Jasiah Hogans had the most QB experience behind Cipot last year, going 19-of-32 for 234 yards. Brown also had two forced fumbles at defensive back, and linebacker Alie Sakoh (1 fumble recovery, 1 INT) should be among key returnees.

by Mike Pavlichko

Back in Red (Scarlet): Edison alum Jaxon Appelman leaves Coastal Carolina, commits to Rutgers baseball

When Jaxon Appelman puts on his baseball jersey again, it will have a familiar color.

The Edison alum who graduated in 2024 after a four-year varsity career – with 296 strikeouts and a career ERA of 1.95 – spent the last two years at Coastal Carolina, but this spring entered the NCAA transfer portal, and now has found a new home.

He’s committed to play for Rutgers baseball.

Appelman saw limited action for the Chanticleers his freshman year, but this spring as a sophomore, he made 17 appearances, starting four games. He ended the season 0-3 with a 6.39 ERA, but logged 39 Ks, and only allowed opposing hitters a highly-respectable .224 batting average.

And he’ll be on a staff with another former GMC standout, the dominating Zack Konstantinovsky, who played at North Brunswick, as well as former Raider and shortstop Yomar Carreras, who was on Appelman’s travel ball teams back in the day.

In the end, that and the chance to play at home around family and friends at Rutgers – the first school to offer him a scholarship when he was still with the Eagles – was too much to pass up for his final two years of eligibility.

Click below to hear Edison alum Jaxon Appelman talk with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko about committing to Rutgers:

by Mike Pavlichko

New No. 1 highlights final 2026 Bellamy & Son Paving H.S. Baseball Top Ten as Ridge takes top spot

It’s not where you start, but where you finish.

But, to be honest, the Ridge baseball team didn’t have very far to go.

The Red Devils – the only Central Jersey Sports Radio-area team to win an NJSIAA sectional title this season – finish the year at No. 1 in the final Bellamy & Son Paving High School Baseball rankings, and are the Central Jersey Sports Radio Team of the Year.

The Skyland Conference Delaware Division was a beast this year. Immaculata won the division, second-place Watchung Hills won the Somerset County Tournament, and Ridge beat the Warriors to win the North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4 title last Friday. The Red Devils’ season came to an end, however, in dramatic fashion Monday afternoon, in an 8-7 loss to Ridgewood on a walk-off, leadoff solo home run in the bottom of the eighth. They finish the year at 19-11.

Watchung Hills (18-9) – which lost two of three to Ridge this season – finishes second. In the past week, they beat second-seed Bayonne by run-rule, 10-0 in five innings, in the North 2, Group 4 semifinals before falling to Ridge Friday in the title game.

Jim Muldowney GMC Tournament champion Monroe (15-14) comes in third. The Falcons were the tournament’s nine-seed, but beat five-seed Old Bridge to win the title two Saturdays ago in their season finale, after getting knocked out of the state tournament the day before the GMC final.

In fourth is Immaculata (22-6), which was knocked out of the state tournament in the Non-Public South A semifinals by CBA, 1-0 in eight innings. The Spartans won the Skyland Conference Delaware Division at 9-1, their lone regular season division loss coming to Watchung Hills, and they lost to the Warriors in the SCT title game as well.

At five is GMC Tournament finalist Old Bridge (21-10), which won last Wednesday in the Central Jersey Group 4 semifinals, 10-0 over Hightstown in five innings, but then lost in the title game, 14-1, at home to Hunterdon Central on Friday.

North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3 finalist South Plainfield (17-12) finishes sixth. They got the the title game with a 4-2 semifinal win at top-seed Chatham last Wednesday, but fell Friday to Cranford in the final, 10-5.

GMC White Division champion Middlesex (22-6) comes in at seven. The Blue Jays fell in the Central Jersey Group 1 semifinals last Wednesday to Shore, 2-0 at home, preventing them from having a chance to repeat as CJ1 and state Group 1 champions.

At eight is Edison (19-8). The Eagles – beset by pitching injuries later in the season – got knocked out of the stats in the first round, and the GMC Tournament in the quarterfinals by eventual champion Monroe, but won the GMC’s top division, the GMC Red, with an 11-3 mark, finishing two full games ahead of second-place Old Bridge

Checking in ninth is St. Thomas Aquinas (14-15) – ranked for the first time this season. STA reached the finals in Non-Public North B for the second time in three years with a 7-3 road win at second-seed Rutgers Prep in the semifinals. But the third-seeded Trojans lost at top-seed St. Mary-Rutherford in the title game last Friday, 11-7.

And in tenth, it’s Rutgers Prep (17-8). The Argonauts were Skyland Conference Raritan Division Co-Champions with North Hunterdon – who they split with in the regular season – finishing 8-2 in divisional play, and were knocked out of the states in the Non-Public North B semis last Wednesday by St. Thomas Aquinas, with a 7-3 loss.

Below is the complete and final Bellamy & Son Paving Top Ten for the 2026 season:

by Mike Pavlichko

State tourney, GMC final results yield yet another shuffling of Bellamy & Son Paving Baseball Top Ten

It was a second week in a row of a fairly good amount of upheaval in the Bellamy & Son Paving High School Baseball Top Ten.

Why?

Monroe’s upset of Old Bridge in the Jim Muldowney GMC Tournament championship game – coupled with the first two rounds of the NJSIAA state tournament – resulted in some changes, including one team making its first appearance in the rankings this season.

Despite all the movement, Watchung Hills (17-8) remained No. 1 this week, one of just two teams in the same position they were last week. The Hustlin’ Warriors dropped their last regular season game on Tuesday, a 12-5 decision at Millburn, but won two games in the state tournament. In the North 2, Group 4 first round, they beat 14-seed Elizabeth 10-0 in a five-inning mercy-rule walkoff, then got by six-seed Westfield in the quarterfinals, 8-6. They’ll be in the sectional semis at second-seed Bayonne this Wednesday.

Continuing its meteoric rise is Monroe (15-14), now the Jim Muldowney GMC Tournament champion after knocking off third-seed Old Bridge, 7-0 in the final, as the nine-seed. However, their season is over, as they got knocked out of the state tournament in Central Jersey Group 4 on Friday, 10-2 down at fourth-seed Hightstown. That came after beating 12-seed Montgomery, 1-0, on a walkoff single by Alex Marcus.

Holding at No. 3 is Immaculata (22-5). The Spartans beat Rutgers Prep at home, 7-0 on Tuesday, in preparation for the state tournament. After a first-round by in Non-Public South A, the top-seeded Spartans beat eighth-seed Paul VI, 7-0, in the quarterfinals on Thursday. They’ll get back to it on Tuesday, when they host 5th-seed CBA. Central Jersey Sports Radio will have Sean Newcomb covering that game, and you can follow him in Twitter by clicking here.

Dropping two spots to fourth is Old Bridge (20-9), after falling to Monroe in the GMC title game on Saturday, 7-0. But the Knights’ season is not done. After opening up the Central Jersey Group 4 playoffs with a 1-0 win over 16-seed East Brunswick on Wednesday, and following it up with an 8-0 win over eight-seed Freehold Township in Friday’s quarterfinals, the Knights – who had an 11-game win streak snapped Saturday – will look to rebound and move on in the state tournament when they host four-seed Hightstown in the semifinals.

A number of teams edged down a spot or two, mainly due to Monroe’s rise. That includes Ridge (17-10), which dropped one spot to five. On Tuesday, they won a regular season game at Hillsborough, 8-1, then got into the state tournament. They beat 16-seed Barringer (Newark) 13-3 in a mercy-rule five-inning walk-off on Wednesday in the North 2, Group 4 opening round, then walked off eight-seed Phillipsburg in six, by a 10-0 score on Friday. Wednesday, they will face five-seed Bridgewater-Raritan in the semifinals, a game you can hear live on Central Jersey Sports Radio starting at 4 pm, with Mike Pavlichko on the call. Click here to listen.

South Plainfield (16-11) climbs to six this week, one of only two teams (the other, Immaculata) to have a perfect week. The Tigers went 3-0, starting with a 7-1 regular season playoff tune-up victory over Middlesex on Tuesday. The next day, they opened the state playoffs with a 5-0 win over 13-seed JFK in the North 2, Group 3 first round. Friday, they were 7-0 winners over fifth-seed North Plainfield, and now move on to Wednesday’s semifinals, where they’ll go on the road for the first time this year in the states, facing top-seed Chatham.

Middlesex (22-5) drops a notch to seven this week. After the 7-1 loss to South Plainfield on Tuesday, they opened Central Jersey Group 1 play in the state tournament with a 21-1 win in five innings over 16-seed Highland Park, then an 11-1 win on a walk-off in six against eight-seed South Hunterdon. Next up, the Blue Jays play host to five-seed Shore in the CJ1 semifinals on Wednesday.

In the eighth spot is Rutgers Prep (17-7), same as last week. The Argonauts dropped a 70- regular season state tourney tune-up to Immaculata in Flemington on Tuesday, but came back nicely with a 16-0, five-inning win over ten-seed Pope John of Sparta in the Non-Public North B quarterfinals, after getting an opening round bye. Tuesday, they will host third-seed St. Thomas Aquinas at 4 pm in a Skyland-GMC crossover you can hear live on Central Jersey Sports Radio, with Alec Crouthamel calling the action. Click here to listen.

Down two spots to nine is Edison (19-8), which literally limped to the finish line with its top three starters – D1 commits Connor Murphy, Dom Innocenti and Rob Roma – all injured or nagged by arm issues in some way shape or form by the end of the year. None of the three were available for Wednesday’s opening round playoff loss to 15-seed Franklin, 5-4, in the Central Jersey Group 4 section.

And new to the rankings this week is Bridgewater-Raritan. The Panthers – despite a last place finish in the grueling Skyland Conference Delaware Division – proved their metttle not just by reaching the Somerset County Tournament semifinals as a five-seed a couple of weeks ago, but also by reaching the North 2, Group 4 semifinals as a five-seed this week. Bridgewater beat 12-seed Plainfield 11-0 in five innings in the opening round Wednesday, then went on the road in the quarters on Friday and knocked off four-seed JP Stevens, 10-0 in six. Next, they travel to top-seed Ridge for what should be a good rubber match in the sectional semifinals: each team beat the other 4-3 this year in their regular season matchups.

Dropping out was previous No. 10 Colonia. The ninth-seeded Patriots (14-10) lost their opening round North 2, Group 3 playoff game to nine-seed Middletown North, 5-1, on Wednesday, just two weeks after being eliminated from the GMC Tournament in their opening game.

Below is the complete Bellamy & Son Paving High School Baseball Top Ten for Week Nine. NOTE: This will be the final ranking until the season is complete for all CJSR-area clubs.

by Alec Crouthamel

15-seed Franklin stuns two-seed Edison 5-4 in Central Jersey Group 4 first round

Wednesday’s NJSIAA sectional tournament saw plenty of first-round action, and plenty of drama to boot.

By far, the biggest of those instances came in the Central Jersey Group 4 bracket, where 15th-seeded Franklin knocked off second-seeded Edison to move on to the quarterfinals.

The Warriors (8-11) have shown flashes under first-year head coach Grant Neary, and put it all together at just the right time. This also marks the second straight year Franklin has pulled an upset as a double-digit seed, after defeating sixth-seeded East Brunswick in the CJ4 first round as the 11 seed last season under former head coach Derrick Castillo.

Those two victories were the Warriors’ first in the sectional tournament since the 2021 season.

Neary came to Franklin after a 17-year run in the college ranks, including six years as an assistant at NJIT and a three-year run as the head coach at Saint Peter’s. But with three kids and plenty of activities for all of them, Neary wanted to find a gig that kept him in the coaching game while allowing him to be even more involved with his family.

He’s no stranger to Somerset County baseball, either. Neary starred on the diamond for Bridgewater-Raritan and got his baseball coaching start at Watchung Hills in 2005, helping lead the Warriors to the Group 4 state championship game as an assistant coach under head coach Mario Diez.

The Warriors (of Franklin) are also no strangers to upsets this year. The tenth seed in the Somerset County Tournament, Franklin defeated seventh-seeded Somerville 10-8 in the first round, and fell 9-5 to eventual champion Watchung Hills.

But the confidence was up heading on the road to a GMC staple in Edison. The Eagles (19-8) dealt with some injuries throughout the year, but boasted some of the area’s top talent and earned the top seed in the Jim Muldowney GMC Championship Tournament.

It started as a low-scoring pitcher’s duel on Wednesday. The Warriors struck first in the top of the third with a bases-loaded RBI double play by freshman left fielder Mason Bonds, the younger brother of Rutgers star outfielder Peyton Bonds, to open the scoring. But Edison pitcher Ray Tavarez got out of the jam with the double play and another bases-loaded groundout to keep the Warriors at a run.

The Eagles equalized an inning and a half later with a sacrifice fly by sophomore catcher Damien Calandra. But Franklin immediately responded with two runs in the top of the fifth, on RBI doubles by Bonds and senior Elijah Zavatsky.

Senior pitcher Dylan Shah did his job as well, keeping Edison at bay for much of the game, even after the Eagles pulled to within a run on a sacrifice fly by senior first baseman Robert Roma. Shah lived up to the billing as Franklin’s top arm on the bump, with six innings of two-run ball.

A full scoreless frame later, and the Warriors went into the seventh and final frame with a slim 3-2 lead.

The offense picked back up in the top half, as Zavatsky recorded his second RBI of the day on a single, and senior third baseman Stanley Madera scored on a double steal to make it 5-2.

Bonds came in to pitch the bottom of the seventh with a three-run cushion, but Edison wouldn’t go away quietly.

Senior right fielder Sam Kentos singled, and Roma walked to put the tying run at the plate with nobody out. Tavarez doubled to score Kentos and pull within two, putting the tying run at second base. Madera recorded the first out with a heady play to throw Roma out at the plate attempting to score, but senior centerfielder Darren Tirado brought the deficit back to a single run with a sacrifice fly. Second baseman Tyler Shuck loaded the bases on a hit-by-pitch, bringing up Calandra with the game on the line for either side.

On a 2-0 count, Calandra lined a fastball safely into the glove of Franklin second baseman Kelvin Heuston to secure the upset and send the Warriors to the quarterfinals. Shah earned the win with 100 pitches flat for his team-leading fifth win of the year, allowing two runs on six hits, with two strikeouts and four walks.

Their quarterfinal opponent is TBD. Franklin will face the winner of seventh-seed Jackson Township and tenth-seed Hillsborough, a game postponed to Thursday after rain hit South Jersey hard on Wednesday. Either way, the 15 seed will be ready for the challenge after putting together one of its top performances of the year.

Click below to listen to Franklin’s first-year head coach Grant Neary talk about the Warriors’ season and their first-round upset of Edison with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Alec Crouthamel:

by Mike Pavlichko

Watchung Hills’ win in SCT propels Hustlin’ Warriors to top spot in Bellamy & Son Paving Baseball Top Ten

With a new champions of Somerset County baseball comes a new team atop the Bellamy & Son Paving rankings for Week 8: Watchung Hills.

The Warriors displaced No. 1 Immaculata after a 1-0 win over the Spartans in eight innings in the Somerset County Tournament final Friday night, getting the game-winning hit from Stef DeGeronimo, and a three-hit, complete game shutout from starting pitcher Lucas Sheehan, the first sophomore to earn a win in the SCT title game since Casey Cahill of Immaculata did it in 1998.

With that win, and Monday’s semifinal victory over Bridgewater-Raritan, Watchung Hills (15-7) moves up two spots this week to No. 1. They will play a regular-season game at Millburn Tuesday afternoon before opening the state playoffs as a No. 3 seed in North 2, Group 4 first round action at home Wednesday against 14-seed Elizabeth.

Holding in second is Old Bridge (18-8), which only played one game last week, beating Sayreville 9-8 at Fred Cole Field Friday on senior night. The top-seed in Central Jersey Group 4, the Knights will open the playoffs against 16-seed East Brunswick on Wednesday. Should they win, they’ll play a sectional quarterfinal game at home Friday before Saturday’s rescheduled Jim Muldowney GMC Tournament Championship Game against Monroe. You can hear that game live on Central Jersey Sports Radio – or watch it live on our YouTube channel – with first pitch scheduled for noon.

Immaculata (20-5) falls to third, going 2-1 in the past week. Between their 7-6 win over Bridgewater-Raritan in the SCT semifinals Monday and their loss in Friday’s championship, they beat West Morris in a regular season game, 1-0, on Friday afternoon. The Spartans are the No. 1 seed in the state tournament’s Non-Public South A section, and will open play on Thursday in the quarterfinals against either nine-seed Donovan Catholic or eight-seed Paul VI.

Ridge (15-9) once again checks in at No. 4. After their 4-2 loss to eventual SCT champion Watchung Hills in the semifinals on Monday, the Red Devils rebounded with a 7-0 win over Madison on Saturday. They’ll open state tournament play on Wednesday as the No. 1 seed in North 2, Group 4, hosting 16-seed Barringer.

Holding at five is Middlesex (20-4), which lost its only game this week, a Tuesday non-conference loss to North Hunterdon, 4-2. They have one more regular season game to play – Tuesday at South Plainfield – before opening state tournament action as the top-seed in Central Jersey Group 1 on Wednesday afternoon against 16-seed Highland Park.

Up one spot to No. 6 is Monroe (13-13), which split a pair of games last week, falling 16-4 to Robbinsville on Monday before coming back to beat South Brunswick, 6-4, on Wednesday. The Falcons will open the state playoffs as the five-seed in Central Jersey Group 4, hosting 12-seed Montgomery in the opening round Wednesday. Should they win, they will get a sectional quarterfinal game on Friday before playing Old Bridge for the Jim Muldowney GMC Tournament Championship Saturday afternoon. You can hear that game live on Central Jersey Sports Radio – or watch it live on our YouTube channel – with first pitch scheduled for 12 pm.

Down one spot to seven is Edison (19-7), which went 2-1 last week after falling the week prior in the GMC Tournament semifinals to Monroe. The Eagles were 9-1 winners over Somerville Tuesday, and 9-0 victors over Carteret on Wednesday – both at home – before losing, 4-0, to Hunterdon Central on Thursday. Wednesday, they open play as the two-seed in Central Jersey Group 4, hosting 15th-seed Franklin.

Up one spot to eight is South Plainfield (13-13), which was idle last week. The Tigers will open state tournament play as the four-seed in North 2, Group 3 in Wednesday, hosting 13-seed and conference mate JFK.

Rutgers Prep (3-1) is down a spot to nine. They beat Dayton 8-7 Monday, then lost 16-10 in a slugfest to Princeton Day on Tuesday in the Prep B Semifinals. They rebounded with a 5-3 win over Pingry on Thursday and an 11-0 win over Phillipsburg on Friday.

And Colonia (14-9) holds at ten after a 2-2 week. They opened with a 5-0 loss to Woodbridge on Monday, then lost Wednesday, 9-2, at Scotch Plains-Fanwood. But they came back with a 4-1 win at Ferris on Thursday, and beat Dayton 6-3 on Saturday. Wednesday, they open play in the North 2, Group 3 section of the state playoffs as the eight-seed, entertaining nine-seed Middletown North.

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

by Mike Pavlichko

County tournaments wreak havoc on Top Ten, but not at the top; Immaculata still reigns heading into SCT semis Monday

A week of relative stability in the Bellamy & Son Paving High School Baseball rankings was short-lived.

While Immaculata remained the No. 1 team this week, nearly everyone else shuffled around, much of it centered around upsets and surprises in the GMC Tournament, which saw top-seed Edison get knocked out in the quarterfinals, and second-seed Middlesex eliminated in the semifinals, with finalists Old Bridge and Monroe rising in the rankings.

Immaculata (18-4) was one of just two teams to have a perfect Week 7, going 4-0. They opened with a 17-3 win at DePaul on Tuesday, then won their opener in the Somerset County Tournament, beating eight-seed Montgomery 11-1 in six innings in the quarterfinals on Thursday. They then won two Skyland Conference games, beating Voorhees 8-0 on Friday, and winning 7-2 at Phillipsburg on Saturday. The Spartans will host five-seed Bridgewater Monday afternoon at 4 pm in the SCT semis at TD Bank Park in Bridgewater. Listen to the game here, or watch it on our YouTube channel.

Climbing from No. 6 to No. 2 is GMC Tournament finalist Old Bridge (17-8). The Knights may the hottest team in the area, having won eight straight, going 4-0 each of the past two weeks, and it even looks like it earned them a top seed in Central Jersey Group 4. (Brackets will be announced by the NJSIAA on Tuesday.) Old Bridge opened the week with a 1-0 win over 14-seed Sayreville in the GMCT first round on Monday. After a non-conference win over Manalapan, 12-3, on Tuesday, the Knights beat six-seed Woodbridge 1-0 in eight innings at home in the GMC quarterfinals on Wednesday, then knocked off No. 2 seed Middlesex, 9-3 in eight innings on Saturday afternoon in the semis. Old Bridge will face Monroe in the title game Saturday at 2 pm at Rutgers’ Bainton Field in Piscataway.

Watchung Hills (13-7) moves up from five to No. 4, going 2-2 in the past week. The Hustlin’ Warriors fell 9-2 at home to Holmdel on Wednesday, but won their Somerset County Tournament opener over ten-seed Franklin, 9-5, on Thursday afternoon in the quarterfinals. They won 6-5 at Madison Friday, but fell at home to Livingston 5-4 on Saturday afternoon. Monday, they’re in the SCT semis at TD Bank Park in Bridgewater against third-seed Ridge. Listen to the game here, or watch it on our YouTube channel.

Ridge (14-8) holds at No. 4, after a 1-2 week, but they won the most important one. After a 6-3 loss at Seton Hall Prep on Monday, and a 7-4 home loss to Mendham on Tuesday, the Red Devils beat six-seed Hillsborough in the Somerset County Tournament quarterfinals, 7-0, on Thursday afternoon. Ridge will seek a sixth straight trip to the SCT title game Monday when they play second-seed Watchung Hills in the semis at 1 pm. You can hear the game here, or watch it live on our YouTube channel.

At five, it’s Middlesex (20-3), down two spots after falling in the GMC Tournament semifinals Saturday afternoon, 9-3 to Old Bridge, a game in which they erased a 3-0 deficit over the final two innings, but saw the Knights explode for six in the top of the eighth. But the Blue Jays did go 2-1 last week, beating 12-seed South River Monday in the first round, 12-2, then seven-seed St. Thomas Aquinas in the quarterfinals on Wednesday, 3-0.

Edison (17-6) drops down from three to No. 6. The Eagles were 3-1 last week, opening on Monday with a 10-0 win over 17-seed Piscataway Magnet in the GMC Tournament’s first round. But they got knocked off by nine-seed and eventual finalist Monroe, falling 9-1 Wednesday afternoon. The Eagles rebounded, though, with a 5-2 win over South Brunswick on Thursday, and a 7-2 non-conference home win over Nottingham on Saturday.

Monroe (12-12) re-enters the rankings after a two-week hiatus at No. 6. The Falcons went 4-0 in the past week, starting with a win Monday at eight-seed Colonia, 9-2 in the GMC Tournament’s first round. Wednesday, in the quarters, they won at top-seed Edison, 9-1, then took a break with an 8-1 win over Manasquan at home on Thursday, before knocking off five-seed South Plainfield, 1-0, in Saturday’s GMCT semifinals. That puts Monroe in the championship game this Saturday at 2 pm at Rutgers’ Bainton Field in Piscataway.

Rutgers Prep (13-5) falls one spot to No. 8, after a 1-1 week. They beat eight-seed Newark Academy in the opening round of the Prep B Tournament on Wednesday, 6-1, sending them to the semifinals on Tuesday at 4 pm at home against Princeton Day. But they lost Thursday in the Somerset County Tournament quarterfinals, falling 10-5 in eight innings to fifth-seed Bridgewater-Raritan, which will face Immaculata in Monday’s second semifinal, with first pitch set for 4 pm.

Holding at No. 9 is South Plainfield (13-11), which had a 2-1 week, all in the GMC Tournament. They won their first-round game Monday, 2-1, over 12-seed St. Joseph-Metuchen, then topped four-seed Metuchen, 7-6, in Wednesday’s quarterfinals, before falling Saturday, 1-0, to nine-seed Monroe.

Dropping out is Metuchen (18-6), which had a 4-1 week, knocked out of the GMC Tournament in the quarterfinals by five-seed South Plainfield on Wednesday, 7-6.

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

by Mike Pavlichko

How has GMC Tourney first round, quarterfinals affected playoff race?  And there’s more to come Saturday

It’s the last week of play in New Jersey high school baseball before the NJSIAA cutoff, which is this Saturday.

All games played through Saturday, whether regular season or in county tournaments, are considered for qualification, with the top 16 power point values included in the formula.

Some teams will pick up extra games this week to try and improve their standing, but others are locked in to county Tournament play, like in the GMC, which had its first round on Monday, quarterfinals Wednesday, and will play its semifinals Saturday afternoon at East Brunswick Magnet School. 

You can hear those games live on Central Jersey Sports Radio by clicking here.

So, how did some of those games affect the top teams?  We take a look.

Edison, Monroe, Old Bridge in Central Jersey Group 4:  The Eagles had been atop the section for the past few weeks, but dropped to third last week while Old Bridge claimed the top spot partly on the strength of a 4-0 week.  But Edison took it back after Monday’s 10-0 first round win in the GMCT over then 20-1 Piscataway Magnet, giving them the maximum power points you could get (48) and netting 40 after their 8-point loss to Columbia (its lowest value among the best 16) dropped off as a result.  But with Monroe knocking off the Eagles Wednesday, and Old Bridge beating Metuchen, the Knights are back on top as of Thursday morning, at 16-8 (29.746).  Edison fell to second (15-6, 28.611), and now they may not be able to make up that ground, since Old Bridge will play Middlesex in the GMCT semifinals Saturday at 2:30 pm.  A Knights’ loss may not even do it, depending how other games go.

Monroe (10-12, 23.596) climbed a bit, from seventh to sixth, since our last update Sunday, but at a little more than three full points behind fourth-place Hightstown (15-5, 27.088), the Falcons probably can’t get that high, but have a good shot to finish in the top with, guaranteeing them home field at least through the sectional semis.

Middlesex, Piscataway Magnet in Central Jersey Group 1:  The Blue Jays (20-2, 32.482) remain in first – though it’s slightly narrower than before – over second-place Piscataway Magnet (21-2, 29.079), and we think they’re going to hold on regardless what happens Saturday against Old Bridge.  The Raiders weren’t hurt place-wise by their loss to Edison Monday on the GMCT first round, but they’re lead over third-place Point Pleasant Beach (13-4, 28.572) is down from over one point to 0.505.  the Garnet Gulls have 16-win Colts Neck Saturday in the Shore Conference Tournament semifinals Saturday.

South Plainfield in North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3:  The Tigers (13-10, 24.708) pulled ahead of North Plainfield (16.8, 23.373) since Sunday, no doubt helped by a 7-6 win Wednesday in the GMC Tournament quarterfinals over Metuchen, which was worth 41 points, their highest value for any game. Saturday, in the semifinals, a win over Monroe would be worth about 27 points, and a net gain of 16 (their lowest game is an 11-point defeat at the hands of Red Bank Catholic, which Monroe beat earlier this season). And with North Plainfield only having one more game before the cutoff against eight-win Warren Hills, and Middletown North (10-10, 21.842) almost three points back, we think South Plainfield should be able to hold on to the No. 4 spot.

by Nick Hart

Nine-seed Monroe upsets top-seed Edison in dominant road victory, advances to GMC semifinals

It was a cloudy and windy afternoon as the number one seed, Edison, hosted nine-seeded Monroe in the quarterfinals of the Jim Muldowney GMC Tournament, and although the sun didn’t shine, the Falcons (10-12) sure did on the field. 

Monroe wasted no time jumping on the Eagles (15-6) as the first three hitters of the game recorded a hit. First, it was Justin Mangano who started things off with a single, then it was Ben Faigin – Monday’s winning pitcher in an upset of Colonia – who doubled, and both were driven in by an Alex Marcus double to take an early lead. 

In the bottom half of the first, Edison looked like it was ready to answer right back, with two base runners of its own reaching via a pair of walks. With two on and one out it looked as though the Eagles had the Falcons starter, Andre Love, in some early trouble. But Love found his way out of the jam by striking out the next to batters to keep his team’s lead intact. 

After a leadoff single, start the top of the second by Austin Loudin, the next two batters were set down, but the lineup had flipped back up to the top. Mangano singled once again, bringing up Faigin, who launched a three-run homer to left-center field that sent his team and the Monroe faithful into a frenzy. 

On the other side of the inning, love continued to settle in, setting down Edison in order, picking up another pair of strikeouts. 

The Eagles found some success in the third, but were only able to push across one run on an RBI double from Ray Tavarez. 

With a five-run advantage, the sentiment in the Falcons’ dugout seemed to be that no matter the lead, no number would suffice. Monroe proceeded to tack on an additional run in the top of the fourth and three more in the top of the fifth with RBIs from Marcus in both frames, Mangano in the fifth, as well as a run driven in by Tyler Bacon.

In the bottom half of those innings, Edison could not string together much success against Love on the mound. The Eagles went down in order in the fourth, and sent four to the plate in the fifth, thanks to a two-out triple from Robert Roma, which resulted in no runs.

Love found the same success in the bottom of the sixth, retiring Edison, one, two, three, with another pair of strikeouts. Approaching his pitch limit in the bottom of the seventh, Love needed to be efficient in order to complete the game, and that is just what he was. With the first to batters of the inning retired on groundouts, Love punctuated his standout performance with a strikeout, his 11th of the ballgame. 

To have a stat line of seven innings pitched, three hits, one run and 11 strikeouts is impressive in its own right, but to do so against the top team in the GMC tournament adds just another level to Love’s outing.

The top of the Falcons’ order also had a stellar performance, with each of the top three hitters in the lineup reaching base three or more times. 

Next up for Monroe is a matchup against the five seed, South Plainfield in the semi-finals of the Jim Muldowney GMC Tournament after the Tigers defeated Monroe 7-6 in their quarterfinal matchup.  That game will be played at noon, and you can hear it live on Central Jersey Sports Radio, with Mike Pavlichko and Justin Sontupe on the call. 

Click below for postgame reaction from Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Nick Hart with Monroe pitcher Andre Love, catcher Justin Mangano and head coach Sean Field, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen:

by Mike Pavlichko

INSTANT REPLAY – GMC Tournament First Round: (1) Edison 10, (17) Piscataway Magnet 0

Top-seed Edison got two triples and four RBI’s from Sam Kentos, and a five-inning one-hitter and 14 strikeouts from Connor Muprhy, in a 10-0 win over 17th-seed Piscataway Magnet in the first round of the GMC Jim Muldowney Championship Tournament, advancing to the quarterfinals.

READ THE FULL GAME STORY HERE!

Click below to listen to Mike Pavlichko call all the play-by-play live from Edison High School on May 11, 2026.