Tag: GMC

by Mike Pavlichko

JFK’s Grant Lorentzen proves you can do it all, and be very good at it, too

Hitting a major milestone in any high school sport is a big deal.

Often, the game will stop, the ball will come out of play, and there are balloons and photo ops, then the game goes on.

For Grant Lorentzen, who’s just graduated from JFK in Iselin last week, he hit key milestones in not just one, nor two, but three high school sports.

  • In football, he was one of the top receivers in the state this year, with 55 catches for 1,221 yards, and 22 touchdowns, seven shy of the all-time state record. In three varsity seasons, he caught 149 passes for 2,470 yards and 34 scores.
  • In basketball, he became one of the few 1,000-point scorers in school history, finishing a four-year varsity career with 1,246 points, 78 from beyond the arc. And he was reasonably close to the program’s all-time leader, Jay Jorgenson (1974), who scored 1,403 in his career.
  • And in baseball, he finished his dual career as a pitcher and hitter, reaching the 100-hit and 200-strikeout plateaus. Lorentzen had 102 hits over four years on the varsity squad, while fanning 220 hitters across four varsity seasons.
JFK’s Grant Lorentzen (#11) scores on a punt return for a touchdown at Carteret on October 29, 2005. (Photo: Marcus Borden)

In an era where more and more student-athletes are specializing – playing just one sport, and then training the rest of the year in that sport – Lorentzen is a throwback, but also an example.

Lorentzen says his coaches always supported him playing multiple sports, so much so that he will even get to do it in college, where he’ll attend The College of New Jersey. First recruited by their baseball coach, he told them right from the get-go that he also wanted to play football. So, they worked out a schedule, and the rest is just future history.

Particularly with pitchers, many believe throwing year-round leaves a teenager more vulnerable to injury. A number of GMC hurlers didn’t make it through the entire 2026 season this spring. But Lorentzen managed to play eleven varsity seasons – and pitched – across four years and three sports at JFK.

Many coaches encourage the practice, and would rather see them play another sport at their school than be out of the building, playing travel ball.

And he still had the time to do some training in the off-season with Elite QB football training academy, under the tutelage of Matt Bastardi. He was often featured in Elite QB’s “Elite Performer of the Week” segment on Central Jersey Sports Radio.

Lorentzen may not be a trailblazer. Many still play multiple sports. But he’s the perfect example of someone who not just played all three, but was damn good at all of them.

Click below to hear JFK grad Grant Lorentzen talk with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko about being a three-sport athlete, and his future at The College of New Jersey:

Woodbridge shortstop Gavin Slicner (6) hits a ball.
by Alec Crouthamel

Woodbridge’s Gavin Slicner is Central Jersey Sports Radio GMC Player of the Year after star-studded senior season

Sometimes in high school baseball, you see a stat that makes you rub your eyes to make sure you read it right.

Woodbridge shortstop Gavin Slicner could’ve wrote a whole book of those in his senior year.

The Barrons’ leadoff batter put up a stellar senior campaign and is the winner of the 2026 Central Jersey Sports Radio GMC Player of the Year.

Slicner had already put up a solid junior campaign, but came into his senior year with a determination to build and get even better for his follow-up.

The shortstop put up eye-popping offensive numbers as a senior, batting .517 on the year (including a .966 slugging percentage), with 12 extra-base hits and nine home runs, all team-highs. And even after doing the damage with his bat, Slicner was still a threat on the basepaths with 26 stolen bases to lead Woodbridge.

And the numbers weren’t of the empty kind at all. Slicner came through in countless big spots as a clutch hitter, with plenty of his 32 RBIs playing big roles in Barrons victories.

Comparing his junior and senior seasons, he raised his batting average – already at a solid .400 mark – by over 100 points, added 14 more RBIs, and hit six more home runs.

And while this is print, what we can’t show you is all the defensive gems he turned in at shortstop.

Slicner played a big role leading a veteran-laden Woodbridge squad, with an extremely strong senior class, flanked by standouts such as Xavier Diaz, Kevin Arroyo, Michael Gurovich, and Billy Mansfield. It was a tight-knit group, one that had played alongside each other since their younger days in Little League, and they helped the Barrons win plenty of games.

They made the North 2, Group 4 semifinals twice and the quarterfinals once, and two GMC Tournament quarterfinals. That included a sectional quarterfinal appearance this year, where tenth-seeded Woodbridge knocked off seven-seed Scotch Plains-Fanwood, and nearly took down second-seeded Bayonne on the road.

And the Barrons relied on Slicner plenty in that first-round win over Raiders, as he clubbed an insurance home run in the seventh as part of a three-hit, three-RBI day.

In the end, Slicner and his fellow veteran teammates put together a strong run of Woodbridge baseball to look back fondly on.

The righty shortstop won’t be veering too far away for his next step, either. Slicner will head to Edison to play baseball at Middlesex College after graduation. The Colts finished off a strong 38-17 year, making it to the NJCAA Region 19 / District Final Four Series.

They also featured two former Barrons, as well, in pitchers Drew Lukachyk and Eddy Nunez, as all three played together in 2023. Middlesex boasted 15 former GMC players on its 2026 roster, and will bring in the best of the conference this upcoming season.

Click below to hear Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Alec Crouthamel talk with CJSR GMC Player of the Year Gavin Slicner from Woodbridge

HONORABLE MENTIONS

  • Connor Murphy, Edison: The Monmouth-bound senior had an ERA you’d need a microscope to see: 0.54, while going 5-1 on the season, including a no-hitter on April 14 against St. Joseph-Metuchen. He fanned 83 this year, after striking out 82 last year, and graduates with 207 career whiffs, and an ERA of just 2.05 for his four varsity seasons.
  • Grant Lorentzen, JFK: This kid does it all, and not just in baseball. While he was 4-5 as a pitcher despite a 1.97 ERA, he also hit .472 this season. He finished his career with 220 strikeouts and a 1.81 ERA over four seasons, while also logging 102 hits at the plate. And as an impressive side note, he was also a thousand-point scorer in basketball – finishing with 1,246 points – and finished his football career as a two-thousand yard receiver, with 2,470 yards and 34 touchdowns. He had 1,221 this past season along with 22 TD catches, one of the top single-season totals all-time in New Jersey. He’ll play baseball and football at TCNJ.
  • Chris Kozak, Middlesex: While Kozak and junior Dominic Long were really starters 1a and 1b this year – and the difference may at times have been microscopic, the senior Kozak gets the nod here. We saw him get his 200th strikeout late in the season against St. Joseph-Metuchen. Kozak was 6-2 this season with a 1.98 ERA, and fanned 76 hitters, a career high.
  • Ben Faigin, Monroe: Just a junior, Faigin – who’s committed to Rutgers – was 7-1 this season, winning three GMC Tournament games while allowing just four total hits, including a 9-2 first-round win over Colonia in which he threw an immaculate inning. He also got a 1-0 win over South Plainfield in the semis, and led the 9th-seeded Falcons to a 7-0 victory over Old Bridge in the GMC final; both were one-hit, complete-game efforts.
  • Matt Chin, Old Bridge: The senior hit .407 with 22 RBI and two home runs to pace the Knights’ offense this year, helping his team gain a berth in the GMC Tournament and Central Jersey Group 4 finals. He’s also an excellent and smart center fielder.
  • Aiden McCarthy, South Plainfield: “The Bull” is a Rutgers commit, and tough as they come. He was 8-2 this past season, always giving his team a chance to win the big game, including an upset of top-seed Chatham in the opening round of the North 2, Group 3 playoffs. McCarthy struck out 74 this season, and had an even 2.00 ERA, while also getting it done at the dish, where he hit .367 – the best of his career – with 28 RBI, ten doubles, and two home runs. He also no-hit Old Bridge in a 4-1 win on April 21.
  • Louis Rizzolo, St. Thomas Aquinas: The senior and Marist commit was 8-0 this season, with a 0.90 ERA, and also got it done at the plate, batting .382 with 12 RBI and three home runs. In the state playoffs, he hit a big, early three-run home run at Rutgers Prep in the Non-Public North B semifinals, en route to a 7-3 win and berth in the championship game against St. Mary-Rutherford. A four-year varsity player, he never had an ERA over 1.74 in his final three seasons, and finished with a career 1.49 ERA.

by Mike Pavlichko

Karl-Anthony Towns’ historic NBA title with Knicks brings us back to his last ultimate championship: St. Joe’s TOC win in 2014

Karl-Anthony Towns has had a fantastic basketball career, whether it’s been with the Knicks, the Timberwolves, Kentucky, or in high school at St. Joseph-Metuchen.

The one-time Falcons star played in the Tournament of Champions all three years when he was in high school (he reclassified and graduated early) and won it all in 2014 with a core trio that also included Wade Baldwin (Memphis, Portland in the NBA, now in Europe) and Marques Townes (also now playing in Europe).

After a year at Kentucky playing for John Calipari – where the Wildcats went 38-1, won the SEC Tournament, but lost their lone game in the national semifinals to Wisconsin – Towns went pro.

He was the first overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft that year, chosen by the Timberwolves, and was Rookie of the Year in 2016. He’s been a six-time NBA All-Star, and was traded to the Knicks in October of 2024 as part of a three-team deal.

Now, in his second season in New York, he’s an NBA Champion – his first “overall” championship since that Tournament of Champions win in 2014, crowned the best high school team in New Jersey.

And so, we decided to take a look back at that title. This reporter broadcast that game live on WCTC in March of 2014, and interviewed KAT courtside after the game. Click below to listen!

by Mike Pavlichko

With historic season, Piscataway Magnet’s Greg Sampson is Central Jersey Sports Radio’s GMC Coach of the Year

The last time the Piscataway Magnet baseball team won a state tournament game, Ronald Reagan was President, and filling up your Toyota Corolla would cost you about ten bucks and some change.

And forget the fact that none of the current Raiders hadn’t been born yet; their parents were probably still in school at the time.

All that changed in 2026, when the Raiders exploded out of the gate to win their first 18 games of the season, won a county tournament game, not one but two state games in the Central Jersey Group 1 playoffs, and finish their best campaign ever at 25-4.

They were one of the last few undefeated teams in the state – you could count them on one hand at one point, and have another finger left over – and grabbed the attention of the entire GMC, pulling for the underdogs who play on a beautiful grass field tucked between Rutgers’ Livingston Campus and the industrial Camp Kilmer area in Edison.

And after such a great year, Piscataway Magnet head coach Greg Sampson is the Central Jersey Sports Radio Greater Middlesex Conference Coach of the Year.

He couldn’t have done it alone, of course, not without talent. As a team, they hit .333,led by junior Vincent Canavan, who hit .467 on the season with 23 RBI. Another junior, Kyle Malchiodi, hit .379 and drove in 33 runs, while also going 8-0 with a 2.36 ERA. And junior Colton Lyerly also was rock solid on the mound; he went 8-0, too, and had a 2.02 earned run average, the best on the team.

Now, go back and read that last paragraph carefully. All those key players are juniors. And so is nearly everyone else. Their only senior had six at bats all season.

And even if they do move up to the GMC Blue Division next year, the Raiders will welcome it.

Click below to hear Piscataway Magnet head coach Greg Sampson talk with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko, joined by juniors Colton Lyerly and Vincent Canavan:

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

South Plainfield, Old Bridge fall in sectional title games Friday, ending GMC’s run in state playoffs

Losses by South Plainfield and Old Bridge in sectional titles games – coupled with St. Thomas Aquinas’ loss to St. Mary-Rutherford in the Non-Public North B final – have officially ended the run for the Greater Middlesex Conference in the NJSIAA state baseball tournament.

All that remains is Ridge out of Somerset County and the Skyland Conference, with the Red Devils coming from behind to beat Watchung Hills in the North 2, Group 4 title game, to win their tenth sectional championship as a program. they’ll visit North 1, Group 4 winner Ridgewood Monday in the state Group 4 semifinals, in a game you can hear live on Central Jersey Sports Radio.

North 2, Group 3 Final – (3) Cranford 10, (4) South Plainfield 5: Two days after going on the road and knocking off top-seed Chatham in the North 2, Group 3 semifinals, the Tigers’ season came to an end with a 10-5 loss at Cranford.

South Plainfield (17-12) got on the board in the top of the first, taking a 1-0 lead on a groundout by starting pitcher Andrew Bena, driving in Dom Masaro, who had doubled to lead off the game.

But Cranford got the lead back in the bottom of the inning. After the first two batters were hit by a pitch, and Michael Tripodi singled to load the bases, a sac fly from Adam Kielczynski scored one. A walk reloaded the bases, and a single by David Rosa made it 2-1, then a Evan Ketschke walked to bring in another, making it 3-1.

The Cougars added one in the third, on a sac fly by Brayden Fry with the bases loaded to make it 4-1, and that would be all for Bena. But South Plainfield tacked one in the top of the fourth on a double by Joe Stanzione to keep it a two-run game, 4-2. But Cranford again got the first two hitters in the home half of the inning on base the painful way, then got a walk to load the bases. Following a strikeout, Ketschke picked up his second RBI of the day on a double to right to make it 5-2.

But the Tigers still wouldn’t go away. In the top of the fifth, Aiden McCarthy singled to lead off the inning, and Bena doubled to cut it to 5-3. After stealing third, Bena scored on a passed ball with Chris Loniewksi at the plate to make it 5-4. A sac bunt got him to second, but two groundouts ended the inning.

Cranford answered in the second, getting a two-run homer from Patrick Bendert – his sixth of the year – after a leadoff single by Fry, making it 7-4.

And yet, the Tigers still weren’t done, cutting it to 7-5 on a two-out double by Aiden McCarthy, but as Massaro scored, he tried to get to third and was thrown out to end the inning. But Cranford put the game out of reach in the bottom of the sixth, when – after two singles to lead the inning, and a fielder’s choice – Fry hit his tenth homer of the season, clearing the fence in left field to make it 10-5, with South Plainfield going out 1-2-3 in the top of the seventh.

Bena took the loss to drop to 4-3, while Patrick Berry got the win in relief to improve to 3-0. Cranford, now 22-9, will visit Old Tappan on Monday. The top-seed in North 1, Group 3, they beat second-seed Ramapo at home Friday, 9-4, to win the sectional title.

Central Jersey Group 4 Final – (3) Hunterdon Central 14, (1) Old Bridge 1: Despite pumping out ten hits, Old Bridge simply couldn’t cash in against the Red Devils, dropping their second straight Central Jersey Group 4 title game, following a loss to Hillsborough a year ago.

Central got four in the top of the first off starter Blake Dunleavy, who came out after two innings of work, giving up seven runs – six earned – on eight hits. After a single sandwiched between the first two outs, Trevor Wallace doubled for the first run, and Chase Reinhard followed with an inside-the-park home run down the left field line to make it 3-0. And after a JP Santos single, he went to second on a wild pitch, and scored on a ground ball to third by Matty Dalfonzo that resulted in an error.

Old Bridge got one back in the bottom of the inning. After two fly outs, Jared Volpe singled, and scored on a single by Erich Schikschneit, but he was thrown out trying to advance to second on the play.

Then Hunterdon Central buried Old Bridge in the third, with a six-run inning. After a single, hit batter and another single loaded the bases, Brady Meyer came on in relief, but he walked Dalfonzo walked to drive in one, then Trey Garutti walked to make it 6-1. A dingle by Ryan Ganguzza drove in two to make it 8-1, a single by Contiliano scored another run, and a Nik Holot sac fly made it 10-1 before Old Bridge could get out of the inning.

Hunterdon Central added another four runs in the top of the seventh, further putting the game out of reach. The Red Devils (18-13) now move on to the Group 4 state semifinals on Monday, where they will play at South Jersey Group 4 champion Kingsway, with the top seeded Dragons taking the title with a 12-2 win over third-seed Eastern.

by Mike Pavlichko

Old Bridge seeks second CJ4 title in four years, third overall, when Knights host Hunterdon Central Friday afternoon at Fred Cole Field

Under head coach Matt Donaghue, Old Bridge has been a consistent force, and perennial contender in the state tournament.

In 2023, they won the Central Jersey Group 4 title, beating North Brunswick at home 2-1. They went on to beat Eastern in the Group 4 state semifinals, 8-6, but fell 4-0 to Ridgewood in the state Group 4 title game down at Veteran’s Park in Hamilton.

After a loss to Monroe in the semis in 2024, they were back in the title game last year, but fell at home to Hillsborough. Now they’re back, with another opportunity to open the trophy case and add some more hardware.

Playing in the rugged GMC Red Division, the top-seeded Knights (21-9) already have an equivalent record to what they finished with in 2023, when they went to the state final.

Tonight at 6 pm, they’ll have a chance to surpass that, grab a trophy, and move on the state semifinals when they take on third-seed Hunterdon Central (17-13), which won their semifinal matchup over seven-seed Jackson Twp., 8-5. Old Bridge beat four-seed Hightstown in the semis, 10-0.

In fact, while Old Bridge is known for its aggressiveness at the plate and on the basepaths, it’s their pitching which has been superb in the state tournament, having not allowed a single run. They beat 16-seed East Brunswick 1-0 in the opening round, and eight-seed Freehold Twp. in the quarterfinals, 8-0, outscoring all three opponents by a combined 19-0.

Blake Dunleavy went 6 2/3 in the state opener against the Bears, while Brady Meyer got the final out in relief. Then, Mason Mule threw a complete game, one-hitter against Freehold, while Dunleavy came back with a five-inning whitewash of the Rams in the Knights’ run-rule win. So, it could be Mule, or Brady Meyer – who threw the GMC final last Saturday, a 7-0 loss to Monroe – who gets the start today.

Matt Chin leads the lineup with a .420 batting average and 22 runs batted in, while the rest of the lineup is fairly balanced, and hitting .281 as a whole.

The Red Devils are pretty comparable at the plate, hitting .289 as a team, led by senior outfielder Danny Contiliano, hitting .48-0 on the season with 28 RBI and five home runs.Junior Nick Holot is hitting .363, the only other regular hitting over .300 on the year.

Based on their state rotation so far, sophomore Jack Edwards – who started in a 12-7 quarterfinal win over Manalapan and went five innings, allowing six hits and three runs, all earned – could get the nod on the mount for Central.

Old Bridge doesn’t have a long playoff history of its own, only formed in 1994 with the merger of Madison Central and Cedar Ridge. The Knights won Central Jersey Group 4 in 2015 along with their championship from three years ago. Madison won sectional titles in CJ4 in 1976 and 1988.

Click below to hear Old Bridge head coach Matt Donaghue’s postgame interview from Wednesday’s semifinal win over Hightstown:

by Alec Crouthamel

Third seed St. Thomas Aquinas, top seed St. Mary, battle for Non-Public North B crown, in matchup between two of the last three sectional champs

It would be an understatement to say St. Thomas Aquinas – particularly its seniors – have had an eventful week or so.

Tuesday, the third-seeded Trojans (14-14) defeated second-seeded Rutgers Prep in the Non-Public North B semifinals, advancing to the sectional final for the second time in three years.

Thursday, the school held its graduation, meaning the aforementioned title game was moved to Friday.

On Friday, St. Thomas Aquinas will head up to Tamblyn Field to battle top-seeded St. Mary (Ruth.) for its third sectional title in program history.

The Gaels (16-11-1) and Trojans represent two of the last three sectional champions, with St. Mary hoisting the championship trophy in 2023, the first year under head coach Nigel Archibald.

First pitch is set for 4 pm in Rutherford, and you can hear the game live on Central Jersey Sports Radio, with Alec Crouthamel on the call. Pregame begins at 3:45 pm.

Click the above link to listen LIVE to
the Non-Public North B final between
St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Mary!!

The two teams each bring some similarities and differences to the field.

The Gaels are coming off back-to-back 12-1 victories over eighth-seeded Montclair Kimberley and fifth-seeded Morristown-Beard, and the Trojans won each of their two playoff games 7-0 over sixth-seeded Morris Catholic, and 7-3 over the Argonauts.

They each bring a core top of the lineup to the table, led by veterans such as Louis Rizzolo for St. Thomas Aquinas, and Sebastian Santana and Jeffrey Paulino for the Gaels, with the bottom of the order featuring developing talent, getting invaluable experience along the way.

One of the main differences comes in the history. St. Mary has long been a non-public power on the diamond, looking for its 16th sectional championship dating back to 1958.

But none of that history will matter once the two teams take the field. They’re both battled-tested, the Gaels playing a tough NJIC and out-of-conference schedule, and the Trojans in a rugged GMC Red Division.

With the season on the line, all hands are on deck, as each team looks to make it two sectional titles in the decade.

Click below to hear both head coaches preview Friday’s Non-Public North B sectional final, with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Alec Crouthamel:

St. Mary head coach Nigel Archibald
St. Thomas Aquinas head coach Tom D’Agostino

Championship History

St. Thomas Aquinas: The Trojans won their second sectional title in 2024, and their first in 18 years at the time. They defeated Rutgers Prep in the final, the first of three straight years with victories over the Argonauts in postseason play.

  • Non-Public South A
    • 2006 (Then Bishop Ahr), lost to Seton Hall Prep in Non-Public A Final
  • Non-Public North B
    • 2024, lost to Gloucester Catholic in Non-Public B Final

St. Mary: The Gaels have a long history of dominance in their program’s history, racking up 15 sectional titles, including eight since the turn of the century. Their best stretch was a run of six titles in 11 years from 1998 to 2008. St. Mary’s most recent championship came in 2023 over Rutgers Prep, in Archibald’s first year at the helm.

  • Non-Public North B
    • 1956
    • 1962
    • 1968
    • 1998
    • 2000
    • 2001
    • 2003
    • 2006
    • 2008
    • 2016
    • 2019
    • 2023
  • Non-Public North C (Discontinued in 1979)
    • 1974
    • 1976
    • 1977

List of previous Non-Public North B Sectional Champions

  • 1948: Holy Family/Union City/Our Lady of the Valley/St. Patrick’s (Elizabeth)
  • 1949: St. Mary’s (Elizabeth)
  • 1951: Our Lady of the Valley
  • 1953: St. Luke’s (Ho-Ho-Kus)/St. Michael’s (Jersey City)
  • 1954: St. Luke’s (Ho-Ho-Kus)/Don Bosco Prep
  • 1955: Pope Pius XII
  • 1956: St. Mary’s (Rutherford)
  • 1957: Pope Pius XII
  • 1958: Immaculate Conception (Montclair)
  • 1959: Bayley-Ellard
  • 1960: Don Bosco Tech (Paterson)
  • 1961: St. Luke’s (Ho-Ho-Kus)
  • 1962: St. Mary’s (Rutherford)
  • 1963: St. Mary’s (Elizabeth)
  • 1964: St. Mary’s (Jersey City)
  • 1965: St. Mary’s (Elizabeth)
  • 1966: St. Michael’s (Jersey City)
  • 1967: Don Bosco Tech (Paterson)
  • 1968: St. Mary’s (Rutherford)
  • 1969: Bayley-Ellard
  • 1970: Bayley-Ellard
  • 1971: Morris Catholic
  • 1972: Pope Pius XII
  • 1973: Paterson Catholic
  • 1974: Paul VI (Clifton)
  • 1975: St. Cecilia’s (Englewood)
  • 1976: Don Bosco Tech (Paterson)
  • 1977: Our Lady of the Valley
  • 1978: Paul VI (Clifton)
  • 1979: Don Bosco Prep
  • 1980: St. Mary’s (Jersey City)
  • 1981: St. Mary’s (Jersey City)
  • 1982: St. Mary’s (Elizabeth)
  • 1983: St. Mary’s (Elizabeth)
  • 1984: Bayley-Ellard
  • 1985: Immaculata
  • 1986: Phillipsburg Catholic
  • 1987: St. Anthony’s (Jersey City)
  • 1988: Pope John XXIII
  • 1989: Marist
  • 1990: St. Anthony’s (Jersey City)
  • 1991: Marist
  • 1992: Essex Catholic
  • 1993: Marist
  • 1994: Pingry
  • 1995: Immaculata
  • 1996: Pope John XXIII
  • 1997: Montclair Kimberley
  • 1998: St. Mary’s (Rutherford)
  • 1999: Paterson Catholic
  • 2000: St. Mary’s (Rutherford)
  • 2001: St. Mary’s (Rutherford)
  • 2002: Montclair Kimberley
  • 2003: St. Mary’s (Rutherford)
  • 2004: Newark Academy
  • 2005: Morristown-Beard
  • 2006: St. Mary’s (Rutherford)
  • 2007: Newark Academy
  • 2008: St. Mary’s (Rutherford)
  • 2009: Montclair Kimberley
  • 2010: Morristown-Beard
  • 2011: Newark Academy
  • 2012: Newark Academy
  • 2013: Morris Catholic
  • 2014: Hudson Catholic
  • 2015: Newark Academy
  • 2016: St. Mary’s (Rutherford)
  • 2017: Newark Academy
  • 2018: DePaul Catholic
  • 2019: St. Mary’s (Rutherford)
  • 2021: Morristown-Beard
  • 2022: Immaculata
  • 2023: St. Mary’s (Rutherford)
  • 2024: St. Thomas Aquinas
  • 2025: Pope John XXIII

Bold and italics represent CJSR-area teams

by Mike Pavlichko

GMC baseball coaches announce 2026 All-Conference, All-Division honorees

The baseball coaches in the Greater Middlesex Conference are out with their All-Conference and All-Division teams for the 2026 season, with a dozen schools represented on the all-league squad, with 68 players honored overall. Coach of the Year honorees were announced as well, with one for the All-GMC team and one each for each division.

All-GMC Team:

  • Colonia: Colin Kroner
  • Edison: Robert Roma, Jr.; Connor Murphy
  • JFK: Grant Lorentzen
  • JP Stevens: Soham Prajapati
  • Middlesex: Chris Kozak, Dominic Long
  • Metuchen: James Fenton
  • Monroe: Ben Faigin, Justin Mangano
  • Old Bridge: Matt Chin, Blake Dunleavy
  • South Plainfield: Dom Massaro, Aiden McCarthy
  • South Brunswick: Collin Perna
  • St. Thomas Aquinas: Louis Rizzolo
  • Woodbridge: Gavin Slicner

Coach of the Year: Greg Sampson, Piscataway Magnet

All-Red Division:

  • East Brunswick: Julian Satterthwaite, Joe Spinello
  • Edison: Dom Innocenti, Connor Murphy, Robert Roma, Jr., Ray Tavarez
  • Monroe: Ben Faigin, Justin Mangano
  • Old Bridge: Matt Chin, Chris Crosta, Blake Dunleavy
  • South Plainfield: Dom Massaro, Aiden McCarthy
  • St. Thomas Aquinas: Louis Rizzolo, Adrian Sanchez
  • Woodbridge: Michael Gurovich, Gavin Slicner

Coach of the Year: Vinny Abene, Edison
Sportsmanship: Edison

All-White Division:

  • Colonia: Dylan Chiera, Jake Gotti, Colin Kroner
  • JFK: Grant Lorentzen
  • Metuchen: James Fenton, Matthew Jelleme, Lucas Malamung, Joseph Tamburello
  • Middlesex: Sean Hughes, Dylan Ianiero, Chris Kozak, Marcus Lavornia, Dominic Long
  • South Brunswick: Collin Perna, Jack Whitlock
  • Spotswood: Jack Korneski, Joseph Modeste

Coach of the Year: Lou Urbano, South Brunswick
Sportsmanship: Perth Amboy

All-Blue Division:

  • Carteret: Miles Ferreiras, Luis Hernandez, Joniel Martinez
  • East Brunswick Magnet: Josh Carreras
  • JP Stevens: Collin Casey, Soham Prajapati, Chase Sullivan
  • New Brunswick: Jacob Henderson
  • North Brunswick: Willie Pena
  • North Plainfield: Bennie Sokolowski, Jake Zotollo
  • Piscataway: Jason Mann, Sumedh Shingola
  • South River: Noah Borrero, Julien Burosevic, Hunter Krainski, Brendan Lell

Coach of the Year: Mike Lepore, South River
Sportsmanship: New Brunswick

All-Gold Division:

  • Dunellen: Michael Dow, Joe Reyes, Juan Luis Rodriguez, David Torres
  • Highland Park: Dorian Crocco, Julio Rodriguez
  • Somerset Tech: Cole Russomano
  • Perth Amboy Magnet: Jackelvis Nunez, Vincent Canavan, Brody Guthrie, Colton Lyerly, Trey Lyerly, Kyle Malchiodi
  • South Amboy: Joseph Foreman, Micah Nemeth, Robert Senape
  • Timothy Christian: Joseph Guardadao

Coach of the Year: Greg Sampson, Piscataway Magnet
Sportsmanship: Perth Amboy Magnet


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.