Tag: Middlesex College

by Mike Pavlichko

Middlesex College breaks ground on new facilities, including 3,500-seat baseball and multipurpose stadium

Middlesex County and Middlesex College officials gathered on a frigid Tuesday morning with warmer thoughts in mind to break ground on two new facilities at the school: a Student Center and Multipurpose Community Venue that will host baseball and other sports.

Scheduled to open in 2026, the athletic facility will be designed for concerts, cultural events, baseball, soccer and lacrosse. Officials say the 3,500-seat outdoor venue will meet Big Ten, NCAA, Minor League Baseball and FIFA standards, and include eight private boxes, concession stands, and spaces for gatherings and special events.

It’ll also serve as a future home for a good portion of Rutgers University baseball games, with their current field having received major upgrades in recent years – with lights, turf and new scoreboard – but lacking in seating capacity, as well as media and suite accommodations.

Officials from Middlesex County, Middlesex College, the state, and “Bolt the Colt,” third from left,” break ground on new facilities at Middlesex College on January 21, 2025. (Photo credit: Ken Braswell)

There also could be the potential for Greater Middlesex Conference schools to play games there, including county tournaments for soccer, lacrosse and baseball.

Slated to open for the 2026 season, Terminal Construction Corporation is expected to complete the work in approximately 22 months using entirely union labor, and funded by state, federal and county money.

“Rutgers Athletics is proud to continue its partnership with Middlesex County and break ground on the new Multipurpose Community Venue,” said interim Rutgers Athletic Director Ryan Pisarri. “This project represents a significant investment in the success of our baseball program. Middlesex County has been an incredible partner in this process and has gone above and beyond to make this venue state-of-art for our players and staff.”

by Mike Pavlichko

Tributes continue to come in for Edison legend as Mooney and Brownlie remember Muldowney

While the passing of the man they called “Diamond Jim” – legendary former Edison baseball coach Jim Muldowney – has touched the entire community, his influence was far and wide across the state, especially in Middlesex County.

The man simply touched so many lives, whether it was as a coach or a friend, or – in many cases – both.

When baseball was done, he wasn’t done with you. Sometimes it would just be a call to see how the family was doing, or an invite to come watch a game with him, as he was fond of doing whether or not he had a vested interest.

We talked with two more people from the area on whom Muldowney had a huge influence.

CJ Mooney is the current baseball coach at Middlesex College. Muldowney led that program before becoming the head coach at Edison, where he went 275-75 in 13 seasons, winning ten GMC Tournament titles and a pair of state Group 4 crowns, finishing as the No. 4 team in the nation according to USA Today in 1993. Almost two decades later, in 2019, he was hired to resurrect the Colts’ softball program, and he and Mooney shared much more than just an office together.

Jim Muldowney was the head softball coach at Middlesex College, resurrecting the program after being hired in 2019. (Source: Middlesex College Athletics)

The two also have one other connection. They were both part of the only two GMC teams to complete a single-season “trifecta”: winning their division, the county title, and a state group title in the same year. Muldowney’s Eagles did it in 1993, and Spotswood did it in 2007. Mooney played on that Charger team.

Click below to hear CJ Mooney talk about the legacy of Jim Mudowney:

We also talked with an Edison legend in his own right, Bobby Brownlie, who had a stellar, dominating career as a pitcher for the Eagles, then went on to star at Rutgers. Brownlie, who now resides in Monroe, works with minor leaguers in client development for Scott Boras, and shared his recollections while on the road in Bowie, Maryland, on Wednesday.

Brownlie said he always wanted to be a catcher, but Muldowney threw him into the fire as a sophomore, and never looked back.

Click below to hear Bobby Brownlie talk about his relationship with Jim Muldowney:

by Mike Pavlichko

Middlesex College earns 4th seed in Region XIX playoffs, opens Saturday vs Cumberland

On the strength of its third straight season with 30-plus wins, the Middlesex College baseball team has been awarded the fourth-seed and an opening round home playoff series with Cumberland, with a doubleheader scheduled for Saturday afternoon in Edison.

The Colts went 33-20 this year, closing out the season with a three-game sweep of Union College, the first of which was a 21-6 win in their home finale last Friday.

The opening round series is a best-of-three, with a doubleheader set for noon Saturday on the Middlesex College campus. A third game, if necessary, against Cumberland (23-16) would be Sunday at noon.

The winner goes on to a double-elimination four-team playoff at Gloucester, beginning May 17th.

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko discuss the season and upcoming playoffs with Middlesex College head coach CJ Mooney:

by Mike Pavlichko

Middlesex College pounds Union in regular season home finale, taking series opener 21-6

As it turns out, the Middlesex Colts baseball team got all the runs it needed in the first inning.

On “Sophomore Day,” Middlesex sent 14 batters to the plate in the first inning, scoring nine runs – eight of which were unearned – en route to a 21-6 win over Union College to open their three-game regular season-ending series Friday afternoon in Edison.

In a game heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio – presented by Edison Pizza & Restaurant – Middlesex pounded out 17 hits and was the beneficiary of a dozen walks issued by seven different Union pitchers in a seven-inning ten-run rule shortened affair.

Angel Deaza – the Edison Pizza & Restaurant Player of the Game – hit a solo home run to get the scoring started with one out in the first. He walked later in the inning, scoring twice, and was also hit by a pitch in the second inning, in his third at bat. He finished the day 1-for-2.

After the home run, Mike Wansaw flied to center, and Middlesex started to do its damage. Rob Gonzalez walked, Conor Drury singled, and Nate Friedman reached on an error, which should have been the third out. Sal Della Fave drove in two with a double to make it 3-0, and Matt Troche walked to load the bases. Hunter Almeida walked in a run to make it 4-0. Dylan Lugo scored two with a double to make it 6-0, and Wansaw and Gonzalez each drove in runs with singles, while Almeida scored on a wild pitch, and the Colts had a 9-0 lead after one.

Middlesex chased Owls starter Chris Lamond after just 2/3 of an inning.

Union tried to make it a game, scoring three runs in the third, on back-to-back RBI doubles by Xavier Nieves and Jeremy Batista, while Greg Ayube hit a sac fly to right to make it 9-3.

But the Colts answered by scoring six more runs in the bottom of the inning, sending 11 hitters to the plate in the frame. Lugo had a single to knock in his third run of the game, and a two-RBI single by Friedman were among the highlights.

Middlesex also added two in the third to make it 17-3 before Union got a three-run home run from Monroe grad Steve Pascucci to make it 17-6, but Middlesex added a run in the fourth on an RBI single by Troche, two more in the fifth and one more in the sixth.

Starter Josh Horowitz went four innings, allowing seven hits and six earned runs on a day where it was hard to find a rhythm, sitting in the dugout for after the first two innings while 25 total Colt batters made their way to the plate. He walked three and struck out seven to get the win, and improve to 2-2.

Ryan Rzepinski pitched two shutout innings in relief, while Michael Calabrese and Pablo Baloco combined to close out the seventh and end the ballgame, holding Union scoreless over the final three innings.

It was the fifth time this season Middlesex scored 20 or more runs in a game. They scored 21 against Monroe College (Bronx) on March 16th. Their season high came on April 18th, in a 27-0 win at Delaware County Community College that went six innings as part of a doubleheader.

The win could help Middlesex grab a home game in the Region XIX playoffs, with matchups to be announced next Wednesday. The Colts are now 31-20, reaching the 30-win mark in each of the last three seasons under veteran skipper and Spotswood alum CJ Mooney.

Click below for postgame reaction from Friday’s DH Angel Deaza and head coach CJ Mooney:

Edison alum Sal DellaFave hits for Middlesex College in Game One of a doubleheader against Bergen on April 20, 2024. (Photo: Mike Pavlichko)
by Mike Pavlichko

INSTANT REPLAY: Middlesex College 8-6, 14-10 over Bergen Community College

The Middlesex College Colts swept a doubleheader from Bergen Community College to take two of three from the Bulldogs in their NJCAA Region XIX series. Middlesex won the opener 8-6, then won the second game 14-10, on April 20, 2024.

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko and Vin Ebenau call all the play-by-play as heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio from the campus of Middlesex College in Edison, NJ.

Game 1: Middlesex 8, Bergen 6
by Mike Pavlichko

Middlesex College takes series from Bergen with doubleheader sweep, 8-6 and 14-10

After a heartbreaking loss on a walkoff three-run homer in the bottom of the ninth Friday night up in Paramus, the Middlesex Colts struck first twice and held off late rallies twice Saturday afternoon in an NJCAA Region XIX sweep of Bergen Community College Saturday.

Both games were heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio, presented by Edison Pizza & Restaurant.

Middlesex (25-16) took the opener 8-6, Union Catholic alum Matthew Wansaw getting the win, and Josh Horowitz picking up the save. The Colts then finished the sweep with a 14-10 win over the Bulldogs (11-23) in Game Two, with the win going to starter Jake Anderson.

Game 1: Middlesex 8, Bergen 6

Middlesex got out to a 7-0 lead before Bergen could get on the board. Starting pitcher Michael Wansaw knocked in Dylan Lugo for the first run with a single. After a stolen base, taking third on a throw that went into center, Wansaw scored on a sac fly to center to make it 2-0 after one.

The Colts got three runs in the second. Sal Della Fave led off with a walk, and Hunter Almeida followed with a second. Nataniel Friedman singled to load the bases, then the next three hitters each knocked in a run. Lugo singled in a run, John Oranchak flied out to right to score another, and a groundout to short by Wansaw made it 5-0.

Middlesex then got a run in each of the next two innings. In the third, Matt Troche led off with a walk, advanced to third on a wile pitch, and scored on a sac fly to left by DellaFave to make it 6-0. Then, in the fourth, Lugo led off with a double, made it to third on a sac fly and scored on another sac fly to right by Wansaw.

Bergen would get two runs on the board in the fifth, cutting the Colts’ lead to 7-2. With two out, Ransley Ferreras walked, then as the lineup got back to the top of the order, Dee Rice also walked, and both scored on a grounder to third by Carlos Pascual, which Troche threw in the dirt to first base.

Middlesex was blanked in the bottom of the fifth, and Bergen made it a two-run game with three in the sixth. Paul Figueroa led off with an infield hit, then Ian Scalabrini hit a two-run homer to make it 7-4. Enger Ortiz walked and Chris Merril struck out, then Zitola reached on a fielder’s choice, eventually scoring on a wild pitch to make it 7-5.

Middlesex would pick up an insurance run in the sixth. Oranchak led off with a walk, and after stealing second, came home on a single by Wansaw, to make it 8-5.

In the top of the seventh, Josh Horowitz came on to close it out. Danial Ramos hit a one-out triple, then after a strikeout, came home on a single by Ian Scalabrini. But Horowitz got Ortiz on a popup to first to end the game.

Click below to hear from Michael Wansaw, the Edison Pizza Player of the Game, who receives a $25 gift card and a Central Jersey Sports Radio baseball cap:

Middlesex sophomore Michael Wansaw was 2-for-4 with 4 RBIs, and on the mound struck out 10 in six innings to get the win in Game 1 against Bergen CC on April 20, 2024. (Photo: Mike Pavlichko)

Game 2: Middlesex 14, Bergen 10

The Colts again got on the board first, leading 9-0 before Bergen could get on the scoreboard.

Middlesex took a 1-0 lead in the first on an RBI single by Wansaw, who had four RBIs in the opener, driving in Oranchak, who’d walked.

Then, in the second, they sent 13 men to the plate and scored eight times on just three hits, working out six walks. Friedman led off with a walk, and Almeida followed with one as well. After Alex Turner, the DH, struck out, Lugo walked to load the bases, but Friedman came in – and the other runners advanced – on a balk to make it 2-0. Oranchak walked to load the bases again, and Wansaw drove in two more with an RBI single, his fifth and sixth RBIs of the day. Roberto Gonzalez then crushed a three-run homer to left field to make it 7-1. Drury walked, stole second, and after Troche struck out Friedman drove him in with a single, and an E5 on a ground ball to third by Almeida made it 9-0. After a walk to Turner, Lugo grounded to second to end the inning.

But Bergen would get five runs back in the top of the third, sending nine hitters to the plate. Ransley Ferreras led off with a walk, then moved to second on a sac bunt by Dee Rice. Carlos Pascual knocked him in with a double he extended to a triple with an error on Drury in left. Danial Ramos scored him on an infield hit to make it 9-2. Paul Figueroa reached on an error, then Ian Scalabrini hit his second homer of the day to make it 9-5.

Middlesex tacked on a run in the bottom of the inning, when Wansaw got a one-out single, stole second, and came all the way home on a wild pitch, making it 10-5.

Neither team scored in the fourth, but Middlesex added two more in the fifth. Anderson led off with a single, then moved to third on a single by Lugo, and scored on a wild pitch. Lugo moved to third after a failed pick-off attempt, and scored on a sac fly to left by Oranchak, making it 12-5 Middlesex.

Those runs would be important as Matthew Jason came in in the sixth and faced ten hitters, giving up five runs. And with a 12-10 lead, Middlesex got some more insurance in the bottom of the sixth, all with two outs. Horowitz walked, Josh Rodriguez singled, and Lugo hit a ball deep to center. While he got thrown out trying to stretch a double to a triple, Horowitz had already scored, but Rodriguez just barely crossed the plate before Lugo was tagged at third to end the inning.

Horowitz closed it out for his second save of the afternoon.

Click below to hear from Roberto Gonzalez, the Edison Pizza Player of the Game, who receives a $25 gift card and a Central Jersey Sports Radio baseball cap:

Middlesex sophomore Roberto Gonzalez hit a 3-run home run in Game 2 against Bergen CC on April 20, 2024. (Photo: Mike Pavlichko)
by Mike Pavlichko

Colts look to rebound after walkoff road defeat as Middlesex/Bergen series shifts to Edison

If this Saturday doubleheader doesn’t have some juice, then who knows what would?

Following a dramatic win for Bergen Community College over Middlesex College Friday night on a three-run walk-off home run by Paul Figueroa, the Colts will have a chance to take the series if they can sweep the Bulldogs in a doubleheader Saturday afternoon that can be heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio, presented by Edison Pizza & Restaurant.

The twinbill in Edison features a pair of seven-inning games scheduled for noon and 3 pm. Tune into CJSR at 11:45 for our pregame show as Mike Pavlichko and Vin Ebenau call all the action.

Middlesex has been hit by the injury bug, the but the Colts remain seven games above .500 at 23-16. They sit in fifth in Region XIX’s Division III, a game-and-a-half behind Ocean.

Bergen has also been beset by injuries, which have claimed its to four pitchers over a stretch dating from the preseason to just last weekend.

Click below to hear both head coaches talk about their seasons, the series opener Friday, and Saturday’s doubleheader at Middlesex College in Edison:

Middlesex College head coach CJ Mooney
Bergen Community College Steven Mimms
by Mike Pavlichko

Central Jersey Sports Radio adds Middlesex College games in 2024, thanks to sponsorship with Colts’ favorite, Edison Pizza & Restaurant

Central Jersey Sports Radio is expanding its Spring sports coverage this year to include college baseball for the very first time! We’ll be broadcasting three Middlesex College baseball games on two dates this in the coming weeks, thanks to a sponsorship from Edison Pizza & Restaurant on Woodbridge Avenue.

The Middlesex Colts feature nearly two dozen former Greater Middlesex Conference players, many of whom have appeared on CJSR since its first season broadcasting high school baseball in 2021. That includes players like Brett Lukachyk, Josh Vazquez and Matthew Troche from Woodbridge; Sal Della Fave, Ryan Tomasula and Paul DiPasquale of Edison; Michael Canavesio and Jakob Anderson of Middlesex; and JT Kroner of Colonia.

Middlesex head coach C.J. Mooney is a Spotswood alum, and was recently inducted into the Chargers’ Athletics Hall of Fame as a member of the 2007 team, the best in school history. That team was just the second – and remains the most recent – GMC school to win a conference title and state championship in the same season. (Edison did it first, in 1993.)

Central Jersey Sports Radio will broadcast a doubleheader against Bergen Community College (Bergen County, NJ) on Saturday, April 20th, a pair of seven-inning home games with first pitch for Game One scheduled for noon, and Game Two set for 3 pm. CJSR also will carry a single game on Friday, May 3 when Union College (Union County, NJ) visits Edison for a 3:30 pm first pitch.

The games are made possible by a sponsorship from Edison Pizza, located in the Edison Shopping Center at 2303 Woodbridge Avenue in Edison. The restaurant – founded in 1967 – is a big favorite with the team for postgame meals.

Edison Restaurant & Pizza is offering a special for our readers and listeners!
Simply mention “Central Jersey Sports Radio” and get ten percent off your order now through May 31, 2024!

Click below to hear Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko talk about Middlesex College Baseball with head coach – and former Spotswood standout – C.J. Mooney:

The Middlesex Colts compete in the Garden State Athletic Conference, and in Division III of the National Junior College Athletic Association – the NJCAA – in Region XIX. In their region are New Jersey schools like Brookdale, Bergen, Camden and Ocean.