Tag: Mike Monaco

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

Woodbridge walks off East Brunswick, wins pivotal GMC Red slugfest 3-2

Tuesday’s game between Woodbridge and East Brunswick on the diamond featured two offenses that had been tearing the cover off the ball of late, as each team shook off slow starts to jockey for position in a tough GMC Red Division. Both coaches expected offense to reign supreme, even with the top arms on the bump for each side.

So, naturally, the Barrons (6-7) came away victorious in walk-off fashion, 3-2, in a good-old-fashioned pitcher’s duel.

As they say in the Tri-State area, “That’s baseball, Suzyn.”

The Bears (6-8) trailed the entire way until they were down to their final out, tying the game in the top half of the seventh on a passed ball with the bases loaded. Third baseman Javier Casacuberta scored easily to tie it at 2-2, but the throw from Woodbridge catcher Anthony Lyczkowski skidded past pitcher Kevin Arroyo’s glove, and the ball rolled back into the infield.

Pinch runner Sean Christie advanced to third on the play, then tried to snag home plate after the low throw to give East Brunswick the lead. But Barrons’ star shortstop Gavin Slicner fielded the ball cleanly, fired a laser home, and Arroyo applied the tag to end the inning and keep the game deadlocked.

Then in the bottom half, Woodbridge pinch-hitter Endy Soto grounded a single into right field, flipping the lineup back to Slicner. He reached on an error after a pitching change, putting second baseman Josh Hines on the mound, and first baseman Xavier Diaz walked on four pitches to load the bases. Left fielder Michael Gurovich — five days removed from a five-inning no-hitter in a 14-0 victory over Edison — drew a five-pitch walk to end it in walk-off fashion.

Now time to catch your breath.

Before the wild seventh inning, both teams were locked into a classic pitchers’ duel. Arroyo and Bears’ starter Tyler Ditzel controlled the pace for much of the first half of the game, with just a single run coming through in the first four innings.

The bottom of Woodbridge’s order came to play on Tuesday, and they helped open up the scoring. Right fielder Hogan Boyd — batting seventh — reached on a single to lead off the bottom of the third after Ditzel had retired the Barrons’ first six batters in order. He then stole second, advanced to third on a groundout, and came around to score after Lyczkowski reached on an error.

Slicner then threatened with a two-base error, after a long fly ball bounced off the glove of East Brunswick centerfielder Joe Spinello, to put runners on second and third. Ditzel held strong, though, inducing an infield fly and a lineout to end the inning with only one run on the board.

Arroyo continued to breeze through his outing, as Woodbridge added a second run in the fifth, also helped by the bottom of the order. Boyd worked another leadoff single and stolen base, and centerfielder Jack Kobylakiewicz walked to put two runners on with nobody out. The Barrons tried a double steal, and Boyd got caught at third, but Kobylakiewicz found his way there anyway on a passed ball as Lyczkowski walked.

With runners on the corners, Ditzel got the ground ball he needed, but Slicner legged out an RBI fielder’s choice, beating the double-play throw at first.

The Bears finally got on the board in the sixth, as they started to figure out Arroyo’s stuff and varied pitch mix. Catcher Brandon Bastek lined a double down the left-field line, and Spinello reached on an infield single. Hines brought courtesy runner Jaiden Valdez in on an RBI groundout, but with the tying run one base away, Arroyo froze DH Cole Zebro on a two-strike breaking ball to end the inning.

Woodbridge looked to score once again in the bottom half, with back-to-back one-out walks, but Ditzel found his mojo with a pop-out and strikeout of Kobylakiewicz to keep the game within a run.

Then the seventh inning madness came into play.

By the time the dust — or turf pellets — settled, the Barons’ offense manufactured the game-winning run when they needed it most, on the back of a patient approach after a slow start to the game.

Arroyo earned the win with seven innings of two-run ball, surrendering five hits while striking out five with one walk. Ditzel was given the loss despite a standout outing, allowing three runs in six innings on four hits, five walks, and two strikeouts.

Woodbridge also notched a big win in GMC Red Division play, bringing the standings even closer. Edison leads the pack at 9-2, but second place through sixth place sit just two games apart.

The Barons won their fifth game in seven tries, and even on a day where the bats took a bit to heat up, they’re proving they can win the close ones.

Click below to hear Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Alec Crouthamel talk with Woodbridge head coach Mike Monaco and shortstop Gavin Slicner about the Barrons’ 3-2 victory over East Brunswick on Tuesday:

by Alec Crouthamel

Woodbridge readies for yet another key matchup in rugged GMC Red division against East Brunswick

As the adage in sports — and much of life — goes, the numbers don’t lie.

But sometimes, they don’t tell the whole story.

Woodbridge baseball sits at 5-7 on the year, but don’t be mistaken. The Barrons boast a run differential of +32, and have put up eight runs or more in all but one of their victories.

They’ve also rebounded from a 1-5 start — where all five losses came by three runs or fewer and the lone win was a 10-0 victory over St. Thomas Aquinas — to win four of their last six games.

The losses have all come late in games, where Woodbridge was in each one of them, and even had a lead in many, while the wins have come with impressive offensive outputs.

Now to close April, the Barrons open a two-game set against East Brunswick, another team with a similar story: high-powered offense with some close losses at the beginning of the year, playing in an extremely tough GMC Red division.

You can hear the first division game live from Woodbridge High School at 4 pm Tuesday, with pregame at 3:45. Alec Crouthamel and Nick Hart will call all the action; click here to listen.

Woodbridge brings both returning veterans and younger talent to the lineup, and the production speaks for itself. Five players with regular at-bats are hitting over .300, and the lineup as a whole has combined for 33 extra-base hits.

Senior shortstop Gavin Slicner has set the table at every turn, as the head of the Barrons’ metaphorical offensive snake. He sports a .486 batting average, with 11 extra-base hits of his own. After him, the rest of the lineup is dangerous as well. The coaching staff has put full trust into anybody that steps into the batter’s box, and more times than not, that trust is validated.

And with the season nearing the midway point, now is the time to start playing your better baseball, and the Barrons have done that. Their last two series against St. Joseph (Met.) and Edison — one of the favorites for the Jim Muldowney GMC Tournament’s top seed — saw the bats come alive with wins of 16-6 over the Falcons and 14-0 over the Eagles as they split each series. With the Red Division as tough as it is this year, each series and game means more and more.

But tournament seeding isn’t everything, and Woodbridge knows it. It earned the top seed last year and was upset by 16-seed South River in the first round. All that matters is putting together your best ball as the season continues along, and the Barrons will look to continue their upward trajectory against a division rival jockeying for momentum themselves in the Bears.

It all starts at 4 pm on Tuesday.

Click below to hear Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Alec Crouthamel talk with Woodbridge head coach Mike Monaco:

by Mike Pavlichko

Woodbridge hands first-place Edison second GMC Red defeat with 14-0 outburst, and a five-inning no-no for Gurovich

The GMC Red Division so far this season has been Edison leading the pack, and everyone else beating everyone else.

But on Thursday afternoon, Woodbridge brought the Eagles right into the scrum.

The Barrons pounded out 15 hits over five innings – while senior Michael Gurovich threw a no-hitter – in a 14-0 shutout win over Edison in GMC Red Division play, and the opener of their two-game regular season series.

This wasn’t one where the opposition kicked the ball around the infield either. The Barrons jumped on Edison early with four runs in the top of the fourth. They added another in the third, two in the fourth, and put it away in the top of the fifth with seven more. Overall, 12 of the 14 runs were earned.

Gurovich wasn’t overpowering. He was efficient, and pitched to contact, tossing just 62 pitches – an average of just over 12 per inning – striking out one, and allowing just two baserunners, both on walks.

In fact, he was so efficient, head coach Mike Monaco said he’d thought of pulling him when he was at 48 pitches to keep the option of using him as a closer Saturday against Edison in the second game, if needed. But having not given up a hit yet, he and his coaching staff quickly decided against it.

The Barrons had a heck of an afternoon at the plate. Billy Mansfield went 4-for-4 with six runs batted in, including a two-RBI triple in the first, an RBI triple in the third, and a solo homer and a two-RBI single in the in the fifth. Gavin Slicner also homered and went 3-for-4, as did Gurovich, who knocked in one run.

The Barrons are now 5-6 on the year, and since starting the season 1-5 – with a loss to St. Thomas Aquinas and two each to Old Bridge and South Plainfield – have won four of their last five, including a sweep of Monroe, a split with St. Joseph-Metuchen, and Thursday’s win over Edison, which falls to 8-3, 8-2 in the GMC Red, but still in first place by two games over South Plainfield (7-5, 6-4) and Old Bridge (6-7, 6-4).

The Barrons and Eagles close out the series Saturday in Woodbridge at 10 am – weather permitting – then will make an appearance on Central Jersey Sports Radio on Tuesday afternoon at home against East Brunswick at 4 pm, the opener of their final division series of the season.

Click below to hear Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko talk with Woodbridge head coach mike Monaco about the win over Edison and the season so far:

by Mike Pavlichko

Top two teams in GMC Red square off Tuesday morning, as No. 3 South Plainfield visits No. 4 Woodbridge to finish home-and-home set

Just to give you an idea how good – and balanced – the GMC Red Division is, Woodbridge began the year 8-0, Old Bridge just knocked off the No. 3 team in the state in Seton Hall Prep, and South Plainfield just handed the Barrons their first loss of the year.

And that’s just the top three teams in the Red.

Two of them will face off again Tuesday morning at 10:00 – No. 3 South Plainfield and No. 4 Woodbridge – in a game you can hear live on Central Jersey Sports Radio, with the Tigers and Knights tied, both 2.5 games behind the Barrons.

Mike Pavlichko and Alec Crouthamel will call all the play-by-play, with pregame from Woodbridge High School set for 9:45 am in another Spring Break morning matchup. Click here to listen.

Woodbridge has been red hot to start the season, playing all of their games in the division thus far. The Barrons opened with 8-7 and 9-4 wins over St. Joseph-Metuchen, then swept South Brunswick, East Brunswick and Edison before taking their first loss of the year, a 7-3 defeat in South Plainfield Saturday afternoon. The Tigers scored a run each in the first and second, then exploded for five in the fifth to go up 7-0, and held Woodbridge to a three-run rally in the sixth that fell short.

Top-to-bottom, the Barrons have been hitting well this season, led by players like senior catcher Derek Oxner (team-leading .400 average, 6 RBI), junior Xavier Diaz (.310, team-best 8 RBI), and senior Ryan Leach (.294, 7 RBI, 2 HR).

On the mound, they’ve gotten great work from their three starters – Kevin Arroyo, Michael Gurovich and Ryan Leach – who have combined for a 1.70 ERA, with Arroyo and Leach both individually having earned run averages under two.

South Plainfield, meanwhile, is on its longest win streak of the season, at three. At 7-3 overall, they’re 5-3 in the Red, tied for second with Old Bridge, and have two non-conference wins, one each over Millburn and Summit. Their three losses all have been in the division – one each to St. Joseph-Metuchen, Old Bridge and Monroe. They split with the Falcons and Knights.

The lineup hasn’t been as consistent one through nine like Woodbridge has, but junior Dom Massaro is tearing the cover off the ball, hitting a blazing .485 with eight runs batted in and a home run. Seniors Dan Kapsch (.364, team-best 9 RBI) and Nick Irizarry (.333, 6 RBI) also are contributing at the plate.

The Tigers have mainly used four different starters. Kevin Penny (2-1, 4.40 ERA) will get the start for them on Tuesday, while Ryan Leach (2-0, 1.67 ERA) will get the nod for the Barrons.

Click below for preview interviews with both head coaches:

Woodbridge coach Mike Monaco with Mike Pavlichko
South Plainfield coach Scott Gleichenhaus with Alec Crouthamel

by Mike Pavlichko

Solid start from Kish boosts Barrons over Sayreville; Woodbridge off to 3-0 start

In his first start of the year, Shawn Kish looked well on his way to a complete-game win. 

The senior entered the seventh inning Saturday for Woodbridge with a 4-0 lead, having allowed just one hit and three base runners through the first six innings. But when he started to lose a little of his command, Dean Fiore came in from center field to get the final out, inducing Sayreville’s Jake Romanello into a 5-4 ground out.

The ironic part was that Kisch – who moved to second after coming off thew mound – got the final putout.

In the end, the 8th-ranked Barrons beat No. 9 Sayreville at home 4-2 Saturday afternoon in a GMC White Division game heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio.

Woodbridge went up 1-0 in the first inning when leadoff man Gavin Slicner led-off with an infield hit, advance to second on a wild pitch, went to third on a groundout, the scored on another to second by DH Drew Lukachyk.

Both pitchers fared farely well until Woodbridge got three runs in the fourth. Lukachyk led off with a single off Sayreville starter Thomas Schlaline, while Xavier Diaz and Kish followed with singles of their own to load the bases with nobody out.

Bryan German then bounced one back to Schlaline whose throw home for a force pulled catcher Mikey Robinson off the plate making, scoring Lukachyk it 2-0. Then, a grounder to short by Tim Diegnan saw Chase Cannan throw high to the plate for an error, scoring Diaz to make it 3-0.

After Derek Oxner struck out, a Derek Anderson ground out to third brought home Kish to make it 4-0.

And Kish continued to cruise until the seventh. He walked leadoff man Moe Hedderman. After Schlaline popped out for the first out, and with Hedderman on second with a stolen base he was erased on a single by Robinson, when he took a big turn at second and got caught off the bag. Robinson advanced to second on the play, with two out, down by four.

But then James Kehoe walked and Justin Marrero singled to drive in the first run of the game for the Bombers. That set up first and second for the tying run at the plate in Logan Kaufman. But after he walked and Kish plunked Cannan on the first pitch, Woodbridge head coach Mike Monaco made a change, and Fiore needed just four pitches after coming in from center to get the final out and end the ballgame.

Woodbridge starts the season 3-0, with Kish getting the win and Fiore getting the save. Kish allowed two runs and just three hits in 6 2/3 innings. Schlaline took the loss for Sayreville (1-1).

Click below for postgame reaction with Woodbridge pitcher Shawn Kish and head coach Mike Moncao, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen:

by Mike Pavlichko

Woodbridge returns solid core in ’24, faces early test against ’23 GMC White champ Sayreville

Coming off a 20-6 year, its second straight 20-plus win season, the Woodbridge baseball team is still not satisfied. And that’s a good thing.

While the Barrons had a tremendous regular season in 2023, they want more than a second round exit from the GMC Tournament, and a semifinal loss in the state sectional finals.

They are hungry. And they want a championship.

And they may be one of the Greater Middlesex Conference teams most suited to win one in 2024.

But first, there’s that matter of the regular season.

They are schedule to open up Thursday afternoon at 12:30 at Colonia, with a rematch Friday after a rainout this past Tuesday. Then, the Barrons will face Sayreville Saturday on Central Jersey Sports Radio in a battle of the top two teams in the GMC White a year ago, with the Bombers finishing just a half-game ahead of the Woodbridge in the final standings.

Pregame is at 12:45, with Mike Pavlichko and Dylan Allen on the call. Click here to listen.

While Woodbridge has to deal with losses to graduation, like everyone else, they didn’t have as many as some. Ty Kobylakiewicz is easily their biggest lost bat after a .479 season with three home runs and 25 RBIs.

But coming back are veteran seniors like Drew Lukachyk (.374, 3 HR, team-leading 33 RBI) and Tyler Weber (.448, 1 HR, 22 RBI).

And on the mound, there’s senior Eddy Nunez, who’s expected to get the start on Opening Day against the Patriots. In 56 1/3 innings last season, he pitched to a 2.24 ERA with 72 strikeouts against just 23 walks. He’s been excellent since his freshman debut, striking out 159 in 124 innings, with a scholastic career ERA of 2.39.

Click below to hear Woodbridge head coach Mike Monaco take a look at the 2024 season:

Click below to hear Sayreville head coach Tim Ballard talk about his team and returning to the Bomber program, where he played in the early/mid-2000s:

by Mike Pavlichko

Woodbridge looks to veterans to continue hot streak as Perth Amboy comes to town

When you look at Woodbridge baseball this season, one thing stands out: experience.

This year, the Barrons (10-4, 7-3 GMC White) are relying on their experience, returning several of the contributors that powered them to a 25-7 season and a deep state tournament run, which ended in the North 2 Group 4 title game against eventual Group 4 runner-up Hunterdon Central.

One of those veterans will be Eddie Nunez, who will be starting on the mound for Woodbridge against Perth Amboy (0-12, 0-9 GMC White). Nunez has taken his game to another level this year, with a 1.72 ERA in five starts this season.

Offensively, it’s been a collective effort for the Barons, with a team batting average of .324 on the season.

Leading the pack for them has been catcher Tyler Weber, who is hitting a team-high .452 with 16 RBIs. Ty Kobylakiewicz is hitting .400 with 14 runs batted in and two home runs. Drew Lukachyk has also been a power threat, leading Woodbridge with three home runs and 19 RBIs while also batting .400.

Now, the Barrons will look to build off a 4-3 win against Edison – led by a HR and three RBIs from Lukachyk – which earned them a split in the series.

Not only that, but Woodbridge needs just one win against Amboy to clinch sole possession of second place in the White over the 8-3 Eagles, who are done with divisional play.

Listen to Woodbridge head coach Michael Monaco speak about the Barrons’ success ahead of the Perth Amboy game with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Chris Tsakonas:

by Mike Pavlichko

Woodbridge looks to reload after graduation of three key seniors

We said it last year, and we’ll say it again: Woodbridge baseball quietly put together one of its best years in program history in 2022, making a run to the North 2, Group 4 finals, and finishing the year 25-7.

To do similar this year won’t be quiet at all.

The ’22 version of Barrons’ baseball could hit up and down the lineup, even the underclassmen like Ty Kobylakiewicz (.364, 28 RBI, 3 HR), A.J. Bosch (.357, 12 RBI) and Drew Lukachyk (.351, 24 RBI). But they will miss Drew’s older brother Brett – who was tied with Kobylakiewicz for the team lead in run production – as well as Josh Vazquez at Matt Troche.

And the, there’s the pitching. Troche and Vazquez ate up almost 90 innings last season, with 80 strikeouts combined between them. And the Barrons will need more than Eddy Nunez to step up, although that’s where the whole thing starts. Nunez had a fantastic sophomore season, throwing a team-leading 62 2/3 innings and allowing just 45 hits and 19 earned runs. He had a 2.12 ERA and struck out a team-best 62 hitters.

Head coach Mike Monaco likes what he sees from his team in the preseason, but knows they will play in a competitive GMC White Division that’s been revamped. Gone are Spotswood, Metuchen, JFK and Piscataway to the Blue, while North Brunswick moves to the Red, but in come Perth Amboy, JP Stevens and Edison from the Red. Combined with Middlesex, Sayreville and Colonia, it’s a tough schedule in the division.

And the season gets underway with the rival Patriots right off the bat, with Woodbridge visiting Colonia for its season opener on Tuesday, April 4th, part of a home-and-home that sees the Patriots visit the Barrons two days later.

Woodbridge will make its lone regular season appearance on Central Jersey Sports Radio on Tuesday, May 2nd, at 7 pm, when the Barrons host Perth Amboy in the first of a two-game divisional series.

Click below for a full preview of the Woodbridge baseball season with head coach Mike Monaco:

by Mike Pavlichko

Woodbridge stuns Ridge with Bosch’s almost-in-the-park-home run, to win in 11, gain North 2 Group 4 final

Officially, the play would go as a throwing error for missing the cutoff man on a triple, allowing the batter to score. But for all intents and purposes, it was just about an in-the-park home run.

A.J. Bosch never looked behind him. He didn’t see right fielder Luke Somelofske run past the ball as it fell just inside the foul line. Didn’t see the throw miss the cutoff man behind second base and go into the outfield. And he didn’t see the throw that came way too late to catch him after he dove head first into home plate to score the go-ahead run.

All that happened with one out in the eleventh inning, after the leadoff man, Dean Fiore, tried to bunt for a base hit and popped it foul behind the plate, where it landed in the glove of catcher George Busnach.

All of a sudden, it was 5-4 Woodbridge. But still, the Barrons and their fans could not exhale.

That’s because Ridge, with two outs, loaded the bases on an E6 and a pair of walks, before Eddie Nunez got Matt Aber to pop up to second baseman Drew Lukachyk to end an epic, marathon, wacky ballgame in the North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4 semifinals, as heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio.

Final: Woodbridge 5, Ridge 4, in 11 innings, and now the Barrons have a crack at their first-ever state sectional title.

It sure wasn’t without a lot of grief for both teams.

Combined, they left 24 men on base: 13 for Ridge, 11 for Woodbridge. Combined, there were six errors in the game: four for the Red Devils, including a pickoff move that sailed wide in the first, and two for the Barrons. And it rained for most of the first few innings, even if only a very light drizzle.

And yet, Woodbridge was in control most of the way, if only because they never trailed.

They scored in the top of the first on a bloop RBI single by Drew Lukachyk, but Ridge got it right back on a two-out single by Matt Aber.

Woodbridge went ahead 3-1 in the third on an bases loaded walks by Tyler Webster and Bosch, but Ridge got an RBI single by Luke Somelofske following a one-out triple by George Busnach in the fourth, and an RBI triple by Mile Olivo in the 5th to tie it at three.

No one would score until the Barrons score in the top of the ninth, in extra innings. With two out, Brett Lukachyk walked. On a Josh Vazquez hit to second, Andrew Shawah stopped a hard hit ball in the hole, had no play to first, but saw Lukachyk going for third. His throw was wide, went to the fence, and Lukachyk came in to score on the E4.

But then Ridge would tie it in the bottom of the inning. After a leadoff single by Somelofske and a sac bunt by Andrew Shawah moved him to third, Eddie Nunez came in to pitch. After Matt Shawah struck out, Brian Leitz hit a ball to the right side that first baseman Shawn Kish – in for the injured Ty Kobylakiewicz – fielded in front of the second baseman. He threw to Nunez covering at first but he couldn’t get there in time. Somelofske, scored, tie game again – but not before two intentional walks heightened the tension and Nunez got Matt Aber to strike out to keep things going.

That’s when the eleventh inning heroics by Woodbridge kicked in, sending the Barrons to the North 2 Group 4 final, where they will try and make history Friday, visiting top-seed Hunterdon Central.

Nunez got the win in relief for Woodbridge (25-6) to improve to 9-2 on the year; Mike Olivo took the loss in relief for Ridge (24-2) to fall to 5-1.

Click below to hear live postgame reaction on the air with hero A.J. Bosch, reliever Eddie Nunez, and head coach Mike Monaco:

by Mike Pavlichko

Woodbridge having stellar season, seeking a chance to win its first-ever sectional title

It’s hard to win 24 games in a baseball season before you even get to a state title game and do it quietly, but that’s seemingly what the Woodbridge Barrons have done.

Part of that may be because they didn’t win their division; they dropped a pair-of mid-year regular season games to White Division newcomer Metuchen, and with a chance to clinch at least a share of the division crown, dropped another pair right before the GMC seeding meeting to another White Division newcomer in Middlesex.

But make no mistake about it, Woodbridge is a solid baseball team.

The Barrons have won games by a lot, and won games by a little. They’ve had a ten-game winning streak during the year. And like Ridge, the entire lineup can hit, which can make it grueling on opposing pitchers.

They’ll need that entire lineup to come up with timely hitting against Ridge on Tuesday afternoon, when the third-seeded Barrons visit the 2nd-seeded Red Devils in the North jersey, Section 2, Group 4 semifinals.

Game time is 4 pm, and the contest can be heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio with Mike Pavlichko calling all the action. Pregame is set for 3:45; click here to listen.

And just like Ridge, head coach Mike Monaco has not decided who will start the game, though his top two pitchers – Eddie Nunez and Josh Vazquez – are both readily available.

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko talk with Woodbridge head coach Mike Monaco ahead of Tuesday’s game at Ridge: