Tag: Skyand Conference

Bridgewater-Raritan run-rules for second straight game, advances to North 2, Group 4 semifinals, 10-0, over JP Stevens

You don’t usually see back-to-back run-rule victories in the state tournament. Especially as the lower seed in one of those games.

But Bridgewater-Raritan is white-hot at just the right time, and did just that.

The fifth-seeded Panthers (13-16) tacked on runs early and often en route to a 10-0, six-inning victory over fourth-seeded JP Stevens in the North 2, Group 4 quarterfinals, to advance to their second sectional semifinal in three years. The Hawks’ (18-9) season came to a close, finishing up their best campaign since 2019.

It was obvious from the first pitch of the game that Bridgewater-Raritan was locked in on its approach, a three-pronged message from the top: Throw strikes, make plays, and get quality at-bats.

The Panthers did all three to near-perfection on Friday, winning by double-digits for the second straight game after an 11-0 win over 12th-seeded Plainfield in the first round

On the mound, Nico Moore went the distance with six shutout innings in just 89 pitches, allowing four hits.

Bridgewater-Raritan got started early with a run in the first inning, as second baseman Nick Spirra grounded into a bases-loaded double play with nobody out to strike first. Though JP Stevens starter Nolan Overmeyer got out of the inning with just the one run after the jam, it was clear the Panthers were ready for anything the Hawks could throw at them.

Moore worked two shutout innings, allowing just one baserunner, as Bridgewater-Raritan’s offense broke the game open in between.

First baseman Stephen Pikulin and right fielder Josh Moore reached with one out on a walk and hit-by-pitch – Moore’s fourth in the last two games – respectively, before shortstop Cody Rible sent a fly ball into the left-centerfield gap for a double to bring home Pikulin.

Centerfielder Kellan Komline added an RBI single to bring home Moore, and stole second to put runners on second and third with one out. Left fielder Andrew Schmieder poked a single into right field to bring home both runners and made it a four-run inning and a 5-0 lead. But the Panthers weren’t done yet.

Catcher Michael Lobosco singled to put Schmieder on third, and courtesy runner Matt DeLucia worked a pickoff rundown to allow Schmieder to come home easily. By the time the inning ended, Bridgewater-Raritan led 6-0 and chased Overmeyer out of the game, as his replacement, right fielder Aarush Patel, recorded the final two outs.

Moore continued his dominance on the mound, coupling his fast pace between pitches with a nasty fastball and curveball combination to keep the Hawks off balance all afternoon.

Patel and Moore each recorded shutout sides of the third inning, and in the top of the fourth, it looked like Patel was headed for another solid frame after retiring the first two batters.

But the Panthers stuck to their approach, and grew the lead because of it. Five straight hitters reached base after Schmieder struck out to record the second out, as they tacked on three more insurance runs to expand the lead to 9-0. Within that stretch, Bridgewater-Raritan faced several two-strike counts, but the Panthers just kept battling and refused to go down. Pinch-hitter Joey Confalone ripped an RBI single down the first-base line to bring home DeLucia, third baseman Connor Price brought in another with an RBI single of his own, and Pikulin scored another with an infield single.

By that point, Bridgewater-Raritan put its stamp on another postseason victory.

Both teams were shut out in the fifth, but the Panthers scored the pivotal tenth run in the top of the sixth inning. Lobosco sent a fly ball down the left-field line for a double – reaching base for the fourth time – and DeLucia came around to score from third on a sacrifice fly by Price two batters later.

With the end of the game in sight, Moore worked three straight groundouts in the bottom half to send Bridgewater-Raritan home happy an inning early.

Moore earned the win with six shutout innings, allowing four hits and no walks with four strikeouts. Overmeyer was given the loss with six earned runs in an inning and a third, allowing five hits with a walk and hit batter. Patel was solid in relief, going four and two-thirds innings of four-run ball, with two strikeouts four walks, allowing five hits.

The Panthers will move on to face Skyland Delaware division foe and top-seeded Ridge in the North 2, Group 4 semifinals on Wednesday, after the Red Devils defeated eighth-seeded Phillipsburg with a six-inning, 10-0 of their own in the opposite quarterfinal on Friday.

Click below to hear Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Alec Crouthamel talk with Bridgewater-Raritan pitcher Nico Moore, catcher Michael Lobosco, and head coach Max Newill after the Panthers’ 10-0 win over JP Stevens in the North 2, Group 4 quarterfinals, presented by the Sportsplex at Metuchen:

Fifth-seeded Bridgewater-Raritan stays hot, rolls over 12-seed Plainfield 11-0 in North 2, Group 4 first round

There’s an all-too-familiar adage in postseason sports: When the brackets come out, throw the win-loss records out the window.

Bridgewater-Raritan is the latest example.

The Panthers (12-16) earned the fifth seed in the North Jersey Section 2, Group 4 bracket after a tough start to the year, dealing with a rugged Skyland Delaware division, giving their young group a bit of trial by fire against some of the top teams in the area.

Now? Bridgewater-Raritan is playing its best baseball at the right time, as the Panthers – winners of six of their last eight – knocked off 12th-seeded Plainfield 11-0 in five innings to advance to the North 2 Group 4 quarterfinals for the fifth straight year.

With another run in the sectional tournament a week after making it to the Somerset County Tournament semifinals – where they almost knocked off top-seeded Immaculata – the group is finding its stride and could be a dangerous dark-horse as the tournament moves along.

Junior pitcher Jack Braswell got the ball on Wednesday and set the tone immediately. He struck out the first two Plainfield batters on the way to a 1-2-3 inning to open the game, then Bridgewater-Raritan’s red-hot bats got their chance in the bottom half.

The Panthers plated three runs in the first, with the first four batters reaching base before an out was recorded. Junior second baseman Nick Spirra put a line drive into right field with the bases loaded to score two. Then, with two outs and the bases re-loaded, right fielder Josh Moore got plunked to bring in another.

The two teams traded scoreless frames — as Braswell retired all nine Cardinals the first time through the order — until the bottom of the third inning, where Bridgewater-Raritan got its big inning.

It looked like another quiet inning through two batters, with a strikeout and lineout, but the Panthers put together some two-out magic to break the game wide open. They loaded the bases in three batters — including another hit-by-pitch for Moore — before leadoff left fielder Andrew Schmieder put another line drive into right field to score two runs.

Senior Kellan Komline brought in another with an infield RBI single. Schmieder stole home to score on the ensuing at-bat, before senior catcher Michael Lobosco powered a double into centerfield to score Komline. Spirra brought in another with an RBI single back into centerfield.

All of a sudden, Bridgewater-Raritan built a commanding 9-0 lead after three.

Braswell worked another shutout inning — though he did lose his perfect game bid thanks to a two-out single by Plainfield left fielder Franyer Genao — to send the lineup back to the plate.

The Panthers got the job done again with two more runs in the bottom of the fourth to put the game in run-rule territory. Junior Stephen Pikulin reached on a one-out infield single, and Moore got hit by a pitch for the third time to put runners on first and second.

Sophomore shortstop Cody Rible singled to left field to score Pikulin and give Bridgewater-Raritan double digits on the day. Skipper Max Newill started to empty his bench from there, and sophomore Matt DeLucia registered his second RBI of the season with a sacrifice fly to make it 11-0.

Braswell retired the side in order for the fourth time to secure the dominant victory. He earned the win on the mound with five shutout innings, striking out eight while only allowing one hit.

Now, after a full regular season, the Panthers have taken their lumps and found their footing to become a threat in the section. They’ll have another challenge at hand on Friday, heading on the road to Edison to face fourth-seeded JP Stevens in the quarterfinals. The Hawks (18-8) finished in a three-way tie atop the GMC Blue division at 11-3, and defeated 13th-seeded Ferris 11-2 for their first playoff win since 2019.

A challenge, to be sure, but Bridgewater-Raritan has shown in the last month it’s ready for anything the bracket can throw at it.

Click below to hear Bridgewater-Raritan head coach Max Newill talk about the Panthers’ 11-0 win over Plainfield in the North 2 Group 4 first round with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Alec Crouthamel:

Five-seed Bridgewater-Raritan rallies, defeats four-seed Rutgers Prep 10-5 in extras in SCT quarterfinals

Through two innings, Bridgewater-Raritan was in some trouble.

The Panthers trailed Rutgers Prep 4-0 in the Somerset County Tournament quarterfinals, and starter Kellan Komline had already approached the 50-pitch mark.

Argonauts’ starter Li Perez, on the other hand, used his powerful fastball to breeze through the opening stretch of the order to start.

But by the time the dust settled in Somerset, fifth-seeded Bridgewater-Raritan took down fourth-seeded Rutgers Prep 10-5, outscoring the Argonauts 10-1 the rest of the way,

Rutgers Prep plated three runs in the first inning, as designated hitter Maddox Chu brought in the first run with a grounder. Left fielder Micah Krugar-Serrano launched a fly ball to right-center field, scoring two more with the bases loaded, but a strong relay home ended the inning as the Argonauts looked to clear the bases.

The Panthers threatened with two runners on and nobody out in the second inning, but Perez reared back and struck out the next three straight batters to get out of trouble.

Rutgers Prep added another in the bottom half of the second, as catcher Ethan Nepomuceno dunked a single into the outfield to put the Argonauts up 4-0.

Nobody scored in the third, but the Panthers started to rally in the fourth. They notched three straight hits to start the inning, handing Perez his first earned run of the season on a Kevin Kelly single, and first baseman Connor Price cut the deficit in half with an RBI groundout.

After a rough start, Komline found his stride in the middle innings, throwing just 20 total pitches in the third and fourth frames.

Perez worked through a scoreless fifth while Rutgers Prep added an insurance run to extend the lead to 5-2.

That’s when the trouble started.

Perez was replaced after facing two batters in the sixth, allowing a walk and a single, up against his pitch count. He was replaced by Jake Brown.

He struck out Price to open the outing on a positive note, but DH Stephen Pikulin quickly put a stop to that.

He crushed a game-tying, three-run home run off an electrical pole way past the centerfield fence, knotting the game at five runs apiece.

After the next three sides went scoreless — including a clutch bases-loaded defensive stand by the Panthers in the bottom of the seventh — they headed to extras.

In the eighth, Price singled, followed by a Pikulin strikeout. Then Nico Moore — after relieving Komline on the mound — singled himself.

Right fielder Josh Moore dialed up a long RBI double to put Bridgewater-Raritan in front. Then after a walk by leadoff centerfielder Andrew Schmieder, Komline did his job with a sacrifice fly to center field.

Then catcher Michael Lobosco came up.

On a 2-2 count, he torched a fastball over the left-field wall to break the game open with a three-run blast.

Moore would shut down the side in the bottom half of the inning to seal the victory.

The Panthers outscored the Argonauts 10-1 after the second inning, with two home runs and contributions from all across the lineup.

Moore earned the win with two innings in relief, while Brown was given the loss in his three innings out of the pen.

Bridgewater-Raritan will advance to face top-seeded Immaculata — who defeated Montgomery 11-1 on Thursday — in the SCT semifinals on Monday at TD Bank Ballpark. It’ll be a matchup of the last two Somerset County champions.

Click below to hear Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Alec Crouthamel talk with Bridgewater-Raritan seniors Kellan Komline and Stephen Pikulin, and head coach Max Newill, presented by the Sportsplex at Metuchen:

Watchung Hills pitcher Robbie Centamore throws a pitch.

Full-lineup power propels No. 5 Watchung Hills to 10-0 run-rule win over No. 1 Immaculata

The afternoon of the Somerset County Tournament seeding meeting, each team in action wanted to put their best foot forward ahead of the postseason.

No. 5 Watchung Hills did that, and then some, against No. 1 Immaculata.

The Warriors (11-4, 7-2) bounced back from a 12-2 loss to defending Group 2 state champion Governor Livingston with a five-inning 10-0 victory of their own, giving the Spartans (12-4, 8-1) their first loss in conference play.

Senior pitcher and designated hitter Rob Centamore did his job on the mound and at the plate, going the distance with five shutout innings, while striking out seven batters and allowing just two hits. He also hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the fourth inning to extend the lead to 6-0, helping his cause even further.

First baseman Max Payne capped off a four-run fifth inning with a bases-loaded RBI single to close out the win. Watchung Hills would’ve batted around in the inning, had the game not ended with the hit.

The rest of the lineup production came from the bottom of the order, with the Warriors’ eighth and ninth hitters — centerfielder Chris Dorsi (two RBIs), pinch-hitter Bennett Dealaman (one RBI), and right fielder Sam Hunsinger (four RBIs) plating the remaining seven runs.

Dealaman was a busy man himself, courtesy-running for catcher Jacob Jaconski — who was plunked three straight times in his first three plate appearances through four innings — before stepping up to the plate himself in the fifth to drive in a run with a single.

Watchung Hills threatened in the first inning with runners on the corners and one out, but Immaculata pitcher Cole Raymond worked a 4-6-3 double play to get out of the jam scoreless. That came after the Spartans left a runner in scoring position in the top of the first with a one-out double from sophomore second baseman Luca Catanzarite, as Centamore left him at second base.

The Warriors got the job done in the second inning, though. The first five batters reached base against Raymond — with four hits and a walk — and Dorsi opened the scoring with a two-run bloop single. Hunsinger brought in two more with a single of his own to bring home the first four runs of the game. Jaconski recorded his second HBP of the game with one out, but another timely 4-6-3 double play ended the inning with a four-run advantage.

Centamore continued to deal, rendering Immaculata hitless from the first inning until the fifth inning, with two walks serving as the only baserunners. He helped his own case in the bottom of the fourth inning with the aforementioned two-run blast, a sky-high ball that just cleared the left-field fence at Frank T. Matullo Stadium. A groundout on the ensuing batter ended the inning, and worked through a shutout inning in the fourth before a pitching change.

Sophomore first baseman Andrew Wheeler moved over to the mound to take over for Raymond. He worked a flyout against second baseman Landon Pudlak, but the next three batters all reached, with back-to-back walks followed by an RBI single from Dealaman.

Immaculata then went to senior right-hander Michael Drelich out of the bullpen, but Watchung Hills kept on hitting. Hunsinger laced a double into the left-center field gap to plate two more runs to make it a nine-run lead, before Drelich worked a groundout to record the second out. That was the last out the Spartans would get, however, with the best of the order due up.

Jaconski worked a walk — without getting hit by the pitch this time! — and Centamore added a single to put runners on first and second with two outs. Payne ended it with his RBI single up the middle to send the Warriors home with an early victory.

Centamore earned the victory with five shutout innings, two hits, two walks, and seven strikeouts. Raymond was given the loss in four innings of work, allowing six earned runs on seven hits, two walks, two strikeouts, and three hit batters.

How this affects Tuesday night’s SCT seeding meeting remains to be determined. Watchung Hills had been in the mix for a top-four seed for much of the recent weeks, and Immaculata was the favorite to be the tournament’s top seed. While Immaculata only has the one county loss, Watchung Hills’ two conference losses came to Ridge, which was swept by the Spartans.

It’s a Somerset County transitive triangle!

CJSR’s Mike Pavlichko will have the full bracket after the meeting — starting at 7:30 Tuesday night — at @cjsportsradio on Twitter/X, with a full story after.

All these teams can do is control what is in front of them, and the Warriors — now winners of seven of their last eight games since getting swept by the Red Devils in mid-April — did a good job of putting their best foot forward Tuesday.

Click below to hear Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Alec Crouthamel talk with Watchung Hills head coach Joe Tremarco and senior pitcher/DH Rob Centamore, presented by the Sportsplex at Metuchen:

No. 1 Immaculata hosts No. 2 Ridge looking for a sweep and bigger lead in SCT top seed race

Central Jersey Sports Radio’s top dogs in baseball have already battled once, and they’ll do so again on Wednesday afternoon.

The latest matchup is the second half of a home-and-home two-game set between No. 1 Immaculata and No. 2 Ridge, a day after the Spartans took the first game 3-0. Pitchers Cole Raymond and Bryson Auten combined for a two-hit shutout, and the offense came from two RBIs — including a home run — from senior catcher Owen Schilling, and a single from sophomore outfielder Brian Cilento.

If all goes to plan for Immaculata, it hopes to be more of the same in the second leg on Wednesday.

You can hear that game live – with no paywall or subscription needed – on Central Jersey Sports Radio with pregame at 3:45 pm and first pitch at four with Mike Pavlichko and Alec Crouthamel on the call. Click here to listen.

The Spartans have played some solid baseball all year long, and are 7-1 against New Jersey teams, with the lone loss coming against Delsea on Saturday.

Immaculata’s pitching and defense have helped push the team to its strong start, and with star senior Ryan Auten on the mound Wednesday, could continue to be a strength.

Auten, committed to Wake Forest, has been brilliant in all three starts this year. He sports a 1.62 ERA and 35 strikeouts — an average of almost 12 per game — and has progressed even after last season, according to head coach Kevin Cust. At times, he wasn’t as sure in his execution, while still working a 2.80 ERA, but that has flipped for the better in the opening month of his senior season.

On the offensive side, the Spartans’ mix of experience and young talent have shown themselves across the year, and the coaching staff has continued to emphasize a strong approach of throwing strikes and hitting strikes.

It worked on Tuesday, as Immaculata drew six walks and seven hits. Now with its ace on the mound, the Spartans aim for a sweep of a fellow state-ranked team, and one it’s battling for Somerset County Tournament seeding at that.

With a win, Immaculata could only strengthen its hold on the prospective top seed in the tournament, while a Red Devils victory makes the conversation a bit more intriguing.

As the defending champions, the Spartans look to get back to the mountaintop, and a win against a fellow contender could go a long way in clearing the path to do so.

Click below to hear Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Alec Crouthamel talk with Immaculata head coach Kevin Cust about the Spartans’ season, and their huge series with Ridge:

Big third quarter run, masterful defense, send Manville past Bound Brook a second time, 58-41

After a game, win or lose, coaches will show their team the game film to look at all the things they can improve upon and the things they need to work on.

So, if at any other point this season, Manville is struggling defensively, head coach Bill Rooney will want to put on the tape of Thursday night’s home game against Bound Brook, starting with about five minutes left in the third quarter.

That’s when the Mustangs faced their biggest deficit of the game against the Crusaders, eight points, after a three-ball by Titus Godwin.

But after that? Manville went on a 21-0 run, fueled by intense defense that forced Bound Brook into missing bad shots, and they were able to convert on the other end to take a 13 point lead that eventually grew as big as 17, and wound up being the final margin, in a 58-41 win heard live Friday night on Central Jersey Sports Radio.

In the end, Manville finished the game on a 37-12 run, from eight down to win by 17.

Remarkable.

In that run, Collin Shimp – even playing with three fouls – had two big threes. Twin brother Brandon hit one at the buzzer at the end of the third – a microcosm of how the quarter went for both teams – and Jimmy Cuadra had a number of steals along with six points in the period.

After five first quarter lead changes, Bound Brook took the lead, and finished the first half with a 23-19 advantage. They extended that to eight points – the biggest lead for either team at that point – with a three by Titus Godwin, who had 12 points in the first half but was held to five in the second.

And all game, Manville did a number on Dorian Roundtree, the Bound Brook senior who came in averaging 20.6 points per game, but was held scoreless in the first 16 minutes and finished with just six points.

Head coach Bill Rooney’s game plan was a bit novel. Most teams would try and slow down Bound Brook, getting them into a half court game since they get up and down the floor well. But Manville hit some shots, got back on defense, pressed, forced turnovers and got out in transition. They didn’t always hit on the other end, but it frustrated the Crusaders to no end.

Cuadra led the Mustangs with 15 points, while Josh D’Ambrosio added a dozen and Collin Shimp finished with 11. Godwin finished with a game-high 17 for Bound Brook.

It was the second straight win over Bound Brook for Manville (7-5, 5-0 Skyland Conference Mountain Division), which – coming into this season – had not beaten the Crusaders in 25 games over a span of ten years from 2005 to 2015, and they didn’t play each other for the next decade.

That changed December 16, when they picked up a 50-43 win at The Brook. Thursday’s win over Bound Brook (8-3, 3-3 Skyland Mountain) swept the season series.

The last time they beat Bound Brook back-to-back games? Well, that might take some digging. Based on easily available online records, it would predate the 2004-05 season, making it at least 22 years ago.

Click below for postgame reaction from Manville senior Collin Shimp and head coach Bill Rooney, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen:

Highlander’s big second half helps lead No. 1 Gill St. Bernard’s to emphatic win over No. 3 Pingry – and likely the SCT’s top seed

When you think of Gill St. Bernard’s basketball, you think uptempo, flying across the floor, and plenty of victories.

Through one half against No. 3 Pingry, those three factors were present at times, but not enough with a 21-15 lead.

Once both teams emerged from the locker room for the second half of play, things changed.

The Knights (11-2, 5-0) raced out of the gate and never looked back, pulling away for a 69-38 win, outscoring the Big Blue (7-3, 3-0) 48-23 in the final 16 minutes of play.

Fresh off a 33-point, ten-rebound performance in a thrilling win over Rutgers Prep on Saturday, Gill St. Bernard’s forward Prosper Highlander led the way once again, with a 20-point, 12-rebound follow-up performance. After scoring just two points in the first half, he came alive with 12 points in the third quarter with an array of drives to the basket and a three-pointer.

Oh, and he also picked up the tough assignments on defense, stuffing the stat sheet with three steals and two blocks.

Pingry controlled the tempo early on, scoring the first five points of the game and keeping close for much of the first half. Even after the Knights responded to the opening run with ten unanswered points of their own, the Big Blue ended the quarter with six unanswered to stay within a point at 12-11.

That momentum continued into the second quarter. Even as Gill St. Bernard’s appeared to be on the verge of pulling away, Pingry continued to stack up timely buckets to stay within arm’s reach, as head coach Jason Murdock and his team looked to build off the momentum of back-to-back wins over Immaculata and Rutgers Prep last week.

But the Knights’ intensity and pace on both ends of the floor eventually became too much to overcome. They methodically built up their lead as the third quarter went along, turning defense into offense plenty, before the lead eventually ballooned to 17 points to end the third quarter, and 31 points by the end of the game.

Gill St. Bernard’s standouts Connor Junker and Dorsett Mulcahy kick-started the offense in the opening quarter with six points apiece for all of the Knights’ scoring in the opening eight minutes. Junker finished with ten points with two three-pointers, while Mulcahy finished second on the team with 17 points and eight rebounds.

Dylan Cowell led Pingry with a 13-point, 10-rebound double-double to go along with three blocks, and was the Big Blue’s only double-digit scorer.

With the win, Gill St. Bernard’s now puts itself in an excellent position for the top seed in the upcoming Somerset County Tournament, as the Knights look to defend their title from a season ago. Last week, they won their only matchups before the seeding meeting with Montgomery and Rutgers Prep, with the Argonauts also having lost to Pingry.

Amid a schedule head coach Mergin Sina calls one of the toughest in the state, Gill St. Bernard’s passed yet another test as the calendar flips to 2026.

Click below for postgame reaction from Gill St. Bernard’s senior forward Prosper Highlander and head coach Mergin Sina, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen:

Hillsborough’s Mosko, steering Raiders through mid-season rough patch to win program’s first sectional title in 13 years, is named 2025 CJSR Somerset County Coach of the Year

Every team has its ups and downs in a season. Even those that finish that rare undefeated season don’t do it without any difficulty.

But it’s how they bounce back and overcome adversity that defines a team. And in the case of the Hillsborough baseball team, they did that just this season, bouncing all the way to the Central Jersey Group 4 title.

It’s something Matt Mosko didn’t get to do as a player for his hometown Raiders, but in his relatively new life as head coach – now in his fourth season – he and the program have their first since 2012.

After getting off to a 5-1 start, including a split with Hunterdon Central and a split with defending CJ4 champ Bridgewater-Raritan, the Raiders hit a bit of a skid. They went 3-9 over their next dozen games, the last of that stretch a 10-9 loss to eventual champion Immaculata in the Somerset County Tournament quarterfinals, a loss that could have sunk the rest of their season.

HIllsborough players stream out of the dugout after winning the Central Jersey Group 4 championship game against Old Bridge at Fred Cole Field on June 5, 2025. (Photo: Mike Pavlichko)

But they bucked up, and realized that with a nine-seed in the state sectionals, they could make some noise with a few wins. After a road win at Freehold Township, they knocked off top-seed Hunterdon Central in Flemington, came back home and beat Montgomery in the semis, then rallied late to score ten unanswered runs in the Central Jersey Group 4 title game at Old Bridge, bringing home the program’s first NJSIAA trophy in 13 years.

Click below to hear Hillsborough head coach and Somerset County Coach of the Year Matt Mosko talk with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko: