Tag: South Plainfield

by Mike Pavlichko

Where will NJSIAA state semifinals be this year? Under new wrinkle, it depends on who’s playing

One of the tweaks the NJSIAA made to the high school baseball playoffs this year was a change as to who hosts the state semifinals.

This years state tournament regulations differ from years past, where the sections would alternate. One year it would be South Jersey and North Jersey, Section 2 champions hosting, the next it would be Central and North Jersey, Section 1.

This year, hosts will be the team with the higher power point values.

Keep in mind, that doesn’t necessarily mean the higher seed. The top three seeds in one section might have higher power point values than the top seed in another. And, of course, you could get two No. 1 seeds – so how would that be decided?

In this case, it’s strictly the team with the most power points, so even though everyone is two wins away from the state semis, let’s take a look at the four state semifinals that could see the seven public schools still alive from the Central Jersey Sports Radio coverage area.

Central Jersey Group 4: Old Bridge is the top seed, and will play fourth-seed Hightstown Wednesday at 5 pm in the semifinals. The winner gets either third-seed Hunterdon Central or seven-seed Jackson Twp. in the final.

If Old Bridge wins the title, they would host anyone from the South Jersey Group 4 bracket except the top-seed Kingsway, which has more power points than the Knights. If Eastern, Rancocas Valley or Cherry Hill East win it, Old Bridge will host the state semifinals at Fred Cole Field.

North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4: Three of the four teams in Wednesday’s semifinal from the CJSR area, and all from the Skyland Conference Delaware Division. Top-seed Ridge plays five-seed Bridgewater-Raritan at 4 pm (listen live on CJSR), while third-seed Watchung Hills visits second-seed Bayonne, with a 4:30 first pitch.

And though three of our teams could win the North 2, Group 4 title, all would be on the road in the state semifinals. That’s because all four teams in the semis in North 1, Group 4 – top four seeds Passaic Tech, Mount Olive, Ridgewood, and West Orange – have higher power point values than the four remaining in North 2. That is a tough section, indeed. Passaic Tech went to the Passaic County Tournament title game, and lost 11-1 to DePaul. And Mount Olive shocked state No. 1 Delbarton, 8-7, to win the Morris County Tournament title, its first in 35 years.

North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3: Fourth-seed South Plainfield is on the road today, with a tough task at top-seed Chatham at 4 pm. The winner faces either second-seed North Hunterdon or third-seed Cranford.

But with defending champion South Plainfield having the lowest power point total of the eight teams remaining in North 1 and North 2, the Tigers – should they win the section again – will be on the road, no matter who they face.

Central Jersey Group 1: The two CJSR-area teams are on opposite ends of the bracket, so it’ll be top-seed Middlesex hosting five-seed Shore Regional at 4 pm, and second-seed Piscataway Magnet facing third-seed Point Pleasant Beach at the same time.

The defending champion Blue Jays and Piscataway Magnet are the No. 1 and No. 2 teams among the eight remaining between Central 1 and South 1, so if either of them win the sectional title, they will host a state semifinal next Monday.

UPCOMING PUBLIC SCHOOL STATE TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE

  • Wednesday, June 3: Sectional Semifinals (at higher seeds)
  • Friday, June 5: Sectional Finals (at higher seeds)
  • Monday, June 8: State Semifinals (at higher power point values)
  • Sunday, June 14: State Finals (at Rutgers – Group 3 at 10 am, Group 4 and 1 pm, Group 1 and 4 pm, Group 2 at 7 pm)
by Mike Pavlichko

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

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

Why?

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

by Mike Pavlichko

Friday NJSIAA Public State Playoff Roundup: Top-seed Old Bridge advances, but fellow GMC finalist Monroe is knocked out; Watchung Hills, No. 1 seeds Ridge, Middlesex move on; South Plainfield ousts North; Piscataway Magnet walks off again

We started with 32, and after two rounds, we’re down to seven. (At least among the publics.)

Seven teams are all that remain from the Greater Middlesex and Skyland Conferences after the first round and quarterfinals of the NJSIAA state tournament, and all will have an opportunity to reach the section finals in their respective sections next Friday, if they can win semifinal games next week.

Only one team remains in Central Jersey Group 4, where top-seed old Bridge advanced, but fifth-seed Monroe lost, on the eve of their meeting in the Jim Muldowney GMC Tournament championship game Saturday at Ray Cipperly Field in East Brunswick. First pitch of that game is at noon with Mike Pavlichko and Justin Sontupe calling the action. Pregame is set for 11:40, and you can either listen to the game on Central Jersey Sports Radio the usual way, or watch our live YouTube stream by clicking here.

In other sections, second-seed Piscataway Magnet earned its 25th win – for the second straight state tournament game in walk-off fashion – leading the Raiders into one semifinal, while top-seed Middlesex won again by the mercy rule and also will play for a title game berth.

Top-seed Ridge, third-seed Watchung Hills and fifth-seed Bridgewater-Raritan advanced in North 2, Group 4 action, making it three of four teams in the semifinals from the Skyland Conference Delaware Division, while defending North 2, Group 3 champion South Plainfield also moved on to the semis in its section, and will seek a third straight trip to the finals.

Scroll through for section-by-section game recaps, interviews, links and more, followed by the schedule for the next round – which resumes next week after a weekend break – for the non-public sections (Tuesday) and publics (Wednesday).

CENTRAL JERSEY GROUP 4

(1) Old Bridge 8, (8) Freehold Twp. 0: The Knights (20-8) got a complete game, one-hit shutout from Mason Mule, who only needed 66 pitches to get through seven innings, facing the minimum 27 batters, despite only striking out three. In fact, the only hit he allowed was a third-inning single by Julian Polo, who was thrown out at second by right fielder Michael Chiarella when he tried to turn it into a double.

Old Bridge got two RBI’s apiece from Nicholas Agonstino and Matt Chin, while Jared Volpe scored twice. They went up 1-0 in the second on an Adrian Lutomski double, then got two more in the fourth when Chiarella, with the bases loaded, lined a ball to short, but an error allowed two runs to score. And while that was all they’d need, the Knights added four more for insurance in the fourth, and one more for good measure in the fifth.

Perhaps the biggest thing about Mule’s performance is that head coach Matt Donaghue elected not to go with his top pitcher, Brady Meyer, and it paid off. That leaves Meyer in line to start the GMC Final Saturday afternoon against Monroe. (See the Falcons’ game summary from today for their pitching situation.) And he could come back Wednesday in the semifinals if he throws under 90 pitches Saturday, or in a potential final Friday regardless of his Saturday pitch count.

Click here to listen to Old Bridge head coach Matt Donaghue talk about the win over Freehold Twp., and Saturday’s GMC Final against Monroe, with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko.

(4) Hightstown 10, (5) Monroe 2: The Falcons (14-14) were down 2-0 early in this one, as the Rams (18-7) scored twice in their first at bat, on a bases loaded single to center by Dylan Stables and a bases loaded ground out by Manny Gonzalez. And Monroe kept Highstown in check until the fourth, when they exploded for eight runs to take a 10-0 lead. That chased starter Aadi Shah from the game after 3 2/3, allowing seven hits and seven runs, only four of them earned.

With neither Ben Faigin nor Andre Love pitching in the game, both are available to Saturday in the GMC final against Old Bridge, with nearly their full complement of pitches: Faigin will be capped at 105 and Love at 96.

Click here to listen to Monroe head coach Sean Field talk about Friday’s state tournament loss, and coming back Saturday for the GMC final against Old Bridge, with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko.

(7) Jackson Twp. 12, (15) Franklin 0 (5 inn.): The Warriors (8-12) got nine hits through five innings, but failed to get anything across in a mercy-rule shortened game. The Jaguars (12-15) took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first, but piled on eight runs in the second – aided by three Franklin errors – and added three more in the fourth. Dylan Shah, Mason Bonds, Shayne Rooney and Christian Jacas each had two hits in the losing effort.

  • (1) Old Bridge def. (8) Freehold Twp., 8-0
  • (4) Hightstown def. (5) Monroe, 10-2
  • (3) Hunterdon Central def. (6) Manalapan, 12-7
  • (7) Jackson Twp. def. (15) Franklin, 12-1

CENTRAL JERSEY GROUP 1

(1) Middlesex 11, (8) South Hunterdon 1 (6 inn.): The Blue Jays (22 -5) look very much like the team that won the Group 1 state championship last year, and might even be better. Once again, it was Dominic Long on the mound, striking out six and allowing just five hits and one earned run in six innings of work.

Middlesex never trailed in the game, but they did find themselves tied 1-1 heading into the home second inning. But they took the lead back with one in the second, the first of ten unanswered runs over the final five innings. After taking a 2-1 edge into the third, they scored two in the third, then got three more in the fifth and walked it off with a five-spot in the bottom of the sixth.

Dylan Ianiero and Chris Kozak each drove in two runs, while Long scored three times, and Ianiero and Marcus Lavornia each scored twice.

The Blue Jays will host 5-seed Shore (19-8) next Wednesday in the semifinals, but the Blue Devils first have the Monmouth County Tournament Ted Jarmusz Division title game at 4 pm Monday at Colts Neck.

(2) Piscataway Magnet 5, (10) Delaware Valley 4 (9 inn.): For the second straight game in the state tournament, the Raiders won 5-4 in their final at bat, this time needing two extra innings to prevail. Freshman shortstop Trey Lyerly drove in Vincent Canavan with the winning run in the bottom of the ninth, after Canavan walked to leadoff the inning and stole second to get into scoring position. You can read the full game story, complete with postgame audio from Lyerly and head coach Greg Sampson at the link.

The Raiders (25-3) will face third-seed Point Pleasant Beach (16-6) – a CJ1 finalist last year and the winners of three straight sectional titles before that – Wednesday in the semifinals, back at home.

(5) Shore 4, (4) Metuchen 0: The Bulldogs’ season ends at 19-8, as the Blue Devils managed five hits and four runs (three earned) off starter James Fenton in his six innings of work, getting two runs in the second and adding two more in the fifth for insurance. Metuchen managed just four hits off Blue Devils’ (19-8) starter Ryan Barham, who struck out seven and walked just one.

  • (1) Middlesex def. (8) South Hunterdon, 11-1 (6 inn.)
  • (5) Shore def. (4) Metuchen, 4-0
  • (3) Point Pleasant Beach def. (11) Florence, 11-1 (5 inn.)
  • (2) Piscataway Magnet def. (10) Delaware Valley, 5-4 (9 inn.)

NORTH JERSEY, SECTION 2, GROUP 4

(1) Ridge 10, (8) Phillipsburg 0 (6 inn.): The Red Devils (17-0) jumped on Phillipsburg (14-10) with four runs in the bottom of the first, then walked it off with three in the bottom of the sixth to end the game by mercy rule.

Lucas Grob and Jake Dolan stroked back-to-back one-out singles in the first, and another by Casey Kucerka got Ridge all the runs they turned out to need. After a walk to Casey Kucerka, Dimitri Romer singled score two, and Aiden Kerrigan hit a sac fly to right to make it 4-0.

Kucerka drove in three runs for Ridge, while Grob and Dolan each had two RBIs. Romer went all six innings for the win, striking out five, scattering just three hits to improve to 5-2 on the season.

The Red Devils will meet Skyland Delaware foe and five-seed Bridgewater-Raritan (13-16) in the semifinals – a game you can hear live on Central Jersey Sports Radio – next Wednesday at 4 pm. The teams split their two game set this year, both winning by 4-3 scores.

Click here to hear Ridge head coach Tom Blackwell talk about the Red Devils’ state playoff win over Phillipsburg with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko.

(5) Bridgewater-Raritan 10, (4) JP Stevens 0 (5 inn.): The Panthers (13-6) have now won four of their last six after a mercy-rule win over the Hawks, their second by the run rule in two state tournament games. Nico Moore got the win, allowing just four hits in his five innings of work. Read Alec Crouthamel’s game story, and hear postgame reaction from Nico Moore, Michael Lobosco and head coach Max Newill at the link.

The Panthers will visit top-seed Ridge Wendesday at 4 pm in the semifinals, in a game you can hear live on Central Jersey Sports Radio. Ridge and Bridgewater split their two game set this year, each winning by a 4-3 score.

(3) Watchung Hills 8, (6) Westfield 6: The Hustlin’ Warriors hung on for dear life in this one, nearly seeing an 8-1 lead after five innings slip away.

Westfield led 1-0, opening the scoring in the top of the fourth on an RBI single by Andrew Lisnok, but Watchung Hills took the lead in the bottom of the inning. After a walk and hit batsman to lead off the inning, pinch-hitter David Begarney singled to tie the game. Brody Girffith stole home for the second run, and Jacob Jaconski makde it 4-0 with a line drive single to left.

Then, it was a five-spot in the fifth. Max Payne led off, reaching on an error on the shortstop, Landon Pudlak Walked, and Griffith reached on a bunt down the third-base line. After BRady Simo popped out – with the infield fly in effect – Bennett Dealaman reached on a fielder’s choice to make it 5-0 Warriors. A walk to pinch-hitter Lucas Ricci loaded the bases again, and a Jaconski walk scored the sixth run.After another fielder’s choice, this one by Stef DeGeronimo, Rob Centamore singled to drive in two, giving Watchung Hills what looked like a commanding lead.

But, Westfield would chip away. They got a two in the top of the sixth on and RBI single by Jack Doherty and a two-RBI double by Liam Sullivan to make it 8-4. And they came back for more in the seventh. After a leadoff error, a groundout, another error and a walk, Max Payne came in for Hills and walked Doherty to make ti 8-3, then gave up a single to Alex Lawrence to score two and make it 8-5. All that came with one out, but Payne then induced a pop up for the second out, and fanned Owen O’Connor on strike three swinging to end the game.

The Warriors will travel up to second-seed Bayonne (21-8) to play the Bees in the semifinals next Wednesday afternoon.

(2) Bayonne 3, (10) Woodbridge 1: The Barrons’ season ends at 16-11, dropping a pitchers’ duel in Hudson County Friday afternoon in which Woodbridge actually outhit their hosts, 5-3. The Bees opened the scoring in the first on a groundout by Cody Guthrie, and Woodbridge tied it in the fifth with a double by Hogan Boyd. But Bayone got two to go ahead for good in the bottom of the inning, one on an error on a grounder to Gavin Slicner off the bat of Brayden O’Connor, and another on a sac fly to center by Carmelo Isler.

  • (1) Ridge def. (8) Phillipsburg, 10-0
  • (5) Bridgewater-Raritan def. (4) JP Stevens, 10-0 (6 inn.)
  • (3) Watchung Hills def. (6) Westfield, 8-6
  • (2) Bayonne def. (10) Woodbridge, 3-1

NORTH JERSEY, SECTION 2, GROUP 3

(4) South Plainfield 7, (5) North Plainfield 0: Andrew Bena – the second half of a formidable 1-2 starting pitcher punch for the Tigers (16-11) was outstanding, allowing just four hits while striking out ten in a six-inning effort. Jayden Jiminez closed it out.

South Plainfield got on the board with four runs in the bottom of the second. Andrew Cicenia and Ed Bundzinski opened with back-to-back singles, and after a strikeout, Andrew Burns walked, and Joe Stanzione cleared the bases with a double to make it 3-0. Stanzione scored after a second strikeout when Aiden McCarthy hit the ball to second and reached on an error.

The defending North 2, Group 3 champion Tigers – who added another run in the fourth and two more int he sixth for insurance – move on to play at top-seed Chatham (20-6) Wednesday in the sectional semifinals.

Click here to listen to South Plainfield head coach Scott Gleichenhaus talk about the Tigers’ quarterfinal win over North Plainfield with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko.
  • (1) Chatham def. (9) Middletown North, 3-0
  • (4) South Plainfield def. (5) North Plainfield, 7-0
  • (3) Cranford def. (11) Summit, 17-7 (5)
  • (2) North Hunterdon def. (7) Millburn, 6-0

UPCOMING SCHEDULE:

Tuesday, June 3 (all games 4 pm unless otherwise noted)

Non-Public North B Semifinals

  • (5) Morristown Beard at (1) St. Mary-Rutherford
  • (3) St. Thomas Aquinas at (2) Rutgers Prep, 4:30 pm (LIVE on CJSR)

Non-Public South A Semifinals

  • (5) Christian Brothers Academy at (1) Immaculata (at Diamond Nation, Flemington) (Follow Sean Newcomb on Twitter for updates)
  • (3) Red Bank Catholic at (2) St. Augustine

Wednesday, June 4 (game times TBA)

Central Jersey Group 4 Semifinals

  • (4) Hightstown at (1) Old Bridge
  • (7) Jackson Twp. at (3) Hunterdon Central

Central Jersey Group 1 Semifinals

  • (5) Shore at (1) Middlesex
  • (3) Point Pleasant Beach at (2) Piscataway Magnet

North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4 Semifinals

  • (5) Bridgewater-Raritan at (1) Ridge
  • (3) Watchung Hills at (2) Bayonne

North Jersey, Section 2 Semifinals

  • (4) South Plainfield at (1) Chatham
  • (3) Cranford at (2) North Hunterdon

Thursday, June 5: Non-Public Sectional Finals (at higher seeds)

Friday, June 6: Public Sectional Finals (at higher seeds)

by Mike Pavlichko

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

by Mike Pavlichko

Old Bridge, Monroe and GMC stuck between turf and a rainy place on Jim Muldowney Championship; how did others handle it?

Sometimes, despite all the best planning and intentions, things just don’t work out.

All was right with the world when the Greater Middlesex Conference announced just a week ago that its baseball and softball tournament championship games would be held at Rutgers University, following in the footsteps of the NJSIAA, which announced in early January that the state baseball finals would be held at Bainton Field on RU’s Livingston Campus in Piscataway.

A week later, it may have just been too good to be true. But it’s not the GMC’s fault, or Rutgers.

Blame Mother Nature. As we know from this season, she can be fickle.

Big picture, many more people will have their Memorial Day Weekend plans ruined by the rain expected to come down this weekend.

But as far as high school sports in Central Jersey, he first victim was the GMC Softball final, scheduled to be held at Rutgers Wednesday evening. Thunderstorms in the forecast moved that game to Friday at 7 pm, but had to move it to a different venue.

Now, it’ll be Sayreville and St. Thomas Aquinas playing for the trophy at East Brunswick High School. That game will air live on the King James Radio Network with veteran broadcaster Korbid Thompson on the call.

The Somerset County Tournament baseball final also was scheduled for Wednesday at 6 pm at TD Bank Park in Bridgewater, but that was moved as well, to Friday at 4 pm, at the same location. You can hear that game live on Central Jersey Sports Radio, and also watch it on our YouTube channel, with coverage beginning at 3:40 pm.

The good news on both of those is, none of it will really have a huge impact on the state tournament – which begins next week – for the teams involved. Softball has no pitch count restrictions.

And while baseball does, anyone who needs four days’ rest for Immaculata will get it because the top-seeded Spartans will get five days off between the SCT final and their first game in the states, in the South A quarterfinals against either eight-seed Paul VI or nine-seed Donovan Catholic. And their SCT opponent, Watchung Hills, will open next Wednesday in the first round against 14-seed Elizabeth, giving them four days’ rest. That means everyone’s pitch count should reset to zero.

But for Old Bridge and Monroe, who are in the Jim Muldowney GMC Tournament title game, it’s a different story.

Initially, the plan was as it had always been: the semifinals and finals on back-to-back Saturdays at East Brunswick Magnet’s Ray Cipperly Field, a great natural grass surface that would make some minor league baseball teams jealous. (The late Ray Cipperly, the school’s one-time baseball coach and AD, created that field, and later became the Somerset Patriots’ first groundskeeper.) The rain date was to be Sunday, as always.

Then came the news last week that Rutgers would be hosting the baseball final, same day as previously scheduled, same time.

And as of Thursday evening, that game is still on. The GMC is going to wait as long as it can, we’re told, even until Saturday morning, before making a call on postponing it, which is the right call. If you can get it in Saturday, go for it. MAybe they can move it a bit earlier? Currently, the best chance looks like between noon and 4 pm.

The problem is, Sunday’s weather looks even worse. Rutgers has told the GMC Bainton Field wouldn’t be available Sunday. But even if the GMC hadn’t gone there, East Brunswick Magnet would still be soaked from all the rain to play a game there Sunday. Having it at another high school site on Memorial Day weekend, when everyone is away, would just be impossible from a logistics standpoint.

And don’t even think about moving it to the actual holiday on Monday, which may be the only decent day of the three-day weekend.

So, the GMC – if it reschedules – would move the finals to Saturday, May 30, which happens to be smack dab in the middle of the state sectionals, with Friday, May 29th – the day before – being the quarterfinal round, and Wednesday, June 3rd being the sectional semifinals.

But that’s going to leave both teams figuring out what to do with their pitching. Assuming the two starters this weekend would be Brady Meyer for the third-seeded Knights and Ben Faigin for the ninth-seeded Falcons, they will have to choose between starting them when they want in the state tournament – typically, but not always, top pitchers start in the second round, to line them up for a potential title game – or starting them in the GMC Tournament final, if indeed it gets moved to a week later.

It’s not an enviable position to be in, but it’s not without precedent. In fact, through 2018, that’s the way the tournament was set up, with the finals on a weekend during a break in state tournament play. The GMC went to the current format, moving everything a week later, in 2019, with the goal of ensuring divisional play could get wrapped up before the seeding meeting.

In 2018, South Plainfield – then led by head coach Anthony Guida – was a 14-seed and played in the first round of the GMC Tournament on Monday, May 14, then the quarters on Thursday, May 17, and the semifinals on Sunday, May 20. But the state tournament was scheduled to start on Monday, May 21. The Tigers beat AL Johnson in the first round of Central Jersey Group 2, then had a very good Governor Livingston team coming up – on the road – in the quarterfinals.

“I was talking to my pitching coach, Mike Battista,” Guida told Central Jersey Sports Radio Thursday night, “and he said ‘We have five more games in the state if we went all the way to the final, but we have one more game to win to be [GMC] Champions.”

But Guida added he had three legitimate starters that year, so it wasn’t that big an issue. “We knew that we wanted to put our best, Chris Shine, on the mound in the county final, knowing Amboy had two studs on the mound, too.”

“We made the decision to go for the county tournament win,” Guida said.

South Plainfield would fall on Thursday to the Highlanders in the quarterfinals, 11-2, before coming back Saturday – just two days later – to beat 12-seed Perth Amboy, 2-1 in 12 innings, to claim their first – and only – GMC Tournament title to date. Shine went 8 2/3 innings and scattered nine hits, allowing one earned run, with Billy Keane closing it out with 3 1/3 shutout innings.

The Panthers were in a similar boat, getting knocked out in the same round of the North 2, Group 4 section by Bayonne, 8-0, before falling to South Plainfield in the final.

Even three years later, St. Joseph-Metuchen was in a similar situation due to weather. The semifinals of the GMCT got moved to Monday, May 31, and the finals a week later to Sunday, June 6. The NJSIAA fifth-seeded Falcons had to open the state tournament on Friday, June 4 against fourth-seed Red Bank Catholic. But head coach Mike Murray says they “punted on RBC” figuring they had a better chance to win the county tournament, and saved their ace Andrew Goldan for the GMC final.

They would lose to the Caseys, 4-0, but the GMC second-seeded Falcons were 2-0 winners over five-seed South Brunswick, and the gamble paid off.

What’s interesting to note this year is that Monroe is a five-seed and Old Bridge the top-seed in Central Jersey Group 4, meaning they’re in the same half of the 16-team bracket. If they can both get past the first two rounds, they’ll play each other in the semifinals, and that would at least put them back on equal footing, pitching-wise. That is, if both coaches are thinking in a similar fashion.

Say the top starter for each team goes Wednesday in the CJ4 opening round, they could go up to 69 pitches and still be able to come back Saturday for the GMC final, and have 81 left in the tank. That could work. They’d also have three days off until the sectional semis, and could throw another 69 pitches then.

If the top-starter goes Friday in the state sectional quarters, they likely would have not pitched Wednesday either, although they could throw a maximum 49 pitches Wednesday, perhaps in relief, then have 101 for Saturday, but they’d be limited to 49 again the following Wednesday in the CJ4 semis, and wouldn’t be able to go in the county final.

Both teams have a legitimate shot at a state title, but to go back to Guida’s thinking, they still have to win three games to even get a crack at it, and nothing is a sure thing. What is a sure thing is that both teams can win a title with one win in the GMC final, whether it’s this Saturday or next.

Ultimately, Matt Donaghue of Old Bridge and Monroe’s Sean Field could have some tough decisions to make.

by Mike Pavlichko

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

by Mike Pavlichko

INSTANT REPLAY – GMC Tournament Semifinals: (9) Monroe 1, (5) South Plainfield 0

Catcher Justin Mangano drove in the lone run of the game, while Ben Faigin threw a complete game, one-hitter, striking out 13 in a 1-0 win for ninth-seed Monroe over fifth-seed South Plainfield in the Jim Muldowney GMC Tournament Semifinals. It’ll be Monroe’s first time in the GMC title game since 2017.

READ THE FULL GAME STORY HERE!

Click below to watch the full game as Mike Pavlichko and Justin Sontupe call all the play-by-play live from Ray Cipperly Field in East Brunswick on May 16, 2026.

by Mike Pavlichko

Faigin’s one-hit gem, Mangano’s double in 7th send Monroe past South Plainfield in GMCT semifinals

When the last swing-and-a-miss on Monroe starting pitcher Ben Faigin’s 13th strikeout Saturday ended the GMC Tournament’s first semifinial of the day, he threw his glove up in the air, partying like it was 2017, or maybe 2015.

2015 was the last time the Falcons won the GMC Tournament , and 2017 was the last time they made it to the title game.

Now, they’re back in it, and will play next Saturday at 2 pm in the GMC’s Jim Muldowney Tournament final at Rutgers’ Bainton Field in Piscataway against the winner of today’s second semifinal between two-seed Middlesex and third-seed Old Bridge.

And the win was not just thanks to Faigin, but also to his catcher James Mangano, who besides calling and backstopping a fantastic game for his senior, Rutgers-bound starter, delivered a two-out double in the top of the seventh inning to drive in center fielder Tyler Bacon, who’d reached on a one-out single.

A pitchers’ duel all the way, Faigin and South Plainfield’s Aiden McCarthy were cruising, even though McCarthy nearly gave Monroe a lead in the top of the first. Mangano led off with a second-pitch single, and McCarthy walked – maybe pitched around? – Fagin, hitting .522 enteritng the game. But he got a strikeout, pop out and fly out to end the inning, the biggest threat by either team until the seventh.

And after Monroe took the 1-0 lead, South Plainfield still had a chance in its final at bat, with Faigin only having 15 pitches to work with before hitting the 110 limit. With two out, Anhtony CIcenia walked, bringing up freshman second baseman Gabe Garcia.

He worked a 3-2 count, and during that, Cicenia stole second on a pitch that went to the backstop, but came quickly back to Mangano. Cicenia beat the throw, overslid the base, but it was ruiled he got back in time to avoid another tag.

But Faigin bore down and got the strikeout, sending Monroe to the GMC title game.

Click below to hear postgame reaction from Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Justin Sontupe with Monroe’s Ben Faigin, Justin Mangano, and head coach Sean Fiels, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen:

by Mike Pavlichko

Battle-tested GMC Red foes South Plainfield, Monroe set to go in first GMCT semifinal Saturday

It’s almost like the standings don’t matter.

Sure, we hear that all the time, but the GMC Red Division is a gauntlet, and just about any team could come out of there and win the GMC Tournament. That’s the general consensus.

And at least one of these teams will have a crack at it, as fifth-seed South Plainfield and ninth-seed Monroe will do battle Saturday in the first of two semifinals in the Jim Muldowney GMC Tournament at East Brunswick Magnet School.

Central Jersey Sports Radio will have live coverage, followed by Middlesex and Old Bridge in the second game at 2:30 pm.

Mike Pavlichko and Justin Sontupe will call all the play-by-play; click here to listen or watch here on our YouTube channel.

Here’s a closer look at the first semifinal game of the day:

(5) South Plainfield (13-10) vs. (9) Monroe (11-12)
at East Brunswick Magnet School
12 noon on Central Jersey Sports Radio
Audio Stream: (LISTEN LIVE)
Video Stream: (WATCH LIVE)

PROBABLE PITCHERS:
South Plainfield: Aiden McCarthy (6-1, 2.67 ERA)
Monroe: Ben Faigin (5-1, 1.55 ERA)

PREVIEW STORIES:

HOW THEY GOT HERE:

South Plainfield: The Tigers have had a series of streaks this season. They won two, lost three, won three, lost two, won two, and so on. But the only streak that mattes now is the two straight they’ve won coming into Saturday’s game, both in the GMC Tournament. In Monday’s first round, they Ninth-seed Monroe seeks its highest point of rollercoaster season, trip to title game in GMC Tourney semifinals, picking up a 2-1 victory. In the quarterfinals on Wednesday, they won another squeaker, 7-6 over Metuchen, getting out of a first-and-third two-out jam in the bottom of the seventh with a 1-6-3-4-5 pickoff of the potential tying baserunner on third.

Monroe: The Falcons have been on a bit of a rollercoaster, too, and came into the GMC Tournament having lost eight of their last nine games. But they’ve been hot in the county event, scoring nine runs in both games, and allowing only three runs total. First, they knocked off eight-seed Colonia 9-2 on Monday in the first round, then bounced top-seed Edison 9-1 in the quarterfinals on Wednesday.

TOP HITTERS:

South Plainfield: The Tigers’ all-time hits leader, Dom Massaro – with 150 over four seasons – almost can’t get out. He’s hitting a whopping .571 this season with 25 runs batted in, and leads the team in those categories, as well as hits (48), doubles (17) and stolen bases (19). But others like Andrew Bena and Aiden McCarthy – who’ll be on the mound Saturday, can hit as well. McCarthy is batting .315 with 22 RBIs and two home runs. (Massaro has a pair, as well.)

Monroe: The Falcons’ starting pitcher is tearing the cover off the ball as well, hitting .522 with 16 runs batted in and two homers. That’s Ben Faigin, while his battery mate, senior catcher Justin Mangano, is hitting .387 with nine runs batted in. Their llineip is a little more top heavy than the Tigers. Faigin also leads the team in stolen bases with 20, and they’ve swiped 49 this year, more than any of the other three teams vying for a trip to the finals this weekend.

LAST FINALS BERTH:

South Plainfield: The Tigers were in the finals two years ago as the top-seed, but lost to third-seed Old Bridge, 6-5. We could see that matchup again, with the Knights taking on Middlesex in the second semifinal Saturday afternoon. South Plainfield has been to six finals, but won their only one in 2018 as the 14th-seed, topping 12-seed Perth Amboy 2-1 in 12 innings. They’ve also had finals appearances in 2014, 2011, 1991, and 1990, and are 5-1 in GMC title games.

Monroe: The Falcons last made the GMC Finals in 2017, when they were the sixth-seed and lost to top-seed St. Joseph-Metuchen, 1-0. Two years prior they won their first trophy as the second, seed, blanking eight-seed Sayreville, 1-0, in eight innings. At 1-3 in finals, they also reached the title game in 2013 and 1994

PAST COVERAGE:

South Plainfield

Monroe

by justinsontupe

Ninth-seed Monroe seeks its highest point of rollercoaster season, trip to title game in GMC Tourney semifinals

Are the ninth-seeded Monroe Falcons, at 11-12 and a win away from a trip to the county title game a Cinderella?

It’s tough to say.

The lows have been low: losses in eight of nine entering the Jim Muldowney GMC Championship Tournament. But the highs have been very high: a 5-1 start and a mid-April upset win over perennial state power Red Bank Catholic. To date, it’s the only victory by a GMC team over a club currently ranked in the state Top 20 all season long.

“I told the guys we’ve just got to stay consistent,” said Monroe head coach Sean Field. “We’re built for the playoffs. The games that we’ve lost, we’ve been right in them right till the very end. Once the playoffs come, we’ve got to start playing our best baseball, and that’s what we’ve been doing.”

The Falcons took down 8th-seeded Colonia, 9-2, in the tournament’s first round on Monday. Ben Faigin, who is penciled in as Monroe’s semifinal starter, struck out 13 batters in a complete game effort.

Monroe followed that by taking care of top-seeded Edison, 9-1, in the quarterfinals on Wednesday. Faigin launched a two-run home run and Andre Love struck out 11 Eagles in a complete game of his own.

Senior catcher Justin Mangano has been the catalyst at the top of the lineup. He has 6 hits and 3 RBIs over the two GMC tournament games.

In what has been a season of ups and downs, the Falcons find themselves in position to do something the school hasn’t done since 2017: play in a GMC final. South Plainfield (13-10) – which has already beaten Monroe twice this season – stands in the way at East Brunswick Magnet School on Saturday afternoon.

First pitch is set for 12:00 and coverage begins on Central Jersey Sports Radio at 11:40 with Mike Pavlichko and Justin Sontupe on the call.  That’s the first of a doubleheader, with the second game featuring second-seed Middlesex and third-seed Old Bridge. Both games can be heard live by clicking this link, and can also be seen here, with a video stream on our YouTube channel.

Click below to hear Monroe head coach Sean Field with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Justin Sontupe: