Tag: Tom Blackwell

by Mike Pavlichko

Very familiar foes, Ridge and Bridgewater-Raritan, to square off in North 2, Group 4 semis

Surely it’s happened somewhere else around New Jersey, or maybe not, but few teams have probably seen more of each other on a baseball diamond the last five years than Ridge and Bridgewater-Raritan.

Being in the same division, they play twice a year already, but then they’ll also could meet in the Somerset County Tournament, or the NJSIAA state tournament. That happened in 2022.

In fact, since the COVID interruption to high school baseball in 2020, the Red Devils and Panthers have met 14 times. Besides the usual Skyland Conference Delaware Division home-and-home, they met three times in 2021 (including a sectional quarterfinal), three times last season (the third in the SCT final) and four times in 2022 – two regular season games, an SCT semifinal, and a North 2, Group 4 quarterfinal – with all four won by Ridge.

Overall in that span? It’s seven wins apiece. Even Steven.

And that’s just about what it’s been like this year. Ridge won their April 15th game 12-0, but Bridgewater won the rematch, 9-5.

The third game will be Thursday afternoon – now moved to the turf at Diamond Nation in Flemington after yesterday’s rains in Basking Ridg – as the top-seeded Red Devils (18-5) will take on the ninth-seeded and defending state Group 4 champion Panthers (7-17) at 4 pm in the North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4 quarterfinals. You can her that game on Central Jersey Sports Radio, with Mike Pavlichko on the call. Pregame is set for 3:45; click here to listen.

Ridge has had a fine year, with two of its five losses coming to Immaculata, and one more each to the Panthers, Hunterdon Central – also a No. 1 seed in the states, in Central Group 4 – and Seton Hall Prep, a 1-0 rain-shortened five-inning loss where it would have been fun to see what the Red Devils could do with their final six outs, if given the chance.

Bridgewater-Raritan has struggled, coming in ten games below .500, but with a slew of injuries that compounded graduation losses. All were critical parts of last year’s squad. Owen Crimmins (shoulder) and Nick Spirra (wrist) essentially are out, with Spirra at best unable to play offense. JR Rosado has been banged up all year, while Matt Cichocki (ACL) and Matthew Lehberger (left hand) are hurt, but playing.

And yet, the Panthers have been very much in games, and could be a scary nine-seed in this bracket. Ten of their 17 losses have come by two runs or fewer, six by a single run. Only four times have they lost by four or more runs.

Ace Aidan Stieglitz (7-3, 0.98 ERA) will get the start for Ridge; he went 6 2/3 and allowed just one hit, striking out 14 in their win over the Panthers. Bridgewater will throw Jack Lanum (2-3, 2.88 ERA). He threw six innings in their win over the Red Devils and got the win.

Click below to hear Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko preview the game with both head coaches:

Ridge head coach Tom Blackwell
Bridgewater-Raritan head coach Max Newill
by Mike Pavlichko

Three home runs help Ridge walk off Rutgers Prep, 11-0, in SCT semifinals; will face Immaculata for the title Wednesday night

The runs came in waves for the Red Devils.

After a run in the first, top-seeded Ridge put together a five-run second, fueled by a three-run homer by Jake Dolan, his third of the year. Then it was a five-run fifth, capped by a two-run homer by pinch-hitter Bode Ganny – his first – that ended the game, giving the Red Devils an 11-0 win heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio, presented by Zoned Sports Academy of Bridgewater.

That puts Ridge back in the Somerset County finals for the fifth straight season, where they will meet Immaculata Wednesday night at six back at TD Bank Park. Immaculata was a 1-0 winner over 11-seed Franklin in the day’s first semifinal, behind a no-hitter from Ryan Auten.

The Spartans are in the finals for the first time since 2019, when they won the second of back-to-back titles in 2018 and 2019. They beat Ridge that year, and this will be their sixth all-time meeting in the finals.

Ridge got on the board in the first, when Ryan Luo led off with a double. He went to second on a wild pitch and came in on a sac fly by Quinn Dashefsky.

In the second, after a leadoff strikeout of Sawyer Paul, Nicholson doubled, but was caught stealing third. Dan Rafanello singled, and Matt Bober walked. Then Luo popped one up in the infield that was dropped, scoring a run, and Dolan hit a three-run shot to left field to make it 5-0. After Kieran Callanan was hit by a pitch, and a stolen base, a single by Dashefsky made it 6-0.

Ridge starter Aidan Stieglitz was cruising, and Rutgers Prep starter Peter Wheeler started to settle in, throwing scoreless frames in the third and fourth.

But the wheels came off in the fifth. Callanan walked to lead off the inning. Dashefsky singled and reached second when Callanan beat a throw home to make it 7-0. That was the end of Wheeler’s day, byt Ryan Takacs didn’t fare much better. He was greeted by two-run homer by Kucerka to make it 9-0, and after Sawyer Paul reached on an E6, Ganny’s two-run blast to left ended it.

Aidan Steiglitz went four innings, allowing juts two hits, striking out six; he got the win to improve to 7-2 for Ridge. The loss went to Prep’s Wheeler, who’s now 4-2.

Click below for postgame reaction with Aidan Steiglitz, Jake Dolan and Ridge head coach Tom Blackwell, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen:

by Mike Pavlichko

No. 1 Ridge tops Rutgers Prep, 8-6, in a game with a little of everything, goes 2-0 Saturday

It wasn’t always pretty, but sometimes, when you’re one of the top teams in the area, you take the W and move on.

That’s what top-ranked Ridge did Saturday afternoon in an 8-6 win over Rutgers Prep – heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio – giving the Red Devils a pair of wins on the afternoon following an 8-4 win at Pingry earlier in the day.

Sophomore Casey Kucerka drove in four of his team’s eight runs, two with a single in the third and another two on a double in the fifth.

Rutgers Prep struck first, taking a 1-0 lead ion the third on an RBI single by Li Perez, the Argonauts’ starting pitcher. He knocked in Matt Bilmes, who’d reached on an error.

Ridge came back with a vengeance on Perez in the bottom of the inning. Sawyer Paul got hit to lead it off, then Matt Bober singled. After a pop up to second by Jake Dolan, Kieran Callanan walked to load the bases. That’s when Quinn Dashefsky made it 2-0 with single. And after Bode Ganny popped up foul to the first baseman, Kucerka singled to drive in his first two runs and make it 4-0.

The Argonauts answered back with three in the third. Mason Cimini worked out a one-out walk, then Micah Kruger-Serrano singled, and Jake Treonze walked to load the bases. That was the end of Ridge starter Connor McLachlan’s day. But reliever Andy Yuan allowed Okasha Asrar to reach on a fielder’s choice to score a run, while a bad pickoff move allowed a second run to score.

A walk to leadoff hitter Matt Bilmes signaled the end of Yuan’s day, with Kucerka coming in to pitch. And Alex Perez, the first batter he faced, hit one to short that Callanan threw short to first. On that error, Perez reached, but the first baseman Ganny threw across the diamond to try to get Asrar at third, but he threw it away as well, allowing Asrar to score and tie the game at 4-4.

Both teams got two runs in the fifth. Prep went ahead 6-4 on a two-RBI single by Asrar – the nine-hitter who finished the game with three runs batted in – and Ridge to two on an double by Kurcerka, making it 6-6 after five.

That’s when Ridge closer Jake Dolan came in and gave his team a chance to win, but not without a touchy moment in the fifth. He struck out his first batter, Alex Perez, but then gave up an infield hit to Li Perez and walked Ethan Nepomuceno and Maddox Chu. But with the bases loaded, he got Cimini swinging and Kruger-Serrano looking to get out of the jam.

The Red Devils got two to go ahead in the bottom of the sixth. Toby Nicholson led off with a single, then after a flyout by Paul, Matt Bober walked and Jake Dolan got an infield hit off the field umpire, driving in Nicholson. After a walk to Callanan, a sac fly to right by Dashefsky made it 8-6.

In the top of the seventh, Dolan faced a little less drama, but was just as dominant. He threw a 1-2-3 inning, striking out the side to win the game. In the end, he got the win, his first decision of the year, with all six outs he recorded coming via the strikeout.

Anuj Bandireddy took the loss for Rutgers Prep (6-4) to fall to 0-2.

Ridge improved to 8-2 with the win.

Click below to hear from Ridge sophomore Casey Kucerka and head coach Tom Blackwell:

by Mike Pavlichko

Crossover battle in Basking Ridge Saturday as No. 1 Red Devils entertain Rutgers Prep

The Ridge baseball team is No. 1 in the Bellamy & Son Paving Top Ten this week. Rutgers Prep is unranked, but after two wins this week to up their record to 6-3, they very well could be next week.

A win Saturday afternoon would go a long way to putting them back in the rankings.

Ridge will have a lot to say about that, however.

The two will meet Saturday afternoon at 2:30 in Basking Ridge in a game you can hear on Central Jersey Sports Radio, with a lot on the line. Most importantly, it’s a big crossover that could heavily influence the county seeding meeting, which happens Monday, May 5th.

Mike Pavlichko and Dylan Allen will bring you all the action, with pregame starting at 2:15. Click here to listen.

Ridge is 5-2 on the young season, and split this week with Bridgewater-Raritan, the defending Somerset County Tournament and state Group 4 champs, who have struggled early. The Red Devils beat them 12-0 Tuesday, then fell 9-5 at home Thursday.

Jake Dolan has been a beat at the plate. The junior is hitting .640 and leads the team with nine runs batted in, with one home run. Aidan Steiglitz has the other. He’s been outstanding on the mound, allowing one hit through 6 2/3 innings in Tuesday’s win over the Panthers, striking out 14.

Senior Connor McLauughlin will get the nod Saturday. He’s 2-0, with his only start coming against Montgomery, an 11-2 win back on April 5th. He struck out five and walked four, but allowed no hits in four shutout innings. He also threw a third of an inning against Bridgewater Tuesday, after Stieglitz hit his 110-pitch limit.

Ridge, by the way, will be “playing two” Saturday, as the Red Devils play an 11 am game against Pingry in nearby Martinsville before facing the Argonauts at 2:30.

Rutgers Prep also can hit the ball, and score runs, too. In their six wins, they’ve scored 11 or more runs five times. The scary part? Only one regular hits over .400, senior Cody Rullo, who’s 14-for-28 in the first nine games, with nine runs batted in. Only one regular is hitting under .300, and that’s junior Matt Bilmes, hitting a very respectable .290, meaning the Argonauts are balanced.

And then there’s the pitching. Li Perez will make his fourth start of the season. He’s 2-1, and has struck out at least ten batters in all three starts.

In the season opener at Manville on March 29th, he threw a five-inning no-hitter Prep won 10-0, striking out ten. At Bernards on April 3rd, he struck out 13 and allowed just one hit and one unearned run, taking the loss. In his last outing against Del Val on the tenth, he went the full seven, allowed one hit, no runs, and fanned 17.

Simple math says: 17 innings, two hits, one unearned run and 40 strikeouts.

Click below to hear pregame interviews with both head coaches ahead of Saturday’s game:

Ridge head coach Tom Blackwell
Rutgers Prep head coach Larry Santowasso
by Mike Pavlichko

Ridge gets key starter Stieglitz back from injury, looks primed for more tourney deep runs

A trip to the Somerset County Tournament finals wasn’t enough for the Ridge baseball team in 2024.

Of course, they want the title, like anyone does. They’ve been to the last four SCT championship games, with a win in 2022 over Rutgers Prep. But the Argonauts got them back the next year in a tight 1-0 game before the Red Devils fell to Bridgewater-Raritan last season.

The return of Aiden Stieglitz from an injury that limited him to just 16 innings over three games last season will be one of 2025’s big bright spots, and head coach Tom Blackwell feels good about his pitching staff heading into 2025.

Stieglitz had a tremendous sophomore year, throwing 31 1/3 innings, striking out 47 and walking just 17. In 14 career appearances, he has a 1.63 earned run average.

That will help a staff that lost seniors Ben Larner, Andrew Reynolds and others to graduation.

On the other hand, plenty of bats return from a 21-9 season in 2024, and Blackwell says they “plan on scoring some runs.” Among the top hitters returning are two sophomores who hit well last season, Kieran Callanan (.339, 18 RBIs) and Jake Dolan (.281, 15 RBI, 3 HR) as well as junior Quinn Dashefsky (.297).

Click below to hear Ridge coach Tom Blackwell talk about the upcoming season for the Red Devils with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko:

by Mike Pavlichko

Ridge seeks fourth straight trip to SCT finals, while Immaculata looks for first bid since ’19

It won’t be the same matchup in the Somerset County Tournament title game as the last two years, but the Ridge baseball team is looking for a fourth straight berth in the finals when the third-seeded Red Devils play second-seed Immaculata Monday in the semifinal round at TD Bank Park in Bridgewater.

Funny their opponent should be Immaculata, since they were the last team to make at least four finals in a row. The Spartans made five straight SCT finals from 2004 to 2008, winning four of them, capping a stretch where they won ten county crowns in a 12-year span from 1997 to 2008.

Monday’s semifinal will be part of a doubleheader you can hear on Central Jersey Sports Radio – presented by Zoned Sports Academy of Bridgewater – with Ridge-‘Lata followed by top-seed Bridgewater-Raritan taking on fourth-seed Watchung Hills at 4 pm. Mike Pavlichko, Don Savino and Vin Ebeneau will be on the call; click here to listen.

Ridge and Immaculata faced each other in the 2019 Somerset County Tournament final, the last before the COVID shutdown in 2020. Ridge lost that game 6-5 in an epic 12-inning affair. With no tournament in 2021 due to a short season, the Red Devils beat Rutgers Prep 6-0 in 2022’s title game, but lost to the Argonauts last year 1-0.

While a number of key players from last year’s team are gone, Ridge is having another fine season. The Red Devils are 18-7, not the dominant team they were last year at 25-4, but still very solid. And they’re playing some of their best baseball right now, having won six straight.

In the quarterfinals on Thursday, they topped six-seed Hillsborough 12-7 behind three home runs, as Ezra Sadowski, Ben Larner and Jake Dolan all went yard. Sadowski has been a big bopper all year long, hitting .339 with 26 runs batted in, with four home runs. All of those lead the team. Dolan – just a sophomore – is hitting .307 with 10 RBIs and two homers.

On the mound, Ridge is expected to go with Larner, who’s 7-2 with a 1.83 ERA. He’s a strikeout pitcher, fanning 32, while walking just 11. He threw 50 pitches in 3 1/3 innings against Hillsborough, getting the start in that game. That means he’ll have 100 left in the tank – ten shy of the single-game maximum – for Monday’s game.

Click below to hear Vin Ebenau talk with Ridge head coach Tom Blackwell:

On the Immaculata side, the Spartans are 14-6, and got off to a hot start this year, winning nine straight before falling 11-5 at Watchung Hills on April 23rd. That was the first of three straight defeats, with losses to Montgomery and at Phillipsburg following.

But they got back on the winning track, taking three straight against Somerville, Franklin and Rutgers Prep – all on the road, mind you – and have won five of their last eight heading into Monday, including a 3-2 walk-off against Somerville in the quarterfinals.

Kevin Cust’s team is a mix of experience and youth. The experienced players are guys like seniors Troy Rabosky – leading the team in hitting at .434 with 24 RBIs – and Josh Thompson, who’s hitting .414 with 15 runs batted in. Junior’s Jayden Capindica (.328) and Jayson Labrador (.366, 11 RBI) also are third-year varsity players back from a very young team that made the state finals two years ago.

Connor Quinn is the likely starter for the Spartans, 1-0 with a 2.04 ERA. He’s only thrown 4 2/3 innings all year in relief, but some of that was circumstance, with guys like Thompson often going the distance early. But with him and Nick Bozzo on the shelf – after after missing a few weeks with wrist issues – he’s back in form, and Cust feels confident in the sophomore, but has plenty of relief options if he needs it.

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko talk with Immaculata head coach Kevin Cust:

by Mike Pavlichko

Sadowski homers, knocks in five, as Ridge outslugs Hillsborough in SCT quarters

In a game that saw four home runs and 11 pitchers get used, it turns out that Ridge got all the runs it needed to win in the first inning.

The third-seeded Red Devils sent 14 hitters to the plate in the bottom of the first, got home runs from Ezra Sadowski and starting pitcher Ben Larner, and scored eight runs in the inning. And when it was over, Ridge came away with a 12-7 win over a sixth-seed Hillsborough side that wouldn’t lay down in the Somerset County Tournament semifinals at Diamond Nation in Flemington, in a game heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio, presented by Zoned Sports Academy of Bridgewater.

After a 1-2-3 top of the first, the Ridge offense exploded in the first. Nick Selitti and Jake Dolan led off with walks, and Sadowski whacked a 2-2 pitch to left to make it 3-0. That chased Raider starter Jack McLaughlin.

With Brayden Fox in relief, he got a flyout, but then Quinn Dashefsky singled, and Larner smacked another home run to make it 5-0. Zach Kucerka reached on a single, and after a popup to short, two extra base hits brought in more. Andrew Reynolds doubled to make it 6-0, and a double by Selliti made it 7-0. After a Dolan walk, Sadowski picked up his fourth RBI of the inning with an RBI single. Rossi walked, and Aiden Cooper came on in relief to get Dashefsky to fly out and end the inning.

Cooper held Ridge in check for a while, retiring seven straight through the end of the third, giving ‘Boro a chance to make up some ground.

Max Romanok led off the fourth with a single, Logan Raghunath walked, and Andrew Advani reached on a fielder’s choice to put runners at the corners. Jake Battagliese then tripled to knock in two, and JJ Lotierzo scored him with a single to make it 8-3. Two batters later, Peter Cipparulo singled to cut the lead in half, 8-4.

But Ridge got two back in the bottom of the fourth on an RBI single by Kucerak, and a bases loaded walk drawn by Kieran Callanan to make it 10-4.

Each team got a run in the fifth. Loteirzo worked out a bases loaded walk for Hillsborough to cut it to 10-5, but Ridge got it right back on a solo home run by Jake Dolan to give the Red Devils an 11-7 advantage.

The Raiders got two more in the sixth after Cipparulo led off with a single and Alex Reiling hit a two-run homer to make it 12-7, but Ridge again answered, this time with a sac fly RBI to center by Sadowski – his 5th RBI of the game – to plate Reynolds, making it 12-7.

And just for good measure, Sadowski pitched a 1-2-3 seventh inning to end the game.

Ridge (17-7) moves on to Monday’s semifinals at TD Bank Park in Bridgewater, where they’ll play second seed Immaculata. The Spartans seven-seed Somerville, 3-2 in a walkoff, also at Diamond Nation.

The win for Ridge went to starter Ben Larner, who threw 3 1/3 innings, while McLaughlin took the loss. Hillsborough falls to 10-12 on the year.

Click below for postgame reaction presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen:

Ridge senior Ezra Sadowski (3-run HR, 5 RBI)
Ridge head coach Tom Blackwell
by Mike Pavlichko

Ridge, Hillsborough set to tussle in SCT quarters after two regular season nail-biters

Their first meeting was a 3-1 Ridge win. In their second, Hillsborough led 2-0 heading into the seventh before the Red Devils came alive and won 3-2.

The third time is always the most difficult.

But they will indeed play for a third time – ideally Thursday, weather permitting – in the quarterfinals of the Somerset County Tournament, in a game that can be heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio, presented by Zoned Sports Academy of Bridgewater.

Weather will be a factor throughout the weekend, but the teams want to get it in as early as they can with the SCT semifinals at TD Bank Park coming up next Monday.  With Ridge having a natural grass surface, the game has been moved from Basking Ridge to Field 3 at Diamond Nation in Flemington, but still with first pitch at 4 pm, with pregame set for 3:45. Mike Pavlichko will call all the action; click here to listen.

Third-seed Ridge (16-7) started the season just 1-5 but quickly rolled off seven straight wins, and comes into the Hillsborough game with a four-game winning streak.

The sixth-seeded Raiders beat 11-seed Pingry 2-1 in eight innings Monday in the second round of the SCT, but then lost 6-4 to South Brunswick on Tuesday. They have had an up-and-down season, quite literally: they’ve never lost more than two in a row (that happened twice) but they also haven’t won back-to-back games all season.

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko talk with both head coaches ahead of their SCT quarterfinal game Thursday:

Ridge head coach Tom Blackwell
Hillsborough head coach Matt Mosko
by Mike Pavlichko

Ridge has rebounded from rough start, challenges top-ranked Bridgewater-Raritan Tuesday

With a host of graduating seniors like Connor Byrne, Brendan Callanan, Aiden Stieglitz, Adam Meiner and others, making a third trip in as many years to the Somerset County Tournament Championship game wouldn’t be easy. And a 1-4 start could have had any other team packing it in.

But while the pitching was holding down the fort, the bats slowly, but surely, started to turn around. Ultimately, that has translated to the Red Devils winning nine of their next ten games, and after four weeks and a day of baseball, Ridge is 10-5, with the No. 7 ranking in the Week Four Bellamy & Son Paving Top Ten.

Perfect time for a rematch between Ridge and top-ranked Bridgewater-Raritan, which doubled up the Red Devils, 8-4, back on April 11th.

The two will meet again Tuesday afternoon in a game you can hear live on Central Jersey Sports Radio, as Mike Pavlichko brings you all the action live from Basking Ridge. Pregame is set for 3:30, with first pitch at 3:45 pm. Click here to listen.

As for the pitching, head coach Tom Blackwell will send out Andrew Reynolds for his third start of the year. He began the season in the bullpen after sitting out last year due to an arm injury. But he was a big part of “holding down the fort” earlier in the season.

He’s also been getting some big hits, when he’s not pitching, as have guys like corner infielders Zack Kucerka (1B) and Ben Larner (3B), while right fielder Ezra Sadowski continues to hit well. “He completely carried us offensively early in the season,” says Blackwell.

Click below to hear Ridge head coach Tom Blackwell talk about the Red Devils’ turnaround, and Tuesday’s matchup with top-ranked Bridgewater-Raritan:

by Mike Pavlichko

Ridge baseball looking for answers for first time in a while, but Red Devils still expect to compete for SCT, state titles

Players may be come and go, but one thing remains consistent for Ridge baseball, year after year: they expect to win.

And while that may be more of a challenge this year, don’t count the Red Devils out.

If we’re being honest, they lose a ton of talent from last year’s team that reached the Somerset County Tournament final, and were a favorite to win North 2, Group 4 until a pitch count violation got them booted from the state playoffs.

Head coach Tom Blackwell will have some serious holes to fill, losing outstanding pitchers like Connor Byrne, Brendan Callanan and Luke Somelofske, who combined for over 130 innings pitched last year, all with ERAs ranging from Byrne’s 0.72 to Somelofske’s 1.71 on the “high” end. Aidan Stieglitz will become the go-to, at least until the next young star asserts himself. And even he was solid a year ago, throwing 31 1/3 innings, pitching to a 1.79 ERA, striking out 47 and walking just 17.

On offense, only two players return with more than 40 at bats last season, including catcher Nick Rossi, who hit a solid .373 with a home run and seven RBIs. Outfielder/pitcher Nick Selitti hit .242 last year with six runs batted in and a home run.

Click below to hear Ridge head coach Tom Blackwell preview the Red Devils’ 2024 season: