Tag: Zack Konstantinovsky

by Mike Pavlichko

Konstantivovsky – who does it all on the mound, at the plate and in the field – named CJSR Player of the Year for a second straight season

Yes, Zack Konstantinovsky is the Central Jersey Sports Radio Player of the Year.

Again.

The Rutgers-bound senior from North Brunswick picked up the award for a second straight year, and few in our coverage area could have any argument.

There are dominant pitchers and dominant hitters and some very good fielders in Middlesex and Somerset Counties, our main coverage area. But there are few who are so good at all three.

Scroll down below the interview for CJSR’s Player of the Year Honorable Mentions:

Zack’s pitching stats speak for themselves: In ten starts (plus one relief appearance of a single inning) he gave up eight runs all year, only five earned, and struck out 88, walking just nine, in 63 innings pitched. He averaged just 13.4 pitches per inning, making him immensely efficient.

Watching him pitch, work his craft, and dominate hitters is another thing.

Then, there’s the damage he can do at the plate: he hit .469 on the year, often DHing for himself so he could stay in the game in the rare occasion a reliever would have to be brought in. He scored 33 runs, rarely taken out for a courtesy runner. He hit eight home runs, tied for the team lead with fellow senior Omar Carreras.

Put another way, he hit three more home runs than he allowed earned runs this season.

But if there’s anything “Zack K” doesn’t get enough credit for is his defense. He’s a pitcher, no doubt about it, and Steve Owens will be getting a gem when he touches down a couple towns over in Piscataway next spring, perhaps the most highly-anticipated freshman pitcher to land on the Banks – at least locally – since Bobby Brownlie of Edison (though Harry Rutkowski of Woodbridge also was a stud).

But consider that Konstantinovsky also plays the field for North Brunswick when he’s not pitching, an excellent second baseman who contributes in all three phases of the game.

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko talk with North Brunswick’s Zack Konstantinovsky, the Central Jersey Sports Radio Baseball Player of the Year for 2023:

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

  • Connor Byrne, Ridge: As if having a 0.76 ERA for the season wasn’t enough, dominating hitters all year with 90 strikeouts in just 58 2/3 innings pitched – that’s 1.5 Ks per inning! – Byrne reached the pinnacle of success for a pitcher, throwing a perfect game against Bernards in the Somerset County Tournament quarterfinals. The Seina-bound senior is easily one of the top pitchers in the state, and the Saints are getting a steal.
  • Casey Cumiskey, Spotswood: The Seton Hall-bound Cumiskey single-handedly rewrote the Charger record books and beyond this season. His 60 hits – which led the entire state of new Jersey – set a GMC and school single season record. His 34 runs batted in are a single season Spotswood record, as was his eye-popping .556 batting average. The “The Commish” – as his coach and teammates call him – finished with a .520 career batting average, also a school record, and hit in 27 of 29 games this season. And he went out with a bang in the Central Jersey Group 2 finals loss to Rumson, hitting a two-run homer in his final at bat, and finishing a triple shy of a cycle.
  • Mark Gialluisi, St. Joseph-Metuchen: If there’s a hitter you don’t want to face on the Falcons, it’s Gialluisi, who hit .486 this year, and had 54 hits on the season, along with two home runs and 19 RBIs. But he’s more than that. He’s the quarterback of the team from his spot behind the plate, a steadying hand on a pitching staff that saw six different pitchers throw at least 15 innings this year. Gialluisi will continue his baseball career at Virginia.
  • Max Treonze, Rutgers Prep: His numbers were outstanding, allowing just a single earned run (four total) all year, in 41 innings pitched. He threw about two-thirds the innings of Konstantinovsky, but still had 77 strikeouts, walking only four, and pitched a gem when it counted most: against Ridge in the Somerset County Tournament final for a 1-0 win, and the championship. And he’s a gamer, too, helping pitch his team to the Non-Public North B finals just weeks after getting beaned in the nose with a 90 mile-an-hour fastball in the Prep B final against Pennington. Treonze is the only junior in the group, and is uncommitted at present.
by Mike Pavlichko

Final Four in CJ4 will throw big arms Tuesday in All-GMC Red sectional semifinals

There is perhaps the top pitcher in the state, who’s headed to Rutgers.

There’s another really excellent junior who’s headed to Oregon in a couple of years.

There’s a kid who’s his coach’s go-to guy, but who doesn’t even think of himself as a pitcher.

And there’s a solid junior who’s only lost two games all year, in which he got a grand total of one run in support.

Zack Konstantinovsky, Harrison Lollin, Dustin McGuinness and Frank Papeo all are expected to take the mound Tuesday in what will be an all-GMC Red Division Central Jersey Group 4 semifinal round, with the Greater Middlesex Conference guaranteed a champion in the section for the first time since Old Bridge won it in 2015.

The Knights are in the mix again this year, with top-seed Old Bridge (18-8) taking on fifth-seed East Brunswick (15-11) on Monday at 6 pm, in a game you can hear on Central Jersey Sports Radio with a 5:45 pregame and 6 pm first pitch at Fred Cole Field; click here to listen.

That will follow the 4 pm semifinal at Community Park in North Brunswick where the second-seeded Raiders (20-6) ill take on sixth-seed Monroe (14-10).

Raiders vs. Falcons

In that first game, “Zack K” is expected to go against Harrison Lollin, a matchup of two Division 1-bound pitchers, with Konstantinovsky signed on to play at Rutgers next spring, while Lollin will have one more year in purple and gold before heading out to the Pacific Northwest to play for Oregon. And they’ve faced each other this year twice, with Zack getting the better of Harrison both times.

North Brunswick head coach Mark Blevins brought Zack (now 8-1, 0.38 ERA) back on just the minimum three days’ rest after throwing 90 pitches in a 2-0 loss to St. Joseph-Metuchen in the GMC Tournament final, his first charged loss this season. With four days’ in between, the pitch count resets for Zack and he’s able to go the full 110 Tuesday if he needs it. Against South Brunswick in the semis he went 4 2/3 innings, allowed two hits and struck out nine.

While no one comes close to the dominance Konstantinovsky has had in the GMC the last few years, Lollin (5-2, 1.44 ERA) has actually been just as unhittable this year, despite an ERA that’s almost a full run higher. Figure this: in 56 innings, Konstantinovsky has allowed 24 hits, for a very respectable 0.43 hits per inning. Lollin has allowed 28 hits in 53 1/3 innings, a rate of 0.45 hits per inning.

The difference in the two meetings this year has been North Brunswick getting just enough offense to get by; the Raiders won on April 11th by a score of 1-0 on an RBI single by Chris Roasario. The second meeting came in the GMC Tournament semifinals, a 2-1 victory for the Raiders thanks to a two-run homer by Omar Carreras. Those two games managed 13 hits combined by the two teams: seven by the Raiders and six by the Falcons.

Knights vs. Bears

The second game should feature Old Bridge’s Frank Papeo against East Brunswick’s Dustin McGuinness. The two teams split their only meetings this year, with the Bears taking a 5-2 win on April 17th, but the Knights winning 5-4 the next day. Neither pitcher threw in either game.

Papeo (5-2, 1.71 ERA) is head coach Matt Donaghue’s No. 1, and has struck out 63 in 53 1/3 innings pitched. His ERA is up a bit from last year (1.25) but he’s also become more of a strikeout pitcher, nearly doubling last year’s total in just 14 more innings. And that ERA is inflated from two starts where he gave up five and four runs, respectively, even though both games were wins: a 10-8 slugfest over St. Joe’s back in the first week of the season, and a 7-6 victory over Sayreville.

READ MORE: McGuinness, East Brunswick ready to tackle top seed Old Bridge in CJ 4 semis Tuesday

McGuinness (4-4, 3.77 ERA) has the highest earned run average of the group, and lost four straight games this season, but got little run support or defensive support in them. Against South Plainfield on April 11th, he gave up eight runs, but only four earned, in a 12-1 loss. Against St. Joe’s on April 20th, he allowed 12 runs – but only five were earned – in a 12-6 defeat. And a week later against North Brunswick he lost a slim 2-1 decision.

East Brunswick, though, has been better in the field in recent weeks, and has gotten much more timely hitting. In that four game skid, McGuinness and his teammates (he plays shortstop when not pitching) scored a grand total of eight runs. But the team has won his last four starts, in which the Bears’ lineup has produced 28 runs and allowed only 13, and McGuinness himself has only allowed seven earned runs, coming in just two of the four games, striking out 29 of the 48 batters he’s fanned all season.

by Mike Pavlichko

Konstantinovsky relaxed, but laser-focused heading into GMC Tournament title tilt

When Zack Konstantinovsky is on the mound, it’s a pretty good chance North Brunswick wins the ballgame.

When he’s in the lineup – which he is every time he pitches – well, that just adds to the cause.

All that being said, he will face one of the more potent lineups in the GMC Sunday afternoon in the league’s championship game when his Raiders take on St. Joseph of Metuchen for a second straight year, seeking their second straight tournament title, a year after winning their first.

You can hear Saturday’s GMC Tournament Final from East Brunswick Magnet School’s Ray Cipperly Field on Central Jersey Sports Radio, driven by Auto Lounge of Edison. Mike Pavlichko and Justin Sontupe will call all the action with first pitch set for 1:00, pregame at 12:30, after the game was moved from its original date of Saturday by the GMC due to rain in the forecast. Click here to listen.

But that won’t bother North Brunswick’s starting pitcher. Konstantinovsky is a machine, and nothing fazes him.

Case in point, he got out of a bases loaded two-out jam after a two-out single, followed by a bunt with a strikeout. It was the first time a GMC team had loaded the bases against him in his entire high school career. (The only other teams to do it are Hunterdon Central and Hillsborough.) And for what it’s worth, he struck out the side in the inning.

Coach Mark Blevins says sometimes, when Zack allows a runner on base – which is rare – he bares down and focuses even more.

Zack says he just sticks to his strengths: throwing strikes and getting hitters out, no matter the situation or the opponent. And he knows he has a good defense behind him who will handle the ball if it’s put into play.

Click below to hear a Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko talk with North Brunswick pitcher Zack Konstantinovsky:

by Mike Pavlichko

Reschedule of GMC final throws North Brunswick pitching a curve ball for states

The NJSIAA hasn’t even released the state tournament brackets yet – those are expected to come out sometime Friday – but already North Brunswick has a pitching concern.

With rain in the forecast for Saturday, the GMC – as it should have – moved the baseball championship game to Sunday (1 pm on CJSR – click here to listen). But that poses some problems for the Raiders.

Ace Zack Konstantinovsky will take the hill, no doubt, in the final against St. Joe’s. But with the game moved to Sunday, he may be limited – if he can go at all – in a potential second round playoff game in Central Jersey Group 4, due to the NJSIAA’s pitch count rules.

St. Joseph does not have the same problem, with the Falcons expected to get a first-round bye in the states and not play until Friday, by which time the pitch clock for anyone going Sunday would reset.

For the Raiders, though – expected to earn the two-seed in Central Jersey Group 4 – Konstantinovsky never could have gone in the opening round anyway, which is scheduled for Monday, since it would have been just two days after the Saturday final. But head coach Mark Blevins would like to get him out for the second round on Thursday, May 26. That would have given Konstantinovsky four days’ rest, and set him up to pitch in a potential sectional final on Friday, June 2, eight days later.

According to NJSIAA pitch count rules, a pitcher who throws between from 71 to 90 pitches in a day, three calendar days of rest is required. Throwing 91 to the maximum 110 requires four calendar days’ rest.

Konstantinovsky has thrown four seven-inning complete games this year. His pitch counts averaged around 87, with outings of 71, 73, 102 and 103 pitches. In a 6-1 win at St. Joe’s on April 17th, he threw 102 pitches, giving up three hits, an unearned run, walked three and struck out 12, also hitting one batter.

If he can keep it under 91, he’d be free to pitch Thursday if the Raiders make it to the second round of the sectionals, but a pitcher also cannot exceed 150 pitches in a five-day calendar period. So, if he throws 90 Sunday, he’d be limited to 60 on Thursday, which would be the fifth calendar day.

If he goes over 91, he could not pitch until Friday, which means he’s out for the first two rounds. Konstantinovsky could pitch in the sectional semis on Tuesday, the 30th, but then would be limited or out of commission for a title game just three days’ later. Ideally, Blevins would want two starts, including one in the finals, out of Zack.

So the big decision for Blevins is whether to keep him under that 91 number in the GMC finals, and whether or not he goes to his bullpen. If Zack is on his game, he could conceivably get through six innings in 70 pitches or fewer, which would only require two days’ rest and make him eligible to throw as many as 80 in the second round of the states.

And if a reliever could get through under 50, they’d be good to go in the opening round for up to 100 pitches.

Of course, all that depends on how the game plays out. There’s only one Zack in the entire league, but the Raiders have highly capable pitchers beyond Zack who can finish off a game, if needed. If North Brunswick jumps out to a big lead, that could help. On the other hand, a 12-inning game could be trouble.

by Mike Pavlichko

Carreras HR, dominant Konstantinovsky put defending GMCT champ North Brunswick back in the finals

It was the pitchers’ duel everyone expected.

Back on May 11th, North Brunswick’s Rutgers-bound ace Zack Konstantinovsky bested Monroe’s Oregon-bound ace Harrison Lollin 1-0.

Saturday, in a GMCT Tournament semifinal game heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio presented by Auto Lounge of Edison, the result was the same, just a different score: 2-1 Raiders, thanks in large part also to a two-run homer by Omar Carreras.

North Brunswick – the top-seed and defending champ – now moves on to play third-seed St. Joseph-Metuchen in next Saturday’s GMC Tournament final at 2 pm at East Brunswick Magnet School. It’ll be their second straight meeting in the finals.

Monroe falls to 11-7.

“Zack K” didn’t get off to the greatest of starts. Having not given up more than three hits in a game all season, he allowed three in the first inning alone. Aidan Lane hit a one-out double, then after Harrison Lollin struck out for the second out of the inning, Trevor Wallace drove him in with an RBI single.

Lucas White followed with another single, then a Kyle McCauley bunt down the third base line was so good, there was no play at any base. But with the bags full, Konstantinovsky readers back and got Jake LoBue to strike out on three pitches to end the inning.

And that’s really all the Falcons did to threaten. They got a baserunner via walk in the second but stranded him. Lollin got on base after getting hit by a pitch in the second, but Konstantinovsky got the next three batters.

North Brunswick got its runs in the third on a no-doubt home run by Carreras. EJ Accetura beat out an infield hit on a hard ground ball to third. After a pop-up and fly out, Carreras came up with two down and Accetura on second and blasted a home run over the left field wall.

Konstantinovsky pitched seven innings, walked one, hit a batter, and allowed just four hits, striking out ten for the win to improve to 7-0 on the season. Lollin dropped to 5-2 with the loss.

Now, North Brunswick will try and win its second straight GMC title. Last year, they won their first, beating St. Joseph. Now the teams will rematch.

Click below for postgame reaction presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen:

North Brunswick pitcher Zack Konstantinovsky
North Brunswick catcher Omar Carreras
North Brunswick head coach Mark Blevins
by Mike Pavlichko

Central Jersey Sports Radio Baseball Player of the Year: North Brunswick’s Zack Konstantinovsky

There are so many great student-athletes in Middlesex and Somerset Counties, in any sport.

But when it came time to pick one, single baseball player overall for the 2022 season, the choice was a no-brainer.

The player must be dominant; that’s a simple criteria. But to do it on the mound, while also being a hitter no one wanted to face at the plate, that just made the choice one that required very little thought: North Brunswick’s Zack Konstantinovsky.

And, unfortunately for the rest of the GMC, he’s only a junior. That means another season of blowing through hitters, working at his fast pace. And of being pitched around at the plate, depending who else is in the lineup.

On the mound, Konstantinovsky – who will play at Rutgers starting in the 2024 baseball season – threw 67 innings this year, going 7-0, striking out 119, while walking only two batters – one in the regular season, one in the postseason. He allowed only 39 hits, and nine runs – seven of them earned – with a 0.612 WHIP.

At the plate, all he did in the cleanup spot was hit .381, knocking in 27 runs and hitting four homers to go along with seven doubles.

And when it really counted, in the Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament Final, he outdueled St. Joseph-Metuchen standout Andrew Goldan for a 4-2 win, and the Raiders’ first-ever GMCT title.

Not too shabby.

North Brunswick with its 2022 GMC Tournament Championship trophy. (Photo: Mike Pavlichko)

Click below to listen to Mike Pavlichko talk with Zack Konstantinovsky, the CJSR 2022 Baseball Player of the Year:

by Mike Pavlichko

GMCT Postgame: North Brunswick’s Kyle Tarabokia, Zack Konstantinovsky and Mark Blevins on the Raiders’ first-ever GMC title

In the middle of the interview, there it came: the ice bath.

It’s a tradition in sports, but it seemed to have a little extra oomph on Sunday, Memorial Day weekend, after North Brunswick made history, winning its first-ever GMC Tournament championship, and knocking off a local baseball powerhouse in the process.

After allowing two runs in the bottom of the first to give away the 2-0 lead the Raiders got in the first, Zack Konstantinovsky pitched like the Zach Konstantinovsky every seemed to know and expect in this big game.

And the kid is just a junior.

Konstantinovsky – a Rutgers commit – allowed back-to-back doubles to lead off the game by St. Joseph’s Mark Gialluisi and Josiah Brown, who knocked in the first run. Robbie Carvelli drove in the second run on a grounder to short after Brown moved to third on a wild pitch.

But that was all the wild Zach would show the rest of the way. He allowed just one more hit – an infield hit that ricocheted off his glove in the third, and two more base runners beyond that – on a walk in the fourth and an E6 in the fifth. He struck out ten, retired the last eight batters to face him and struck out the side in the seventh to end it, knocking off the defending GMC Tournament Champions.

North Brunswick’s Zack Konstantinovsky (Photo: Mike Pavlichko)

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko talk with North Brunswick starting pitcher Zack Konstantinovsky:

Click above to learn more about how to be an umpire and join the NSJFU.

Not that he needed it, Konstantinovsky seemed to get a second wind when North Brunswick broke a 2-2 tie in the top of the sixth with a pair of runs to take a 4-2 lead.

Omar Carreras led off with a walk, and Frankie Garbolino got hit by a pitch. After a sac bunt by Pat McCann moved the runners to second and third, Kyle Tarabokia drove a shot almost right down the first base line and into right field, ending up with a two-RBI double that turned out to be the difference in the game.

North Brunswick’s Kyle Tarabokia (Photo: Mike Pavlilchko)

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko talk with North Brunswick right fielder Kyle Tarabokia:

For North Brunswick head coach Mark Blevins, it only took five seasons at the helm to deliver a GMC Tournament title.

In his first year, the Raiders won just eight games, but improved to 18-10 in 2018 before taking a step back an going 9-17 in the last season before COVID019 wiped out 2020.

Last season, the Raiders went 17-10-1, making it to the GMC Tournament semifinals, where Konstantinovsky one-hit South Brunswick – that one hit being a home run by Justin Gallagher in the fifth – but lost 2-0, as the Radiers were eliminated.

And that made Sunday’s win extra sweet.

Blevins is now 72-63-1 all-time at North Brunswick.

North Brunswick head coach Mark Blevins. (Photo: Mike Pavlichko)

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko talk with North Brunswick head coach Mark Blevins:

What’s next? The Raiders will enjoy this one, but as Belvins and others said after the game, they’re already thinking about rival South Brunswick, their opponent in the opening round of the Central Jersey Group 4 playoffs this Wednesday. The Raiders are the 5-seed and will take on 11-seed South Brunswick (12-2) at 4:00.

They’ll have to do so without Konstantinovsky, who will be unavailable after going the distance in the GMC final, while South Brunwick will have program and single-season strikeout leader Joey Tuttoilmondo available; he’ll likely get the start Wednesday.

Even “Greater” Brunswicks: The GMC Tournament win by North Brunswick means the three outlying Brunswick schools – North, plus East and South – have all won league championships, with namesake New Brunswick the only one not to do so. The Bears have won five titles, the most of the three, while South Brunswick has won two and North Brunswick one. East Brunswick’s last title came in 2016, while South Brunswick won it in 2010, beating the Radiers in what was their last finals appearance before this year.

by Mike Pavlichko

Future Rutgers stars Goldan and Konstantinovsky: the unflappable vs. the unhittable

Andrew Goldan is hard to rattle. As a sophomore, in his first varsity season at St. Joseph of Metuchen, he calmly, coolly, and collectedly, went the distance in the 2021 GMC Tournament championship game for the win.

In this year’s semifinals, with Donovan Zsak laboring through three innings, still getting a little twinge in that Tommy John-repaired elbow, Goldan – a full-time starter – jumped in as a reliever and kept Woodbridge off the board for the final four innings en route to a 9-1 win and a berth in this weekend’s finals.

Zack Konstantinovsky is hard to hit. The North Brunswick junior had an impressive sophomore campaign, striking out 70 and walking only ten. That’s a tough act to follow.

But follow it, he did. This year? Heading into Saturday’s GMCT finals, he’s racked up 101 strikeouts. And he’s walked only a single solitary batter.

Just one.

How impressive have both of them been? Well, both are going to play major Division I college baseball in the near future. And neither will be playing too far from the high school fields they currently call home.

Click above to learn more about how to be an umpire and join the NSJFU.

Goldan’s family just has to head a little further down Route 27, and Konstantinovsky’s just up Routes One and 18 to Piscataway, where both will soon call Bainton Field home, as they play for the Steve Owens’ Scarlet Knights.

Goldan will join them next year; Zack in a couple of years. They’ll be joined by JT Kroner of Colonia, another solid GMC arm.

And when they get there, they’ll find Chris Brito, a Perth Amboy alum who is RU’s full-time first baseman this season as a redshirt junior.

The two will square off this Sunday as the starting pitchers in the GMC Tournament Championship Game, which will be played at noon at Ray Cipperly Field at East Brunswick Tech. It was rescheduled from Saturday, due to thunderstorms in the forecast.

You can hear the game on Central Jersey Sports Radio with pregame beginning at 11:30 am. Mike Pavlichko and Justin Sontupe will call all the action; click here to listen.

Click below to hear Zack Konstantinovsky and Andrew Goldan talk about their decisions to go to Rutgers, their connection with the GMC, and Saturday’s matchup:

by Mike Pavlichko

North Brunswick outlasts East Brunswick in 12, punches ticket to GMCT Finals for first time in over a decade

Inning after inning, after inning after inning, after inning after inning, zeroes kept going up on the scoreboard at Ray Cipperly Field in East Brunswick.

For three hours and seven minutes, 6th seed North Brunswick and 7th seed East Brunswick battled and battled. Four pitchers dealt, and dealt, and dealt some more.

No one could push anything across in Game One of the GMC Tournament semifinal doubleheader.

Of course, there were very few chances, either.

The Bears and Raiders battled for 11-and-a-half innings. Then, in the bottom of the 12th, the unthinkable happened.

Someone crossed home plate safely.

Rutgers-bound senior Zack Konstantinovsky – who threw six innings of three-hit shutout ball working on a 64-pitch count after throwing in Monday’s first round – strode to the plate. He was the DH for himself, so he could remain in the game on offense after he was relieved by Kyle Anderson; more on that later.

Pinch runner Chris Rosario was on third – after reaching on an error, and being sacrificed over on a bunt by Frandy Martinez – and EJ Accetura – a meaningless run – was on second.

Konstntinovsky drilled the first pitch from Aaron Warner over right fielder Vincent LaRocca’s head, and that was the ballgame, sending North Brunswick (17-8) to the finals for the first time since it went to the title game back to back in 2009 and 2010, losing both.

Kyle Anderson got the win for North Brunswick, while Warner took the loss for East Brunswick (13-11).

Click below to listen to Justin Sontupe’s call of Zack Konstantinovsky’s walk-off single to send North Brunswick to the GMC Tournament Finals, as heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio:

Click above to learn more about how to be an umpire and join the NSJFU.

Next Saturday at 2 pm, the Raiders will face top-seed St. Joseph of Metuchen, which beat 5th-seed Woodbridge 10-1 in Saturday’s second semifinal.

And it will likely be a matchup of two of the top pitchers in the GMC, with Konstantinovsky expected to take the mound for North Brunswick against St. Joe’s Rutgers-bound senior Andrew Goldan.

Click below for postgame reaction from North Brunswick’s win over East Brunswick in the GMC Tournament semifinals:

North Brunswick senior Zack Konstantinovsky
North Brunswick head coach Mark Blevins

Notes and Nuggets:

Few chances: Normally in a game, having baserunners on in six different innings would be a good thing and mean some scoring chances. East Brunswick did that Saturday, but in a 12 inning game. The Raiders had men on base in eight of the 12, and four of the first seven.

Efficient Zack: Konstantinovsky knew he could only throw 64 pitches, and he made the most of them. He struck out six – giving him 100 Ks on the season against just one walk, and no hit batsmen – and allowed only three hits. One of those was an infield hit, the other was a perfectly-laid down bunt by the Bears’ Christian Bermudez. In fact, East Brunswick didn’t hit a ball in play into the outfield until Bermudez’ double in the sixth. Zack K then retired Dylan Lugo on a sac bunt, Ryan Basham on a ground out to second, and struck out Jack Nelson to end the inning – on his 64th pitch.

Super Sophomore: Kyle Anderson was masterful in relief of Konstantinovsky. After allowing the first two hitters he faced to reach base, he stranded them at second and third, getting two strikeouts and a fly out to right. After that, he allowed just three baserunners the rest of the way.

More relief, please: Not to be lost in Anderson’s effort, with Mike Marchese on a 71 pitch count, but not quite as efficient, East Brunswick coach Chris Kenney had to go to his bullpen in the fifth. Joseph Ditzel was solid, too, like Anderson, scattering just two hits over seven innings of work, pitching the fifth through the 11th.

Long, but not the longest: Though 12 innings felt like a lot – with the game time temperature about 80 degrees going up to 93 with a heat index of 97 by the time the final out was recorded – it wasn’t the longest game in GMC Tournament history. They would have had to play five more innings to reach that. On May 5, 2011, Perth Amboy outlasted Sayreville 2-1 in a quarterfinal game played under the lights at East Brunswick High School. Ironically, that same night, the Phillies beat the Reds at home, 5-4, in 19 innings.