Andy Mendlowitz
MyCentralJersey.com
It was another fun week on the diamond with the Greater Middlesex Conference division pennant races completed. Next up, the GMC Tournament, which begins with Saturday’s play-in games. Here is this week’s top 10 with notes underneath the rankings.
GMC Top 10
(Records through Saturday, May 2)
1. Edison (12-4) – last week No. 1: Things could have gotten dicey for the Eagles in their GMC Red Division pennant quest. Edison dropped recent openers against Woodbridge and St. Thomas Aquinas in its two-game series against each opponent. No problem, Edison delivered in the Game 2s with wins and clinched the pennant with a 10-3 record in the Red. On April 27, Ray Tavarez’s RBI in the top of the seventh gave Edison a 1-0 win over Woodbridge as Connor Murphy, Robert Roma and Ray Tavarez combined on the shutout. On April 30, Edison beat St. Thomas Aquinas 5-0 as Murphy threw a one-hit shutout with 15 strikeouts.
2. Middlesex (15-2) – last week No. 2: The Blue Jays stepped up. With the GMC White Division pennant on the line, Middlesex beat Colonia in a pair of 4-0 games to finish 13-1 in the division and earn the banner-notch. First, Chris Kozak fired a two-hitter with no walks and seven strikeouts in seven innings. Then, Dom Long went the distance on a four-hitter with no walks and six whiffs. That’s as good as any 1-2 frontline starting combo in the GMC.
3. Old Bridge (9-8) – last week No. 3: The Knights opened the week with a 10-4 loss to East Brunswick on Monday, April 27. A spiral coming? Guess again. Old Bridge stormed back to win three straight GMC Red Division games with a win over Monroe sandwiched by two victories over St. Joseph. That clinched second place in the division with a 9-5 record.
4. South Plainfield (8-8) – last week No. 6: The Tigers control their destiny to finish third in the Red Division. South Plainfield (7-6 in division) travels to Monroe (6-7 in division) on Tuesday, May 5, to complete the Red play. Woodbridge also sits at 7-7 in the grouping. South Plainfield put itself in that position with a 12-3 win over Monroe on Tuesday, April 28, fueled by Andrew Bena’s 3-for-5 day with four RBIs. That enabled the Tigers to jump a couple spots in the rankings.
5. Woodbridge (8-7) – last week No. 7: Starting at 1-5, the Barrons didn’t panic. They knew their talent level and figured some close losses would eventually turn in their favor. Well, Woodbridge’s ascent continued with a sweep over East Brunswick last week. The club has been able to both light up the scoreboard at times (five wins with double-digit runs), as well as win a pitching duel when needed.
6. Monroe (8-9) – last week No. 4: Playing in the Red Division is tough with all the top pitching one sees. The Falcons hit a speed bump with five straight losses until they topped non-conference Colts Neck 6-3 on Saturday, May 2. But you look up, and Monroe (6-7 in division) has sweeps over East Brunswick, St. Joseph and splits with Edison and St. Thomas Aquinas. Look at Monroe’s journey in the rankings: preseason No. 9 to No. 3 to No. 7 to No. 4 and now at No. 6.
7. Metuchen (12-4) – last week No. 9: The Bulldogs get a bump after clinching second place in the White Division with a shutout sweep over Sayreville. First, James Fenton went the distance on a one-hitter with no walks and 15 strikeouts in a 4-0 win. Then, Matt Jelleme threw a no-hitter with three walks and two hit batters, striking out 13 in a 3-0 win.
8. East Brunswick (6-9) – last week No. 5: The Bears’ offense went on a mini-tear outscoring South Plainfield in two games (April 23 and 24) and Old Bridge (April 27) by a combined 36-19. However, things can change quickly in baseball and Woodbridge swept the Bears by a combined 13-5 to end the week. Still, EB’s body of work includes sweeping St. Thomas Aquinas and South Plainfield, and that keeps them firmly in the top 10 heading into the GMCT.
9. Colonia (9-5) – last week No. 8: The Patriots slipped to third place in the White Division after they went 2-4 in their last six games. That included a sweep over Perth Amboy sandwiched by going 0-2 against both Spotswood and Middlesex to finish 9-5 in the White. Colonia’s top pitching has been keeping them in games with hopes of jump-starting its offense before the GMCT.
10. St. Thomas Aquinas (7-10) – last week unranked: The Trojans re-enter the rankings boosted by their 3-1 week. That includes beating No. 1 Edison 3-2 as Louis Rizzolo allowed two hits, two unearned runs with 12 strikeouts. STA (6-8 in Red Division) also beat St. Joseph to get a series split before falling to Edison in Game 2.
South River makes teams blue
South River makes teams blue
You think the Kentucky Derby finish was close? The Blue Division pennant race was just as tight with three teams vying for the title down the stretch. South River, Carteret and J.P. Stevens each finished 11-3 in the division. South River clinched first place with its 11-6 win over Piscataway on Wednesday, April 29. The tiebreaker came down to who had the best combined record of the three. South River prevailed at 3-1, while J.P. Stevens was 2-2 and Carteret sat at 1-3.
The Rams were primed for a big season despite graduating star Julius Rosado and pitcher James Zsorey with several returning players. Julien Borusovic (.480 BA, 23-for-50, 21 RBIs and 37 IP, 2.08 ERA) and Hunter Krainski (.423 BA, 22-for-52, 19 RBIs and 31 2/3 IP, 41 Ks, 2.21 ERA) have emerged as two-way stars.
Dunellen stays hot
Dunellen dropped its first two games of the season to undefeated Piscataway Magnet. Then, the Destroyers just kept winning and winning and winning. Dunellen (13-2) have taken 13 straight games and finished second in the Gold Division. The prolific offense has scored over 10 runs on 10 occasions.
They faced some questions after losing five starters, including division Player of the Year Mark Stein (.462 BA, 22 RBIs). Others have stepped up with breakout seasons. Actually, like, everyone has been on fire. Dunellen has eight players hitting .400 or better with at least 34 at-bats.
Kristian Roman Lopez is leading the way with a .553 batting average (21-for-38) with team-highs with 30 RBIs and 16 walks. The other heavy hitters include Michael Dow (.487 BA), Cesar Andres Fermin Alarcon (.475), Juan Luis Rodriguez (.469), Cole Mayer (.441), Joseph Reyes (.426), Colin Reynolds (.419), David Torres (.400) and Jackson Portik (.342).
NJ Baseball Greater Middlesex Conference Top 10 and notes, May 2
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