Bobby Ulmer doubled twice and had three RBI and Ty Nicolay singled and walked with two RBI as Middlesex scored four times in the top of the seventh for the win.
South Plainfield (11-13) score in the bottom of the seventh, but couldn’t get closer.
Avery West singled and scored twice for the Blue Jays (19-5) and Aidan Kozak, Michael Salvatore (run) and Chris Hopf each had a hit.
Joey Tuttoilmondo threw another masterpiece and Teonis Pimentel's two-RBI single scored Alex CIccone and Dylan Amin in the seventh inning as the Vikings advanced to the quarterfinals.
Tuttoilmondo struck out 17 in 6 2/3 innings and three hits and no walks. The junior right-hander set two South Brunswick program records.
He now has 87 strikeouts this season which Mark Langone's mark of 85 that was set in 1979.
His 181 career strikeouts bests Jacob Ciccone's record of 180, set in 2016-2019.
Tuesday, Mattox Lim got the last out to preserve the win.
By Casey Roland | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com and Mak Ojutiku | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
Joey Tuttoilmondo struck out 17 batters and gave up three hits and no earned runs over 6 2/3 innings to lead ninth-seeded South Brunswick (10-10) to a 3-1 win over eighth-seeded South Plainfield in the GMC Tournament’s round of 16, at South Plainfield.
The Vikings will take on top-seeded and No. 7 in the NJ.com Top 20 St. Joseph in the quarterfinals on Wednesday at North Brunswick Community Park.
The outing was Tuttoilmondo’s second recent standout performance against the Tigers, as the senior right-hander recorded 13 strikeouts with four hits and one run conceded in a 6-1 win over South Plainfield last Monday.
Teonis Pimentel gave the Vikings a two-run lead by hitting a two-run single in the top of the seventh that drove home Alex Ciccone and Dylan Amin. Pete Cortez gave South Brunswick an early 1-0 lead off a first-inning RBI.
Tyler Balent drove in a tying run for South Plainfield (10-12) in the fourth inning. Jack Masset recorded seven strikeouts while giving up 10 hits in a complete game.
(Records through Saturday, May 14)
1. St. Joseph (17-6) – last week No. 1: The Falcons garnered the No. 1 seed in the GMCT for good reason having already clinched the Red Division title entering last week. St. Joseph is coming off a rare losing week going 1-3. Falcons fans, though, shouldn’t worry about a slump entering the postseason. The balanced and deep St. Joes' team has played tough nonconference games all season and lost to Lawrenceville (10-6 record) and Hun (16-2), while beating St. Peter’s Prep (18-6). They also lost to Old Bridge behind Justin Herbstman’s gem.
2. Monroe (13-6) – last week No. 2: Monroe secured the GMCT’s No. 2 seed with two wins over Edison for a second-place finish in the Red Division. Not a bad two-year run after being co-champions with St. Joseph in 2021. Nick Sellari leads the team with 22 hits and 15 runs scored and Harrison Lollin has 12 RBI.
3. Old Bridge (13-10) – last week No. 4: Old Bridge was the preseason No. 4 team, but fell after a 2-2 start with series splits against East Brunswick and Monroe. (In retrospect, they were good splits against quality teams.) Well, Old Bridge not only worked its way back, but finds itself at No. 3 entering the GMCT and getting the fourth seed. Last week, they were the only GMC team that beat St. Joseph this spring and split with South Brunswick.
4. Middlesex (17-4) – last week No. 7: The Blue Jays move up after sweeping Woodbridge and Sayreville to claim the White Division title. Middlesex, which fell to nonconference North Hunterdon last week, earned the No. 3 seed in the GMCT.
5. Woodbridge (16-4) – last week No. 3: The Barrons had a great regular season, going down to the wire with Middlesex for the White Division race. The balanced Barrons had a 10-game win streak snapped in those two Middlesex losses. Woodbridge is the No. 5 seed in the GMCT and will meet No. 12 Metuchen, which handed them its two other losses this spring.
6. East Brunswick (10-10) – last week No. 6: The Bears finished fourth in the Red Division with a 9-7 record – no small feat – and secured the No. 7 seed in the GMCT. Last week, they swept Edison and split with South Plainfield.
7. South Plainfield (10-11) – last week No. 5: After graduating a haul of players from last’s season 20-5-1 win team, South Plainfield showed the program is still strong and finished fifth in the Red Division, claiming the No. 8 seed in the GMCT. The Tigers snapped a seven-game slide with a win over East Brunswick on Thursday for the series split.
8. South Brunswick (9-10) – last week No. 8: While the Vikings have some losses, they also have their share of quality wins. Last week, South Brunswick beat South Plainfield, split with Old Bridge and fell to Perth Amboy. The Vikings drew the No. 9 seed in the GMCT and has an interesting rematch with No. 8 South Plainfield in the first round.
9. North Brunswick (14-8) – last week No. 9: With their pitching, the Raiders are capable of making a deep run in the GMCT. The No. 6 seed plays No. 11 Colonia in the first round. The teams split in the regular season. Last week, North Brunswick swept Spotswood, beat Edison and lost to Metuchen.
10. (Tie) Colonia (11-8) – last week No. 10
Spotswood (12-9) – last week No. 10: Having both teams remain in the poll seems about right as Spotswood got the No. 10 seed in the GMCT and Colonia is No. 11.
Baseball: The latest GMC Top 10, games to watch and highlights (mycentraljersey.com)
South Plainfield needed a big pitching performance to stop its slide.
Tyler Balent allowed an unearned run in six innings (2 hits, 2 BB, 5 K) and Ashton Donovan pitched a scoreless inning as the Tigers grabbed the Red Division win.
South Plainfield (10-11 overall, 8-8 in division) broke a seven-game losing streak, which included a handful of close ones.
Luke Bickunas and Mike Kurilew each drove in runs and Balent went 2-for-3 with a run scored. Julian Irizarry and Zack Robinson also had a hit and scored.
For East Brunswick (10-10, 9-8), Aaron Warner had a good start allowing three runs in six innings. Dylan Lugo had an RBI and Romeo Diaz and Vinny LaRocca each had hits.
Junior left-hander Joe Ditzel won the pitching duel by throwing a three-hit shutout with two walks and six strikeouts in the Red Division win.
The host Bears (10-9 overall, 9-6 in the division) pushed across runs in the first and third innings. Marchese singled and had an RBI and Ryan Basham went 1-for-2 (double, BB) and scored twice. Dylan Lugo went 2-for-3 and Christian Bermudez and Jason Agrait each had a hit.
For South Plainfield (9-11, 7-7), Frank Flannery allowed two runs in six innings on six hits and two walks with four strikeouts. Ty Ducoff, Julian Irizarry and Zack Robinson each had a hit for the Tigers.
Brett Lukachyk hit a walk-off double in the 10th inning as Woodbridge edge South Plainfield in the interdivisional meeting between two of the GMC’s top teams.
The host Barrons (14-2) of the White Division won their eighth-straight game against South Plainfield (9-9) of the Red Division.
Each team scored twice in the first inning with Woodbridge taking a 4-2 lead in the fourth. The Tigers responded with two in the top of the fifth to tie it 4-4. The scored remained that way until the senior right fielder delivered for the win.
Brett Lukachyk finished 2-for-5 with two RBI, scored twice and walked, while Josh Vazquez drove in a run.
Shawn Kish threw 4 1/3 innings of scoreless relief to pick up the and allowed four hits and two walks.
For South Plainfield, Brandon Bickunas was 3-for-5 (double) and Zack Robinson went 3-for-6 (run scored), while Julian Irizarry was 2-for-4 (2 BB, 2 runs).
St. Joseph jumped to an 8-0 lead after the second inning and completed the Red Division
sweep over South Plainfield behind the start of Bryan Rios.
The host Falcons (14-3 overall, 12-0 in division) scored three times in the first inning and five more in the second for an 8-0 lead.
The Tigers (9-8, 7-5) got three runs in the fourth and another in the fifth, but couldn’t get any closer.
Rios, a junior right-hander, allowed four runs (1 ER) in five innings with eight strikeouts and allowed five hits and a walk.
Stephen Chou finished the last two innings, allowing a run on a hit and a walk with two strikeouts.
Christian Azcona his three doubles and went 4-for-4 with three RBI and three other Falcons had multi-hits to lead the offense.
Tyler Delvecchio doubled and drove in a run, while Robbie Carvelli w, as 2-for-4 with two RBI, Mark Gialluisi went 2-for-4 and Connor Drury was 2-for-2. Jack Kern singled and scored.
For the Tigers, Ashton Donovan was 2-for-3 (double) with an RBI. Ty Ducoff (double. RBI), Matt Ciullo (RBI), Julian Irizarry and Luke Bickunas (2 runs) also had a hit apiece.
(Records through Saturday, April 30)
Analysis: Last week I said it was a spring of parity. That going back and forth on the scoreboard continued this past week. No. 2 Monroe, No. 3 South Plainfield and No. 4 East Brunswick each had GMC losses. However, Woodbridge and North Brunswick remained hot with undefeated weeks and Middlesex earned a key sweep over Metuchen. What to do? Ultimately, there was no movement until the backend of the poll.
1. St. Joseph (12-2) – last week No. 1: There’s no controversy here. The Falcons are 10-0 in GMC Red Division play with another anticipated series against South Plainfield on tap for this week.
2. Monroe (8-6) – last week No. 2: Monroe split with South Brunswick last week, losing to their ace Joey Tuttoilmondo. Their opening sweep of South Plainfield and split with Old Bridge keeps them at No. 2. Their series against East Brunswick this week can shake things up.
3. South Plainfield (9-6) – last week No. 3: The Tigers swept Perth Amboy and lost to nonconference AL Johnson and to J.P. Stevens, always a tough out. South Plainfield does have sweeps against Edison and Old Bridge on their resume.
4. East Brunswick (7-6) – last week No. 4: The Bears beat nonconference Hillsborough and lost to a hot North Brunswick team on a walk-off hit.
5. Old Bridge (9-7) – last week No. 5: I grappled with moving Old Bridge up a spot. They had an impressive win over Seton Hall Prep and swept J.P. Stevens last week and lost to Don Bosco in a beefed-up schedule. Really, they don’t have bad losses. However, after going back and forth with it, I didn’t want to penalize East Brunswick that much for losing to North Brunswick on a walk-off.
6. Woodbridge (12-2) – last week No. 6: The Barrons started the season with a six-game winning streak, lost twice to Metuchen and now they’re on their second six-game win streak of the spring. This could have been a trap week with three games against GMC teams with losing records in Carteret and Sayreville (a two-game series), yet both are talented dangerous and capable of winning any time out. The Barrons, which also defeated Plainfield, finished with a 4-0 week.
2. Monroe (8-6) – last week No. 2: Monroe split with South Brunswick last week, losing to their ace Joey Tuttoilmondo. Their opening sweep of South Plainfield and split with Old Bridge keeps them at No. 2. Their series against East Brunswick this week can shake things up.
3. South Plainfield (9-6) – last week No. 3: The Tigers swept Perth Amboy and lost to nonconference AL Johnson and to J.P. Stevens, always a tough out. South Plainfield does have sweeps against Edison and Old Bridge on their resume.
4. East Brunswick (7-6) – last week No. 4: The Bears beat nonconference Hillsborough and lost to a hot North Brunswick team on a walk-off hit.
5. Old Bridge (9-7) – last week No. 5: I grappled with moving Old Bridge up a spot. They had an impressive win over Seton Hall Prep and swept J.P. Stevens last week and lost to Don Bosco in a beefed-up schedule. Really, they don’t have bad losses. However, after going back and forth with it, I didn’t want to penalize East Brunswick that much for losing to North Brunswick on a walk-off.
6. Woodbridge (12-2) – last week No. 6: The Barrons started the season with a six-game winning streak, lost twice to Metuchen and now they’re on their second six-game win streak of the spring. This could have been a trap week with three games against GMC teams with losing records in Carteret and Sayreville (a two-game series), yet both are talented dangerous and capable of winning any time out. The Barrons, which also defeated Plainfield, finished with a 4-0 week.
Baseball: The latest GMC Top 10, games to watch and Week 4 highlights (mycentraljersey.com)
St. Joseph continues to find a way to win GMC games.
The Falcons scored four times in the top of the sixth and twice in the final inning to pull out the Red Division win.
The Falcons (13-3 overall) improved to 11-0 in the division. South Plainfield (9-7, 7-4) entered in second place in the loss column.
Mark Gialluisi led the 14-hit attack by going 4-for-4 with a pair of triples and two RBI.
Jack Kern (3 RBI), Josiah Brown (RBI) and Tyler Delvecchio (3 runs) each had two hits in the win.
Additionally, Matthew Kosuda doubled and drove in a run, Christian Azcona doubled (2 RBI, 2 runs), Connor Drury (2 runs) and Robbie Carvelli each had a hit.
Andre Goldan earned the win in two innings in relief.
For the Tigers, Luke Bickunas and Ty Ducoff each went 3-for-4 with two doubles and two RBI. Tyler Balent (2 RBI, triple) and Ashton Donovan each had two hits.
Jayden Alvarez (RBI), Zack Robinson (RBI), Julian Irizarry and Brandon Bickunas each had a hit.
John Papaianni homered with three RBI and Frank Papaianni and Brody Marzano each had four hits as J.P. Stevens scored nine runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to pull out the Red Division win.
The Hawks (4-13 overall, 2-10 in division) trailed 8-4 after South Plainfield scored six runs in the top of the sixth.
However, the hot hitting Hawks erupted in the sixth with 19 total hits. Brody Marzano (2 doubles, 2 runs) and Frank Papaianni (double, 2 runs) each went 4-for-5 and Ayush Desai was 3-for-4 with two runs scored.
Dylan Casey (2-for-3, 3 RBI, double, run) and Connor Nartowicz (2-for-5, double, 2 RBI, run) also had multi-hit games.
Justin Bonito (double, RBI, run), Jackson Fong (double, run) and Mihir Patel (run) each had a hit.
For South Plainfield (9-6, 7-3), Luke Bickunas (2-for-4, 4 RBI) and Zack Robinson (2-for-3, RBI, double) each homered. Brandon Bickunas (run) and Julian Irizarry (RBI, run) added two hits apiece.
Senior left-hander Jack Massett struck out 10 in six innings as South Plainfield scored four runs in the fifth inning to break a 2-2 tie in the Red Division win.
The Tigers (9-4, 7-2 in the division) won 2-0 over Perth Amboy on Monday.
Massett scattered eight hits and three walks, allowing three runs. Jayden Alvarez finished with two strikeouts in the seventh inning.
South Plainfield had five players get two hits apiece – Tyler Ducoff (RBI, double, 2 BB), Tyler Balent (2 BB), Luke Bickunas (BB), Ashton Donovan (RBI, double) and Jayden Alvarez. Zack Robinson walked three times, scored twice and drove in a run.
For the Panthers (2-9, 2-9), Jordi Estevez and Daniel Nunez each had a hit and an RBI.
Catcher Luke Bickunas broke open a pitcher’s duel with a two-RBI opposite-field triple in the sixth inning and South Plainfield claimed the Red Division win.
Sophomore right-hander Chase Donovan was impressive in his varsity debut by throwing a three-hit shutout with nine strikeouts.
Perth Amboy's Jonathan Contreras was throwing a no-hitter in the sixth inning, until the Tigers collected three-straight hits.
With two outs, shortstop Zach Robinson hit a double and reached third after a hit to right by CF Julian Irizarry. That set up Bickunas’ big hit.
The Tigers improved to 8-4 overall and 6-2 in the division.
Contreras allowed three hits and struck out nine with no walks.
Aponte Cabaludo and Issaiah Batista had the only hits for the Panthers (2-8, 2-8).
Wednesday, South Plainfield earned a 3-2 nonconference win over Madison when catcher Luke Bickunas singled in the bottom of the ninth inning. Jack Massett shined in the start by scattering seven hits with nine strikeouts in seven innings.
(Records through Saturday, April 23)
Analysis: It’s been a spring of parity. Minus St. Joseph remaining undefeated in GMC play, there have been splits galore. While it’s fun for fans and makes for great games, it creates a logjam with several teams able to make cases for a higher ranking – or to get into the poll at all. It also depends on who’s pitching a particular day.
That’s what makes baseball rankings so tough to figure out compared to other sports. It’d be like if a different quarterback played every third game. For now, this is how the Top 10 shakes out entering the last week of April.
1. St. Joseph (9-1) – last week No. 1: The Falcons defeated Monroe twice for their fourth GMC sweep of the season. All-GMC first baseman Tyler Delvecchio is heating up and went 4-for-6 with five RBI and a home run in the wins over Monroe.
2. Monroe (6-5) – last week No. 2: Can’t ding Monroe that much for getting swept against St. Joseph and losing to nonconference Jackson Liberty. They have a key sweep over South Plainfield and split with Old Bridge.
3. South Plainfield (7-4) – last week No. 3: The Tigers didn’t have any GMC games this week and went 2-1 against nonconference competition. South Plainfield beat Madison and Union and fell to Millburn. Their earlier sweeps against Edison and Old Bridge keeps them at No. 3.
4. East Brunswick (6-5) – last week No. 5: The Bears split with No. 8 South Brunswick, getting no-hit by one of the best pitchers in the GMC in Joey Tuttolimondo. EB responded by pulling out a 4-2 win the next day as Michael Marchese went the distance with 12 strikeouts.
5. Old Bridge (5-5) – last week No. 7: The Knights had their Red Division bye week, but didn’t exactly put their feet up all week. Old Bridge lost to Ferris, which is 7-3, and beat White Division Sayreville.
6. Woodbridge (9-2) – last week No. 10: The Barrons have a balanced team with anyone in the lineup capable of getting a big hit with steady pitching. That equaled to an impressive sweep over Spotswood and a win over Carteret.
7. Middlesex (8-3) – last week No. 6: Sweeps in the White Division are hard, and the Blue Jays held serve by splitting with Colonia.
8. South Brunswick (4-6) – last week No. 8: See above, but add in Red Division. The Vikings split with East Brunswick and lost to nonconference power Cranford.
9. Edison (4-5) – last week No. 9: I’ll type it again – see above. The Eagles split with Perth Amboy, running into the hot arm of Issaiah Batista. They also beat the White Division’s Piscataway.
10. (Tie) Spotswood (7-3) – last week No. 4: Maybe it’s not fair to drop Spotswood six spots to No. 10. Look, the Chargers probably weren’t going undefeated anyway and you can’t criticize them for losing three games against surging teams in Woodbridge and St. Thomas Aquinas. That’s baseball and Spotswood is a quality club. Still, the teams ahead of them didn’t do anything to merit getting dropped this week.
Metuchen (5-4) – last week No. 10: A week after sweeping Woodbridge to enter the poll, the Bulldogs split with J.F. Kennedy and beat nonconference Madison. It just so happens that Metuchen plays Spotswood on Thursday.
Baseball: GMC Top 10, games to watch and highlights from Week 3 (mycentraljersey.com)
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