Another Salem sweep

Mighty Oaks slam six homers to power doubleheader sweep that extends winning streak to eight games

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE – It’s a good thing the visiting team moved the bus before the doubleheader started.

Salem CC’s streaking softball team slammed six home runs – three in each game – to fuel a 10-1, 9-0 run-rule sweep of SUNY-Orange County Wednesday that extended the Mighty Oaks’ presumptive school-record winning streak to eight games.

Haylee Pickrell, Ella Hayes and Vaye Savage hit two homers each. Five of the six were two-run shots. The Oaks entered the game with three homers all season, and those all came in one game. They now have nine in 14 games. They hit 13 in 34 games in last year’s revival season.

“I think yesterday (at Lehigh Carbon) we had a rough one, our bats were kind of sluggish here and there and the weather played a factor; I think we just made up for yesterday,” Oaks coach Angel Rodriguez said. “New game, new opportunities and we made the adjustment this time around that we needed to.

“It’s still early in the season, so I think a lot of them are just trying to get into their groove and find their rhythm and I think today was the outbreak some of them needed. We definitely know we have power in our lineup and it was just kind of nice to see it come to light for the first time together as a whole.”

Three of the homers were hit to center. The Colts’ parked their team bus just beyond the centerfield fence when they arrived before moving it out of line of fire prior to the first pitch, avoiding the possibility of driving back to New York with some serious window damage.

Pickrell hit a pair of two-run homers in the first game, one in the first inning and the walk-off shot in the fifth. Hayes also hit a two-run shot in the fifth.

Savage, who led the Oaks in homers last season with four, homered in back-to-back innings in the nightcap and Hayes hit her second of the day in the third inning.

“When we get into the box we’re not thinking I’m gonna hit a home run,” Pickrell said. “It’s not pure luck, but it’s definitely harder to do than most swings.

“It was one right after the other, mine and then Ella’s, it was just a ripple effect, like a snowball effect. It got the dugout more hyped. We’ve all been struggling and trying to work with pitches and stuff and once we got those home runs and started that ripple effect, it definitely carried throughout the dugout.”

During their eight-game winning streak, the Oaks are hitting .507 as a team (107-211) with 26 extra-base hits and outscored their opponents 85-7.

Ever since the Oaks returned from their season-opening trip to the Carolinas their doubleheaders have followed a familiar script: Use a big first inning of the opener to grab early control and then let Morgan Mecham shut them down in the nightcap.

The Oaks (10-4) took control of the first game with a four-run first inning and led 5-0 before Orange got on the board with its only run of the day. In the nightcap, Mecham posted her fifth shutout in her last six starts, struck out six and walked none.

“The biggest difference from last year to this year we added depth to our lineup and roster, we added some key pieces to help out with consistency and defense and that’s just really kept our pitchers confident,” Rodriguez said. “One thing we lacked last year was making the easy play. This year we’re making all those plays easier, we’re turning double plays, we’re confident in what we’re doing and they feel that.

“That energy is there, the trust is there together, so that kind of settles them in a little bit more. Morgan is just locked in. Nothing fazes her. And she knows she has a defense behind her, so she’s going to keep doing what she’s doing, but also she’s going to trust what’s behind her to help her out.”

GAME 1
SALEM CC 10, SUNY-ORANGE 1

SUNY-Orange (5-4)	001	00-	1	4	0
Salem CC (9-4)	410	14-	10	11	0

GIANNA CATLETTI (L 3-2) and Lindsay Keane; CAITLIN LaGRECA (W 4-3) and Callie Rozak. 2B: Gabriella Olivo (SO), Ella Hayes (S). 3B: Vaye Savage (S). HR: Haylee Pickrell 2 (S), Ella Hayes (S).

GAME 2
SALEM CC 9, SUNY-ORANGE 0

SUNY-Orange (5-5)	000	00-	0	7	0
Salem CC (10-4)	024	3x-	9	13	0

MOLLY MARTIN (L 2-3) and Jaylee Ramos; MORGAN MECHAM (W 6-1) and Vaye Savage. HR: Vaye Savage 2 (S), Ella Hayes (S)

Mo, mo Mo

Here is the ledger for Salem CC pitcher Morgan Mecham in her last six starts

TEAM	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
Henry Ford	7	8	0	0	1	7
Prairie State	5	2	0	0	2	6
Cecil College	3	2	1	1	0	5
RCSJ-Cumberland	7	4	0	0	0	9
Lehigh Carbon	6	2	0	0	1	9
SUNY-Orange	5	7	0	0	0	6
6-GAME TOTAL (6-0, 0.21)	33	25	1	1	4	42

Season total: 6-1, 1.49 ERA

Salem streak hits 6

Mighty Oaks softball extends winning streak to six with doubleheader sweep of Lehigh Carbon CC

By Riverview Sports News

SCHNECKSVILLE, Pa. — Caitlin LaGreca threw 3 1/3 innings of no-hit softball to start the day and Morgan Mecham spun her fourth shutout in her last five starts in the nightcap leading Salem CC to a 10-4, 4-0 sweep of Lehigh Carbon CC Tuesday.

The sweep extended the Mighty Oaks’ winning streak to six games, their longest streak since reviving the program last year.

“It’s probably the longest winning streak in softball history at SCC,” coach Angel Rodriguez said. “We’re making our our own history and the team is loving every ounce of it.”

The Oaks (8-4) made things more comfortable for LaGreca in the opener by scoring six runs in the top of the first inning. They sent 11 batters to the plate, banging out seven of their 14 hits. The first three hitters reached safely and all three scored. Faith Penn capped the inning with a two-run single.

LaGreca retired 10 of the first 11 hitters she faced before the Cougars touched her for four in the fourth. But by then, the Oaks had an 8-0 lead.

Karyn Trice pitched the last two innings. She also reached base all five times she batted in the game.

Mecham was brilliant again in the circle. She only allowed two singles and three base-runners. She retired 15 of the last 16 batters she faced. In her last five starts she has given up only one run with 36 strikeouts and four walks.

“Morgan is locked in,” Rodriguez said. “She doesn’t get rattled and knows her defense is behind her.”

The offense was, too. The Oaks banged out 15 hits in the nightcap. Trice had three hits and Courtney Hoggard drove in a pair of runs.

“The South Carolina trip connected the team in a way we needed it to,” Rodriguez said. “We are in a good spot right now to the start of a busy week. I couldn’t be prouder of how the team is turning tings up and sticking together.

“We’re going to keep getting better learning from game to game and making the adjustments as needed. We’re looking forward to being back at home tomorrow.”

The Oaks are right back at it Wednesday in a 3 p.m. doubleheader against Orange County CC (5-3).

GAME 1
SALEM CC 10, LEHIGH CARBON CC 4

Salem CC (7-4)	602	020	0-	10	14	1
Lehigh Carbon CC (0-1)	000	400	0-	4	6	3

CAITLIN LaGRECA (W 3-3), Karyn Trice (6) and Vaya Savage, Callie Rozak (6); MIA SNYDER (L 0-1) and Sandra Ramirez. 2B: Courtney Hoggard (S), KC Garcia (S).

GAME 2
SALEM CC 4, LEHIGH CARBON CC 0

Salem CC (8-4)	101	020-	4	15	0
Lehigh Carbon CC (0-2)	000	000-	0	2	2

MORGAN MECHAM (W 5-1) and Callie Rozak, Juanic Beukman (6); KASSANDRA AQUINO (L 0-1) and Stofflet. 3B: Karyn Trice (S)

Savage sweep

Salem CC softball christens new Pennsville LL home with a doubleheader sweep of RCSJ-Cumberland

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE – People around the Salem CC softball program know Vaye Savage as a player who will come early to the field and even show up to work when no one’s around. She was right on time Sunday.

The sophomore first baseman from Texas snared a hot liner with the bases loaded that surely would have tied the game and casually stepped on the bag for an inning-ending double play and then delivered an RBI single in the bottom of the inning to extend the lead in an eventual 7-1 win over RCSJ-Cumberland in the Mighty Oaks’ first-ever game in their new Pennsville Little League home.

The Oaks completed a successful christening of their new digs by winning the nightcap to sweep the day, 5-0.

“We did everything we were hoping to do,” Salem CC coach Angel Rodriguez said. “We came out and competed. Lovely ball field here, so I think that kind of helped out a little bit; you saw all the crowd comes out. So, everything we wanted to get out of what our home experience is going to be this year we did.”

Since reviving the program, the Oaks have played their games at the Carneys Point Recreation Complex, but while convenient, the facility wasn’t quite adequate for their needs. They looked around for a new site and struck a 12-month year-to-year deal last September to play on the Pennsville LL’s Watson Field.

The Oaks practiced in the complex during the fall and spring and played their first official games there Sunday. They have 11 more doubleheader dates there this season, including four straight between March 20 and 26.

“It was surreal,” Rodriguez said of the experience. “Just getting the field ready, going through warmups, I think they felt it, like having a home field where they feel at home.

“When we were thinking about the switch we brought the whole team knowing the majority of them were coming back. I think once they saw the complex, saw the field, their eyes lit up. Our goal was to try to make it happen and we did. They take pride in it every day and I definitely think they just feel more comfortable playing here, just knowing the facility feels like their home.”

Savage called it an “awesome field.”

Their era there couldn’t have started better.

In the first game Caitlin LeGreca pitched a three-hitter and struck out five. Seven of the Oaks’ nine hitters had at least one hit. Ella Hayes went 3-for-4 and Emilie Hamm went 2-for-3 with three RBIs.

Savage decorated the dugout for the occasion, then delivered the play of the day. The Oaks took a 4-0 lead into the fifth. The Dukes had just scored on a one-out bases-loaded walk. Cecely Dominguez hit a rocket towards right field. Savage, standing a few steps from the bag, stuck out her glove and speared it, then stepped on first to get the runner who took off thinking, like everyone in the park, the ball was headed into the corner to clear the bases and tie the game.

“You definitely felt that momentum change for sure,” Rodriguez said. “When she made that, we shifted it back in our favor.”

“The ball was just right there and I ended up sticking my glove up and catching it, and then I remembered the girl was on first and we got three outs,” Savage said. “I just kind of stuck my glove out there. My team knows on third base I have like no reaction time so I feel all of them were a little surprised at my reaction time on first.”

Ace Morgan Mecham pitched the nightcap and her advanced velocity proved too much of an adjustment for the Dukes. Mecham threw a two-hit shutout and struck out a season-high nine with no walks. She faced only three batters over the minimum.

She retired 12 of the first 13 hitters she faced and her last seven of the game. She has given up only one run in her last four starts – all wins, three shutouts – with 27 strikeouts and three walks. She hasn’t issued a walk in her last 13 2/3 innings.

“We have kind of a rivalry with them so it was kind of more personal than other teams,” Mecham said.

GAME 1
Salem CC 7, RCSJ Cumberland 1

RCSJ-Cumberland (0-3)	000	010	0-	1	3	2
Salem CC (5-4)	002	230	x-	7	10	2

ASHLEY BRAG (0-2), Karly Smaniotto (4) and Mimi Acevedo, Jordan Spates (4); CAITLIN LaGRECA (2-3) and Callie Rozak. 2B: Mimi Acevedo (R), Ella Hayes (S). 3B: Ella Hayes (S).

GAME 2
Salem CC 5, RCSJ-Cumberland 0

RCSJ-Cumberland (0-4)	000	000	0-	0	2	2
Salem CC (6-4)	002	300	x-	5	6	1

GIANNA FISKE (0-2) and Jordan Spates; MORGAN MECHAM (4-1) and Vaye Savage. 2B: Karyn Trice (S).

Salem CC pitcher Morgan Mecham spun her third shutout in her last four starts in the second game of Sunday’s sweep. On the cover, first baseman Vaye Savage takes the stance that helped her make the defensive play of the first game. (Photos by John Holt)

This week’s schedule

Here is the Salem County sports schedule for the week of March 17-23; all games 4 p.m. unless noted, x-scrimmage

Sunday

COLLEGE SOFTBALL
RCSJ-Cumberland at Salem CC (2), noon

Monday

BOYS TENNIS
x-Mainland at Woodstown

Tuesday

BOYS TENNIS
x-Schalick at Cumberland
x-Pennsville at St. Augustine
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Salem CC at Lehigh Carbon CC (2), 3 p.m.

Wednesday

BOYS TENNIS
x-West Deptford at Pennsville, 3:45 p.m.
x-Millville at Schalick
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
SUNY-Orange at Salem CC (2), 3:30 p.m.

Thursday

BASEBALL
x-Gateway at Salem
x-Pennsville at Williamstown
x-Schalick at Highland
x-Woodstown at Clearview
SOFTBALL
x-Cedar Creek at Schalick
x-Woodstown at Gloucester City
GOLF
Woodstown vs. Triton, Valley Brook CC
BOYS TENNIS
x-Woodstown at Palmyra

Friday

BASEBALL
x-Pennsauken Tech at Penns Grove
SOFTBALL
x-Kingsway at Woodstown
x-Pennsville at Delran
x-Salem at Bridgeton
BOYS TENNIS
x-Millville at Pennsville
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Salem CC at Brookdale CC, 3:30 p.m.

Saturday

SOFTBALL
x-Pennsville, Cedar Creek, Williamstown at Buena, 10 a.m.
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Brookdale CC at Salem CC (2), noon
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Delaware Tech at Salem CC (2), noon

Salem swept, sweeps

Mighty Oaks baseball swept by No. 6 Northampton CC, softball scores 40 runs in sweep of Cecil

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

CARNEYS POINT — When you’re playing a nationally ranked team there is literally little room for error(s).

Extra outs lead to big innings and big innings lead to bad losses.

Salem CC learned that throughout the series with sixth-ranked Northampton CC Saturday.

The Oaks gave up a six-run third and a three-run fifth — all on a total of three hits — in a 10-3 loss in the first game of Saturday’s doubleheader. They lost the nightcap 8-1 with some similarly bad innings.

Two errors led to a seven-run inning in an 11-1 series-opening loss to the once-beaten Spartans (14-1) Thursday.

“We did it the whole series,” Salem coach John Holt said. “When we did, we gave them those extra outs, they capitalized every time.

“I’ve known Yags (Northampton coach Adrian Yaguez) for (a long time). We’ve played against each other from my Burlington days, so I know that’s what’s going to happen. They’ve got a good enough ballclub that when mistakes are made they’re going to capitalize. We’ve just got to clean it up.”

The Spartans had only two hits in the inning that broke the opener open, but the Oaks helped them along with four errors and six walks. The most damaging miscue came when first baseman John McAllister dropped a pop foul behind the bag with two outs in a 4-1 game.

Sam Martinez wound up drawing a walk with the new life and the Spartans tacked on three more runs before the Oaks (6-8) got out of it.

Between innings Holt gathered his players outside the dugout to explain the importance of not giving any team, least of all a good one, extra outs. The Oaks didn’t make an error the rest of the game, but they did issue three bases-loaded walks in the Spartans’ three-run fifth that dug the hole deeper.

“They’re the No. 6 team in the country for a reason,” Holt said. “When you make mistakes good teams capitalize on those mistakes and that’s kind of what cost us.

“I think if we clean up a couple things and we continue to work on cleaning up that stuff I think we’re going to be OK. We’re really not that far off from where we want to be. We execute some pitches, we make some routine plays, I think we’re going to be OK.”

The nightcap started as a pitching duel between Salem’s Joe Davis and Northampton’s Logan Magdits. Each pitcher gave up a run in the first inning, then put up zeroes through the fourth.

Davis developed some arm stiffness and was lifted before the fifth started. Aiden Ewe came on and threw hard, but he gave up three runs. The Spartans scored the go-ahead run on a bad throw trying to nail a runner at third and then after loading the bases on an infield error scored two more runs on walks.

Two more errors and two bases-loaded station-to-station singles contributed to four runs in the seventh.

While Salem used three pitchers after lifting Davis, Magdits went the distance for the Spartans. He threw 99 pitches, gave up four hits – two each by Nick Ciesielka and Demetrius DeRamus – and struck out 13. He fanned 14 in his previous start.

DeRamus drove in Salem’s run with game-tying double to left. Magdits retired 13 of the last 14 Oaks’ hitters he faced after DeRamus’ second hit.

The Oaks return to action next weekend with a series against Brookdale CC. It’s a single game on the road Friday and another Saturday doubleheader at home. Brookdale is No. 4 in the NJCAA Division III baseball poll.

“We play in the toughest conference in the country; it’s never easy,” Holt said. “(Northhampton) is No. 6, Brookdale is top 10, (RCSJ) Gloucester is No. 1, Middlesex is getting votes (No. 15 this week) and so is Cumberland. Every week is like this, so we’ve got to come ready to play.”

GAME 1
Northampton CC 10, Salem CC 3

Northampton CC (13-1)	016	030	0-	10	6	2
Salem CC (6-7)	101	100	0-	3	3	5

AUSTIN BEARD, Ellis Snow (7) and Gabriel Caso and Glen Pysher (7); SEAN KELBY, J.D. Wilson (3), Matt Decker (5), Inaki Hutchinson (7) and Angel Velez. 2B: Robert Furino (N), Samuel Martinez (N), Cody Miller (N), Alexander Ruiz (N). 3B: Brandon Ratti (N)

GAME 2
Northampton CC 8, Salem CC 1

Northampton CC (14-1)	100	030	4-	8	7	0
Salem CC (6-8)	100	000	0-	1	4	5

LOGAN MAGDITS and Jorge Maldonado; Joe Davis, AIDEN EWE (5), Mike Ochmanski (5), Ryan Silnik (7) and Joe Fekete. 2B: Demetrius DeRamus (S).

Softball sweeps Seahawks

SALEM CC 22-18, CECIL 1-0: The Mighty Oaks showed no rust after being off a week. They tuned up for their home opener and inaugural games at Pennsville LL’s Watson Field Sunday by ripping 31 hits – 11 for extra bases – and scoring 40 runs in sweeping undermanned Cecil College. They had an 11-run inning in each game.

“It was a busy week of just gearing up to get ready to play again after our Spring Break trip down south,” Salem coach Angel Rodriguez said. “We just came ready to put the ball in play and was just excited to get back into game day.”

Courtney Hoggard had the biggest twinbill, going 6-for-7 with seven runs, two homers and eight RBIs, but the Oaks got contributions from everywhere in the lineup.

Ella Hayes led a 17-hit attack in the opener with three hits and five RBIs. Hoggard, Juanic Beukman and Tessa Wise also had three hits. Six players had multiple hits and nine had at least one RBI. Wise and KC Garcia drove in three runs apiece.

Hoggard hit both of her homers in the nightcap, a grand slam in the second inning and an inside-the-park homer in the fourth. Garcia hit a two-run homer in their 11-run fifth inning.

Cecil had only 10 players on its roster. The Seahawks have lost their four games by a combined score of 72-5.

The Oaks (4-4) make their official Pennsville debut Sunday in a noon doubleheader with RCSJ-Cumberland. Academic Advisor Wendy Decker will throw out the ceremonial first pitch.

GAME 1
Salem CC 22, Cecil College 1

Salem CC (3-4)	4(11)4	21-	22	17	0
Cecil (0-3)	100	00-	1	4	0

MORGAN MECHAM, Jill Robinson (4) and Vaye Savage; COOK, Iyana Jurry (2) and April McDonald. 2B: Ella Hayes (S), Kyla Buerger (S), Tessa Wise (S), Emia Gatewood (C). 3B: Courtney Hoggard (S).

GAME 2
Salem CC 18, Cecil College 0

Salem CC (4-4)	060	1(11)-	18	14	0
Cecil (0-4)	000	00-	0	5	0

CAITLIN LaGRECA, Karyn Trice (5) and Courtney Hoggard, Callie Rozak; IYANA JURRY, Natalie Cook (5) and April McDonald. 2B: Emilie Hamm (S), Jill Robinson (S), Vaye Savage (S), April McDonald (C), Iyana Jurry (C). 3B: Karyn Trice (S). HR: Courtney Hoggard 2 (S), KC Garcia (S).

It’s Trautz’ time

Woodstown board approves quarterbacks coach’s promotion to head football coach

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN — It’s funny the way things work out sometimes.

A year ago Frank Trautz took a middle school social studies teaching job in Woodstown not for anything as ambitious as being a head coach in waiting but just to get more coaching experience under a successful veteran like John Adams. Twelve months later, he is the Wolverines’ new head football coach.

Trautz was approved by the Woodstown-Pilesgrove district board Thursday night to succeed Adams, who announced at the end of January he was stepping away from coaching after 14 seasons to devote more time to his family.

Trautz, 32 and just five years older than Adams was when he got the job, was the Wolverines’ quarterbacks coach under his predecessor. In his new position he will continue to coach quarterbacks and now call the plays.

This will be Trautz’ first head coaching job. He will meet with the team Friday and then begin the transition to his program. It shouldn’t be a difficult transition for player or coach, as they all know each other and his offensive philosophy very much aligns with Adams’.

“It’s funny sometimes how life works out,” Trautz said. “To wind up in just a great spot teaching and coaching I feel incredibly lucky and incredibly fortunate that life has led me to this point.

“I was really excited when I came to Woodstown last year and getting to work with John on his staff; it’s a real special place. I’m very honored and humbled to be picked as the next guy to take over this program. It’s certainly really, really big shoes to fill. Coach Adams has done just a tremendous job building up this program to where it is and I’m just very excited to step in and get rolling.”

He said he had no idea Adams was going to step aside this winter when he came aboard. His “anticipation” was to be an assistant coach “for quite a few years” under the Wolverines’ coach.

“When I got the teaching job at Woodstown I had the opportunity to join John’s staff and I felt incredibly fortunate coming from a great program at Haddonfield to join another really, really great program here at Woodstown and to coach under another tremendous coach,” he said. “You can always be learning more. I don’t think there’s ever what you’d say is the perfect time and that’s kind of how I looked at it.

“I had the opportunity to keep learning from a really, really good coach in Coach Adams and I would have taken all the learning I could get from him … It’s something I wasn’t necessarily seeking out at this exact time, but I I feel that I’m ready and excited to accept this new chapter and challenge in my life.”

Woodstown officials interviewed two finalists, principal Richard Senor said. Being in-house was important, but wasn’t the underlying factor in Trautz rising to the top. He’d been around the game all his life – his father was a long-time successful high school coach and coached him – and he cut his teeth in 10 years as an assistant at Lindenwold and Haddonfield.

“We’re very glad and very fortunate to have someone in house,” Senor said. “I think that’s so important to the strength of the program, just the accountability for the students to know the coach is in the building and easily accessible if need be, but at the end of the day we want to hire the best person for the job, whether they’re an in-house candidate or not..

“To me, having the in-house person is just an added benefit, but I wouldn’t say it was the main criteria that we’re looking for. (Trautz) knows what it takes to have a successful program and maintain a successful program.”

The board also accepted the resignation of boys basketball coach Phil Campbell and the retirement of softball coach Dave Wildermuth (effective at the end of the school year). Senor said while an in-house candidate is desirable if one is available, the search for their replacements will focus on finding the best candidate for the job.

Trautz had been Campbell’s assistant and JV coach, but said his energy and focus is on the football program.

Trautz’ approval fills the final opening in one of the more tumultuous Salem County football off-seasons in recent memory. Three of the county’s five football-playing schools have had to replace their head coaches since the end of the 2024 season, the most turnover in the county in more than 15 years.

Carr comes home

Salem brings former Penns Grove, Winslow football coach back to the game to coach at his alma mater

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

SALEM — Salem High School went back to its roots to land the next coach for its football program.

Kemp Carr, a Salem native, former Rams athlete and former championship head coach at another school in the county, was approved unanimously by the Salem City Schools board Wednesday night to become the Rams next head football coach.

He replaces Danny Mendoza, who stepped down after his first season as the Rams’ head coach to pursue other opportunities. Carr plans to meet his team for the first time Tuesday and start the process of returning the Rams to their past glory.

The 51-year-old Montclair State grad was approved as a physical education teacher at the high school and the weight room supervisor we well. The positions carry a total compensation package of $96,864, which includes a $5,947 stipend as head football coach. Those figures can be adjusted upon settlement of the contract.

“It’s exciting for our kids, for our school, to be able to hire somebody with the experience, the knowledge, Kemp has,” said Salem principal John Mulhorn, who actually coached with Carr for a year before moving into administration. “Kemp is from Salem, he’s played for Salem, he’s had a lot of success outside of Salem and when we communicated about his possibly coming back for the high school coaching position here I was very excited because I know it’s going to really help continue to move the football program forward.”

The new coach continues a long line of Salem men who have coached the Rams football team. Each of the four coaches prior to Mendoza were former Rams who returned to coach at their alma mater — Montrey Wright, Dennis Thomas, Randy Johnson and Steve Sheffield.

And Carr has a connection to them all, which inspires him even more to keep the tradition rolling.

“Dennis Thomas came in and laid the foundation; Montrey Wright built the structure, did a nice job with that, built a house; we’re coming in to do the interior decorating,” Carr said. “When you understand the tradition of what a Ram means and what it is, and to have sat in the very same seat the scholar-athletes have done is a thrill. Me and my family are extremely ecstatic of the opportunity.”

His friends have been pushing for him to get the Salem job since 2007. Actually, he really wasn’t sure he wanted back in after he left Winslow. He was running two successful private businesses and liked the independence of moving to his own beat. It was actually his wife of 22 years Iris who nudged him back into football.

The job did draw a lot of interest, Mulhorn said, but Carr quickly moved to the top of the list because of his ties to the community and record of success.

“When you and I spoke at the (basketball) playoff game a couple weeks ago I said it was going to make a splash and it will make a splash because it is a big deal (bringing home a native son),” Mulhorn said. “He understands our scholar-athletes, he understands our community and he’s familiar with the conference, which is neat, too. So, it’s a win-win for us.

“To me, with Mr. Wright stepping down, Mr. Mendoza stepping down – two great guys – it was just important to be able to find somebody that we hoped to bring more stability to the program. Knowing that he’s a local guy, knowing this is a job he’s always really wanted, in my opinion, is exciting to me.

“To get someone who wants to be here, who wants to be committed, is always a hard find and I think that’s what we found in this young man.”

Carr brings with him a winning mentality and an ability to forge relationships that go beyond the huddle. He won 85 games as head football coach at Penns Grove and Winslow. He was 74-34 at Penns Grove from 2004-2013, playing in three South Jersey Group I title games and winning it in 2012. He also coached basketball (137-68) and golf there.

He was 11-18 from 2015-2017 at Winslow, in a program that had won only seven games in the four years prior to his arrival. His final year was marred by a late-season suspension for a head-slapping incident in the locker room captured on video, but he was later reinstated by the board after impassioned testimony from the players, parents and opposing coaches he has impacted there and beyond.

He really didn’t want the athletics director position he took with the Winslow football job just to bring some administrative stability to the program anymore and sought a return to the classroom, but stepped away altogether when there were no classroom slots available.

He’s been in private business since.

“You never know where God is going to place you,” Carr said. “This was nothing I saw. I really loved what I was doing, but I prayed and I meditated and it was like ‘you’re needed.’ And when you’re needed sometimes you have to give up what you like to do what’s right spiritually, and that’s how this basically came about.”

Now his charge is to take a team that fell on some hard times last year but still made the playoffs and turn them back into a consistent winner again.

“We made this a full-family tilt; that’s what we’re going to bring at Salem – we’re a family, man,” Carr said. “We’re going to give these kids opportunities and provide them. As long as they put in and do the things that are needed of them and handle their expectations we have for them, they’re going to have opportunities.

“Salem never lacks athletes, that’s never an issue. It’s just going to be about timing, development, getting back to the basics of fundamental football. That’s what we’re going to build from and then we’ll go from there.”

With Carr’s approval Wednesday night, two of the three head coaching openings in Salem County have now been filled. Penns Grove approved Mark Maccarone as its new coach Monday and Woodstown is expected to approve Frank Trautz as its new coach Thursday.

Salem pours it on

Oaks mighty in first inning erupting for 10 runs, ride it to 21-3 victory in first game back from Myrtle Beach trip; DeRamus homers again

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

CARNEYS POINT – If there’s one thing Salem CC baseball coach John Holt knew about his team it’s that it could score runs once it got comfortable with the college game.

The Oaks erupted for 10 runs in the first inning Tuesday and rode it to a 21-3 victory over Delaware County CC in their first game back from Myrtle Beach, where they learned a lot about themselves and the college way.

In their four-game winning streak since a 5-3 loss to Rays Collegiate at the beach, the Oaks (6-5) have scored 21, 16, 14 and 9 runs. The 21 were the most they’d scored in a game since putting 26 on Delco in May 2021. They scored 21 in a win over Bergen CC last April.

“We’re a very Jekyll and Hyde kind of program; we’re either really good or really not there,” Holt said. “What this crew needed to do was learn the college game, the difference between having an offense as opposed to hitting.

“Early on, we were swinging a lot of first pitches and not executing and not working pitchers. We kind of emphasized that pretty big down south, let’s start working counts, let’s get into bullpens, let’s have collegiate at-bats, not just (go) up there to try and whack the first great ball you see. When they started to buy into that, that’s when we started to (produce). We’ve swung it pretty good lately. I think they just really needed to learn the college game.”

The Phantoms gave them a lot of help, walking 17 batters and hitting 10. The Oaks had 56 plate appearances in their six innings of hitting and 27 official at-bats. Every spot in the lineup 1 through 5 and 9 had at least two walks; the 3-hole got five. Every spot from 4 down was hit at least once and every spot had scored at least once by the second inning.

At one point in the first two innings they were 1-for-4 with seven RBIs with the bases loaded. They collected 13 RBIs in the game with the bases loaded.

The Oaks put up a brand new scoreboard in right field that was under construction during their season opener and they “broke” it the first time they got to use it, scoring 10 runs in the home first when only nine would fit in the window.

“You can’t ask for a better way to get a game going,” Holt said.

They sent 16 batters to the plate in the inning, collecting three hits, seven walks and three hit batsmen. The big blow of the inning was Demetrius DeRamus’ three-run homer. It was his third homer in the last four games.

“That felt good; I kind of knew it was already out,” the centerfielder said. “I was just trying to stay within myself, not try to do too much and let the ball come in. I just try to hit the ball hard somewhere. If it goes out, that’s just really a plus.”

After DeRamus’ blast, 10 of the next 11 batters reached base. Cole Dawson had a two-run single, Yen Rodriguez singled home a run and Angel Velez, Elijah Real, Matt Murphy and Jared Vanderstuer had RBIs.

“That was pretty crazy,” DeRamus said. “We kind of did that in Myrtle as well, so we brought that momentum down from Myrtle to here. I was pretty happy with how we showed.”

Delco freshman Daniel Guinan didn’t make it out of the first inning of his first college start, giving up all 10 runs in one-third of an inning with the seven walks and three hit batters.

It didn’t stop there. The Oaks sent eight men to the plate in each of the second and third innings and batted around again in the fourth.

The long innings weren’t easy on Oaks starter Ryan Silnik, either. The sophomore right-hander from Washington Twp. pitched the first four innings, giving up no runs, two hits and striking out seven. The first inning was so long, he got up twice to throw on the side to stay loose – and then struck out the side in the second. He retired seven in a row at one stretch and 10 of the last 12 batters he faced.

The task gets tougher this weekend when the Oaks play JUCO D-III No. 6 Northampton CC (11-1). Opening Day starter Ben Foote will draw the Friday road start. Left-hander Sean Kelby gets Game 1 of Saturday’s home doubleheader with the nightcap starter TBA depending how Friday goes.

Delco CC (0-2)	000	030	0 –	3	4	3
Salem CC (6-5)	(10)22	322	x –	21	8	3

DANIEL GUINAN (L 0-1), Cedrick Havas (1), Hunter Whitten (4) and Jonathan DeRosa; RYAN SILNIK (W 2-1), Inaki Hutchinson (5), Matt Decker (6), Mike Ochmanski (7) and Angel Velez. 2B: Eric Engesser (D). 3B: Jonathan DeRosa (D). HR: Demetrius DeRamus (S)

Cover photo: Salem CC’s Demetrius DeRamus approaches the plate after hitting a three-run homer in the first inning against Delaware County CC Tuesday.

Woodstown tabs Trautz

Wolverines expected to elevate quarterbacks coach to head coach at Thursday, school board to hear of Campbell’s resignation and Wildermuth’s retirement

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN – There will be a lot of athletics related activity at the Woodstown-Pilesgrove school district board meeting Thursday.

From the comings dept., in-house candidate Frank Trautz will be put forward for approval as the Wolverines’ new football coach, succeeding John Adams, who stepped down at the end of the season to focus on his family.

From the goings dept., the board will hear the resignation of boys basketball coach Phil Campbell and retirement at the end of the school year of softball coach Dave Wildermuth.

Attempts to reach Woodstown athletics director Joe Ursino Tuesday were unsuccessful.

Trautz, a Haddon Twp. grad who played football and baseball at Moravian, has been a longtime assistant in football, basketball and baseball at Haddonfield, Lindenwold and Willingboro.

“All I can say is I’m excited about the potential opportunity,” Trautz said.

A teacher in the Woodstown Middle School, Trautz was the Wolverines’ quarterbacks coach this past season, helping guide Max Webb through his senior year and develop Webb’s cousin, Jack Holladay, for the future. He also was Campbell’s basketball assistant and the junior varsity boys basketball coach.

Campbell stepped away from the basketball program for personal reasons and preferred not to comment further. His teams were 21-26, 11-13 this past season after starting the year 4-0.

Campbell took the program after Wildermuth stepped away to focus on his softball team. The last two years, the softball team went a combined 35-12 and lost one-run games to Audubon in the South Jersey Group I semifinals each year. This year’s team is expected to be one of the best in South Jersey.

With Trautz’ expected approval, all three Salem County head football coaching vacancies will be filled this week. Matt Maccarone was approved as the new Penns Grove coach Monday and former Penns Grove and Winslow coach Kemp Carr, a Salem native, is expected to be approved as the new Salem coach Wednesday.

Mac’s their man

Former Glassboro head coach Maccarone approved as Penns Grove’s new football coach, was Red Devils’ DC during their 2018-19 championship run

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

CARNEYS POINT – Mark Maccarone never ruled out being a head coach again when he stepped away in 2017 and now that door has reopened to him in a very familiar setting.

The former Glassboro head coach and one-time Penns Grove assistant was approved Monday night by the Penns Grove-Carneys Point Regional School District to become the Red Devils’ new head football coach. He succeeds John Emel, who is headed to West Deptford to become its new football coach, and he’s glad to be back as a head coach.

With his unanimous approval, Maccarone, 41, becomes just the third Penns Grove head football coach in the last 25 years.

“I’m very excited for the opportunity to come to Penns Grove and I’m taking over a program that’s been very successful for the last two decades,” he said. “I was fortunate when I stopped being a head coach, Coach Emel reached out to me and asked me to be an assistant coach here and I was able to form some very close relationships with some of the coaches on the staff and a majority of the players.

“I never said no to the opportunity (to be a head coach again). I’ve had opportunities that I’ve been offered that I turned down because it wasn’t the right situation for me at the particular time. This is an opportunity to come somewhere where I’m familiar. For me, this was the perfect opportunity to kind of throw my hat back into the ring, so to speak.”

Penns Grove athletics director Anwar Golden said the opening drew “five or six very strong championship-worthy coaches who brought a lot to the table,” but Maccarone rose to the top because of his vision for the future and desire to work towards it.

“He’s got a lot of heart, he’s got a lot of charisma, he’s a thinker,” Golden said. “He has a lot of opportunity and a lot of lofty goals. He’s been putting in a lot of work to try to prepare for the next season. He’s ready to go.

“He knows the game, he knows relationships. The kids play for him and work with him because he is a person who develops and maintains strong relationships with the kids. They trust him. We talk about the kids and he was like I don’t know a lot of these kids yet because I haven’t been around, but I was like, ‘Mac those skill sets that you had when you were here, they’re still prevalent.’”

A resident of Washington Twp., Maccarone will remain as a social studies teacher at Camden County Tech while he coaches the Red Devils, unless, of course, a teaching position opens at Penns Grove.

“I’m in a better situation in my career, so it’s allowing me the opportunity once again to become a head coach,” he said.

Maccarone checks all the boxes. He has been a head coach. He has been in big games. He has won championships and coached players who’ve gone on to the NFL. He knows the Penns Grove players and the expectations the administration and community have for their football team.

He was 43-33 with five straight playoff appearances in his seven seasons with Glassboro, winning two South Jersey Group I titles and reaching the semifinals two other times.

After he stepped down from the Bulldogs after seven years of commuting between Bridgeton and the school, Emel scarfed him up to be the Red Devils’ defensive coordinator during their 2018-19 championship run and has helped with the program in a less formal capacity post-COVID.

He was a spotter in the coaches booth when the Red Devils shut out eventual state finalist Glassboro in the regular season this past October. He also was there when they beat Pennsville to retain The Boot, when they knocked off Florence in the first round of the South Jersey Group I playoffs and when they lost at Woodstown in the semifinals.

“I think Mark is a heck of a football coach,” Emel said. “After 2017 when we lost (in the South Jersey Group I finals) I wanted to find an assistant coach with big-game experience. One of the things he hangs his hat on is never losing a sectional championship game as a coach (6-0). He’s always had a great relationship with players. I care about the kids and I’d want somebody who’d put them in positions to win. He knows how to get a team ready to win.

“I’m excited because I want the program to do well. He’ll absolutely do some things better than I did. I think it’s a good situation for a team that has a lot of experience; they need to be coached hard by a guy who can get them to the next level.”

Maccarone inherits a program that went 70-41 under Emel, made the South Jersey Group I playoffs every year and won at least one playoff game five of the last six years. The Red Devils won three division titles and two of the school’s three sectional crowns (2018 and 2019) during a three-year stretch in which they went 35-3 with a 25-game winning streak. He currently has five players in college football at the Division II level or higher.

This past season the Red Devils went 6-6 after a 1-4 start and trailing 19-0 at halftime of their sixth game. They played for the WJFL Diamond Division title on the last weekend of the regular season and produced two 1,000-yard rushers who are both eligible to return with most of the 32 players they finished the season with. The JV team went undefeated and they have a weight room Emel has called one of the best setups in South Jersey.

Maccarone called his two official seasons with the Red Devils a “very fun two years” during which he forged some “life-changing” relationship with players and coaches that stand to this day. With the talent and support within the program, he said there’s no reason they can’t reach for those goals again.

With Maccarone’s hiring, there are now two football head coaching vacancies remaining in Salem County, but both are expected to be filled later this week. Former Penns Grove head coach Kemp Carr is up for approval as Salem’s new coach Wednesday and Woodstown is expected to approve its new coach Thursday.

Cover photo: New Penns Grove football coach Mark Maccarone meets with well-wishers after being approved by the board Monday night.