Salem CC’s Rodriguez wins weekly national award; production up, strikeouts down
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
CARNEYS POINT – Salem CC Yen Rodriguez led the nation in strikeouts last season and under any other circumstance that would be cause for celebration. Problem is, he’s a hitter.
Even he recognized the need for better plate discipline and worked all offseason on his approach. This season the Mighty Oaks’ sophomore has cut down on his strikeouts, already hit more home runs and today he’s being celebrated as a national award winner.
Rodriguez added the NJCAA Division III Player of the Week award to the GSAC Position Player of the Week award he won earlier in the week. He’s the first national player winner in coach John Holt’s tenure with the Mighty Oaks.
The switch-hitter from Vineland who has played both in the infield and outfield this season, batted .692 (9-for-13) in four games last week with two homers, six RBIs, 11 runs scored and five stolen bases – and just one strikeout.
“It’s a huge honor,” Holt said. “The kid’s worked real hard. He’s starting to buy into some of the things our hitting coaches have been working with him on and with the buy-in he’s seeing those results. He’s got all the talent in the world. He just needed to make a few adjustments and he’s seeing the results.
“He was sometimes overly aggressive, swinging at a pitcher’s pitch, so we asked him to see some more pitches, work himself into counts where he could drive the baseball as oppose to defensive counts. He’s swinging at more hitters’ pitchers and doing well with it. It took him doing what happened last year to kind of open his eyes a little bit and make those adjustments and he’s done that and we’re better for it.”
Last year, Rodriguez led Division III with 61 strikeouts in 152 at bats – but still hit .303 with five homers, a .488 on base percentage and .559 slugging percentage.
Through 27 games this season he is batting .414 with six homers, 24 RBIs, a .552 on base percentage and .747 slugging percentage. He ranks in the top 10 nationally in homers, run scored and stolen bases. He still has fanned 23 times, but only twice in the seven games (21 at bats) since the Mighty Oaks returned from their Florida trip.
“All last season with leading the region in strikeouts it was mainly because I was a pull hitter; I was not dominant on the opposite side,” Rodriguez said after plating the winning run in a recent 12-inning win over RCSJ-Gloucester that didn’t figure in this award. “Going up there and hitting the ball opposite like I’ve been trying to do and honestly frustrated with the fact I couldn’t score the runs, (delivering that game-winner) made me happy because I’m working at the end of the day.”
Freshman Battavio sharp in varsity debut; Woodstown, Schalick, Salem all win big in baseball; includes softball, golf, tennis, volleyball results
MONDAY BASEBALL Salem 18, Wildwood 6 Schalick 12, Glassboro 2 Woodstown 12, Penns Grove 2
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
WOODSTOWN – Walker Battavio had been waiting for his chance to start a varsity baseball game since he got to the eighth grade. Woodstown coach Marc DeCastro made that dream come from Monday and the freshman left-hander was a nightmare for the batters who faced him.
Battavio racked up strikeouts the way his older sister Talia racked up 3-pointers on the basketball court. He struck out seven in his three innings of work and his teammates staked him to a big early lead in a 12-2 five-inning win over Penns Grove.
His first seven outs all came by punch-outs, including a run of six in a row. He probably would have had more, but was on a pitch count in his first varsity start and was lifted after three innings and 51 pitches.
“I was looking forward to this a lot; it was one of my goals coming into high school,” Battavio said. “I thought I did good. I threw a lot of strikes, so that helped out.”
Battavio learned late last week he was going to start the Wolverines’ division opener and had the weekend to think about it. He said he was a little scared at first, then settled in for the assignment as time went on. Even during the school day he was nervous, but calmed down once he got on the field.
He was really only in trouble once and got out of that like a crafty veteran. He loaded the bases with one out in the first on a walk and two singles, but took a couple deep breaths behind the mound to calm down and got through it by striking out the next two batters. He almost had an immaculate inning in the second striking out the side.
Sol Elmer, another freshman, followed Battavio to the mound and finished the game.
For DeCastro, Battavio checked two of the big boxes he has for evaluating a rookie pitcher. He settled in after some expected early uneasiness, and the next inning he treated the lead his teammates gave him “appropriately.”
There will be more starts in his future.
“I’m not going to be super fixed with him just because he is a freshman,” DeCastro said. “I want to see him handle a couple different types of experiences before I really start to put any real pressure on him. He’s going to start another game next week and we’ll see how he handles that and kind of build the type of intensity and the game pressure that he pitches (under).
“He’s a freshman so I’m not going to put him in a situation where I don’t think he can do what he can succeed. He did well enough he gets (next) Tuesday and we’ll see where he is on that game and go from there.”
After Battavio got out of the first, the Wolverines rewarded their pitcher with nine runs in the bottom of the inning. They sent 15 batters to the plate and actually did most of their damage – seven runs worth – with two outs. Rocco String delivered the crushing blow, a three-run double.
Penns Grove coach Chuck Weigle said things might have been different had the Red Devils (1-2) gotten those early runs home.
“You get one or two there, it puts little bit more pressure on them,” he said. “They’re expecting to come out here probably thinking ‘it’s an easy game for us,’ (but) we put two runs on the board early it’s different game. They have to come up here ready to swing. It puts a little bit of pressure on them, make them make the moves, come out here and have to play baseball.”
Top photo: Woodstown first baseman Jack Holladay has a thumb up for the pitching performance Walker Battavio (L) gave in his varsity debut Monday.
Penns Grove (1-2)
000 02-
2
5
1
Woodstown (2-0)
912 0x-
12
9
3
WP: Walker Battavio. LP: Josh Widen.
SCHALICK 12, GLASSBORO 2: Luke Pokrovsky homered and drove in five runs and starting pitcher Lucas D’Agostino struck out 10 in four innings as the Cougars opened their season in a big way.
Pokrovsky, a Penn signee, went 3-for-4 and was a single away from hitting for an Opening Day cycle to lead the Cougars’ 14-hit attack. He hit a two-run triple in the fourth and solo homer in the fifth. Evan Sepers, Jamari Whitley, J.T. Fleming and Eli Cummings had two hits apiece.
D’Agostino pitched the first four innings, giving up two hits and an unearned run. Cole Hartley wrapped it up, striking out four in his two innings.
Glassboro (0-1)
001 001-
2
7
2
Schalick (1-0)
122 412-
12
14
1
WP: Lucas D’Agostino. LP: Colin Riley.
SALEM 18, WILDWOOD 6: The Rams opened their season with the highest scoring game in their two seasons under coach Eric Fizur.
Eithan Longo and Terrell Robinson both had three hits and three RBIs, while Jacob Parkell and Austin Davis both had two hits and two RBIs. Chase Davis had two hits and scored four runs. The first three hitters in the Rams’ lineup – Longo, Davis and Robinson – were a combined 8-for-12 with six RBIs and nine runs scored.
They took the lead with a five-run third and blew it open with eight in the sixth.
“We played well today and took advantage of the opportunities we had,” Fizur said. “The players are more locked in this year, more focused. It showed today, and it’s something we can build on.”
The 18 runs were the most the Rams have scored in a game since putting 22 on Bridgeton in May 2023. They scored 18 in a win over Pleasantville later that season.
PENNSVILLE 11, GLOUCESTER CATHOLIC 6: Graillyn Weber’s two-run double in the fourth inning gave Pennsville the lead (6-4) and the Eagles broke it open with five in the top of the seventh. Kylie Harris Makenzie Widener and Salem CC signees Savannah Palverento and Sawyer Simmons all had two hits for the Eagles.
WILDWOOD 15, SALEM 4: The Rams fell behind 9-0 and couldn’t climb out of the hole. J Love and R Doerr both had two hits for Salem.
Tennis
PENNSVILLE 5, WILDWOOD 0 Gabe Schneider (P) def. Giorgio Palesano, 6-0, 6-0 Maddox Efelis (P) def. Brian Damian, 6-0, 6-0 Brody Wiggins (P) def. Simon Palaces, 6-0, 6-0 Lucas Cooksey-Sawyer Humphrey (P) def. Christopher Hernandez-Chris Olivera, 6-1, 6-0 Carter Willis-Ian Peacock (P) def. Gabriel Hernandez-Eric Miranda, 6-0, 6-1 Records: Pennsville 1-0, Wildwood 0-3.
PENNS GROVE 5, GLASSBORO 0 Alex Ramirez Martinez (P) def. Kevin Unbato, 6-1, 6-3 Poyraz Erdönmez (P) def. Andrew Miller, 5-7, 6-1 Stuart Mondragon (P) def. Rowan Somdhal-Sands, 6-0, 6-1 Anthony Pacheco-Rene Ruiz (P) def. Jesus Lopez-Jeffrey Guzman, 6-4, 6-2 Angel Perez Herrera-Juan Ortiz (P) def. Jeffrey Guzman-Nico Tsoulcalis, 6-0, 6-1 Records: Penns Grove 1-0, Glassboro 0-1.
Golf
GIRLS WILLIAMSTOWN 205, SCHALICK 222: Williamstown’s Brynn DiGiamberardino was low medalist at Scotland Run (46). Cali Fisler and Abby Willoughby posted the Cougars’ low rounds (54).
Volleyball
HIGHLAND 2, SALEM TECH 0: The game scores were 25-15, 25-17
Here is the Salem County sports calendar from the week of March 30-April 6; events start at 4 p.m. unless noted
MARCH 31 BASEBALL Glassboro at Schalick Penns Grove at Woodstown Salem at Wildwood SOFTBALL Pennsville vs. Gloucester Catholic, Stauffer Fields Schalick at Glassboro Woodstown at Penns Grove Wildwood at Salem GOLF Schalick girls vs. Williamstown, Scotland Run Woodstown vs. Deptford, Town & Country GL, 3 p.m. TENNIS Clayton at Schalick Glassboro at Penns Grove Wildwood at Pennsville, 3:45 p.m. TRACK Glassboro at Penns Grove LACROSSE St. Joseph at Woodstown VOLLEYBALL Salem Tech at Highland, 3:45 p.m.
APRIL 1 GOLF Pennsville vs. Pitman, Pitman CC Schalick vs. Wildwood, Union League GC GIRLS LACROSSE Haddonfield at Woodstown, 4:30 p.m. TENNIS Glassboro at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m. VOLLEYBALL Salem Tech at Camden County Tech, 3:45 p.m. COLLEGE SOFTBALL Lackawanna at Salem CC, 3 p.m. APRIL 2 BASEBALL LEAP at Penns Grove Pennsville vs. Pitman, Alcyon Park Salem at Holy Cross Woodstown at Schalick SOFTBALL Gloucester Catholic at Salem Pitman at Pennsville Woodstown at Schalick GOLF Schalick girls vs. Clearview, Centerton CC TENNIS Middle Twp. at Woodstown Pennsville at Overbrook TRACK Schalick at Pennsville Woodstown at Overbrook
APRIL 3 SOFTBALL Penns Grove vs. LEAP at Rutgers Camden GOLF Pennsville vs. Cumberland, Sakima CC, 3:30 p.m. Salem Tech vs. Wildwood, Union League National Schalick vs. Overbrook, Centerton CC, 3:30 p.m. TENNIS Pennsville vs. Clayton, Williamstown MS Schalick at Glassboro Woodstown at Triton COLLEGE SOFTBALL Salem CC at Camden CC, 3:30 p.m.
APRIL 4 BASEBALL Haddon Heights at Woodstown Pennsville vs. Gloucester Catholic, Brooklawn MS Schalick at Delran SOFTBALL Salem at Camden County Tech Schalick at Delsea Woodstown at Haddon Heights GOLF Pennsville vs. Cedar Creek, Sakima CC, 3:30 p.m. Schalick vs. Overbrook, Centerton CC TENNIS Pennsville at Bridgeton, 3:45 p.m. Vineland at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m. LACROSSE Lower Cape May at Woodstown COLLEGE BASEBALL Salem CC at Middlesex, 3:30 p.m.
APRIL 5 SOFTBALL Pennsville at Millville Tournament, 9 a.m. TRACK Pennsville, Salem at Deptford Relays, 9 a.m. Schalick at Buena Relays, 9 a.m. Woodstown in Invitational at Univ. of Delaware, 9 a.m. COLLEGE BASEBALL Middlesex at Salem CC (2), noon COLLEGE SOFTBALL Mercer County CC at Salem CC, noon
Penns Grove wins with big seventh-ining rally, Woodstown opens its season with a shutout
By Riverview Sports News
PENNS GROVE – Alex Rubio delivered the game-winning hit with one out in the seventh inning to cap a five-run rally and lift Penns Grove over Bridgeton 9-8 for its first win of the high school baseball season Saturday.
Bridgeton broke a 3-3 tie with five runs in the sixth inning. Penns Grove got one of the runs back in the bottom of the sixth, then rallied in the seventh.
Bristol Scott went 3-for-3 to lead Penns Grove’s seven-hit attack. Rubio, Tommy Mattioli, Jaxson Raymond, Liam Irvin and Alex Pax were all credited with an RBI.
WOODSTOWN 6, GATEWAY 0: Ty Coblentz and Walker Battavio both had three singles and two RBIs and three Woodstown pitchers scattered four hits and struck out 10 as the Wolverines opened their season with a shutout.
Aaron Foote threw 3 2/3 inning of one-hit relief and struck out five behind starter Rocco String to get the win. Michael Valente finished it off with 2 1/3 of one-hit relief.
Lucas Fulmer had a pair of hits for the Wolverines.
Salem CC baseball wins in bottom of ninth to split DH, but win series with Montgomery; softball splits at Morris
SATURDAY REGION 19 BASEBALL Salem CC 5-4, Montgomery County 9-3 Morris 7-13, Delaware Tech 6-5 RCSJ-Cumberland 17-5, Ocean 4-0 Lackawanna 18-21, Raritan Valley 10-1 Union at Middlesex Camden 28-10, Bergen 6-0 RCSJ-Gloucester 12-12, Northampton 8-0 Mercer 8-12, Sussex 5-2
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
CARNEYS POINT – Just another sensational Saturday at The Treehouse.
For the second straight Saturday on their Carneys Point Rec Complex field, Salem CC won the second game of a Region 19 doubleheader in their last bats in extra innings. This time, it was 4-3 in the bottom of the eighth to split the twinbill with Montgomery County CC.
Last week, the Mighty Oaks beat RCSJ-Gloucester 4-3 in the bottom of the 12th to sweep that doubleheader and the series. It wasn’t nearly as dark or as cold when the winning run crossed this time, but the score and circumstances were eerily the same.
“Baseball‘s a strange sport, that’s all I can say,” said sophomore first baseman Lee Rodriguez, whose two-out single deep into the right centerfield gap scored Yen Rodriguez from third with the winning run. “Are you not entertained?”
After dropping the opener 9-5, it took the Mighty Oaks (12-15) a while to come around in the nightcap. They rallied from an early 3-0 deficit to tie the game and then get the split. Yen Rodriguez got them on the board with a leadoff homer off the scoreboard in the fourth inning and they tied it in the fifth on Tim Bowlby’s RBI ground out and Cole Dawson’s sacrifice fly.
Yen Rodriguez got their eighth-inning rally started with a walk and stolen base. He moved to third on Demetrius DeRamus’ grounder to second and was held at third on Angel Velez’ grounder to the same place.
Lee Rodriguez, who entered as a pinch runner for Tyler Hacker in the fourth (hamstring), saw two pitches from Chris Tomlinson and then ripped a 71-mph fastball into the gap to score Yen. The shot was as hard as any ball Lee has hit with the Mighty Oaks and would have been a double in any other circumstance, but since it only took one base to score the winning run he was credited with just a single.
He figured it was his first walk-off hit since he was 14 years old.
“I’m usually the one who’s on base and somebody walks to bring me in or something,” he said. “I’m usually the one who scores it.
“With two outs my goal was really just to try and get Yen in. I was like, play small ball. First pitch I took was a ball. When I saw the first strike something in me was like, ‘you’re ready’. I got to looking at third and said I’m going to get you in no matter what. The next pitch, he threw it and I hit it. I thought it was going (out), too The umpire said it’s no home run, but it’s all right. At least we won the game.
“I’m going to be thinking about this all week now til the next game.”
The win went to Seth McCormick, a freshman righthander who earlier in the week entered a 6-6 game in the seventh but was lifted in mid-inning with right shoulder pain after giving up six runs. He showed no signs of the ailment Saturday, striking out the top of Montco’s lineup in order on 13 pitches, one of which was a career-best 87-mph fastball.
“I’ve struggled before with shoulder injuries,” McCormick said. “What I think it was was I pinched something and something happened. I did a little bit of rehab with our athletic trainer and I came in and it felt good today. I just tried to throw it as hard as I could where I needed to be and it worked.
“Going through my mind was getting out with as few pitches as possible. Don’t overstrain the arm and get out and give us a chance to win. It was definitely a stressful situation coming in after Pat (Seitzinger) threw a hell of a game and you’ve got to come in and throw as well if not better than he did. It’s a stressful situation, especially as the game rides on your shoulder.”
McCormick got the ball after starter Seitzinger threw seven strong innings and was brilliant over his last five. After giving up three consecutive doubles that produced the Mustangs’ 3-0 lead, the freshman lefthander retired 16 of the last 19 batters he faced and 14 of the last 15. He and McCormick retired the last 13 Mustangs in a row.
“My mechanics got better as the game went on,” Seitzinger said. “I was leaving pitches right down the middle, so I figured I’d change my mechanics a little bit, try to keep them more off balance. I felt good going into the game so I felt like I was going to have success, but after that second inning I knew we were struggling a little bit hitting so I had to pick up my teammates and throw strikes.”
“I’ve known Pat since he was 11; I coached him in 11U baseball,” Salem coach John Holt said. “I’ve been waiting for him to graduate when I got this job. I know he’s got the tenacity and the killer instinct as a lefty that when he gets the opportunity nothing fazes him. A true bulldog.”
ACORNS: Former major leaguer Fernando Rodney made it to The Treehouse in time to catch his son’s team play in the second game. The Mighty Oaks are undefeated this season when the former MLB All-Star is in the stands. They are off until Friday and aren’t back at home until next Saturday … Seitzinger dropped his ERA almost a run and a half to 7.14 with his outing … The Mustangs took the lead in the opener with a four-run fifth marred by a two-run fielding error in the outfield and extended it with Brett Minnick’s three-run homer in the sixth.
GAME ONE: MONTGOMERY 9, SALEM 5
Montgomery County
020 043 0-
9
9
1
Salem CC
101 012 0-
5
7
4
WP: Korbin Wale. LP: Jared Vanderstuer. HR: Brett Minnich (M).
GAME TWO: SALEM 4, MONTGOMERY 3 (8 INNS.)
Montgomery County
030 000 00-
3
6
1
Salem CC
000 120 01-
4
5
0
2 out when winning run scored WP: Seth McCormick. LP: Chris Tomlinson. HR: Yen Rodriguez (S).
Montgomery County’s Ryan Bevins leaps over Salem catcher Angel Velez trying to score in the first inning of Saturday’s opener. Bevins missed the plate and Velez tagged him out to complete a double play. (Photo from Gamechanger video).
Softball
Hayes big game helps Mighty Oaks split
SATURDAY REGION 19 SOFTBALL Salem CC 4-18, Morris 5-6 Bergen 15-1, Ocean 2-9 Middlesex 9-1, RCSJ-Gloucester 6-10 Brookdale 4, Orange 1 Lackawanna 8-6, Sussex 0-2 Monroe Bronx 8-19, Raritan Valley 7-15 Mercer 9-4, Delaware Tech 1-5 Northampton 15-10, Camden 1-2
RANDOLPH – Ella Hayes hit a grand slam in the fifth inning and drove in six runs and Tiana Wilson went 3-for-3 with five RBIs as the Salem CC softball team crushed Morris 18-6 in the nightcap of their doubleheader after losing the opener to a two-run seventh-inning rally.
Hayes’ slam capped a six-run inning after the Mighty Oaks broke away from a 5-5 tie with seven runs in the fourth. Rozak broke the tie with a two-run homer and Wilson extended the lead with a two-run double.
Wilson had a big doubleheader, going 3-for-3 in both games. She is 9-for-9 with two sacrifice flies over her last four games since going hitless in Game 2 against Raritan Valley.
The Mighty Oaks took a 4-2 lead into the sixth inning of the opener. Morris got closer with a run in the sixth and then won it with two in the seventh. The Titans produced the tying and winning runs on back-to-back two-out singles.
GAME ONE: MORRIS 5, SALEM 4
Salem CC
103 000 0-
4
11
2
Morris
110 001 2-
5
9
4
2 out when winning run scored. WP: Demm. LP: Raegan Wilson.
GAME TWO: SALEM 18, MORRIS 6
Salem CC
023 76-
18
14
4
Morris
302 10-
6
5
5
WP: Jill Robinson. LP: Prager. HR: Callie Rozak (S), Ella Hayes (S).
Salem CC sophomore breaks out of slump with homer in Mighty Oaks’ rout of Montgomery County
REGION 19 BASEBALL Salem CC 20, Montgomery 7 RCSJ-Cumberland 16, Ocean 0 Delaware Tech 6, Morris 2 Lackawanna 14, Raritan Valley 1 Camden 10, Bergen 0 Mercer 9, Sussex 2 RCSJ-Gloucester 5, Northampton 4 Middlesex at Union
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
BLUE BELL, Pa. – Chris Kelly has been having an awful time at the plate since the Salem CC baseball team returned home from its trip to Florida. But one swing Friday may have gotten him back on the right path.
KELLY
The sophomore third baseman belted a three-run homer – his first college home run – in the fifth inning in the Mighty Oaks’ 20-7 rout of Montgomery County CC.
Before the blast – his first college homer – he had gone 2-for-18 with 10 strikeouts since coming back from Florida and, compounding the frustration, made an unfortunate error on a potential inning-ending bouncer in the ninth inning as a late-game defensive replacement Wednesday against Mercer.
But he came up with two on and two out against the Mustangs and sent left-hander Brayden Morton’s second pitch of the count deep to left field to put the game into run-rule territory.
“The batter before got four straight balls and my first pitch was a ball,” Kelly said. “I was expecting to get the take sign from Coach Holt, but he gave me the green light. Coach Ty (McGarvey) said find the mistake. I went up there and found the mistake and did what I was supposed to with the mistake.
“It brought a lot of confidence back after struggling against Cumberland. It felt good to produce for the team, to get a nice three-run RBI (that) helped out and got us the 10-run rule and kind of went from there. It felt good to get the swing feeling good again.”
You could almost feel the cloud lift as Kelly rounded the bases. He playfully engaged with first base coach Chip Chapman and when he rounded third to approach the plate you could hear his teammates calling out “Welcome back.”
“It was a big relief,” Kelly said. “Hearing that just kind of like boosted me up even more and then seeing everybody once I got there it definitely was relieving.”
The Delsea product had never been through an extended hitting slump like this before. While he didn’t lose any sleep over it, he was thinking about it “a lot.” Admittedly it had reached a point late in the Cumberland series where he dreaded going to the plate. But always in the back of his mind he felt he’d eventually find a way back.
“I wish I knew (the cause); I kind of just felt off at the plate,” he said. “I wasn’t as good, the approaches weren’t there. We talked after practice yesterday, went to no stride, did it for a little bit and it paid off today.”
His approaches were good throughout the day. He hit a deep fly to center in his first at bat and drove in a run in the fourth inning with a ground out. He walked in his two at-bats following the homer.
Throughout the slump, Mighty Oaks head coach John Holt expressed support for his third baseman. Kelly had been hitting .395 before the slump. He was back in the starting lineup Friday and delivered in a big way.
“I’m obviously happy for him,” Holt said. “He’s a good kid. He’s been with us two years now. He does everything we ask of him. It’s just nice to see that hard work paying off.
“Hard work pays off. He made adjustments. He’s worked with our hitting coach. Even with the home run he’s still not satisfied with where he is. I think he’s hungry to get better every day.”
Kelly’s bomb was one of three homers the Mighty Oaks (11-14) hit in the game. Demetrius DeRamus hit a three-run shot in the first inning – his second in three games – to get them started. Cole Dawson hit his first homer of the season leading off a five-run fourth.
Dawson had two hits and two RBIs. Yen Rodriguez went 3-for-4 with two RBIs. Every player in the lineup scored at least one run, seven had at least one hit and seven had at least one RBI.
“The approach was good at the plate,” Holt said. “They worked themselves into good counts to hit in and when they do that we’re a real good baseball team.”
Jon Gambone pitched a complete game to get the win. He threw 109 pitches and struck out five. And even though he gave up a season-high 12 hits and six earned runs, none of it really hurt him the way the offense was delivering.
“He was a bulldog for us,” Holt said. “We extended him today as far as we’ve extended him pitch-count since the injury and he responded well.
“We’ve been talking lately with them about playing team baseball is lot more than patting somebody on the butt, about the offense picking up a pitcher when the pitcher needs to be picked up or the pitcher picking up the defense when it falters or vice verse, and that hasn’t been happening a whole lot very early in the season.
“I think once we got through Florida our guys started to figure that piece of the puzzle out and today the offense picked up the defense and Gambone when he needed it. Playing team baseball like that, they’re starting to understand that a little bit.”
The series concludes with a doubleheader at the Carneys Point Rec Complex Saturday starting at noon. The Mighty Oaks are scheduled to start Jared Vandersteur and Pat Seitzinger on the mound in the two games.
Salem CC
430 562 0-
20
10
2
Montgomery County CC
202 120 0-
7
12
9
WP: Jon Gambone. LP: Carver Perrone. HR: Demetrius DeRamus (S), Cole Dawson (S), Chris Kelly (S).
Photo: Salem CC third baseman Chris Kelly (L) is greeted at the plate by teammates Angel Velez (7) and Tyler Hacker (28) after hitting a three-run homer to give the Mighty Oaks a 16-5 lead. (Photo from Gamechanger video)
Salem CC baseball battles back from late six-run deficit to get within one, but loss to Mercer CC gets away in the ninth
REGION 19 BASEBALL SCORES Mercer 18, Salem CC 11 Middlesex 11, Montgomery 1 Lackawanna 7, Delaware County 4 Union 7, Raritan Valley 6
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
CARNEYS POINT – The last two games the Salem CC baseball team played at their Treehouse have been steeped in high drama that went down to the last inning. One of them the Mighty Oaks found a way to win. The other, the most recent one Wednesday, got away.
The Mighty Oaks came from six runs down in the seventh inning to get within one and then came within one strike of giving themselves a chance to win it in the ninth, but a two-out throwing error opened the door for a six-run Mercer ninth that sent them to an 18-11 loss.
“We’ve got to learn from this; it’s got to be a lesson,” Salem head coach John Holt said. “Any loss that you can learn from is not necessarily a loss. There’s a lot of lessons to be learned here today … We’ve got to learn to compete for every pitch.”
The Mighty Oaks (10-13) had leads of 5-2 and 6-3 in the first two innings, but Mercer (16-6) tied the game with three runs in the fifth, then scored six in the seventh off Seth McCormick to take the lead.
McCormick started the inning as the Mighty Oaks’ third pitcher, but had to leave after all the damage because of a shoulder/lat injury. Ironically, he entered Saturday’s doubleheader opener with RCSJ-Cumberland mid-at bat due to a pitcher’s injury and left Wednesday the same way. Jon Gambone got the final out of the inning and kept the Vikings off the board in the eighth to give Salem any kind of chance.
And the Mighty Oaks rallied. They cut two off the deficit in the bottom of the seventh and then scored three in the eighth on Yen Rodriguez’ two-run triple and Matt Murphy’s sacrifice fly to make it a one-run game. They had the tying and go-ahead runners in scoring position with two outs, but Hunter Cohen grounded sharply to second to end the threat.
Holt made wholesale defensive changes in the ninth to provide “what I thought was going to give us our best defense” after bringing hand-throwing Tyler Hacker to the mound from first base. The moves included sending Cohen across the diamond from third to first and inserting Chris Kelly at the hot corner.
The Vikings had runners at second and third with two outs. Hacker, who hadn’t given up an earned run in four previous appearances (six innings), got ahead of Geno Bianco 0-and-2, but Bianco bounced a ball in the infield that Kelly moved to his left to collect.
The pick up was clean and it looked like the inning was going to end safely, but Kelly’s throw to first was low and wide and got away from Cohen allowing the two insurance runs to score. The Vikings reloaded the bases against Hacker, then Donald Gallagher, hitting in the 9-hole, hit a grand slam to break it open.
“Hack hadn’t given up an earned run all year; we expected a little better there,” Holt said. “Chris was cold coming off the bench today. As I said, we’ve got to learn a lesson there. There are opportunities to go after even if you’re not in the starting lineup, you’ve got to understand your number may get called.”
Kelly had a rough weekend series at the plate against RCSJ-Cumberland and Cohen replaced him in Wednesday’s starting lineup. The Mighty Oaks completed the sweep of that series by winning Game 3 in the bottom of the 12th after tying the game on Demetrius DeRamus’ two-run homer in the 11th.
“Chris is a kid who has come a long way,” Holt said. “He’s really bought into a lot of the ideology we teach here. He works hard. There’s not a lot of consoling there. He’s a great teammate. He’s been a leader for us. I don’t think there’s anything to console there. I think he’s going to flush it and get after it.”
In addition to their rallies in the seventh and eighth innings, the Mighty Oaks answered Mercer’s two in the first with five in the bottom of the inning highlighted by Hacker’s go-ahead two-run single.
Holt said the rallies show the potential the Mighty Oaks have “if we play the game the way they’re taught that we can play with anybody and compete against anybody.”
ACORNS: Hacker still hasn’t given up an earned run as all six Mercer runs in the ninth were unearned. Only five of Mercer’s runs in the game were earned … Rodriguez hit his fifth homer of the season in the second inning and was 4-for-4 with four runs and three RBIs; he’s now hitting .397 for the season … Hacker had two hits and three RBIs. Murphy drove in two runs.
Mercer County CC
210 030 606-
18
12
0
Salem CC
510 000 230-
11
12
5
WP: Matt Juliano. LP: Seth McCormick. HR: Donald Gallagher (M), Yen Rodriguez (S).
Here is the Salem County sports schedule for the week of March 23-30; events start at 4 p.m. unless noted; x-scrimmage
MARCH 23 COLLEGE SOFTBALL Salem CC at Delaware Tech, noon
MARCH 24 BASEBALL x-Highland at Schalick SOFTBALL x-Lindenwold at Penns Grove x-Lower Cape May at Salem x-Paulsboro at Pennsville TENNIS x-Gateway at Pennsville, 3:45 p.m. GOLF Woodstown vs. Highland, Town & Country GL, 3:45 p.m. BOYS LACROSSE x-Woodstown at St. Augustine MARCH 25 BASEBALL x-Woodstown at Cumberland SOFTBALL x-Cumberland at Woodstown TRACK x-Penns Grove, Salem at Bridgeton BOYS TENNIS x-Pennsville at Delsea, 3:45 p.m. GOLF Pennsville vs. Haddon Heights, Tavistock CC Wildwood vs. Salem Tech, Sakima CC, 3:45 p.m. Woodstown at Wild Oaks GC, 9 a.m. GIRLS LACROSSE x-Woodstown at Haddon Twp. COLLEGE SOFTBALL Raritan Valley CC at Salem CC, 3:30 p.m. MARCH 26 BASEBALL Penns Grove at Pitman GOLF Pennsville, Clayton vs. Salem Tech, Sakima CC, 3:30 p.m. Schalick girls vs. Delsea, The Birches, 3:30 p.m. Schalick boys vs. Woodstown, Centerton CC, 3:30 p.m. TRACK x-Camden Co. Tech at Pennsville BOYS VOLLEYBALL Cape May Tech at Salem Tech, 3:45 p.m. COLLEGE BASEBALL Mercer County CC at Salem CC, 3:30 p.m.
MARCH 27 BASEBALL x-Schalick at Collingswood SOFTBALL Pitman at Penns Grove x-Timber Creek at Schalick GOLF Pennsville vs. Woodstown, Town & Country GL, 3:45 p.m. Salem Tech vs. Gloucester Catholic, Westwood GC, 3:45 p.m. TENNIS x-Clearview at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m. x-Schalick at Triton
MARCH 28 BASEBALL Bridgeton at Penns Grove, 9:30 a.m. Penns Grove vs. Gateway at Westville LL, 2:30 p.m. x-GCIT at Woodstown x-Schalick at Timber Creek x-West Deptford at Pennsville GOLF Clearview vs. Schalick, Centerton CC Pennsville vs. Haddon Twp., Sakima CC BOYS TENNIS Schalick at Cumberland GIRLS LACROSSE x-Timber Creek at Woodstown BOYS LACROSSE Woodstown at Ocean City BOYS VOLLEYBALL Riverside at Salem Tech, 3:45 p.m. COLLEGE BASEBALL Salem CC at Montgomery County (Pa.) CC, 3:30 p.m. MARCH 29 BASEBALL Woodstown at Gateway, 10 a.m. Bridgeton at Penns Grove, 11 a.m. Penns Grove at Gateway, 2 p.m. COLLEGE BASEBALL Montgomery County (Pa.) CC at Salem CC (2), noon COLLEGE SOFTBALL Salem CC at CC of Morris, noon
MARCH 30 COLLEGE SOFTBALL Bucks County CC at Salem CC, noon
Rodriguez’ sac fly in 12th lifts Mighty Oaks past RCSJ-Cumberland for sweep of doubleheader, weekend series
SATURDAY REGION 19 BASEBALL Salem 10-4, RCSJ-Cumberland 3-3 Montgomery 7-16, Bergen 6-11 Brookdale 9-2, Middlesex 1-4 Mercer 5-4, Morris 3-2 Raritan Valley 6-12, Sussex 3-2 Lackawanna 11-11, Delaware Tech 3-6 Northampton 23-22, Delaware Co. 1-7 Ocean 18-7, Union 5-5
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
CARNEYS POINT – Yen Rodriguez had two very good and very personal reasons for ending the marathon that became the nightcap of Salem CC’s doubleheader with RCSJ-Cumberland when he came to the plate in the 12th inning Saturday.
The switch-hitting sophomore shortstop lofted a sacrifice fly into center field that sent Tim Bowlby home with the winning run to give the Mighty Oaks a 4-3 win that swept the scheduled seven-inning doubleheader and the weekend series. They won the opener 10-3 that had an equally interesting storyline.
“It’s funny because before that at-bat I was like I don’t want to go through the lineup again,” Rodriguez said. “I’m hungry. I really want to go home. Righty is my dominant sense, a lefty was on the bump, so I knew I had to do the job.
“He threw me two good pitches. The one low I got a hold of it. It was very good, up the middle. (The centerfielder) got it and all I thought was please score, please score, please score. I was hungry. I was tired. I couldn’t do it again.”
Bowlby, who entered the game in the ninth as a pinch-runner and stayed, got the winning rally started by drawing a leadoff walk. He raced all the way to third when the throw on Jason LeBold’s sacrifice got loose. LeBold stole second just to give the Dukes something to think about and Rodriguez followed with his walkout sac fly..
The Mighty Oaks (10-13), now 3-0 since coming back from their Florida trip, had plenty of chance to win it earlier in the extra innings, but could never deliver the decisive hit.
They had the winning run at third with one out in the eighth and ninth innings, the winning run at second with one out and third with two in the tenth, and at third with no outs in the 11th (after tying the game) and went a combined 0-for-9 with six strikeouts.
“We had a lot of opportunities to end it; it’s frustrating,” Mighty Oaks coach John Holt said. “We’re doing some of the things a little better simpler. We try to preach ‘do simple better’ and some of the simple things we didn’t get done today made us go that longer. That’s baseball.”
Things looked dire for the Mighty Oaks after Cumberland scored twice in the top of the 11th to take a 3-1 lead. But Demetrius DeRamus gave them life when he re-tied it with a two-run moonshot homer inside the left field foul pole. He had been 0-for-5 in the game before the blast.
“I was just trying to be patient, trying to stay relaxed as much as possible,” the sophomore centerfield said. “There was a lot of noise going on, so I was just trying to relax. Do simple. I soon as I hit it … I knew it was gone.”
Matt Murphy kept the line moving with a walk and raced all the way to third when Angel Velez beat out a sacrifice bunt and nobody covered the bag. But each of the next three batters struck out to kill the threat.
Jared Vanderstuer came out after pitching seven innings for the first time in his career and holding the Dukes to one run. Alex Newman kept the Dukes off the board until the 11th – working out of jams in the ninth and tenth – and Tyler Hacker pitched the 12th without incident and got the win.
Until the drama of the nightcap, the story of the day was going to be how Seth McCormick came on in emergency relief in the opener and carried a no-hitter into the fifth inning.
As a reliever you learn to be ready at a moment’s notice, but nobody could’ve planned for the way he entered the game.
Normally, the reliever has an idea when he’s going to pitch, and normally he gets a chance to warmup in the bullpen before getting summoned into the game. McCormick knew he was going to be the first reliever behind starter J.D. Wilson, but likely in the third or fourth inning.
He went in at the fifth batter after Wilson tweaked a hamstring pushing off the rubber on his second pitch of the second inning.
“Honestly, that’s probably the first time that’s ever happened in my life,” McCormick said. “And then it’s like, take your time, don’t hurt your arm and make sure you’re ready to go. Being a reliever you’ve gotta be ready when you’re needed.”
McCormick was doing his usual bands in the bullpen when he got the call. It took him fewer than 20 pitches to get warm. He finished out the walk to his first batter, but he also carried the no-hitter Wilson started into the fifth inning when Chase Montgomery broke it up with a bloop double to shallow rightfield.
The fifth was his toughest inning. He gave up two runs on two hits and three walks. It drew the Dukes within 4-3, but Mighty Oaks got the runs back in the bottom of the inning when two scored on an infield error.
McCormick gave up three hits total, but only one that was considered solid. He struck out two, got 12 groundball outs, picked off a runner and his infield turned two double plays.
“First batter, I knew I was gonna walk him just by the fact it was 2-0, but once I got that first walk out of the way it right back to the zone and hope for a double play,” he said. “The fifth inning I got a little rattled had to dial it back in.
“I felt I had to change my mechanics for some reason, just getting in my head about it. The sixth inning I had to take a break, went back out and started shoving again.”
His day got even more eventful in the nightcap when he came in to catch in the third inning after Chris Laute took a pitch in the dirt directly off his knee. He entered the game after Holt tried to hit Joe Fekete in Laute’s spot but couldn’t because the player wasn’t on the scorecard and then sent Ben Charbonneau in to hit.
McCormick caught until the eighth inning when Angel Velez replaced him during the pitching change that brought Newman into the game.
ACORNS: The 19 innings of baseball took 6 hours, 10 minutes to play. The nightcap took 3:40 … DeRamus (three hits) and Hacker (two hits) both had three RBIs in the opener … Vanderstuer has a unique way of fielding comebackers to the mound. He takes them himself to first base. Did it three times Saturday. “I mainly do it as sort of a mind game against the other team,” he said. “By racing them to the bag when I know I can beat them there it is just another way to try to get in the other team’s head.”
RCSJ-Cumberland
010 020 0-
3
3
1
Salem CC
103 024 x-
10
13
1
WP: Seth McCormick. LP: Austin Wocock.
RCSJ-Cumberland
000 100 000 020-
3
11
3
Salem CC
010 000 000 021-
4
7
2
WP: Tyler Hacker. LP: Ryan Beebe. HR: Demetrius DeRamus (S)
Freshman pitcher Wilson takes big step forward in Mighty Oaks’ softball split with Brookdale; baseball routs RCSJ-Cumberland on road
REGION 19 SOFTBALL Brookdale 10-3, Salem 5-4 Middlesex 9-9, Finger Lakes 7-1
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
PENNSVILLE – Raegan Wilson blossomed as a pitcher on the first full day of spring.
When she was in high school, which is where she only started to pitch, she never found herself in a tight situation in the circle because she didn’t play on a team that played in many of them. The first time she faced it in college on Salem Community College’s trip to the Carolinas, it went sideways.
But Friday she was in a tight game again – against the No. 6 team in JUCO Division III – and this time she pitched her way out of it – twice – to preserve the Mighty Oaks’ 4-3 win over Brookdale for a split of their doubleheader.
The game was a lot closer than Brookdale’s 10-5 win in the opener, and Wilson’s ability to work out of trouble was a big reason for it.
She gave up 13 hits in going the distance against the Jersey Blues (12-4), but put up zeroes in each of the last five innings, pitching out of jams in the fifth and sixth innings to give the Mighty Oaks (7-3) a chance.
The Blues had runners at second and third with one out in the fifth inning of a 3-3 game and had the tying run at second with one out in sixth inning, but Wilson squashed the threat both times by getting a pair of fly balls to Lilly Peverelle, who covers ground in centerfield like Johan Rojas .
“I definitely think I have grown from that,” Wilson said. “I was very stressed. That was stressful with a close score, but I trusted myself and I trusted my defense with me, and we got it done.
“This is definitely the first time I felt like it was so close and it really did matter for us to win. High school it wasn’t like that. I was nervous, I was scared, but I think I hit my spots. I did very good at coming back.”
The key to a pitcher surviving such jams is hitting their spots and that’s what coach Angel Rodriguez said Wilson did better with in this one.
“One thing about Raegan is she stays calm,” Rodriguez said. “You can tell it doesn’t bother her. She doesn’t let the noise get to her and she just goes out there and throws. I think right now our defense reads that from her, they see her just kind of going out there and getting the next pitch, and they’re making plays behind her, too.”
After Wilson doused the flames in the fifth, the Mighty Oaks took a 4-3 lead in the bottom of the inning when Bella Rappa raced home from third on Tessa Wise’ one-out grounder to short. The Blues traded the run for an out, but never got the run back.
The first game looked like it was going to be a score fest. Playing their first game since the end of their rain-shortened Carolinas trip March 12, the Mighty Oaks answered Brookdale’s four-run first with five in the bottom of the inning but they never scored again the rest of the game while the Jersey Blues continued adding on.
Callie Rozak hit a three-run homer in the first inning. She was robbed of a two-run shot at the wall in the fourth inning of the nightcap right after the Mighty Oaks had just tied the game.
Shortstop Ella Hayes, the nation’s leading hitter, was held hitless for the first time this season in the opener, but was credited in the dugout with two hits in the nightcap and now has 98 for her Salem CC career.
“It’s been a while,” Rodriguez said. “Having a week with no competition we were eager to go. I think we were a little too hungry at times kind of just being a little undisciplined, but they found a way to get the split and that was good.”
REGION 19 BASEBALL Salem 16, RCSJ-Cumberland 3 Lackawanna 15, Delaware Tech 8 Mercer 6, Morris 2 Brookdale 14, Middlesex 4 Northampton 21, Delaware County 9 Sussex 17, Raritan Valley 7 Ocean at Union Montgomery 21, Bergen 13
VINELAND – Matt Murphy snapped an 0-for-12 slump with his second homer of the year to tie the game and the engine of Salem’s lineup combined for 11 hits and 12 RBIs as the Mighty Oaks routed RCSJ-Cumberland 16-3 in its first game back from Florida to snap a four-game losing streak.
Murphy’s two-run homer in the fifth inning tied the game 3-3. The Mighty Oaks took the lead for good later in the inning when Angel Velez scored on an infield error.
The Mighty Oaks (8-13) broke it open with eight in the sixth. They sent 11 batters to the plate in the inning with the first eight all reaching safely. Velez, Yen Rodriguez and Jared Vandersteur all had two-run singles in the inning.
Spots 2 through 6 in the lineup – Rodriguez, Demetrius DeRamus, Murphy, Velez and Tyler Hacker – were a combined 11-for-21 with 12 runs scored and 12 RBIs. Velez went 3-for-5 with four RBIs, Murphy and Hacker each drove in three runs and DeRamus had three hits. Rodriguez was 2-for-2 and walked four times.
Jon Gambone pitched the first seven innings to get his second win of the season. He retired 15 of the last 18 Dukes he faced. Pat Seitzinger came behind him and faced the minimum in two innings of no-hit relief.
The teams play a doubleheader Saturday at the Carneys Point Rec Complex starting at noon.
Salem CC (8-13)
100 038 004-
16
13
1
RCSJ-Cumberland (9-9)
021 000 000-
3
9
2
WP: Jon Gambone (2-3). LP: Kyle Kennedy (1-1). HR: Matt Murphy (S), Brinden Floyd (C).
Riverview Sports News 