Classical victory

Wagner’s first career homer powers Pennsville to third straight TCC Classic Division title; includes softball, golf, tennis updates

TUESDAY BASEBALL
Pennsville 17, Wildwood 7

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE – Jeff Wagner will forever remember his first high school home run as the one that won Pennsville another division baseball championship.

It wasn’t one of those dramatic bottom-of-the-seventh bombs that has everyone pouring out of the dugout and the fans doing backflips in the aisles, but it was the shot that opened the gates for the Eagles to maul Wildwood 17-7 and claim a share of their third straight Tri-County Conference Classic Division crown with Pitman.

Pennsville and Pitman split their regular-season series and beat everyone else in the division twice. The Eagles (16-9) are the No. 4 seed in the South Jersey Group I playoffs, where they’ll host Gateway in the first round Thursday at 2 p.m.

“It’s a goal at the beginning of every year,” Pennsville coach Matt Karr said. “I told these guys today we don’t get to pick what division we play in or who we play, we just play the games and whenever you get a chance to win anything that says ‘championship’ you enjoy it and you go after it. They did the job today. Add another year to the banner.”

Wagner’s two-run blast to left center in the fifth inning broke it open, extending the Eagles’ lead to 9-6 after they had taken it for the second time in the game earlier in the inning. It came in his 65th at bat this season and 79th career plate appearance. The sophomore designated hitter had one-hopped or hit the fence three times this season, but this was the first one he hit that wasn’t coming back.

Buoyed by the bomb, the Eagles wound up scoring 12 runs over the final two innings, walking it off on Chase Burchfield’s fourth hit of the game with two outs in the sixth inning. They were down 3-0, 4-3 and 6-5 at various points before the eruption.

“It kind of got the momentum flowing,” Wagner said. “It felt good catching the barrel, kind of got back to my groove and got the boys going.

“I felt like my part to the plate was kind of sentimental to the team because it was close. We weren’t playing good in the first half of the game and after I hit that I kind of felt like it turned us around and got us going. I definitely felt a big part of the team there. It felt good.”

The final two innings are much more the way the Eagles want to be heading into the playoffs than the last three weeks of the season. After Monday’s tight win over Clayton, the Eagles were 5-6 since their walk-off win over Schalick on April 23. When they won Tuesday, it marked the first time they’d won back-to-back games since April 22-23.

Part of their struggles are rooted in missing two of their top players. Versatile junior Luke Wood has been out with a lower back injury and his status going forward is TBD. Jacob Grant, their lone senior, has been out with a shoulder injury, but he rehabbed Tuesday and the Eagles are hoping to have him back for Round 2 (May 29 and a potential matchup with Woodstown).

Instead of wallowing in what his team might not have available, Karr hopes the Eagles embrace the opportunities it creates and the next-man-up approach that presents.

In the meantime they have been trying all kinds of creative ways to get their swagger back. One of the more interesting efforts was a bonfire after a closer-than-necessary run-fest with Clayton in which they burned all kinds of equipment.

It was an idea Grant is said to have discovered surfing the ‘net. A college baseball team was going through a tough stretch, decided to burn a bunch of their stuff, posted the video on TikTok (of course) and then went on a home-run-hitting tear. Grant figured if it worked for them, it couldn’t hurt the Eagles to try it.

“With the way we’ve played in the past two weeks we’ve had bad mojo,” Wagner said. “We kind of got rid of the bad mojo. We were off and on and then today I felt like the team came together and got it done.”

Whatever works, right?

“You want to find something positive to build on whether it’s the last two innings, the last pitch, the last at-bat, whatever it is; take whatever positive you can get (and) build on them,” Karr said. “We didn’t even give them any speeches about anything in the outfield other than we need to have a great workout tomorrow and be ready to roll on Thursday.”

South Jersey Group I Tournament
Thursday’s first-round games
No. 16 Camden Academy Charter at No. 1 Audubon, 4 p.m.
No. 9 Buena at No. 8 Haddon Twp., 4 p.m.
No. 12 Maple Shade at No. 5 Woodstown, 3 p.m.
No. 13 Gateway at No. 4 Pennsville, 2 p.m.
No. 14 Glassboro at No. 3 Pitman, 3 p.m.
No. 11 Paulsboro at No. 6 Schalick, 4 p.m.
No. 10 Cape May Tech at No. 7 Wildwood, 4 p.m.
No. 15 Penns Grove at No. 2 Gloucester, 4 p.m.

SOFTBALL
GLOUCESTER CATHOLIC 17, SALEM 0: Madelyn McGinn hit three doubles and drove in five runs and Brooklyn Carcaci held Salem to two hits in the four-inning game. Julliana Love and Alexandrea Matias had the Rams’ two hits.

South Jersey Group I Tournament
Wednesday’s first-round games
No. 16 Camden Academy Charter at No. 1 Audubon, 4 p.m.
No. 9 Paulsboro at No. 8 Palmyra, 3:45 p.m.
No. 12 Cape May Tech at No. 5 Maple Shade
No. 13 Glassboro at No. 4 Pennsville, 2 p.m.
No. 14 Clayton at No. 3 Haddon Twp., 4 p.m.
No. 11 Schalick at No. 6 Woodstown, 4 p.m.
No. 10 Gateway at No. 7 Pitman, 4 p.m.
No. 15 Salem at No. 2 Buena, 4 p.m.

BOYS TENNIS
PENNSVILLE 5, SCHALICK 0
Gave Schneider (Pv) def. George Gould, 6-1, 6-1
Maddox Efelis (Pv) def. Jesus Espinoza, 6-0, 6-0
Brody Wiggins (Pv) def. Conor O’Toole, 6-1, 6-1
Noah Bohn-Noah Flitcraft (Pv) def. Rocky Monticolo-David Santana, 6-1, 6-2
Saywer Humphrey-Luke Chamberlain (Pv) def. Cayden Brzozowski-Kaden Barnes, 7-5, 7-6 (7-5)
Records: Schalick 15-7, Pennsville 17-3.

South Jersey Group I Tournament
Thursday’s games
Lindenwold at Overbrook 1 p.m.
Wildwood at Woodstown, 2:30 p.m.
Penns Grove at Buena
Palmyra at Schalick, 3 p.m.
May 29
Lindenwold-Overbrook winner at Haddon Twp.
Wildwood-Woodstown winner at Middle Twp.
Penns Grove-Buena winner at Pennsville
Palmyra-Schalick winner at Pitman

GOLF
SCHALICK 165, PENNSVILLE 176: Ryan Johnson and Lance Creighton, Schalick’s two representatives in Monday’s Salem-Cumberland county tournament, posted rounds of 39 and 40, respectively, at Sakima CC to move the Cougars a step closer to a share of the Tri-County Conference Diamond Division title. A win over Overbrook Wednesday will seal it.

Pennsville senior Jacob Isaac was the match’s medalist with a 2-under-par 34. He had back-to-back birdies on 6 and 7.

WASHINGTON TWP. GIRLS 181, SCHALICK 212: Washington Twp. posted three rounds in the 40s at Centerton CC, led by medalist Tessa Reilley’s 42. Lena Virga posted Schalick’s low round (49).

Friends in playoff

Schermerhorn edges Woodstown teammate Covely in sudden death in Salem/Cumberland county tournament; Cumberland’s Tarquinio girls medalist, Wolverines, Colts win team titles

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

CENTERTON — Imagine if you will a sudden-death playoff the likes of Couples-Norman, JT-Speith, McIlroy-Lowry or Westwood-Clarke.

That’s the kind of flavor you got Monday when the Salem-Cumberland county golf championship came down to good friends and Woodstown teammates Jacob Schermerhorn and Jeffrey Covely playing for boys medalist honors at Centerton Country Club.

Schermerhorn, the defending champ, and Covely were the last golfers standing in an initial three-way sudden death before Schermerhorn took out his buddy with a two-putt par on the second extra hole.

“The entire time we were just excited to just hopefully get a chance to win 1 and 2, me and him,” Schermerhorn said. “That’s my guy. I can’t complain. I got to go with my best friend. Between me and him, as long as me or him got first or second neither of us would’ve complained. And fortunately I came out on top. So now I have something to brag about.”

“Going into the playoff with him our senior year is awesome; I couldn’t have written it up any better,” Covely said. “Of course, I want to win – everyone wants to win – but that’s my best friend. I’m happy for him. I’m not going to be jealous or mad or anything. That’s the best way of getting second, I guess you could say.”

The third golfer in the playoff was Schalick senior Ryan Johnson. He fell out after the first playoff hole when his wedge betrayed him from 70 yards after being the longest off the tee. All three players shot 4-over-par 75 in regulation.

Schermerhorn forced a three-way playoff when he bogeyed his 18th hole. He extended the playoff with a 25-foot par “putt of my life” on the first extra hole with Covely staring down a seven-inch kick in for the win.

The playoff started on No. 2 because course crews were working on 1 and 18 and for a brief time it looked like Johnson was going to come out of the playoff on top. All three players were inside 100 yards off the tee, but they all hit terrible second shots.

Covely went first and blocked his wedge off to the right about 15 yards from the green in deep rough. Schermerhorn wound up 15 yards behind the green. With the door open, all Johnson had to do was hit the green and he’d have the advantage. Instead, with a good lie but an awkward stance, he got underneath the ball and lit squirted off the clubface, landing about 15 yards short of the green. He wound up making bogey to end his day and leave the two friends to battle it out.

“The backswing felt good and then just messed it up,” he said. “I was between a 54 and 58. I wanted to go with the 58 and hit it well today. I should have gone with my gut. When you step up without confidence you’re not going to hit a good shot ever. That’s what happened there.”

Covely’s brilliant pitch settled a few inches from the hole and put the advantage clearly in his bag. Schermerhorn hit last and left his 60-degree wedge in the middle of the green.

“After the second shot on 2, I really thought Ryan was going to end up taking that hole and me and Jeffrey would be battling it out for second,” Schermerhorn said. “He (Covely) hit an amazing chip shot and I made the putt of my life.”

“The whole time (after the pitch) I thought I was going to win,” Covely said. “I thought that was it, but, nah, he always has those hero putts every now and then. I hadn’t seen one from him in a while, but he was due for one and that was it. I was happy for him.”

It all came down to the par-3 third.

Covely overswung a 6-iron off the tee and hit it in the right greenside bunker. Schermerhorn went with a 4-iron and put it on the right collar pin high about 15 feet from the hole.

Covely left his second shot in the bunker, then blasted out to seven feet. All Schermerhorn had to do was two-putt and the victory was his. His first putt didn’t make it to the hole, but he made the three-footer to end it.

“The first chip on the first playoff hole I blocked out, I knew I still had a chance because they still had to hit,” Covely said. “When I duffed that chip (in the bunker) and I saw him on the fringe I knew it was over. I knew he would two-putt from there. He doesn’t bang his long ones every time but he’s a consistent two-putter.”

Woodstown won the boys team title in a field reduced to five two-man teams by cost considerations and a scheduling conflict with the Cape Atlantic League. Because of the situation, both counties played for one prize in each gender instead of separate boys, girls and team titles for each county as they have in the past.

Cumberland Regional won the girls title behind a record-setting 84 by sophomore medalist Nicole Tarquinio. Her round was highlighted by back-to-back birdies for the first time in her career early in the back nine. She shot 91 in winning the Cumberland County girls medal last year as a freshman.

“That 84 is actually the best I’ve done, but I’ve been practicing really hard and every time I go out I’ve been shooting better and better,” she said. “I really see the improvement and I’m really happy I broke 90. I’m happy my hard work is paying off.”

Her birdie on 12 was a 9-iron off the tee to five feet. The one on 13 came with a hybrid from the right rough that bounced in front of the green and rolled up to 15 feet above the hole. She was hoping to make it three in a row on the par-5 and nearly chipped in for it from the back of the green.

“I think I was just more focused (on the back nine),” she said. “I just got too worried on the front nine. I was just in my head and I just relaxed.”

NOTES: Schalick’s Hannah Widdifield took second in the girls field by winning a playoff from Cumberland’s Emily Bruce. Widdifield parred the first extra hole. Both shot 95 in regulation … Schalick’s boys play for a share of the Tri-County Conference Diamond Division title Tuesday. If the Cougars defeat Pennsville at Sakima CC, they will share the division with Woodstown and both teams will send full teams to the TCC Championship next Tuesday at Pitman GC. The four division winners (five with a Schalick-Woodstown share) will send full teams, while everyone else will submit two entries each … The TCC Championship will be Johnson’s final high school tournament, but not the end of his golf. He will enter the PGM program at Coastal Carolina later this summer … If they played the tournament as a two-man best ball, Woodstown’s duo would have edged Schalick by a stroke thanks to birdies on 16 and 17

While the teams were taking their positions in the shotgun start, in a play unrelated to the tournament, Rowan University freshman quarterback Nate Maiers scored his first ever hole-in-one in front of the tournament field on No. 3. The Swedesboro native aced the 181-yard par-3 with a 7-iron. When the ball disappeared into the cup Maiers and his three playing partners – Roman Kuzmick, Dean Martin and Dylan Fuchs — all sprinted from the tee box to the green to check it out. “That was wild,” Maiers said.

SALEM/CUMBERLAND COUNTY TOURNAMENT
At Centerton CC

BOYS TEAM	SCORE	GIRLS TEAM	SCORE
Woodstown	150	Cumberland	179
Schalick	154	Schalick	206
Pennsville	186	Pennsville	238
Cumberland	199	Woodstown	240
Salem Tech	200

BOYS INDIVIDUAL	SCORE	GIRLS INDIVIDUAL	SCORE
Jacob Schermerhorn, Woodstown	36-36–75	Nicole Tarquinio, Cumberland	45-39–84
Jeffrey Covely, Woodstown	39-36–75	Hannah Widdifield, Schalick	45-50–95
Ryan Johnson, Schalick	39-36–75	Emily Bruce, Cumberland	45-50–95
Lance Creighton, Schalick	40-39–79	Julie Swierczynski, Woodstown	49-61–110
Jacob Isaac, Pennsville	43-39–82	Lena Virga, Schalick	57-54–111
Stephen Wilchensky, Cumberland	42-44–86	Maische Degamo, Pennsville	62-55–117
Mason Griffith, Salem Tech	48-42–90	Abigail Bohn, Pennsville	59-62–121
Nolan Dowell, Pennsville	50-54–104	Kathrine Lewis, Woodstown	63-67–130
Jacob Ferrell-Tomarchio, Salem Tech	58-52–110
Billy Cleaver, Cumberland	56-57–113

Schermerhorn won on second hole of sudden-death playoff; Widdifield got second in girls on first hole of sudden-death playoff

Jeffrey Covely (R) congratulates good friend Jacob Schermerhorn after his Woodstown teammate wins the Salem/Cumberland county tournament in a playoff. On the cover, the two teammates walk back to the clubhouse together after the playoff.

Golf pairings

CENTERTON – Here are the pairings for Monday’s Salem-Cumberland County Championship at Centerton CC. Financial considerations limited the lineup to two players per team and a scheduling conflict with the Cape Atlantic League Championship reduced the field to five teams – Pennsville, Salem Tech (boys only), Schalick, Woodstown and Cumberland.

SALEM/CUMBERLAND COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP
At Centerton CC
8 a.m. shotgun
Boys Pairings
Group One: Jacob Schermerhorn (Woodstown), Mason Griffith (Salem Tech), Lance Creighton (Schalick), Jacob Isaac (Pennsville).
Group Two: Jeffrey Covely (Woodstown), Stephen Wilchensky (Cumberland), Ryan Johnson (Schalick).
Group Three: Samuel Thompson (Cumberland), Jacob Farrell-Tomarchio (Salem Tech), Nolan Dowell (Pennsville).

Girls Pairings
Group One: Emily Bruce (Cumberland), Nicole Tarquinio (Cumberland), Hannah Widdifield (Schalick), Abigail Bohn (Pennsville).
Group Two: Lena Virga (Schalick), Julia Swierczynski (Woodstown), Meischa Degamo (Pennsville), Katherine Lewis (Woodstown).

This week’s schedule

First round of South Jersey Group I baseball, softball tournaments, TCC track showcase and Salem-Cumberland golf championships highlight the Salem County sports schedule for the week of May 20-25. All events start 4 p.m. unless noted.

MONDAY, MAY 20
BASEBALL
Clayton at Pennsville
Penns Grove at Woodstown
Schalick at Sterling
SOFTBALL
Clayton at Pennsville
Middle Twp., OLMA at Schalick
Penns Grove at Woodstown (2)
Bridgeton at Salem
GOLF
Salem-Cumberland County Tournament, Centerton CC, 8 a.m.
BOYS TENNIS
Deptford Twp. at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m.
Pennsville at Williamstown, 3:45 p.m.
Glassboro at Penns Grove
Pitman at Schalick
GIRLS LACROSSE
Woodstown at Haddon Heights
BOYS VOLLEYBALL
Clearview at Salem Tech, 3:45 p.m.

TUESDAY, MAY 21
BASEBALL
Wildwood at Pennsville
SOFTBALL
Salem at Gloucester Catholic
BOYS TENNIS
Schalick at Pennsville
Woodstown at Delsea, 3:45 p.m.
GOLF
Schalick girls vs. Washington Twp., Centerton CC, 3:30 p.m.
Schalick boys vs. Pennsville, Sakima CC

WEDNESDAY, MAY 22
SOFTBALL
South Jersey Group I Tournament
First-round games
No. 16 Camden Academy Charter at No. 1 Audubon
No. 9 Paulsboro at No. 8 Palmyra
No. 12 Cape May Tech at No. 5 Maple Shade
No. 13 Glassboro at No. 4 Pennsville
No. 14 Clayton at No. 3 Haddon Twp.
No. 11 Schalick at No. 6 Woodstown
No. 10 Gateway at No. 7 Pitman
No. 15 Salem at No. 2 Buena
BOYS TENNIS
Overbrook at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m.
TRACK
TCC Showcase, Delsea, 3:30 p.m.
GOLF
Schalick girls vs. Kingsway, Centerton CC, 3:30 p.m.
Schalick boys vs. Overbrook, Centerton CC, 4:15 p.m.

THURSDAY, MAY 23
BASEBALL
South Jersey Group I Tournament
First-round games
No. 16 Camden Academy Charter at No. 1 Audubon
No. 9 Buena at No. 8 Haddon Twp.
No. 12 Maple Shade at No. 5 Woodstown
No. 13 Gateway at No. 4 Pennsville
No. 11 Paulsboro at No. 6 Schalick
No. 14 Glassboro at No. 3 Pitman
No. 10 Cape May Tech at No. 7 Wildwood
No. 15 Penns Grove at No. 2 Gloucester
GOLF
Woodstown vs. Highland, Town & Country, 3:45 p.m.
TRACK
Penns Grove at Woodstown

Friday roundup

Here are the results and details from Friday’s Salem County sports schedule

SOFTBALL
PENNSVILLE 3, HIGHLAND 0: Savannah Palverento may have had her string of consecutive hitless innings end at 12 1/3 with a leadoff single, but she extended her shutout streak to 16 1/3 consecutive innings with a seven-inning four-hitter.

The Eagles (15-4) have won 12 in a row. Half of the wins in the streak have been shutouts.

Mary Montagna singled home Sierra Stultz in the first inning. Avery Watson’s ground out brought home Montagna in the fourth. And Palverento singled home Kylie Harris in the fifth. Harris reached in the fifth on her 13th double of the season.

SCHALICK 7, CAPE MAY TECH 1: Abby Willoughby had a two-run single among her two hits and struck out 13 with no walks while spinning a complete-game four-hitter in the circle. Alexa Shimp and Rachael Irizarry had two hits apiece for the Cougars.

Willoughby’s two-run single came in the fourth inning and gave the Cougars a 4-0 lead. Irizarry singled home a run in the second, Lucy Virga singled home a run in the third and Shimp singled home a run in the fourth. Rachel Grandson had an RBI ground out in the fifth and Willoughby scored on a passed ball in the sixth.

BASEBALL
CUMBERLAND 7, PENNSVILLE 5: The Colts scored three runs on a pair of errors in the sixth inning and Luke Fithian turned the Eagles back over the final two innings to finish off a complete game. Fithian struck out 13.

Pennsville held leads of 2-0 and 5-4 in the game. Cohen Petrutz gave the Eagles their 5-4 lead in the fifth after Chase Burchfield and Peyton O’Brien delivered back-to-back RBI singles. O’Brien and Connor Starn singled runs home in the first inning.

Burchfield went 3-for-4, while O’Brien and Starn both went 2-for-4.

DELRAN 12, SCHALICK 2: The Cougars outhit Delran 9-4, but their pitchers issued 11 walks and hit four batters and six of them scored. Luke Pokrovsky, Ricky Watts and Jake Siedlecki – the heart of the Schalick order – had two hits apiece for the Cougars.

WOODSTOWN 3, GCIT 2: Blake Bialecki put the Wolverines ahead for good with a two-run single in the third inning and Rocco String helped his own cause with a RBI double in the fifth. String pitched two innings of relief and got the win. Jack Knorr set down the Cheetahs in order in the seventh for the save.

Pennsville (14-8), Woodstown (13-8) and Schalick (13-9) are projected as the 4, 5 and 6 seeds, respectively, in the upcoming South Jersey Group I playoffs. The cutoff date for power points is Saturday.

GOLF
GLOUCESTER CATHOLIC 187, PENNSVILLE 196, SALEM TECH 225: Pennsville’s Jacob Isaac and Gloucester Catholic’s Billy Stuski shared medalist honors after posting 6-over-par 42s at Sakima CC. Stuski birdied No. 9 to pull into the tie.

Gloucester Catholic posted three rounds in the 40s. Mason Griffith shot Salem Tech’s low round (48)

BOYS TENNIS
SCHALICK 5, CLAYTON 0
George Gould (S) def. Troy Hollis, 6-0, 6-0
Jesus Espinoza (S) def. Jayden Sanchez, 6-0, 6-0
Conor O’Toole (S) def. Dyshamir Miller, 6-1, 6-0
Rocky Monticolo-David Santana (S) def. Guiseppe Wiltsey-Chase Murphy, 6-1, 6-0
Kaden Barnes-Cayden Brzozowski (S) def. Briseis Hansen-Idris Stewart, 6-0, 6-0
Records: Clayton 4-7, Schalick 14-6.

BOYS VOLLEYBALL
Timber Creek 2, Salem Tech 0 (25-10, 25-16)

Red Devils in waiting game

Penns Grove locked in a battle for one of the final South Jersey Group I baseball playoff spots, cutoff date is Saturday; roundup includes golf, tennis

THURSDAY BASEBALL
Pennsville 4, Overbrook 1
Schalick 14, Salem 3
Wildwood 6, Penns Grove 1

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNS GROVE – If all the things Chuck Weigle is hearing are true, he has growing confidence the his team will have a spot in the South Jersey Group I baseball playoffs next week, but the Penns Grove baseball coach learned a long time ago not to count his chickens before they hatch.

The Red Devils have been doing a dance with Salem and Clayton for the final spots in the playoff. They had a chance to gain some major points Thursday, but lost to Wildwood 6-1 on their Senior Day to keep the race in the back tight.

Going into the day, the Red Devils (5-13) held the 16th and final power points spot, two points ahead of Clayton and 18.5 behind No. 15 Salem. But he’s also heard through the coaching grapevine that Salem (confirmed by Riverview Sports News) and Clayton both were opting out of the playoffs, potentially moving the Red Devils into the field without much more effort.

The cutoff date for power points is Saturday and the Red Devils are trying to find additional games before the deadline without much success. As it unfolds, Weigle is content to wait for the official word after Monday’s seeding meeting before making travel plans and as a 15 or 16 seed they will be going on the road.

“We’re waiting to see how everything pans out, we’re waiting until the information is sent out to us,” he said. “We’re looking ahead towards the future and hoping for the best.

“I don’t want to give these guys a false sense of reality and hope. It’s been going back and forth between us and Clayton for a week or so. It’s been real interesting to say the least. We look at it after one game’s entered and then you look at it 30 minutes later and it’s changed again.”

Had the Red Devils won Thursday, they would have netted more than 30 power points and basically punched their ticket. With the loss, they netted only six more points and have 162. Salem netted seven points for its loss to Schalick and Clayton netted just two for its loss to Glassboro for 157.

If the Red Devils make it, it will be their first playoff appearance since 2021, when they were 2-15 and lost to Woodstown in the first round.

“I just hope we have an opportunity to get in, but whatever happens happens,” shortstop Elijah Crespo said. “It would be a great experience, another journey that we can just have fun and come back and play baseball.”

“It would be the first time in high school for me playing baseball,” pitcher Chase Wills said. “From where we started at the beginning of the year to fight back and make it into the playoffs would mean a lot, especially being my last year. It’s been nice to even sniff out playoffs.”

With all that was at stake, the Red Devils sent their best arm to the mound to give them a chance. Wills gave up only three hits and struck out six in what might be his final home game, but some tough luck in the field worked against him. Only four of Wildwood’s runs were earned.

“I gave my all, did my best to help the team win,” Wills said. “Sadly, it didn’t come through, but I felt I did the best I could.”

Crespo’s RBI double to left center gave the Red Devils a 1-0 lead in the first. Wills smoothly retired the first seven batters he faced, but Wildwood got to him in the third.

Junior Hans gave the Warriors the lead with a two-run single and he later scored from second when he beat the throw from first on a slow roller in the infield. The Warriors added another run in the fifth and got two more in the sixth.

Wildwood pitchers Logan Totten and Harley Buscham made life difficult for the Red Devils. Tommy Mattioli’s single leading off the seventh was their first since Crespo’s RBI double in the first. They did put runners at second and third with two outs in the sixth, but couldn’t bring them home.

SCHALICK 14, SALEM 3: The Cougars broke away from a scoreless tie with eight runs in the third inning and backed it up with a six-run fifth.

Luke Pokrovsky and Ricky Watts had two-run singles in the fifth. Starting and winning pitcher Evan Glaspey had a two-run single in the sixth to walk it off.

Pokrovsky, Watts, Jake Siedlecki, Lucas D’Agostino and Jamari Whitley all had two hits for the Cougars.

Salem scored all its runs in the fifth inning on a sacrifice fly, a bases-loaded walk and bases-loaded hit batsman.

PENNSVILLE 4, OVERBROOK 1: Logan Streitz’s two-run single with none out in the fifth inning broke a 1-1 tie. Chase Burchfield singled Streitz home two batters later.

Cohen Petrutz and Streitz combined to hold Overbrook to three hits. The Rams scored an unearned run in the first inning, but Pennsville tied it on Jacob Wagner’s one-out single in the second.

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I
Power Points (as of 11 p.m. May 16)
1. Audubon (16-8) 495, 2. Gloucester (17-6) 477, 3. Pitman (17-5) 454, 4. Pennsville (14-8) 436, 5. Woodstown (13-8) 400, 6. Schalick (13-9) 374, 7. Haddon Twp. (8-13) 339, 8. Buena (7-17) 322, 9. Cape May Tech (10-11) 318, 10. Wildwood (13-8) 298, 11. Paulsboro (7-17) 256, 12. Maple Shade (9-11) 254, 13. Gateway (8-13) 253, 14. Glassboro (6-13) 221, 15. Salem (4-13-1) 183.5, 16. Penns Grove (5-13) 162, 17. Clayton (3-14) 157, 18. Camden Academy Charter (8-4) 134, 19. LEAP (1-12) 55.

GOLF
SCHALICK 176, CUMBERLAND 237: Ryan Johnson parred three of his last four holes to shoot a 4-over-par 40 and South Jersey Group I medalist Jaxon Weber shot 41 to lead the Cougars at Running Deer GC. Schalick also counted a 45 from Seth Fisher and chose between the 50s of Anthony Sepers and Michael Nelson.

BOYS 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. Christopher Olivera, 6-0, 6-1
Noah Flitcraft-Noah Bohn (P) def. Christopher Hernandez-Simon Palacias, 6-0, 6-0
Sawyer Humphrey-Luke Chamberlain (P) def. Miguel Amendondo-Kevin Damian, 6-1, 6-1
Records: Wildwood 4-10, Pennsville 15-3.

NOTES: Based on the South Jersey Group I power points standings that closed Thursday, Pennsville is No. 4, Woodstown No. 6, Schalick No. 7 and Penns Grove No. 12. There were 11 teams in last year’s SJ Group I Tournament.

Pitchers on fire

Tuesday roundup: Schalick pitchers continue to throw zeroes, Penns Grove wins third straight, eyes playoff spot, and more

By Riverview Sports News

BASEBALL

SCHALICK 10, GLASSBORO 0: Jamari Whitley went 2-for-3 with three RBIs and pitched two perfect innings of relief to close out a one-hit shutout. Luke Pokrovsky and Ricky Watt had two hits apiece and Enrico Hatz had two RBIs.

Hatz had a two-run single in the first. Whitley had an RBI single in the third and a two-run double in the fourth. Watt had a two-run single in the fifth to walk it off.

Cole Hartley for Schalick pitched the first three innings for Schalick (12-9, 6-2 TCC Diamond) and got the win. It was the Cougars’ second one-hit shutout in as many days. Their pitchers haven’t given up a run in their last 14 innings and have given up just two runs and five hits in their last three games (19 innings).

“The pitchers have done a great job of getting ahead of batters and pitching to contact, trying to limit free bases,” Schalick coach Sean O’Brien said.

PENNS GROVE 18, LEAP 5: Elijah Crespo hit his fifth homer of the year, Chase Wills hit his first career homer and came within a triple of the cycle and the Red Devils continued their march towards a South Jersey Group I playoff spot with their third win in a row and second over the Lions in three days.

The post-season prospects are looking better each day. The Red Devils (5-12) are No. 17 in the SJ-I power points standings, but current No. 16 Clayton and No. 15 Salem are said to be opting out of the playoffs. They can make a big move by beating Wildwood Thursday.

The five wins in the season are the most since 2017 (5-16) – they were 7-15 in 2016 – and the three-game winning streak is their longest since they won three in a row near the end of 2014 (14-10), a season that also included a five-game winning streak.

Dylan Hyatt pitched 2 2/3 innings with seven strikeouts to get the win. Ryan Hyatt went 2-for-3 with five runs scored and two RBIs. Gio Torres went 2-for-3 with two RBIs.

GIRLS GOLF

KINGSWAY 208, SCHALICK 223: Carly Kuminka (44) and Ava Volpe (46) shot rounds in the 40s to lead Kingsway at River Winds GC. Hannah Widdifield posted Schalick’s low round (52).

BOYS TENNIS

SCHALICK 3, TRITON 1
Steve Schilder (T) def. George Gould, 6-3, 6-3
Jesus Espinoza (S) def. Tristyn Malone, 6-2, 2-6, 6-1
Conor O’Toole (S) draws with William Ahrens, 6-4, 2-6
Rocky Monticolo-David Santana (S) def. Cole Durham-Sean Gorski, 6-1, 6-2
Cayden Brzozowski-Kaden Barnes (S) def. Tirth Patel-Brennan Zabala, 5-7, 7-5, 6-3
Records: Schalick 12-6, Triton 7-9.

PITMAN 5, WOODSTOWN 0
Maddox Marker (P) def. Tim Schwienbacher, 6-2, 6-1
Chase Rollins (P) def. Drew Stengel, 6-0, 6-4
Cole Kelly (P) def. Erich Lipovsky, 6-2, 6-1
Charlie Duffield-Ethan Loudner (P) def. Joseph Kurpis-Mason Shimp, 6-2, 6-4
Michael Fisicaro-Max Pappalardo (P) def. Jason LaFond-Luke Shaw, 6-4, 6-3
Records Woodstown 10-5, Pitman 15-6.

NOTE: Wednesday is the cutoff date for power points to qualify for postseason play. Among the Salem County teams in the current South Jersey Group I power points standings, Pennsville is No. 4, Woodstown is No. 6, Schalick is No. 7 and Penns Grove is No. 12. Haddon Twp. is No. 1 and Pitman is No. 2. Entries are due to the state by noon Thursday with the seeding meet Monday.

BOYS VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Camden Academy Charter

BOYS LACROSSE
Millville at Woodstown

Tuesday roundup

Here are the scores and highlights from Tuesday’s Salem County sports calendar; stories will be updated

BASEBALL
Penns Grove 11, Camden Eastside 2: Red Devils keeps marching towards a playoff spot.
Schalick 5, Overbrook 0: Luke Pokrovsky throws a one-hitter with 16 strikeouts.
Pitman 4, Pennsville 3: Pitman scores two in bottom of seventh, getting winning run on a two-out, two-strike wild pitch with the bases loaded.
Salem 10, Pleasantville 10: Andrew May homered for the Rams.
Woodstown 18, Glassboro 3: Andrew Pedrick collected his 100th career hit as the Wolverines clinched a share of the Diamond Division title.

SOFTBALL
Overbrook 4, Schalick 3: Cecelia Mitchell singled home the winning run with two outs in the bottom of the seventh to cap the Rams’ two-run rally. Taylor Sparks and Lucianna Virga had two hits each for Schalick.
Pennsville 18, Pitman 0: Kylie Harris hits 2 homers and drives in seven runs, senior Bella Rappa hits her first high school homer on Senior Night and Savannah Palverento throws three more no-hit innings
Woodstown 5, Glassboro 0: Tulana Mingin goes 4-for-4, sets Woodstown all-time hits record (132). Wolverines score 26th straight Tri-County division win and clinch at least a share of the Diamond Division title.

BOYS TENNIS
SCHALICK 5, GLASSBORO 0
George Gould (S) def. Rowan Somdhal-Sands, 6-0, 6-0
Jesus Espinoza (S) def. Jesus Lopez, 6-0, 6-0
Connor O’Toole )S) def. Kileche Umbaofu, 6-0, 6-0
Rocky Monticolo-David Santana (S) won by forfeit
Kaden Barnes-Cayden Brzozowski (S) won by forfeit
Records: Glassboro 0-13, Schalick 11-6.

PITMAN 5, PENNS GROVE 0
Maddox Marker (Pi) def. Alex Ramirez Martinez, 6-0, 6-0
Chase Rollins (Pi) def. Angel Perez Herrera, 6-0, 6-0
Cole Kelly (Pi) def. Adam Gonzalez, 6-0, 6-0
Charlie Duffield-Ethan Loudner (Pi) def. Anthony Pacheco-Jose Lima, 6-3, 6-2
Matthew Bauman-Dom Saffioti (Pi) def. Kevin Olivos-Edgar Ortega, 6-0, 6-0
Records: Penns Grove 3-8, Pitman 14-6.

GIRLS LACROSSE
Woodstown 14, Mainland 10

Push for the playoffs

Penns Grove baseball starts its run towards a playoff spot, Schalick’s Sparks collects 100th career hit, Pennsville’s Palverento spins second straight no-hitter and more

MONDAY BASEBALL
Penns Grove 13, LEAP 3
Pennsville 9, Salem 1
Cumberland 2, Schalick 0

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNS GROVE – Everyone knows the surest way to jinx a no-hitter is to talk about a no-hitter while a no-hitter is going on.

Penns Grove freshman Dylan Hyatt was cruising along with a no-no two outs into the third inning Monday against LEAP Academy. No sooner had somebody around the dugout slipped and said something about the gem then – BOOM – it was gone.

Hyatt gave up a solid double to Dwayne Perez and coach Chuck Weigle went to get him, not for any punishment but to save him to pitch later in what is a big week for the Red Devils’ playoff hopes. Luckily, they had a big lead at the time and went on to win 13-3 in five innings.

Hyatt threw 49 pitches, setting him up to be able to pitch against LEAP again Wednesday at Rutgers Camden. He struck out five and didn’t walk any, but hit three. He faced three hitters in the first thanks to a pickoff, walked the leadoff man in the second and then struck out the next three.

“I pulled him right after he gave up the hit to save his arm for the rest of the week,” Weigle said. “He’s got potential to be good., the potential’s there. He’s one of the better arms that I’ve seen as a freshman coming through this school in the past few years.”

It’s a big win for the Red Devils (3-12) to start a big week. They have eyes on a South Jersey Group I playoff spot and they’re currently No. 17 in power points – 11 behind cutline-riding Clayton – with three games to play before Saturday’s cutoff date: Group 3 Camden Eastside (2-6), LEAP (1-11) and Wildwood (10-8).

Their playoff push took a hit when they lost Friday’s game with Clayton to weather, but they have an opportunity to make a move this week. Clayton has three road games left before the cutoff at Wildwood, (10-8), Pennsville (13-7) and Glassboro (5-11).

Understandably, the Red Devils will be doing “a lot” (with emphasis) of scoreboard watching over the next four days.

They haven’t been in the playoffs since 2021.

“It would be awesome for these guys to make it,” Weigle said. “The last few seniors, get them another game in before they graduate, and for the handful of freshmen that we have, I think that’d be a great experience; get them in there, get them playing (and) impacting them wanting to come back and play.”

In addition to his pitching, Wyatt went 2-for-2 with two RBIs. Chase Wills, the projected starter in Thursday’s game with Wildwood, went 3-for-3 with four RBIs. Ethan Brooks had two doubles and two RBIs and Elijah Crespo had a triple and drew three walks.

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP 1 POWER POINTS
(Top 16 teams qualify for playoffs)
1. Audubon (15-7) 486, 2. Gloucester (16-6) 449, 3. Pitman (16-5) 421, 4. Pennsville (13-7) 409, 5. Woodstown (12-8) 382, 6. Schalick (10-9) 312, 7. Cape May Tech (10-9) 311, 8. Haddon Twp. (7-12) 3-7, 9. Buena (6-16) 289, 10. Wildwood (10-8) 265; 11. Gateway (8-12) 244, 12. Paulsboro (6-15) 240, 13. Maple Shade (7-11) 234, 14. Glassboro (5-11) 189, 15. Salem (4-12) 166, 16. Clayton (3-12) 147, 17. Penns Grove (3-12) 136, 18. Camden Academy Charter (8-3) 128, 19. LEAP (1-11) 51.

PENNSVILLE 9, SALEM 1: Peyton O’Brien went 3-for-3 with three RBIs and four Pennsville pitchers combined to hold the Rams to four hits. Starting pitcher Jacob Grant also had three hits for the Eagles, which Chase Burchfield, the fourth of the Pennsville pitchers, drove in a pair of runs.

Chase Davis had three hits for Salem and drove in the Rams’ only run.

The Eagles (13-7, 5-0) travel to Pitman (16-5, 6-1) Tuesday for a game that should decide the Tri-County Classic Division title. Pennsville won the earlier meeting 11-1.

CUMBERLAND 2, SCHALICK 0: The Colts pushed across runs in the first and fifth innings and two pitchers kept the Cougars off the scoreboard on four hits.

Josh Bondine drove home both of the Colts’ runs, the first with a bases-loaded walk and the second on a two-out single. Kameron Fiorani scored both runs.

The Cougars (10-9) threatened a couple times in the game, but couldn’t get the timely hit. J.T. Fleming opened the game with a double, but was stranded after two hard line-outs to short and a fly to left. They also had runners in scoring position in the third and seventh.

SOFTBALL
Atlantic Tech 6, Schalick 3
Cinnaminson 2, Woodstown 1
Glassboro at Penns Grove
Pennsville 19, Salem 0

PENNSVILLE 19, SALEM 0: Savannah Palverento homered and pitched a four-inning no-hitter, coming within a full-count walk with one out in the third inning of a perfect game. She threw 47 pitches, 30 for strikes.

It was Palverento’s second straight no-hitter, having blanked Wildwood over five innings in her last start. She has not allowed a hit in her last 9 1/3 innings.

“Savannah has done a great job working the last two games,” Eagles coach Beth Jackson said. “She had one at-bat get away from her tonight and walked the girl, otherwise she’d have had a perfect game. She’s been working hard to improve her pitching game; she just started a couple years ago.”

Her homer was an inside-the-parker that scored three runs in the Eagles’ nine-run second inning.

Avery Watson had two hits and three RBIs; Cara Hoyt drove in three runs; Reagan Wariwanchik and Bella Farina had two hits apiece and Kylie Harris has two hits and two RBIs.

CINNAMINSON 2, WOODSTOWN 1: Kayla Meenan raced home from third on an infield grounder with one out in the bottom of the tenth to decide the game. Meenan was placed at second base as the ghost runner, was sacrificed to third and came home on Delaney Kroll’s grounder to third.

The Wolverines (10-7) loaded the bases with none out in the top of the tenth, but couldn’t get them home as the Pirates framed two strikeouts around a force out at the plate.

Cinnaminson (16-7) scored an unearned run in the fourth inning and the Wolverines tied it in the sixth when Tulana Mingin came around on Ellie Wygand’s sacrifice.

ATLANTIC TECH 6, SCHALICK 3: The Cougars took an early lead with three runs in the third inning, but the Redhawks scored five over the last three innings to get the win.

Schalick senior Taylor Sparks picked up her 100th career hit in the game with a single in the fourth inning. She is now 100-for-218 for her four-year career (.459). Abby Willoughby, Ally Shrimp, Cloe Elliott, Rachael Irizarry and Lucianna Virga also had hits for the Cougars.

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP 1 POWER POINTS
(Top 16 qualify for playoffs)
1. Audubon (11-4) 406, 2. Buena (14-5) 389, 3. Pennsville (13-4) 367, 4. Haddon Twp. (13-6) 351, 5. Woodstown (10-7) 310, 6. Pitman (10-7) 287, 7. Maple Shade (10-5) 286, 8. Palmyra (8-8) 229, 9. Paulsboro (9-7) 223, 10. Cape May Tech (8-10) 192, 11. Glassboro (5-13) 189, 12. Clayton (5-11) 186, 13. Schalick (7-7) 167, 14. Gateway (4-10) 156, 15. Salem (4-12) 145, 16. Wildwood (2-11) 114, 17. Camden Academy Charter (6-4-1) 110, 18. LEAP (5-11) 72, 19. Penns Grove (0-8) 52.

GOLF

BRIDGEWATER TWP. — Schalick sophomore Jaxon Weber shot 92 at Raritan Valley Country Club in his first experience in the NJSIAA Tournament of Champions.

The South Jersey Group I medalist, playing as an individual, got off to a slow start, making 8 on his first hole (No. 5), but he came right back with a par. He parred five of his last seven holes on the back nine, including three in a row (14-16), and six of his last 10 overall.

SCHALICK GIRLS 230, OLMA 230: Schalick’s Hannah Widdifield was the medalist at White Oaks CC (51), with the only birdie in the round on the 400-yard par-5 third. The Cougars won the team playoff by two shots (Cali Fisler 61 and Sarah Pagnanelli 61 to a 61-63 for OLMA.

BOYS TENNIS
CINNAMINSON 3, SCHALICK 2
Evan Kozuch (C) def. George Gould, 6-3, 6-3
Drew Harvey (C) def. Jesus Espinoza, 7-5, 4-6, 10-7
Davi De Brito Melo (C) def. Conor O’Toole, 6-3, 7-6 (7-1)
Rocky Monticolo-David Santana (S) def. Nathan Costa-Colby Warwick, 6-2, 6-4
Kaden Barnes-Cayden Brzozowski (S) def. Michael Crandall-Daman McGee, 6-4, 3-6, 10-7
Records: Cinnaminson 9-4, Schalick 10-6.

WEST DEPTFORD 4, PENNSVILLE 1
Nate Bassett (WD) def. Gabe Schneider, 6-1, 6-3
Maddox Efelis (Pv) def. Carter Watson, 6-2, 6-7 (4-7), 10-7
Andrew Eagle (WD) def. Brody Wiggins, 6-4, 6-3
Chase Struzynski-Aiden Bardon (WD) def. Noah Bohn-Noah Flitcraft, 6-2, 6-2
Carter Weber-Allen Eastlack (WD) def. Sawyer Humphrey-Luke Chamberlain, 6-2, 6-2
Records: Pennsville 14-3, West Deptford 14-3.

CLEARVIEW 5, WOODSTOWN 0
Andrew Crawford (C) def. Tim Schwienbacher, 6-2, 6-3
Nanda Guntupalli (C) def. Drew Stengel, 6-1, 6-1
Gabe Bruno (C) def. Erich Lipovsky, 6-0, 7-6 (7-1)
Travis Lyons-Joey Lindenbaum (C) def. Ben Stengel-Joseph Kurds, 6-3, 6-1
Tucker Chestnut-Jackson Dickler (C) def. Mason Shimp-Luke Shaw, 6-1, 6-1
Records: Woodstown 10-4, Clearview 13-3.

This week’s schedule

Several milestones are on tap for the Salem County sports calendar for the week of May 12-18: Schalick’s Taylor Sparks is one hit away from career No. 100, Woodstown’s Andrew Pedrick is two hits away from 100, Woodstown’s Tulana Mingin in four hits from school’s all-time hits record; all events 4 p.m. unless noted

SUNDAY, MAY 12
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Region XIX Tournament
Salem CC at Northampton, 2 p.m.

MONDAY, MAY 13
BASEBALL
LEAP at Penns Grove
Salem at Pennsville
Schalick at Cumberland
SOFTBALL
ACIT at Schalick
Glassboro at Penns Grove
Salem at Pennsville
Woodstown at Cinnaminson
GOLF
Haddon Heights vs. Woodstown, Town & Country, 3:30 p.m.
Gloucester Catholic vs. Schalick, Centerton CC
Schalick girls vs. OLMA, White Oaks CC
BOYS TENNIS
Cinnaminson at Schalick
Pennsville at West Deptford
Woodstown at Clearview
BOYS LACROSSE
Egg Harbor Twp. at Woodstown
TRACK
Pennsville at Schalick, 3:30 p.m.

TUESDAY, MAY 14
BASEBALL
Camden Eastside at Penns Grove
Overbrook at Schalick
Pennsville at Pitman, Alcyon Park
Pleasantville at Salem
Woodstown at Glassboro
SOFTBALL
Glassboro at Woodstown
Schalick at Overbrook
Pitman at Pennsville, Pennsville LL, 6 p.m.
BOYS TENNIS
Buena at Woodstown
Glassboro at Schalick
Middle Twp. at Pennsville
Penns Grove at Pitman
GIRLS LACROSSE
Mainland at Woodstown
BOYS VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Highland, 3:45 p.m.
GOLF
Woodbury vs. Schalick, Centerton CC, 3:30 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 15
BASEBALL
Buena at Woodstown
Clayton at Pennsville
Glassboro at Schalick
Penns Grove vs. LEAP at Rutgers Camden, 6 p.m.
SOFTBALL
Clayton at Pennsville
Salem at Gloucester Catholic
Woodstown at Penns Grove
GOLF
Pennsville vs. Gloucester Catholic, Westwood GC, 3:30 p.m.
Schalick girls vs. Kingsway, River Winds GC
TRACK
Tri-County Showcase, Delsea, 3:30 p.m.
BOYS TENNIS
Schalick at Triton
Woodstown at Pitman
BOYS VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Camden Academy Charter, 3:45 p.m.
BOYS LACROSSE
Millville at Woodstown
GIRLS LACROSSE
Woodstown at Gloucester Catholic

THURSDAY, MAY 16
BASEBALL
Overbrook at Pennsville
Salem at Schalick
Wildwood at Penns Grove
SOFTBALL
Penns Grove at Clayton
Schalick at Salem
GOLF
Schalick vs. Cumberland, Running Deer GC
BOYS TENNIS
Wildwood at Pennsville, 3:45 p.m.
Schalick at Penns Grove

FRIDAY, MAY 17
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Region XIX/North Atlantic District Tournament
Middlesex vs. RCSJ-Gloucester, 11 a.m.
Salem-Northampton winner vs. Brookdale, 11 a.m.
Second round, 3 p.m.
BASEBALL
Cumberland at Pennsville
Delran at Schalick, 4:15 p.m.
SOFTBALL
Penns Grove at Woodstown
Highland at Pennsville
Schalick at Cape May Tech
GOLF
Pennsville at Delran, 4:30 p.m.
BOYS TENNIS
Clayton at Schalick, 3:15 p.m.
Overbrook at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m.
BOYS VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Timber Creek, 3:45 p.m.

MAY 18
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Region XIX/North Atlantic District Tournament
Elimination game, 11 a.m.
Championship game, 3 p.m.
GIRLS LACROSSE
West Deptford at Woodstown, 10 a.m.