Here is the Salem County sports schedule for the week of May 18-23
MONDAY, MAY 18 BASEBALL Haddon Heights at Schalick Penns Grove at Pennsville Salem at Camden Academy Charter SOFTBALL Pennsville at Salem Haddonfield at Salem Tech, 4:15 p.m. BOYS GOLF Salem/Cumberland Championship, Centerton CC, 8 a.m. Woodstown vs. Deptford, Town & Country, 3:45 p.m. GIRLS GOLF Salem/Cumberland Championship, Centerton CC, 8 a.m. TENNIS Penns Grove at Pennsville, 3:45 p.m. BOYS VOLLEYBALL Highland at Salem Tech, 3:45 p.m. GIRLS LACROSSE Woodstown at Haddon Heights
TUESDAY, MAY 19 BASEBALL Clayton at Penns Grove Gloucester at Salem Tech Pennsville at Schalick Pitman at Woodstown Salem at Glassboro SOFTBALL Penns Grove at Clayton Woodstown at Pitman Schalick at Pennsville at Pennsville LL, 6 p.m. GOLF Schalick vs. Cumberland, Running Deer, 3:30 p.m. TENNIS Clayton at Penns Grove BOYS LACROSSE Bishop Eustace at Woodstown VOLLEYBALL Clearview at Salem Tech, 3:45 p.m. TRACK Nike Elite Meet, Delsea
WEDNESDAY, MAY 20 BASEBALL LEAP at Penns Grove Salem Tech at Wildwood Catholic Schalick at Collingswood SOFTBALL Glassboro at Salem Schalick at Middle Twp. Atlantic Tech at Woodstown, 4:15 p.m. GIRLS LACROSSE Timber Creek at Woodstown
THURSDAY, MAY 21 BASEBALL Mainland at Pennsville Salem Tech at Gloucester County Christian SOFTBALL Pennsville at Kingsway Salem Tech at Camden Co. Tech
Schalick’s Stewart scores fourth win in this year’s South Jersey Group I track meet; county athletes win 4 more titles, grab 30 more state qualifying spots
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
MEDFORD – Schalick’s David Stewart completed a four-event sweep, two winning throwers surpassed personal benchmarks in big ways and overall Salem County athletes had another field day on the final day of the South Jersey Group I sectional track meet Saturday.
Salem County athletes won four more individual titles and secured 30 more spots in the state meet on a gorgeous day at Lenape High School. That brought their collective haul for the weekend to 11 sectional titles and 60 spots in the state meet. To break it down further, nine of the 18 boys events were won by Salem County athletes.
“Their performances to me, it was one of the best performances at sectionals in Salem County history,” Woodstown coach Tom Mason said, and he’s been coaching track and cross country in the county 46 years. “And you’ve got to understand track and field in Salem County has historically had the most state champions and state championship teams. I was very, very proud of Salem County.”
Stewart won his fourth event of the meet when he took the boys open 400 in a PR of 48.64 seconds, leading a 1-2-3-4 Salem County finish across the line. He won the triple jump Wednesday on the last jump of the event and the 400 hurdles and long jump Friday. He was the only athlete at Lenape – boy or girl, Group 1 or Group 4 – to win four individual events and edged out Eastern’s Natalie Dumas for overall high-point scorer.
“I had three gold medals so today it was really like I might as well go for the fourth and then I ended up getting the fourth, so it just felt really good,” Stewart said. “There was definitely pressure because going into the 400 I wasn’t seeded first, so I was running out of Lane 2. I was definitely a little nervous, but once I got in the blocks, all the adrenaline took over and it was just like another race and I ran it.”
Actually, running out of Lane 2 helped him because he could see the competition. The plan was to quickly close the stagger and take the lead, making the competition run harder on the backstretch to keep up and then kick it into another gear in the final 100 to pull away. That’s exactly what happened and he won the race by more than a full second.
“That was a great run for him,” Schalick coach James Turner said. “It was exciting for him to finally go ahead and get four sectional championships and move on to the state in two weeks and he’s excited about it.”
The plan is for him to run all four events at the state meet, where another four-way sweep is possible as he’ll be seeded first in the hurdles, 400 and triple jump.
“The thing I’m most impressed with is I can’t ever remember a time David had a negative attitude or was worried or had doubt,” Turner said. “He’s always very positive, he’s very determined and every day he goes out there and he’s competing, he just always has this very positive attitude about him (that) he’s going to do good, he’s going to be great, and that’s the one thing I don’t think I’ve ever had an athlete to have.
“He was always thinking positive and was confident in what he could do. Even today with his hamstring. He’s not injured he’s just sore. He was like I’ve got this, I’m good. He’s always confident. He’s always positive.”
Among the day’s other winners, Woodstown’s Aidan Taulane completed a double when he put the shot put title with the discus crown he won Friday, Schalick’s Gary Simonini won the javelin and Salem sprinter Raniyah Parsons-Smith won the girls 200.
The two winning throwers had been chasing specific benchmarks all year and both cleared them in the finals of their event with room to spare.
Simonini has been chasing 170 feet all year. The junior got there Saturday, winning the event with a school-record throw of 176 feet, 8 inches, clearing the old record, set by Pat McCann in 2019, by a foot. The winning throw, on his final attempt with the new “gold standard” implement he started gaming at the Salem County Meet, was actually the second time he crossed the threshold on the day. He threw it 171-6 on his first attempt in the finals.
“My goal since freshman year was always to break the school record,” he said. “Today, I had some good warmups. I came into the finals seeded first. My first throw in the finals I hit 171, my first time in the 170s. By the time I got to my third throw – I was the last to throw so I knew I won – so I just had a smile on my face, went out there and had fun.
“I had some back issues during the week and today was like one of my first full throw days of the week and it ended up being a great day. I’m just happy I could do it for my school. Schalick just has done so many great things for me. I’ve had a great high school experience. Just to be able to get the name of Schalick out there like one of the top track schools, like a force in Group 1, that’s probably my favorite part about today.”
He also had something else more personal motivating him. He missed making it to the state meet last year by one spot – 3.5 feet – when he threw it 136-9 that feels like a warmup toss these days.
“That was like 40 feet ago,” he said. “It really helped me throughout the summer with just my drive. I’ve been working for this since my freshman year. I’ve always wanted to break that record.”
That wasn’t just a story for Saturday. It truly has been an career-long pursuit.
“When he was a freshman I remember he laid out a four-year gameplan for himself,” Turner said. “I said I threw this much this year, by the end of next year I’m throwing 150. By the end of my junior year I’m going to be throwing a 170. By the time I’m a senior I’m going to be out there close to 200.
“I talked to him today afterwards and was like do you remember what you told me when you were a freshman about what you laid out and how you were going to progress over the years. He was like yeah I remember. Just laying it out for himself as a freshman and so far hitting all those goals is just exciting to watch. He’s so dedicated and determined to do exactly what he says he’s going to do, to see him win the sectional title and not just win the sectional title but break the school record as a junior that was so exciting to watch. It was such a beautiful throw.”
Taulane, meanwhile, has been creeping up on 50 feet in the shot put the past couple meets. The Rowan signee didn’t just clear it on this day, he left it in the rear view mirror. He finally broke through on the first time on his second throw of the prelims (50-2.5) and then turned it loose in the finals, throwing it 53-3 to win the event by 3 ½ feet. It was the 13th best throw in the state this season.
“Hitting 53 today was kind of crazy,” he said. “I still really don’t know how to feel; I feel good about it. It definitely was my best technical throw ever. Getting over the barrier (the first time) really helped to show me that there was more in the tank, how much more I could hit.”
Glassboro won the boys team title, Audubon won the girls crown. Woodstown made a push on the final day and edged Schalick for third in the boys standings; Penns Grove finished fifth. Salem and Schalick were fourth and fifth, respectively, in the girls standings.
The Woodstown boys entered the day in fourth place, 42 points out of first and 16 behind second-place Schalick, but they more than doubled their points production on the last day to pass the Cougars and finish 11 points out of second place.
“The young men, especially on the track, what warriors these kids were,” Mason said. “What Aidan did goes without saying, and we got a second place in the high jump from Eli Ceasar, but on the track what warriors these kids were. Karson takes a tumble (in the 4×100 Friday), he comes in with band-aids all over and gets second today in the 400. I was very proud of the kids today. They gave everything they had, battled, now let’s heal up and move on to states.”
Woodstown’s Aidan Taulane (C) soared past the 50-foot barrier to win the South Jersey Group I shot put title and become a double winner in this year’s sectional track meet. Top photo, four-event winner David Stewart (L) and Gary Simonini brought home gold for Schalick on Saturday’s final meet day.
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I SECTIONALS Saturday Results Only Event winners, Salem County state qualifiers (top six)
BOYS Team scores: Glassboro 120, Camden 84, WOODSTOWN 73, SCHALICK 69, PENNS GROVE 47, Haddon Twp. 43, Woodbury 25, SALEM 24, Maple Shade 17, Clayton 12, Gateway 11, Burlington City 9, Audubon 8, Buena 8, PENNSVILLE 5, Palmyra 2, Paulsboro 1 400: 1. David Stewart, Schalick 48.64; 2. Karson Chew, Woodstown 49.70; 3. Kylee Goodson, Penns Grove 49.81; 4. Josh Crawford, Woodstown 49.84 4×800: 1. Woodbury 8:09.42; 3. Woodstown (Marino, Farrell, Hutton, Turner) 8:24.10; 6. Salem (Buzby, Gilbert, Pozo, Conrath) 8:45.81 110 Hurdles: 1. Jaleel Dickerson-Dempsey, Camden 14.69; 2. Bryan Garlic, Penns Grove 15.05; 4. Timothy Gregory, Salem 15.54 200: 1. Christian Braxton, Camden 22.22; 4. Kylee Goodson, Penns Grove 22.90; 6. Timothy Gregory, Salem 23.18 1600: 1. Joseph Saicic, Glassboro 4:27.87 4×400: 1. Camden 3:23.15; 2. Penns Grove (Garlic, White, Goodson, Colon) 3:23.42; 3. Woodstown (Chew, Costello, Crawford, Turner) 3:25.99 Shot Put: 1. Aidan Taulane, Woodstown 53-5; 4. Connor Wariwanchik, Pennsville 48-9.25; 5. JaKai Ingram, Penns Grove 48-7.25; 6. Ethan McLean, Schalick 46-11.5 Javelin: 1. Gary Simonini, Schalick 176-8 High Jump: 1. Moses Robles, Glassboro 6-2; T-2. Tommy White, Penns Grove 6-0; T-2. Elijah Caesar, Woodstown 6-0; 5. Donovan Weathers, Salem 6-0
Schalick smacks Mainland to clinch top seed in SJ Group I playoffs, Hartley throws complete game, Sepers gets his 100th career hit; includes scores and highlights from Friday’s Salem County sports calendar
BASEBALL
SOFTBALL
TENNIS
Schalick 10, Mainland 4
Clearview 9, Pennsville 7
Overbrook 3, Woodstown 2
Woodstown 4, Oakcrest 1
Salem 12, Bridgeton 1
BOYS VOLLEYBALL
Camden Academy 13, Salem Tech 9
Camden Academy at Salem Tech
Triton at Salem Tech
GIRLS LACROSSE
Paul VI 21, Woodstown 8
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
PITTSGROVE – When Evan Sepers contemplated what the 100th hit of his high school career might look like, he usually thought of it being some kind of hard liner into the outfield or something even more majestic. Something more along the lines of the 101st hit he got in his second at bat Friday.
Years from now they’ll remember it as a frozen rope, but truth be told the milestone hit didn’t make it to the pitcher’s mound.
The Schalick senior got his 100th career hit in the first inning of the Cougars’ 10-4 win over Mainland that ostensibly earned them the No. 1 seed in the upcoming South Jersey Group I baseball playoffs for the first time.
It was a two-strike chopper in front of the plate that rolled into the no-man’s land between the pitcher and catcher and he beat it out without a throw for a single. To take a phrase straight from the golf course, they don’t ask you how, they just ask how many.
“I saw when it hit the ground it jumped into fair play so I just put my head down and started running,” Sepers said. “I saw the first baseman just kind of drop his arm as if he wasn’t going to catch a baseball. I didn’t know whether or not the catcher bobbled it or it went foul. It was just kind of wildin’ all over the place.
“I was hoping it was going to be a line drive, maybe an RBI single or maybe if I got lucky got hold of one and hit one out – that would’ve been the ideal hit for 100 – but I’m just glad I hit 100. That’s something I set my mind on since the start of the season. I knew the number (to reach it) was going to be big. The most hits I’ve had in a season before this was 31 last year. I’m just thrilled that I hit 100. It’s something I’ve had my mindset on since I walked in here as a freshman and hitting it is just like a dream come true.”
Sepers’ second hit was a more like he dreamed the first one would be. He ripped a solid single into right field. He went 2-for-3 in the game and is now working on a 10-game hitting streak in which he’s batting .548 (17-for-31).
He reached his milestone hit in 240 career at-bats. Cougars coach Sean O’Brien, who described Sepers as “one of our best pure hitters,” said the RCSJ-Cumberland signee would’ve gotten to the number sooner had he not been injured (and limited to 21 at-bats) his sophomore year.
Next up on the Cougars’ 100-hit watch is catcher Ricky Watt. He needs five for the milestone after going 1-for-2 against the Mustangs to extend his hitting streak to eight games. Both of Sepers’ hits were part of four-run innings that staked the Cougars to an early 8-0 lead. It was such a dominating start, all nine spots in their order had reached base at least once through 19 batters.
Bo Schalick had RBI singles in each of the first two innings – the first one scoring Sepers – and had a two-run single in his third at-bat to give the Cougars a 10-2 lead after three innings. Dante Zappala kept the Cougars off the board over the last three innings to give the Mustangs a chance to get back in it, but Schalick right-hander Cole Hartley proved too tough to solve.
The Cougars (16-6) caught the Group 3 Mustangs (14-8) ripe for the picking. Mainland was coming off a win over St. Augustine Prep the day before and was playing its fourth game in as many days, but coach Billy Kern wasn’t making any excuses.
“They’re young, they play a lot of games all the time, doubleheaders, things like that,” he said. “No excuses. We just kind of no-showed the first inning or two. They’re a good team, (you) can’t fall behind like that or else you’re going to pay the price like we did.
“We didn’t come out throwing strikes, fell behind, pitch count got high right away and offensively we started pressing a little bit. Tried to do too much a little bit too early, but again, no excuses. Give credit to their pitcher. He threw a fantastic game.”
Hartley pitched what he called “my best game overall.” He threw a complete game, giving up four hits and striking out six, and in the two innings the Mustangs did get something going he got through it with a minimal amount of damage.
Hartley went into the seventh inning 15 pitches under his limit. O’Brien wanted to give him every chance to finish and the pitcher responded to the trust by quickly retiring the Mustangs on three fly balls.
“I knew I had to go against a tough team today and I was feeling it and I wanted to dominate,” Hartley said. “I went against Clearview a couple weeks ago and I started off good, four scoreless and one hit, but I lost it in the fifth inning and I was like I’m not letting that happen today. I was going to go the full distance and get us the No. 1 seed for sure.”
The Cougars went into the game on top of the South Jersey Group I power points standings. A win over an elite Group 3 team on the next to last day before the cutoff will make it virtually impossible to be overtaken.
“We knew if we could secure a win today it would guarantee (the No. 1),” O’Brien said. “There was no guessing. We don’t need other people’s help. We were going to take care of business ourselves.
“We really just wanted to come here and be competitive and play well. We’ve played well against good teams like this but we haven’t pushed through yet, so it was really good to push through against one of those top teams. We’ve hung around with those other teams but we just kind of came up short, so it was good to actually push through.”
Mainland
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200
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4
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Schalick
442
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WP: Cole Hartley. LP: Ryan Bradly. 3B: Ryan Bradly (M).
WOODSTOWN 4, OAKCREST 1: Luke Fraley hit his third homer of the season and two pitchers gave up four hits and an unearned runs in the Wolverines’ third straight victory. Ty Coblentz and Tommy Tucci each had two hits for Woodstown (15-8)
CAMDEN ACADEMY CHARTER 13, SALEM TECH 9: The Cougars pulled away from a one-run game with six runs in the home fifth, sending Salem Tech to its fourth straight loss. Jorge Rodriguez’ bases-loaded, two-run single got the bigger inning started. The Chargers had 11 hits, with Chase Pompper, Cole Sacks, Logan Hearn and Brayden McAllister having two apiece.
Schalick senior Evan Sepers follows through on his high chopper in front of the plate that became his 100th career hit Friday against Mainland. The ball is the white spot at the top of the fence.
Softball
SALEM 12, BRIDGETON 1: Avah Brown pitched a five-inning no-hitter with 14 strikeouts to help the Rams (2-16) snap a 13-game losing streak. Isla Bohn had two hits and Xiomara Cano-Merced and Jaylynn Dickerson each drove in a pair of runs. The Rams broke the game open with a seven-run fourth inning.
CLEARVIEW 9, PENNSVILLE 7: Ella Redheffer’s RBI double in the sixth snapped a 6-6 tie and Ava D’Alessandro singled home and insurance run before the inning was over to lift the Pioneers (15-7). D’Alessandro went 4-for-4 and Redheffer had three hits and drove in a pair of runs Lily Edwards had three hits and Avery Watson had three hits apiece for the Eagles (13-6). Edwards also drove in three runs.
Girls Lacrosse
PAUL VI 21, WOODSTOWN 8: Emma McCarthy scored a career-high nine goals to move within three of 300 for her career to lead Paul VI (9-6). Delaney Walker (221) and Emma Morgan (124) each scored three goals for Woodstown (7-7)
Schalick’s Longo wins boys sectional pole vault title in first competition of season, Stewart wins two more events; Salem County produces 7 champions, 30 state qualifiers through first full day of SJ Group I sectional meet
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
MEDFORD – Sal Longo spent his entire senior outdoor track season rehabbing a hamstring injury he sustained at the indoor Meet of Champions and didn’t compete once for Schalick during the spring. He made his long-awaited season debut Friday and what does he do – just become a sectional champion.
Just a week clear of being cleared to compete and with only four days of practice to prep him, Longo won the South Jersey Group I boys pole vault title with a vault of 13 feet.
“I was so stressful,” he said. “I didn’t know if I was going to make the opening height, to be honest. It’s been two months since I’ve done any competition, so clearing that opening bar was really a big weight off my back.
“I’m very proud of myself. I didn’t really think I would get first place at my first meet of the season let alone sectional. Honestly, it’s just a big stress reliever knowing that I’m back to how I was in winter track.”
Longo was one of five Salem County athletes to win an event in Friday’s first full day of sectional competition at Lenape High School.
Teammate David Stewart added two more titles to his collection, winning the long jump (22-8.5) and 400 hurdles (55.33); he won the triple jump Wednesday. Woodstown’s Josh Crawford won the 800 (1:54.31) in a 1-3 finish with teammate Karson Chew and teammate Aidan Taulane won the discus (159-2). Schalick’s Navaeh Robinson won the girls javelin (118-3) in s 1-2 finish with teammate Sebrina Bradford.
Salem County athletes picked up 30 qualifying spots to the state meet – 17 in boys, 13 in girls. The remaining spots are up for grabs Saturday.
Schalick is currently second behind Glassboro in the boys team standings and fourth in the girls race. Woodstown is fourth in the boys standings, and fifth in girls.
Longo sustained a Grade 3 strain in his left hamstring on March 8 and had been out of competition ever since. While his teammates were outside chasing PRs, he stayed inside anxiously waiting. He resisted the temptation to go out for fear of aggravating what had been healing. He passed on the Salem County Championships knowing all along the sectionals were the target date for his return.
He entered the competition Friday night at 11 feet and cleared the bar on his third attempt. He went through 11-6 and 12-feet and eventually he and Haddon Twp.’s Bobby McIlvaine were the last two standing as the bar went to 12-6.
Longo made it on his second attempt and McIlvaine went through on his third. Longo cleared 13 feet on his final attempt and had the gold after McIlvaine missed on his third try.
Longo made a bid for the Schalick school record, but missed all three attempts at 13-3.
“Sal’s a competitor and has been working hard for this moment for four years; he deserves every bit of this title,” Schalick coach James Turner said. “I really wasn’t sure what he was going to be capable of doing. Because of the injury he wasn’t even allowed to practice, or at least practice at our facility, until he was cleared, which happened this week. His dad told me yesterday he jumped 12-6 so I knew he was going to be able to do that.”
“I was really excited for him,” Stewart said. “He got injured right before Meet of Champs and that was really discouraging, so for him to just work past that and put the hard work in and see him win this is a really good feeling.”
Stewart had a stressful time of it as well. He was dealing with a leg issue left over from Wednesday’s triple jump competition, but he persevered.
He barely made it into the long jump finals with a jump of 20-3.25, then on his first jump in the final he went 21-8 to take the lead, which was matched by Glassboro rival Moses Robles. He fouled on his second attempt, then won the event by soaring 22-8 on his final attempt. He won the triple jump Wednesday on the final jump of the competition.
“I had to deal with some hamstring problems so today I was mainly just trying to focus on advancing to the next round, but I ended up winning the event,” he said. “I didn’t jump that good in the prelims, I barely made it through. I was mad, like why am I jumping bad? Turner texted me that I made it through to the finals, so I went over there and was stretching. I felt loose and then I just popped a great third jump which led to the 22-8.”
The leg problem that bothered him Friday isn’t expected to impact what he has left. He still intends to run the open 400 Saturday in a bid for four sectional golds.
“I’m still going to go out there and give it everything I got,” he said. “I’m going to run.”
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I MEET (Event winners, Salem County state qualifiers (top six))
BOYS Team scores: Glassboro 74, Schalick 48, Camden 34, Woodstown 32, Haddon Twp. 16, Salem 16, Penns Grove 12, Gateway 10, Burlington City 9, Clayton 8, Buena 6, Maple Shade 5, Woodbury 4, Palmyra 2, Audubon 2, Pennsville 1 4×100: 1. Camden 42.32; 5. Salem (Bergen, Beverly, Stevenson, Clayton) 43.98 800: 1. Josh Crawford, Woodstown 1:54.31; 3. Karson Chew, Woodstown 1:57.94 400 Hurdles: 1. David Stewart, Schalick 55.33; 4. Grady Buzby, Salem 59.09 100: 1. Jaiden Steele, Camden 10.74; 4. Kylee Goodson, Penns Grove 11.14 3200: 1. Jaeden Wesley, Glassboro 9:34.67; 5. Jacob Marino, Woodstown 9:52.70 Discus: 1. Aidan Taulane, Woodstown 159-2; 2. Ethan McLean, Schalick 151-9 Long Jump: 1. David Stewart, Schalick 22-8.5; 2. Will Roy, Penns Grove 22-0.25; 4. Donovan Weathers, Salem 21-0.25; 6. Danny Knight, Pennsville 20-9 Pole Vault: 1. Salvatore Longo, Schalick 13-0 Triple Jump (Wednesday): 1. David Stewart, Schalick 48-7.25; 3. Jerry Seals, Salem, 43-9.5 4. Andrew White, Woodstown 43-0
Top photo: Schalick’s Sal Longo clears the bar to win the South Jersey Group I sectional pole vault title in his first competition of the spring. (Submitted photo)
Schalick’s Stewart wins sectional triple jump with record effort, said the day before if he came down to a do-or-die jump he was going to win it
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
WESTMONT – Maybe it was the confidence that comes with trusting his training talking, but Schalick junior David Stewart knew the day before what was going to happen in the sectional triple jump if a certain scenario had come to pass.
Stewart won the South Jersey Group I triple jump title Wednesday at Haddon Twp. with a jump of 48 feet, 7 ¼ inches on his final attempt of the day with no on left. Not only did the jump set the meet record, it was the best triple jump in all Group I sectionals all-time and the second-best Group I triple jump in state history.
And he predicted it was going to happen. Well, maybe not all the record-breaking stuff, but the win.
While doing some last-minute prep for one of his signature events Tuesday, Stewart told Cougars coach James Turner if he had the last jump of the day and someone was ahead of him in the standings he was going to win the event right there.
And that’s exactly what happened. Stewart’s close friend and rival Moses Robles of Glassboro had jumped 47-5 on his second attempt in the finals to grab the lead. Stewart was still in second when his turn came on the runway for his final attempt. He was going to advance to the state meet as it was, but he wasn’t second anymore when he landed in the pit.
“I told (Turner) that yesterday at practice,” Stewart said. “I told him if I’m the last jumper and somebody’s beating me I’m winning on the last jump. That’s just all confidence. I’ve really been working hard, training hard, so I knew my training would pay off. I trusted his training and it got me to where I am.
“It’s like literally a dream it happened that way. When I was lined up as the last jumper I was just sitting there talking to myself saying we talked about this, this is what we said was going to happen. We got this.”
There was a sense around the pit his next-to-last jump would have been strong enough to challenge the leader, but he buckled going in and he didn’t get the result. The number wasn’t there, but the feeling was.
“Everyone knew it would’ve been a big jump and that’s when I think he realized it, too; he was, oh, I’ve got this,” Turner said. “I talked to him. We made some minor adjustments we talked about earlier in the week. I just think he was finally focused now, that he knew it came down to it and he just put everything together for that final jump.
“We talked about the adjustments real quick. He understood what he needed to do. He was focused. He went back to the end of the runway to get ready for his final jump. He had a couple people he was waiting on. I went back and talked to him and said just focus in, continue to tell yourself you got this and just execute. When I walked away I knew he was going to get it. I knew he was going to jump a 47 or his best jump of the year.
“I knew where he needed to land. As soon as I saw him land I just went over to him and shook his hand. I said you got it. He just stood up and kind of knew he got it, too. It was a great moment. I was really proud because he puts in so much hard work. He’s probably one of the hardest working track athletes that I’ve ever coached. You can just see how determined he is and how much it means to him to succeed and continue to grow.”
Jerry Seals of Salem was third (43-9.5) and Woodstown’s Andrew White was fourth. Three Salem County girls also qualified to the state meet in the event – Salem’s Ramiyah Jones, Schalick’s Jaelynn Jarmon and Penns Grove’s Arianna Dowe – finishing 3-4-5, respectively. The top six advance.
The sectional meet resumes Friday and for the rest of the weekend at Lenape High School. Having the triple jump Wednesday actually frees up Stewart for his projected attempts at the open 400 (he’s ranked third in Group I), 400 hurdles (No. 2 among all groups) and long jump. Last year at sectionals he had to bounce between the jumps and the hurdles all the while balancing a painful foot injury that eventually kept him from competing in the triple jump at the state meet.
“That’s another thing that really plays a big part in sectionals,” Stewart said. “That being the only thing I had to do today also helps out with my other events. It helps with my focus, because today I didn’t have to worry about running, hurdling, long jump, all my focus was right there. Being on a Wednesday it was a little weird, it felt weird, but you still have to perform no matter when, what time, where. You have to perform.”
Pennsville softball players set two milestones in bounce-back win over Gloucester Catholic; Woodstown’s Wygand, Schalick’s Sepers, Watt closing in on 100 hits; also includes scores, details from Wednesday’s Salem County sports schedule
SOFTBALL Pennsville 6, Gloucester Catholic 3 Schalick 10, Glassboro 8 Wildwood 10, Salem 0 Woodstown 17, Penns Grove 0
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
GLOUCESTER – It was a milestone day for the players on the Pennsville softball team. Lily Edwards scored her 100th career run for the first run of the game and Graillyn Weber hit a pair of doubles to set the school’s single-season record as the Eagles bounced back from a bad loss to Millville the day before and topped Gloucester Catholic 6-3 to move within one win of an undefeated division season.
Edwards led off the game with a double and scored her milestone run on Weber’s 16th double of the season, breaking the record Kylie Harris set each of the last two years. Weber’s second double of the game came leading off the third inning and she later scored a game-tying run on a single by Avery Watson.
“I’m really happy about it and honestly I had forgotten before the game about the record, which definitely made it easier to accomplish because I wasn’t really thinking about it,” Weber said. “But I couldn’t have done it without my teammates because we had a great game.”
Weber may have forgotten about the record she was chasing, but Edwards had been counting down the runs and the 100 hits she’s closing on for the last couple weeks.
“For me it’s big because I missed my whole sophomore season (with a broken back) so just to accomplish something like that, that big, means a lot to me,” she said. “I definitely was looking for it. I knew it was going to happen. With Gray (Weber) and Kylie (Harris) behind me I knew I was going to get it, but I knew I needed to run really fast.”
It takes a lot of success at the plate to score 100 runs. She’s scored all those runs off 89 hits, 17 walks, eight HBPs and a couple of fielder’s choices. It’s not certain how many times she’s reached on an error. She’s scored in every game but two this year, and one of those was a shutout the third game of the season.
“My 100 hits is my main goal for high school softball,” she said. “You don’t get that recognition like travel ball or anything, but high school is the time to do it. It’s going to really nice to get it, hopefully.”
The Eagles came from behind twice to beat the Rams for the second time this season. They trailed 2-1 in the first inning and 3-2 in the fourth before scoring three runs in the top of the seventh to take the lead for good. Harris hit the go-ahead RBI triple, Watson followed with an RBI single and Kelsey Cook delivered a run-scoring ground out later in the inning. Weber pitched a scoreless seventh to wrap up a complete-game victory.
Watson, the Eagles’ senior shortstop and clean-up hitter, went 4-for-4 in the game. She also had a single in the first, a single in the fifth and another RBI single in the seventh.
“The game was important to us as a division game and I wanted to help be the fuel we needed to pick up the team after a tough loss the day before,” Watson said. “I have plenty of long at-bats where I’m looking to find my perfect pitch and fouling off what I don’t like, and that’s what I did today. I found a good mix of patience and aggression at the plate that helped contribute to our win.”
The Eagles (13-5) can complete an undefeated run through the TCC Classic Division with a win at Salem Monday.
WOODSTOWN 17, PENNS GROVE 0: Ellie Wygand went 4-for-4 with two RBIs, Lexi Taylor was 2-for-2 with three RBIs, Grace Hitchner drove in three runs and three Woodstown pitchers combined on a four-inning no-hitter.
SCHALICK 10, GLASSBORO 8: Khloe McGrath’s three-run homer gave Schalick the lead and highlighted a seven-run fourth inning that erased a 5-1 deficit. The win completed the Cougars’ first undefeated run in the Diamond Division since 2021.
WILDWOOD 19, SALEM 0: Emma Contreras went 4-for-4 with four four RBIs and pitched a four-inning one-hitter, facing one batter over the minimum. Julliana Love had the Rams’ hit, a leadoff single in the second inning.
BASEBALL Schalick 13, Glassboro 3 Vineland 12, Pennsville 9 Woodstown 12, Penns Grove 0 Wildwood 17, Salem 7
SCHALICK 13, GLASSBORO 3: The Cougars erased a 2-1 deficit with 10 runs in the third inning and sealed up back-to-back division titles for the first time in school history. Jamari Whitley and Evan Glaspey had three hits apiece, Evan Sepers had three RBIs and Whitley struck out nine in a five-inning complete game. Sepers (99) and Ricky Watt (94) are closing in on 100 career hits.
WOODSTOWN 12, PENNS GROVE 0: Luke Fraley went 2-for-4 with a homer and three RBIs, Walker Battavio went 3-for-3 with four RBIs and Colton Williams pitched a five-inning one-hitter striking out seven. Josh Widen had the Red Devils’ lone hit.
WILDWOOD 17, SALEM 7: The Warriors were out front 15-0 to offset Salem’s seven-run outburst in the fourth. Trevor Troiano went 4-for-4 with five RBIs and is 8-for-8 with seven RBIs against Salem County foes the last two days. He’s 10-for-13 in his last three games overall. Jovanni Rios hit a three-run triple in the Rams’ big inning and was out at plate trying to stretch it into a homer.
VINELAND 12, PENNSVILLE 9: The Eagles trailed 9-2 after two innings, but battled back and brought the tying run to the plate in a seventh-inning rally but ran out of steam. Logan Streitz went 3-for-4 with two RBIs. Mason O’Brien and Dante Cummings had two hits apiece.
Pennsville uses grit, luck to get past Glassboro; includes scores, details from Tuesday’s Salem County sports calendar
BASEBALL Pennsville 4, Glassboro 1: Eagles take lead with four in fortuitous fifth inning; full story below.. Wildwood 12, Penns Grove 2: Trevor Troiano goes 4-for-4; Wildwood holds Penns Grove to one hit through five innings while opening 7-0 lead. Bristol Scott, Tim Zamorano drove in Penns Grove’s runs in sixth. Piscataway Magnet 15, Salem Tech 7: NJTAC Group 1/2 Tournament semifinals. Chargers led early, but Piscataway (21-2) pulled away from a 9-7 game with six in home sixth.. SOFTBALL Woodstown 11, Deptford 1: Karly Spears and Macie Moore combine for four hits, four runs and three RBIs from bottom of Wolverines’ lineup. Leah Clark allows two hits, none after the first inning, and struck out eight to surpass 200 in her career (201). Millville 16, Pennsville 2: Thunderbolts put Eagles back on their heels with seven in top of the first inning. Pennsville’s Graillyn Weber ties Kylie Harris’ single-season school doubles record (15), Harris hits her 49th career double. Buena 12, Salem Tech 11: Chiefs score three runs on passed balls in home seventh to walk it off. Izzy Roberts had three hits and Carmen Mott three RBIs for the Chargers GOLF Schalick 161, Cumberland 196: Schalick’s Anthony Sepers posts 2-over 38 at Centerton CC for medalist honors. Teammate Jaxson Weber shot 39. GIRLS GOLF OLMA 214, Schalick 225: OLMA’s Eva Acerba and Schalick’s Lena Virga shared medalist honors (48) at Centerton CC TENNIS Middle Twp. 5, Schalick 0: See below Pennsville 4, Washington Twp. 1: See below GIRLS LACROSSE Holy Cross 13, Woodstown 12: The Lancers scored twice in the final 1:31 to win. Caroline Tobin and Brielle Mosteller scored six goals each for Holy Cross. Delaney Walker scored four (217) for Woodstown, Emma Morgan scored three for her 200th career point. BOYS LACROSSE Woodstown at Middle Twp. BOYS VOLLEYBALL Salem Tech at West Tech
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
PENNSVILLE – At least one time every year Pennsville’s home field becomes a true advantage to play at home.
It certainly was Tuesday when the skin infield of Ed Rieger Field that the Eagles have come to love played a key role in the inning that propelled them to a 4-1 come-from-behind victory over Glassboro.
The game carried some serious implications for the South Jersey Group i playoff bracket and it very much played like a playoff game. The Eagles trailed 1-0 going to the home fifth of a tight pitching duel between aces Jude Dempster and Gavin Spears, but they came out of the inning with a 4-1 lead thanks in part of the subtleties of the infield.
The inning started when Spears reached on a one-out dropped third strike and escalated into a bases-loaded situation on Mason O’Brien’s single and Jeff Wagner getting hit by a pitch. Logan Streitz followed with a fly ball to the gap in left center that centerfielder Jimmy McMahon had in his glove and couldn’t hold allowing the tying run to score.
With the bases still loaded, Stevie Fatcher lofted a high pop behind first that was circled under by first baseman Aidan Evangelisti but eventually fell between three fielders. The Bulldogs thought it should have been an infield fly rule out, but the umpires didn’t see it that way and the Eagles had a 2-1 lead.
Then came the play that makes the skin infield both feared and famous. Grady Sanders hit a routine grounder to the right side. It looked like it would be the third out of the inning, but at the last instant it took a wicked hop into second baseman Kody Harrell’s upper body. The sophomore infielder recovered the ball, but in his haste to get the out his throw to first was wide and two insurance runs raced home.
“We’ve been talking a lot lately about just finding a way,” Eagles coach Matt Karr said. “Ugly, pretty, whatever, just find a way. And that starts with just putting the ball in play and doing your job. Heads up play there by Gavin. Instead of standing there feeling sorry for himself he finds his way on base. Everything we’ve been preaching this season and always here, just give the guy behind you a shot. Whatever your job is at the moment go to the plate and do it and trust that the guy behind you is gonna pick you up and finish it off.
“Another thing I talk about all the time is luck. I really believe that part of the baseball game is creating some of your own luck. Some of those things that happened that inning, we had to put ourselves in situations for it to be capitalized on. Could’ve been nobody on and that pop up happens and falls and doesn’t mean anything. but we had guys on and we were fighting, so we created our luck in that situation. When you’re facing a pitcher like (Dempster) you have to almost ugly it up a little bit, fight, claw and find a way.”
Spears calls it “scrappy baseball … that’s what we symbolize around here.”
A similar scenario took place here 51 weeks ago when the Eagles scored a one-run extra-inning victory over Pitman. They fell behind that day 1-0 in the first, tied it in the seventh on a ball that got away from the catcher and won in it the eighth with the help of two fielding errors by two normally sure-handed infielders.
“We’re becoming one of the far and few between fields where it’s a skin infield; I don’t know how many of them are left in South Jersey, I would guess not many,” Karr said. “Here, as dry as the weather’s been, this field hardens up and our guys get the luxury of practicing and playing on it every single day. We were watching them take I/O and I told the guys, half-heartedly joking, Ed Rieger’s hardening up, you know what that means. Put ‘er in play and see what happens. It always finds a way. We love the home-field advantage.”
“This field is probably the worst I’ve ever seen in my life,” Sanders said. “On this infield, there’s been many black eyes that I’ve seen; I got hit over the forehead last year. Especially over there (waving to the right side), that’s one of the hardest spots in the infield. It’s great to play here. This is the most challenging place to play. Everywhere else feels like a joy ride. I love playing here. It makes me a better defender. It makes everybody here a better defender.”
“Basically anything that’s hit hard on the ground (is) guaranteed a base hit here,” Spears said. “It’s not the best place to play but for us I’d say it is. Any team coming in here is going to have a hard time fielding the ball. We get to work out here every single day, so we’re kind of used to it. This is just our home.”
Once the Eagles grabbed the lead, Spears had to go out and defend it. He went out and gave them a shutdown sixth, working the corners to retire the Bulldogs on a soft liner to second and two strikeouts. He allowed five hits and struck out eight in going the distance for his longest outing of the season. The Bulldogs scored their run in the first inning – on back-to-back walks to open the game, a wild pitch and a sacrifice fly – then were blanked the rest of the game.
“We went up to Cherry Hill West for the Diamond Classic and threw him out there against one of the top teams in the state and he went out and battled his butt off,” Karr said. “We told the boys after the game I don’t know if you guys knew that we needed an ace or had an ace, but you’ve got a guy. We know when 10 toes the rubber we’re going to have a shot to win. Every start he’s been on the mound we’ve been right there or we’ve won. Our guys feel that. When they’ve got their guy on the mound they come out feeling different that day. He gives us that shot in the arm.”
“I never really considered myself an ace; I always feel like there’s things to work on, even in this game,” Spears said. “It’s good to know they have trust in me. I know my fielders have my back. I know they’re going to make every play that’s out there.”
Dempster was equally impressive for the Bulldogs. He held the Eagles to four hits over five innings and struck out 11.
The win allowed the Eagles to switch places with Glassboro in the SJ Group I power points standings. Glassboro was sixth and Pennsville seventh to start the day, but they flipped after the game. Schalick is No. 1, Woodstown No. 3. The power point window closes after Saturday’s games.
Here is the Salem County sports schedule for the week of May 11-16; all events start at 4 p.m. unless noted
MONDAY, MAY 11 BASEBALL Schalick at Salem Woodstown at Clayton SOFTBALL Clayton at Woodstown Pennsville at Glassboro Salem vs. Schalick, Elmer LL, 6 p.m. GIRLS GOLF Schalick vs. Williamstown, Centerton CC, 3:30 p.m. VOLLEYBALL Salem Tech at Washington Twp., 3:45 p.m. GIRLS LACROSSE Woodstown at Triton BOYS LACROSSE Millville at Woodstown TRACK Woodstown in Deptford Invitational TENNIS Schalick at Pennsville, 3:45 p.m. Woodstown at Timber Creek, 3:45 p.m. Pitman at Penns Grove
TUESDAY, MAY 12 BASEBALL Glassboro at Pennsville Penns Grove at Wildwood Salem Tech at Piscataway Magnet (NJTAC) SOFTBALL Deptford at Woodstown Millville at Pennsville Salem Tech at Buena, 3:45 p.m. Wildwood at Penns Grove GOLF Woodstown vs. Lower Cape May, Town & Country, 3:45 p.m. GIRLS GOLF Schalick vs. OLMA, Centerton CC, 3:30 p.m. TENNIS Middle Twp. at Schalick, 3:45 p.m. Woodstown at Timber Creek, 3:45 p.m. Pennsville at Washington Twp. TRACK Woodstown at West Deptford, 5 p.m. BOYS VOLLEYBALL Salem Tech at BCIT, 3:45 p.m. GIRLS LACROSSE Holy Cross at Woodstown BOYS LACROSSE Woodstown at Middle Twp., 4:15 p.m.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 13 BASEBALL Glassboro at Schalick Penns Grove at Woodstown Salem at Wildwood Pennsville at Vineland, 7 p.m. SOFTBALL Pennsville at Gloucester Catholic Schalick at Glassboro Wildwood at Salem Woodstown at Penns Grove GOLF Schalick vs. Delsea, White Oaks CC, 3:30 p.m. GIRLS GOLF Schalick vs. OLMA, Centerton CC, 3:30 p.m. BOYS LACROSSE Woodstown at Middle Twp., 4:15 p.m. TENNIS Delsea at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m. Pennsville at Pitman, 3:45 p.m. Penns Grove at Schalick TRACK NJSIAA Sectionals VOLLEYBALL Salem Tech at Timber Creek
THURSDAY, MAY 14 BASEBALL Clayton at Salem Tech GCIT at Pennsville SOFTBALL Bridgeton at Salem Tech Woodstown at Glassboro Delran at Schalick, 4:15 p.m. GOLF Woodstown vs. Overbrook, Kresson GC, 3:30 p.mm. GIRLS GOLF Schalick vs. Delsea, White Oaks CC, 3:30 p.m. TENNIS Delsea at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m. Burlington Twp. at Pennsville BOYS LACROSSE Woodstown at Timber Creek BOYS VOLLEYBALL Riverside at Salem Tech, 3:45 p.m.
FRIDAY, MAY 15 BASEBALL LEAP at Penns Grove Mainland at Schalick Oakcrest at Woodstown Salem Tech at Camden Academy Charter SOFTBALL Bridgeton at Salem Camden Academy Charter at Salem Tech Clearview at Pennsville Delran at Schalick, 4:15 p.m. BOYS GOLF Woodstown vs. Overbrook, Kresson GC, 3:30 p.m. GIRLS GOLF Schalick vs. Delsea, White Oaks CC, 3:30 p.m. BOYS VOLLEYBALL Triton at Salem Tech, 3:45 p.m. BOYS LACROSSE Woodstown at Timber Creek GIRLS LACROSSE Woodstown at Paul VI, 6 p.m. TENNIS Overbrook at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m. Penns Grove at Pennsville, 3:45 p.m. TRACK NJSIAA Sectionals
SATURDAY, MAY 16 BASEBALL Pennsville at Cedar Creek, 11 a.m. Woodstown at Buena, noon Oakcrest at Woodstown Penns Grove at LEAP SOFTBALL Bridgeton at Salem Clearview at Pennsville LEAP at Penns Grove TENNIS Overbrook at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m. Penns Grove at Pennsville, 3:45 p.m. Schalick at Pitman BOYS VOLLEYBALL Triton at Salem Tech, 3:45 p.m. BOYS LACROSSE Woodstown at Camden Catholic, 11 a.m. TRACK NJSIAA Sectionals
Here are the scores and highlights from Friday night’s Salem County sports calendar; includes Saturday’s schedule
FRIDAY’S GAMES SOFTBALL CLEARVIEW 11, SCHALICK 4: Sienna Garrison hit her eighth homer of the season and Ella Redheffer homered twice as Clearview rallied from a 4-0 deficit. Garrison’s three-run homer in fourth inning put the Pioneers (13-5) ahead 6-4. Redheffer’s first homer got them on the board in the third and her second gave them an 8-4 lead. Khloe McGrath had three hits for the Cougars (11-4). Emma Cain had two.
DEPTFORD 16, SALEM 6: The Spartans (7-11) broke it open with a 10-run third inning. Teyla Solimon had a two-run single and bases-loaded walk in the big inning. Solimon, Brooke White and Sophie McGuire all had three RBIs in the game.
COLLEGE BASEBALL Region XIX Tournament Camden 12-6, RCSJ-Cumberland 2-5, Camden wins series 2-0 Middlesex 11-14, Northampton 6-4, Middlesex wins series 2-0 RCSJ-Gloucester 10-13, Montgomery 2-1, RCSJ-G wins series 2-0
SATURDAY’S SCHEDULE BASEBALL Lee Ware Tournament, Woodstown Woodstown vs. Camden Catholic, 10 a.m. Cherry Hill East vs. Washington Twp., 10 a.m. Consolation game, 1 p.m. Championship game, 1 p.m. SOFTBALL Fred Powell Invitational, Williamstown Woodstown vs. Williamstown, 9 a.m. Mainland vs. Cumberland, 9 a.m. Cherry Hill East vs. Absegami, 9 a.m. Moorestown vs. Cedar Creek, 9 a.m. Woodstown vs. Mainland or Cumberland, 11:30 a.m. COLLEGE BASEBALL Region XIX Tournament Salem CC at Brookdale (2), 11 a.m.
Riverview Sports News 