This week’s schedule

Here is the Salem County sports schedule for the week of May 27-31; some times TBA

MAY 27
BASEBALL
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT
Paulsboro at Audubon, 4 p.m.
Buena at Palmyra, 4 p.m.
Clayton at Maple Shade, 3:45 p.m.
Gateway at Pitman, 4 p.m.
Salem at Pennsville, 4 p.m.
Haddon Twp. at Woodstown, 3 p.m.
Glassboro at Riverside, 3 p.m.
Wildwood at Schalick, 4 p.m.
Regular season
Penns Grove at Pleasantville
SOFTBALL
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT
Wildwood at Pennsville, 2 p.m.
Palmyra at Schalick, 3 p.m.
Glassboro at Woodstown, 4 p.m.
Regular season
Overbrook at Penns Grove
TENNIS
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT
Gateway at Haddon Twp., 4 p.m.
Schalick at Woodstown, 3 p.m.
Palmyra at West Deptford, 4 p.m.
Audubon at Pennsville, 3 p.m.
GOLF
Tri-County Conference Showcase, Pitman GC

MAY 28
BASEBALL
Regular season
Penns Grove at Overbrook
SOFTBALL
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT
Paulsboro at Audubon, 4 p.m.
Riverside at Cape May Tech, 4 p.m.
LEAP at Haddon Twp., 4 p.m.
Buena at Maple Shade, 3:45 p.m.
Clayton at Pitman, 4 p.m.
BOYS LACROSSE
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT
Woodstown at Bernards, 4:30 p.m.
GIRLS LACROSSE
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT
Lower Cape May at Woodstown, 4:30 p.m.
TENNIS
Pennsville at Clayton
Penns Grove at Schalick

MAY 29
BASEBALL
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT
(Games at higher seed)
Buena at Audubon
Maple Shade at Pitman
Woodstown at Pennsville, noon
Glassboro at Schalick
TENNIS
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT
(Matches at higher seed)
Woodstown at Haddon Twp.
West Deptford at Pennsville

MAY 30
SOFTBALL
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT
(Games at higher seed)
Salem-Audubon winner vs. Riverside-Cape May Tech winner
Schalick at Woodstown
LEAP-Haddon Twp. winner vs. Buena-Maple Shade winner
Clayton-Pitman winner vs. Pennsville
TRACK
NJSIAA Group I Championships

MAY 31
TRACK
NJSIAA Group I Championships

Sectional shakeout

All 4 Salem County teams in South Jersey Group I baseball field on same side of the bracket; 4 county teams make softball field; Audubon grabs both No. 1s over Schalick, Pennsville

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I BASEBALL PAIRINGS
First-round games, May 27
No. 16 Paulsboro (3-18) at No. 1 Audubon (17-7)
No. 9 Buena (13-11) at No. 8 Palmyra (11-9), 4 p.m.
No. 12 Clayton (8-12) at No. 5 Maple Shade (11-9), 3:45 p.m.
No. 13 Gateway (7-14) at No. 4 Pitman (15-8), 4 p.m.
No. 14 Salem (7-12) at No. 3 Pennsville (14-7)
No. 11 Haddon Twp. (8-16) at No. 6 Woodstown (14-10)
No. 10 Glassboro (10-11) at No. 7 Riverside (10-11), 3 p.m.
No. 15 Wildwood (10-12) at No. 2 Schalick (18-2), 4 p.m.

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I SOFTBALL PAIRINGS
First-round games, May 28
No. 16 Salem (2-14) at No. 1 Audubon (15-7)
No. 9 Riverside (13-5) at No. 8 Cape May Tech (14-7)
No. 12 Palmyra (7-11) at No. 5 Schalick (13-4)
No. 13 Glassboro (7-10) at No. 4 Woodstown (12-7), 2 p.m.
No. 14 LEAP (10-5) at No. 3 Haddon Twp. (14-8)
No. 11 Buena (5-18) at No. 6 Maple Shade (11-8)
No. 10 Clayton (8-11) at No. 7 Pitman (10-8)
No. 15 Wildwood (5-12) at No. 2 Pennsville (19-4)

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE – Beth Jackson had a feeling all along it was going to turn out this way.

Many of the players on Jackson’s Pennsville softball team came away from their big win over Delsea Wednesday night believing they could be the No. 1 seed in the South Jersey Group I tournament when the pairings were released the next day, but the coach didn’t share the feeling.

It wasn’t because she didn’t believe in her team, she just knows the way of the world.

When the pairings were presented shortly after lunch Thursday Jackson’s suspicions were realized. The Eagles were installed as the No. 2 seed in the bracket behind Audubon despite being the winningest team in the section and having almost half as many losses as the Green Wave and fewer than 14 of the other 15 teams in the field.

Additionally, the Eagles (18-4) are 9-4 against teams that currently own winning records while the top-seeded Green Wave (15-7) are 7-5 against teams with current winning records and 3-2 against those sitting at .500.

“I already had in my mind it was going to be that way because I’ve never seen it change from the power points,” Jackson said on her way to practice Thursday afternoon. “I’m sure (the players) are disappointed, I am a little too, but it is what it is.”

The seedings followed the power points table down the line, so in a sense the Eagles were a victim of the Tri-County Classic Division schedule they had to play and dominate. Audubon’s Colonial Conference Liberty Division has five tournament qualifiers (four in Group II), all among their field’s top 10 seeds and four among the top five. The brackets become official at noon Friday.

Woodstown (No. 4), Schalick (No. 5) and Salem (No. 16) also are in the softball field and all on the Audubon side of the bracket. If Woodstown and Schalick win their tournament openers Wednesday they would meet in the second round at Woodstown.

“Every bracket I have ever seen that’s based on the power points, that’s what it is and nothing changes from there,” Jackson said. “It stays on power points and that’s that.

“I think maybe there should be multiples, like a rubric kind of thing, to do the seedings, to look at other things. It would be nice to have multiple points looking at your seeding. Their argument may be you have three different categories to weight those power points, so that may be their response if somebody were to ask.”

Asked if the perceived snub will now serve as a source of motivation for her team, Jackson said she’d talk about to get a gauge on where her players stand. But she was quick to point out there’s a lot more tangible motivation surrounding the tournament.

“I think we’ll talk about it and what it means to them,” she said. “I also think being up at the top puts, I don’t want say a target on your back, but even at 2 where we are now everybody’s looking to knock everybody off. Frankly, at the end of the day everybody is 0-0 and if you lose you go home. That right there is motivation. You lose, you go home. There is no tomorrow.”

Four Salem County teams also made it into the South Jersey Group I baseball tournament and they’re all on the same side of the bracket.

Schalick, the winningest team in SJG1 and second in the section power points standings, pulled down the No. 2 seed behind Audubon. Pennsville is the 3 seed, Woodstown the 6 and Salem the 14. The first-round games are Tuesday.

“We are happy the first three rounds we will host if we play the way we are capable of playing,” Schalick coach Sean O’Brien said. “There are a lot of good teams in South Jersey Group I and we are excited to get started.”

“Works for us,” Pennsville coach Matt Karr said.

There is some familiarity in the first-round draws. Pennsville and Salem are TCC Classic Division rivals and are scheduled to play for the second time this season Friday with the Eagles clinching the outright division title in the balance.

Speaking of rematches, a potential second-round matchup could find Pennsville hosting Woodstown. They played earlier this year, with Pennsville winning 10-0. The Wolverines knocked Pennsville out of the playoffs last year in the quarterfinals.

“It’s not often you get a shot a redemption,” Karr said. “I know Woodstown isn’t the same team (as last year) but we basically are – only losing one senior from last year. I’m sure my guys would love to be able to run it back against Woodstown in Round 2 at our place.”

Baseball projections

Here are the projected opening-round matchups for the South Jersey Group I baseball playoffs based on Wednesday’s cutoff power points standings.

PROJECTED PAIRINGS
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I BASEBALL
(Based on May 21 power points)
No. 16 Paulsboro (3-18, 9.036) at No. 1 Audubon (17-7, 25.253)
No. 9 Buena (13-11, 15.737) at No. 8 Palmyra (11-9, 16.457)
No. 12 Clayton (8-12, 13.363) at No. 5 Maple Shade (11-9, 18.072)
No. 13 Gateway (7-14, 12.239) at No. 4 Pitman (15-8, 19.256)
No. 14 Salem (7-12, 11.884) at No. 3 Pennsville (14-7, 21.804)
No. 11 Haddon Twp. (8-16, 13.562) at No. 6 Woodstown (14-10, 17.964)
No. 10 Glassboro (10-11, 14.918) at No. 7 Riverside (10-11, 17.797)
No. 15 Wildwood (10-12, 10.929) at No. 2 Schalick (18-2, 24.223)

Monday roundup

Here are scores and highlights from Monday’s Salem County sports schedule; boys tennis tournament pairings announced

SOFTBALL
Clayton 21, Penns Grove 1
Pennsville 17, Salem 2
Woodstown 8, Pitman 2

PENNSVILLE 17, SALEM 2: Kylie Harris had two hits and four RBIs, and Graillyn Weber and Sawyer Simmons both drove in three runs. The Eagles (18-3) jumped out front with 10 runs in the first inning. Julliana Love and Isla Bohn had two hits apiece for Salem.

The Eagles (18-3) have won seven in a row, but remain 0.963 points behind Audubon in the race to No. 1 seed in the South Jersey Group I power points standings. The cutoff for playoff consideration is Wednesday.

TENNIS

Undefeated Pennsville (18-0) pulled down a No. 2 seed and has drawn a first-round bye to the South Jersey Group I tennis tournament along with No. 1 Haddon Twp. and No. 3 West Deptford.

No. 4 Woodstown opens with Penns Grove Tuesday, and No. 5 Schalick opens with Lower Cape May Wednesday. If they both win they meet in Round 2.

PENNSVILLE 5, WILDWOOD 0
Gabe Schneider (P) def. Giorgio Palesano, 6-0, 6-0
Maddox Efelis (P) def. Simon Palacias, 6-0, 6-0
Brody Wiggins (P) def. Cristopher Hernandez, 6-1, 6-0
Sawyer Humphrey-Lucas Cooksey (P) def. Chris Olivera-Alexis Mejia, 6-0, 6-0
Ian Peacock-Carter Willis (P) def. Daniel Salomao-Angel DeJesus, 6-0, 6-0
Records: Pennsville 18-0, Wildwood 3-12

SCHALICK 5, PITMAN 0
George Gould (S) def. Chase Pogozelski, 6-0, 6-0
Rocky Monticolo (S) def. Nolan Russell, 6-2, 6-0
Conor O’Toole (S) def. Jaron Scull, 6-2, 6-2
Kaden Barnes-Cayden Brzozowski (S) def. Ben Williams-Aiden Evans, 6-0, 6-0
David Santana-Anthony McGrath (S) def. Spencer Bianchini-Liam Etter, 6-2, 6-2
Records: Schalick 13-5, Pitman 5-14

CUMBERLAND 3, WOODSTOWN 2
Drew Stengel (WO) def. Luke Fischer, 6-1, 6-1
John Farrell (WO) def. Joseph Nolan, 6-3, 6-1
Carter Fischer (C) def. Jake Lewis, 6-0, 6-1
Asher Kennedy-Chase Sheppard (C) def. Luke Shaw-Mason Shimp, 6-4, 3-6, 10-6
Mason Staffieri-Justin Nolan (C) def. Ben Stengel-Joseph Kurpis, 6-2, 6-3
Records: Cumberland 15-1, Woodstown 13-4

GIRLS LACROSSE
WOODSTOWN 19, TRITON 1: Ten players scored goals for the Wolverines. Delaney Walker scored four (giving her 149 for her career); Jaime Deal scored three; Sienna Land, Emma Morgan, Blair Baldi and Arianna Hyman all had two; and Isabella Lindenmuth, Angelina Lindenmuth, Gina Murray and Lucy Mannella each scored one.

VOLLEYBALL
HIGHLAND 2, SALEM TECH 0: The Tartans won 25-18, 25-16 in the first round of the Tri-County Tournament. Highland then fell to Kingsway 2-0 (25-10, 25-12) in the quarterfinals.

Confidence booster

Pennsville hands Schalick just its second loss of the season in potential playoff preview; Woodstown walked off in 11th

MONDAY BASEBALL
Clayton 12, Penns Grove 3
Glassboro 11, Salem 1
Pennsville 8, Schalick 2
Pitman 6, Woodstown 5 (11 inns.)

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE – The folks at the very top on the inside of the Pennsville baseball team talked about the Eagles’ 8-2 win over Schalick Monday just like it was another game when everyone on their side of the ballpark knew it was so much more than that.

The Eagles (13-7) celebrated Senior Day with a win over one of the best teams in South Jersey Group I, maybe even the state, that could serve as a message for a bigger matchup down the road.

They overcame a leadoff home run by the best player in the county and bunched their eight runs into three late innings to hand the Cougars (17-2) only their second loss of the season and one that didn’t come against a rushed schedule.

The way the South Jersey Group I power points are tracking, the teams are likely to finish 2 and 3, setting up a potential sectional semifinal rematch.

“It was a good baseball game, it was a good springboard for us heading to the playoffs,” Eagles coach Matt Karr said. “No message sent today other than Pennsville played a good baseball game at 4 o’clock on Monday May 19 and if we are lucky enough to run into each other again this game and that microcosm will mean absolutely nothing. At the end of the day, when we get to May 27 everybody’s 0-0 and it’s a brand new season.”

The Eagles are now 4-0 against county rivals this year and have won 18 straight regular-season games against in-county competition (the only setback in the run was last year’s playoff loss to Woodstown). This year’s senior group, which includes the five-man heart of the batting order, is now 67-31 in their careers and has taken four in a row from the Cougars since losing the first game of a home-and-home series in 2022.

The loss snapped Schalick’s seven-game winning streak. The Cougars’ other loss came to Haddonfield in the opening round of the Diamond Classic in a game that started less than 12 hours after their five most veteran players got back home from their senior class trip and ended 30 minutes before the prom. Coach Sean O’Brien chalked up latest loss to a bad day.

“You play 18 games you’re bound to have a bad against a good team,” he said. “A bad game against a mediocre team you can recover from, against a good team (it’s tough). It’s one of those games you’ve got to leave behind. It happens.”

The game couldn’t have started better for the Cougars. Leadoff hitter Luke Pokrovsky, the player many hoped would pitch, opened the game with his 21st career homer. It was his fifth homer in five games and the third straight game he’s gone yard.

The next two hitters also singled, but after that they didn’t get another hit off Pennsville starter Cohen Petrutz until Eli Cummings singled leading off the seventh.

“Cohen’s been battling through some stuff; today, it was awesome for him,” Karr said. “I don’t like to throw words around loosely so I won’t use the word domination. Cohen Petrutz was in absolute control of that game from the second batter on.

“Today was a reminder that he can beat anybody on any given day, which just makes us even more dangerous going to the playoffs to have two top-tier left-handed pitchers. I know they didn’t throw Pokrovsky, but they batted their lineup they would bat in a playoff game and Cohen held them in check.”

“I think I did all right,” Petrutz said. “I was feeling good. I’ve been having arm pain the past couple outings but today I felt really great. Ready to go the whole time, had trust in my infield, didn’t have to strike everybody out today. I just felt really good.”

For the second straight game the play of the game was delivered by Jake Layfield. The sophomore shortstop snared Ricky Watt’s screaming liner with two runners in scoring position for the final out of the fourth to keep it a 1-0 game.

“He doesn’t do anything flashy, but he just seems to always make the play,” Karr said. “He doesn’t look like your typical shortstop you see on some of these elite teams but when push comes to shove Jake will be there to make the play.”

The Eagles took the lead in the bottom of the inning. Stevie Fatcher hit a two-out, two-strike, two-run double to center to put them ahead 2-1 and he rode home on Mason O’Brien’s triple to right.

“He got me chasing high for the first two and I was just thinking got to get it in play,” Fatcher said. “Then he lifted one right down the middle and I took it and hit it.

“This is one we marked on the calendar that we wanted. Coming into school today all I could think about was this game, wanting to win. I kind of wanted to show them a little bit. We did. We came in there and produced. It’s a lot of fun when you win games like that against those teams you’re going to see.”

The Eagles added two more in the fifth on Chase Burchfield’s RBI double and Petrutz’ run-scoring single to get starter Lucas D’Agostino out of the game, then tacked on three more in the sixth on four walks and Jeff Wagner’s two-run single.

The Cougars threatened in the seventh. Petrutz was going to get all 110 pitches he was promised and started the inning but gave up a single and two walks and came out. Gavin Spears put out the fire with a sacrifice fly by Evan Sepers and two strikeouts.

PITMAN 6, WOODSTOWN 5: Drew Keefe’s two-out single to right field on a payoff pitch – his fourth hit of the game – walked it off for the Panthers in the 11^th inning.

The Wolverines took a 5-4 lead in the top of the ninth on Ty Coblentz’ two-out double but Pitman extended the game on Aidan Stranahan’s two-out RBI single in the home half. Stranahan also homered in the game.

Caiden Spinelli had three hits for the Wolverines, while Coblentz and Chase Harding each had two. Rocco String had an RBI single in the fifth and walked five times – four intentionally.

CLAYTON 12, PENNS GROVE 3: Christian Thibault went 3-for-3 with three RBIs and David Chapes had three hits to lead the Clippers. Elijah Crespo (2×2, walk, HBP) and Alex Paz (3×3, walk) both had perfect days at the plate for Penns Grove.

GLASSBORO 11, SALEM 1: Aidan Evengelisti and Colin Riley both had two hits, Gavin Dillard and Ryan Newell both drove in two runs and two Glassboro pitchers combined to hold the Rams to four hits. Bryce Harris drove in Salem’s run in the sixth inning.

This week’s schedule

Here is this week’s Salem County sports schedule for the week of May 19-24; events start at 4 p.m. unless noted

MAY 19
BASEBALL
Glassboro at Salem
Penns Grove at Clayton
Schalick at Pennsville
Woodstown at Pitman
SOFTBALL
Clayton at Penns Grove
Pitman at Woodstown
Salem at Pennsville
GOLF
Salem/Cumberland County Tournament, Centerton CC, 8 a.m.
Schalick girls vs. Delsea, Centerton CC, 3:30 p.m.
TENNIS
Pennsville at Wildwood, 3:45 p.m.
Pitman at Schalick
Woodstown at Cumberland, 3:45 p.m.
LACROSSE
Williamstown at Woodstown, 6:15 p.m.
GIRLS LACROSSE
Triton at Woodstown
VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at LEAP

MAY 20
BASEBALL
Pennsville vs. Tome School (Md.), Frawley Stadium, 7 p.m.
SOFTBALL
Clayton at Salem
Pennsville at Schalick
Woodstown at Wildwood
GOLF
Schalick vs. Pitman, Pitman GC, 3:30 p.m.
Schalick girls vs. Washington Twp., The Birches, 3:30 p.m.
TENNIS
Pennsville at Penns Grove, 3:30 p.m.
Woodstown at Delsea, 3:45 p.m.

MAY 21
BASEBALL
Penns Grove at Overbrook
Pennsville at Salem
SOFTBALL
Delsea at Pennsville
Palmyra at Schalick
GOLF
Schalick girls vs. Kingsway, River Winds, 3:30 p.m.
TENNIS
South Jersey Group I Tournament
GIRLS LACROSSE
Millville at Woodstown
VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Clearview

MAY 22
BASEBALL
Collingswood at Schalick
Penns Grove at Pleasantville
Pennsville at Triton
Woodstown at Cedar Creek
SOFTBALL
Clearview at Pennsville
Schalick at OLMA
Woodstown at Ocean City
TENNIS
Pennsville at Cumberland, 3:45 p.m.
Schalick at Wildwood, 4:15 p.m.
LACROSSE
West Deptford at Woodstown
VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Triton

MAY 23
BASEBALL
Salem at Camden Academy Charter
GIRLS LACROSSE
Woodstown at Williamstown, 3 p.m.

Playoff projections

Here are the South Jersey Group I playoff projection for baseball, softball, boys tennis; the baseball and softball power points are open through Wednesday

Saturday was the originally scheduled cutoff date for eligible power points towards playoff consideration, but the date was moved to Wednesday due to all the inclement weather this season. Here is what the South Jersey Group I baseball and softball playoffs would have looked like if the Saturday date stood.

BASEBALL
Paulsboro at Audubon
Palmyra at Buena
Haddon Twp. at Woodstown
Gateway at Pitman
Salem at Pennsville
Clayton at Riverside
Glassboro at Maple Shade
Wildwood at Schalick

SOFTBALL
Burlington City at Audubon
Cape May Tech at Riverside
Glassboro at Schalick
Palmyra at Woodstown
LEAP at Haddon Twp.
Buena at Maple Shade
Clayton at Pitman
Paulsboro at Pennsville

The boys tennis cutoff date was Saturday, pairings are expected to be announced Monday. Here are the projected pairings; some teams may opt out of the competition (Glassboro and Pitman have), which would open up byes in the official bracket

TENNIS (May 21 first round)
Glassboro at Haddon Twp.
Gateway at Clayton
Wildwood at Schalick
West Deptford at Woodstown
Buena at West Deptford
Pitman at Palmyra
Audubon at Point Pleasant Beach
Penns Grove at Pennsville

SJ sectional track

Despite having his routine thrown out of whack, Pennsville’s Ayars wins boys javelin; among 12 Salem County sectional champions, 64 state qualifiers

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSAUKEN – Imagine spending all day mentally preparing for the only event you’re competing in at the biggest meet of the year so far, getting to the site and fine-tuning your game face only to have the event pulled out from under you.

And then having to go through it all again the next morning. And still having it within yourself to produce a gold-medal result.

That’s what Pennsville’s Connor Ayars faced this weekend as he competed in – and won – the boys javelin in the South Jersey Group I track and field sectionals at Pennsauken High School.

Ayars had been gearing up all day Friday for his event, but wet weather and field conditions, combined with the time it took to complete an 88-man field in the Group 4 javelin prompted officials to call it a night shortly before the Pennsville senior’s flight was scheduled to throw.

He had to come back Saturday morning and although the throw wasn’t quite up to his usual standards, he still won the event with a throw of 161 feet, 1 inch – some 12 feet shorter of his best throw ever, but still six feet better than his closest competitor.

“I was a little upset because I was ready to throw, there was still some daylight left, but …,” he said. “It definitely was disappointing because I get out of school early, I go up there, I’m waiting five plus hours to throw and I don’t get to throw after I’ve been stretching, prepping myself, doing my technique work with Cole (Campbell) and then five minutes before I’m about to throw they say they’re going to postpone it.

“I’m pretty bummed out because I’ve been working all week to be ready to throw Friday and not expecting to throw today, and it ended up being a disappointing throw today as well. It was a total kill.”

On Friday Ayars was “as loose as I’ve ever been” and was expecting to post something in the high 170s at or better than the school record. His best-ever throw is 173-2, this year at the Woodbury Relays.

His winning throw Saturday came on his fifth attempt. He followed it with a 159-11, which still was better than the runner-up’s best.

“I wouldn’t say it was really off, it just wasn’t what I was expecting to throw,” he said. “It is a disappointing throw for me, but I got first place so I can’t put myself down for that.”

Now he has two weeks to bring it back. After a disappointing showing in the state meet last year Ayars plans to change what he does to get ready.

“I’ve just got to be more locked in this season,” he said. “It’s my last outing if I don’t do well. I’m going to have to push myself to take these two weeks and really focus on what I need to get better at.”

Ayars won one of eight boys and four girls sectional champions from Salem County and 64 total qualifiers to the state championship meet from the county.

Among the boys champions crowned Saturday were Ayars, Schalick’s Ethan McLean (discus) and David Stewart (triple jump); Salem’s Anthony Parker (long jump); and Woodstown’s 4×400 and 4×800 relay teams.

Josh Crawford, looking every bit in like the Atlanta Braves’ Flash who gives random fans a big head start and then runs them down in his between innings promo on the warning track, took the baton in sixth place and made up some 60 meters on the final leg to edge Camden in the 4×400 relay. He ran a 47.095 final leg. He won the 800 on Friday.

“With every race I run, whether it is a relay or an open it is never about me. It’s about me doing my part for the team and my coach,” Crawford said. “They did their part. it was my turn to do mine. I didn’t even think. I was calm and knew what I had to do.

“I loved the celebration with my team at the end. Opposing runners came up to me. I do the same to them. We have respect for each other. Most importantly, I know that every stride I take is partly hard work and discipline, but is mostly the strength from God and some good genes.”

Among the girls champions crowned Saturday were Schalick’s Jordan Hadfield (1600); Woodstown’s Kami Casiano (high jump); and Pennsville’s Megan Morris (pole vault). Hadfield’s win the 1600 gave her a double after winning the 3200 the day before.

Woodstown and Schalick finished 2-3 behind champion Glassboro in the boys team standings. Schalick was third in the girls teams standings, just two points behind runnerup Haddon Twp. Woodstown was sixth.

Stewart and Hadfield were second in their respective Group I MVP standings. Hadfield was second in girls Group I track scoring and Crawford was second in boys Group I track scoring.

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I
TRACK SECTIONALS

BOYS
TEAM SCORES: Glassboro 135, Woodstown 66.5, Schalick 57, Camden 44, Haddon Twp. 33, Audubon 33, Clayton 32, Palmyra 28, Woodbury 23, Gateway 22, Penns Grove 19, Pennsville 14, Maple Shade 12, Buena 11, Burlington City 10, Salem 10, Paulsboro 8.5
EVENTS (winners and Salem County state qualifiers)
100: 1. Xavier Sabb, Glassboro 10.69; 6. Colin McGlinn, Pennsville 11.07
200: 1. Alexander Osayemi, Clayton 21.67; 4. David Stewart, Schalick 22.18; 6. Zaeshawn Mills, Schalick 22.52
400: 1. Alexander Osayemi, Clayton 46.91; 2. Josh Crawford, Woodstown 49.01
800: 1. Josh Crawford, Woodstown 1:53.59; 2. Cole Lucas, Woodstown 1:54.87; 5. Karson Chew, Woodstown 1:59.92
1600: Ty Blackman, Glassboro 4:27.73; 3. Cole Lucas, Woodstown 4:34.08
3200: 1. Ty Blackman, Glassboro 9:47.48; 3. Jacob Marino, Woodstown 10:00.32
4×100 Relay: 1. Schalick (Reggie Allen, Michael Eberl, Zaeshawn Mills, David Stewart) 42.34 (Group I sectional record)
4×400 Relay: 1. Woodstown (Karson Chew, Kyle Reitz, Anthony Costello, Josh Crawford) 3:26.84; 5. Penns Grove (Kylee Goodson, Sebastian Hernandez, Bryan Garlic, Knowledge Young) 3:28.42
4×800 Relay: 1. Woodstown (Karson Chew, David Farrell, Pacey Hutton, Jacob Marino) 8:20.34; 6. Penns Grove (Messiah Allah, Connor Duggan, Bryan Garlic, Robert Sanchez-Gomez) 8:43.15
100 Hurdles: 1. Andres Santiago, Haddon Twp. 14.92
400 Hurdles: 1. Alexander Osayemi, Clayton 53.14; 2. David Stewart, Schalick 54.22; 5. Bryan Garlic, Penns Grove 56.09
Discus: 1. Ethan McLean, Schalick 139-6; 4. Aidan Taulane, Woodstown 131-4; 5. Jackson McFarland, Pennsville 130-8
High Jump: 1. Jaleel Latimore, Palmyra 6-4; T-6. Elijah Caesar, Woodstown 5-10
Javelin: 1. Connor Ayars, Pennsville 161-1; 3. Nyzier Wynder, Schalick 147-11; 5. Lorenzo Dignee, Woodstown 140-5; 6. Cole Campbell, Pennsville 140-3
Long Jump: 1. Anthony Parker, Salem 23-2; 5. Will Roy, Penns Grove 20-5
Pole Vault: 1. Jacob George, Haddon Twp. 14-0; 4. Salvatore Longo, Schalick 12-0
Shot Put: 1. Sam Adams, Palmyra 46-3; 2. Raymond Brown, Penns Grove, 46-1; 4, Sheldon Goldsborogh, Schalick 45-7.5
Triple Jump: 1. David Stewart, Schalick 45-4.25; 4. Bryan Garlic, Penns Grove 42-9; 6. Zaeshawn Mills, Schalick 41-9.5

GIRLS
TEAM SCORES: Clayton 86, Haddon Twp. 74, Schalick 72, Audubon 65.5, Woodbury 55, Woodstown 45, Maple Shade 42, Glassboro 28, Riverside 18, Burlington City 18, Pennsville 12, Buena 10, Salem 9, Camden 8, Wildwood 6, Paulsboro 4, Pitman 4, Gateway 1.5.
EVENTS (winners and Salem County state qualifiers)
100: 1, Miyana Johnson, Clayton 12.40; 6. Raniyah Parsons-Smith, Salem 12.99
200: 1. Leila Ortiz, Clayton 25.24; 6. Gia Martellacci, Schalick 26.44
400: 1. Leila Ortiz, Clayton 56.39; 5. Gia Marellacci, Schalick 1:00.04
800: 1. Riley Fayer, Audubon 2:17.09; 2. Jordan Hadfield, Schalick 2:18.67; 4. Lilian Norman, Woodstown 2:22.57
1600: 1. Jordan Hadfield, Schalick 5:04.83; 5. Lilian Norman, Woodstown 5:30.23
3200: 1. Jordan Hadfield, Schalick 11:16.14; 2. Anabel Schaal, Woodstown 12:24.42; 3. Abby Marino, Woodstown 12:27.02; 5. Samantha Sterner, Woodstown 12:34.84
4×100 Relay: 1. Woodbury 49.70; 2. Schalick (Jaelynn Jarmon, Phoebe Alward, Caileigh Schalick, Gia Martellacci) 50.87; 6. Salem (Angelina Fothergill, MaKayla Smith, Raniyah Parsons-Smith, Kashira Patterson) 52.63
4×400 Relay: 1. Haddon Twp. 4:06.29; 5. Schalick (Brooke Valentine, Sophia Harris, Jordan Hadfield, Gia Martellacci) 4:14.06; 6. Pennsville (Taylor Bass, Molly Gratz, Ariana Charles, Megan Morris) 4:16.64
4×800 Relay: 1. Audubon 9:55.24; 2. Woodstown (Abby Marino, Samantha Sterner, Sarah Seiden, Lilian Norman) 10:04.31; Schalick (Caylen Taylor, Sarah Torpey, Helen Lilli, Allyson Green) 10:48.66
100 Hurdles: 1. Ciani Floyd, Maple Shade 15.93
400 Hurdles: 1. Emily Madden, Buena 1:07.74; 4. Audrey Boggs, Salem 1:09.88; 6. Sarah Seiden, Woodstown 1:10.77
Discus: 1. Sunny Moore, Glassboro 137-1; 6. Sebrina Bradford, Schalick 106-10
High Jump: 1. Kami Casiano, Woodstown 5-2; 4. Navaeh Robinson, Schalick 4-10
Javelin: 1. Rainelle Blocker, Clayton 114-7, 3. Allyson Green, Schalick 105-1, 5. Navaeh Robinson 97-7
Long Jump: 1. Denirah Jones, Woodbury 17-4.5; 3. Phoebe Alward, Schalick 16-6; 4. Emma Perry, Woodstown 16-0
Pole Vault: 1. Megan Morris, Pennsville 10-6; 5. Gabriella Simonini, Schalick 8-0
Shot Put: 1. Antonia Federici, Woodbury 38-4; 5. Ava Rodgers, Salem 32-9; 6. Tatiyonna Crawford, Pennsville 32-8.75
Triple Jump: 1. Nyima Burley, Burlington City 35-9; 4. Jaelynn Jarmon, Schalick 34-7.25; 6. MaKayla Smith, Salem 33-5.

Beating the weather and the clock

Woodstown’s Crawford sets sectional record in winning SJ Group I boys 800, Schalick’s Hadfield wins 3200

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSAUKEN – It really didn’t seem like a good day to run, but Woodstown junior Josh Crawford fought through the challenges and ran one of the best times in county history in his specialty Friday while setting a South Jersey Group I sectional record.

Crawford won the South Jersey Group I boys 800 in a personal best 1:53.59 that broke a 28-year-old hand-timed meet record set by Paulsboro’s Fred Sharpe. It was the second-fastest 800 in Salem County history, behind only the 1:52.97 Penns Grove’s Jaymes Dennison ran in 2013

Truth be told, Crawford wasn’t even sure they would have a meet as he sat in the middle of the school day. The skies were dark and the students were sheltering in place from the storm that was raging outside.

The skies eventually cleared and Crawford made his way to Pennsauken High. Once he got there he found the track dry, but the field turf was wet and spongy making it difficult to warm up.

“As soon as I got to the meet I was a little out of it mindset wise, but as soon as I saw the track I knew it was time to get my game face on it,” Crawford said. “That was me and my friends putting our best time down even though the circumstances were kind of iffy.”

He credited the pace of the race and the push from the field for helping raise the standard.

Woodstown teammates Cole Lucas and Karson Chew finished second and fifth, respectively, in the race. Lucas ran a 1:54.87 – the third fastest time in meet and Salem County history – and Chew ran a 1:59.92.

“It was mostly just me trusting my coach,” Crawford said. “He told me how I should run it along with my teammates. He told us to go 54 first lap and then we heard him throughout the entire race cheering for us and that really encouraged me.

“Plus having my teammates on my back the entire race. I know what they’re like and I know they have the ability to push me and that’s exactly what they did today. They pushed me. I wouldn’t have been able to reach that time if they weren’t on top of me the entire race.”

Crawford wasn’t the only Salem County athlete to win an event on the first day of sectionals. Schalick’s Jordan Hadfield won the girls 3200 in 11:16.14. She finished second in the girls 800.

All told, the county advanced 25 athletes and relays (11 boys, 14 girls) to the state meet. The sectionals continue Saturday.

With seven of the 18 events scored in each gender, Schalick leads the girls team race with 31 points, but is only three points ahead of Clayton. Woodstown and Schalick are second and third in the boys race behind Glassboro.

Here are Friday’s finals from the South Jersey Group I track sectionals; includes event winners and Salem County scorers/state qualifiers

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I
TRACK SECTIONALS

BOYS
TEAM SCORES (7 events scored): Glassboro 55, Woodstown 26.5, Schalick 22, Palmyra 20, Camden 17, Clayton 12, Gateway 10, Burlington City 10, Penns Grove 10, Audubon 9, Woodbury 8, Maple Shade 6, Paulsboro 4.5, Haddon Twp. 4, Buena 2, Pennsville 1

100: 1. Xavier Sabb, Glassboro 10.69; 6. Colin McGlinn, Pennsville 11.07
400 Hurdles: 1. Alexander Osayemi, Clayton 53.14; 2. David Stewart, Schalick 54.22; 5. Bryan Garlic, Penns Grove 56.09
800: 1. Josh Crawford, Woodstown 1:53.59; 2. Cole Lucas, Woodstown 1:54.87; 5. Karson Chew, Woodstown 1:59.92
3200: 1. Ty Blackman, Glassboro 9:47.48; 3. Jacob Marino, Woodstown 10:00.32
4×100 Relay: 1. Schalick 42.34
High Jump: 1. Jaleel Latimore, Palmyra 6-4; T-6. Elijah Caesar, Woodstown 5-10
Shot Put: 1. Sam Adams, Palmyra 46-3; 2. Raymond Brown, Penns Grove, 46-1; 4, Sheldon Goldsborogh, Schalick 45-7.5

GIRLS
TEAM SCORES (7 events scored): Schalick 31, Clayton 28, Woodbury 22, Audubon 22, Haddon Twp. 21, Woodstown 21, Glassboro 19, Maple Shade 14, Riverside 10, Burlington City 10, Buena 10, Salem 7, Camden 2

100: 1, Miyana Johnson, Clayton 12.40; 6. Raniyah Parsons-Smith, Salem 12.99
400 Hurdles: 1. Emily Madden, Buena 1:07.74; 4. Audrey Boggs, Salem 1:09.88; 6. Sarah Seiden, Woodstown 1:10.77
800: 1. Riley Fayer, Audubon 2:17.09; 2. Jordan Hadfield, Schalick 2:18.67; 4. Lilian Norman, Woodstown 2:22.57
3200: 1. Jordan Hadfield, Schalick 11:16.14; 2. Anabel Schaal, Woodstown 12:24.42; 3. Abby Marino, Woodstown 12:27.02; 5. Samantha Sterner, Woodstown 12:34.84
4×100 Relay: 1. Woodbury 49.70; 2. Schalick 50.87; 6. Salem 52.63
Discus: 1. Sunny Moore, Glassboro 137-1; 6. Sebrina Bradford, Schalick 106-10
Triple Jump: 1. Nyima Burley, Burlington City 35-9; 4. Jaelynn Jarmon, Schalick 34-7.25; 6. MaKayla Smith, Salem 33-5.

Hall of Fame level

5 Schalick pitchers combine on no-hitter, get all outs by strikeout, walk-off Bridgeton 13-3 in five innings

MONDAY BASEBALL
Schalick 13, Bridgeton 3
Woodstown 9, Clayton 1
Pennsville 12, Glassboro 7
Wildwood 11, Penns Grove 1
MONDAY SOFTBALL
Pennsville 19, Glassboro 8
Woodstown 11, Clayton 1
Schalick 19, Salem 0
Wildwood 21, Penns Grove 0

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. – The Schalick baseball team went to the home of baseball, got the tour and (presumably) the T-shirt, and then put on a Hall of Fame performance Monday morning, dispatching Bridgeton 13-3 in five innings.

Five Schalick pitchers combined to throw a no-hitter, retired 12 of the first 13 batters they faced and got all 15 outs by strikeout. The Bulldogs did not put a ball in play against them, getting all their baserunners via walk.

Aptly-named Cooper Willoughby’s long bases-loaded single to left with one out in the fifth inning walked it off after the Bulldogs intentionally walked Luke Pokrovsky to load the bases, denying Schalick’s all-time home run and RBI king the opportunity to walk it off.

“I think it’s pretty special what we did today,” senior pitcher Lucas D’Agostino said. “No matter what the circumstances are, 15 strikeouts in 15 outs to go along with a no-hitter is something special and I believe it reflects how dominant our pitching staff has been all year. Especially in Cooperstown, that definitely meant a lot to me personally, as well as the team as a whole.”

Cougars coach Sean O’Brien gave his two senior aces the first two innings on historic Doubleday Field and they put on a Hall of Fame performance.

Starter Pokrovsky and D’Agostino both struck out the side in their inning. On his final pitch, D’Agostino’s windup looked like something you might’ve seen from one of the pitcher inductees inside the Hall. He wrapped his arms around his back, came around and tucked and then fired his final strike.

“I figured I’d pay some homage to some of the great pitchers that are immortalized and have some fun with an old-timer windup,” D’Agostino said. “I didn’t have anyone in mind. In my head I thought to myself ‘something in the ballpark of Walter Johnson’ and I guess that pitch is what ended up coming out.”

Cole Hartley got the next two innings and he struck out his six batters. He fanned the side in the third on 10 pitches.

Senior Matthew LaMazza started the fifth inning but had trouble locating the plate and walked the four batters he faced. He was replaced by senior Eli Cummings, who struck out his first two batters and eventually the side, but walked in a run and allowed another when a pitch got away at the plate.

The Cougars (15-1) answered with three in the bottom of the inning to walk it off. Their first three batters reached to load the bases. Travis Snodgrass’ ground out brought home the first run, Cummings’ RBI single made it 12-3 and Willoughby followed the walk to Pokrovsky with his game-winner.

Cummings sacrifice fly in the fourth got the game into run-rule territory. Pokrovsky had two hits and Ricky Watt went 3-for-3.

“The team’s experience will be one the players won’t forget,” O’Brien said. “Touring the museum and having the opportunity to play on Doubleday Field is something they will aways remember. Every player on the team got at least one at bat.”

“You really can’t have a bad time when you’re in Cooperstown,” D’Agostino said.

This story will be updated.

WOODSTOWN 9, CLAYTON 1: The Wolverines erupted for six runs in the first inning. Rocco String went 3-for-3, Caiden Spinelli had two hits and Lucas Fulmer and Nate Williams each had a pair of RBIs.

PENNSVILLE 12, GLASSBORO 7: The Eagles opened 9-0 lead in the fourth inning, then held off the Bulldogs’ comeback bid. Cohen Petrutz had two hits and four RBIs at the plate and set the Bulldogs down in order in the seventh with two strikeouts to close out the game. Logan Streitz and starting pitcher Luke Wood both had two hits, while Connor Starn, Jeff Wagner and Stevie Fatcher all had two RBIs.

WILDWOOD 11, PENNS GROVE 1: The Warriors erupted for seven runs in the second inning after Penns Grove grabbed a 1-0 lead in the first. Liam Irvin doubled home Elijah Crespo for the Red Devils’ run :

SOFTBALL
PENNSVILLE 19, GLASSBORO 8: Kylie Harris, Savannah Brewer-Palverento and Makenzie Widener had perfect days at the plate, combining to go 12-for-12 with 12 RBIs as the Eagles (17-3) pounded 20 hits. Harris went 5-for-5 to tie her career high, Brewer-Palverento went 3-for-3 with six RBIs and Widener went 4-for-4 with four RBIs

WOODSTOWN 11, CLAYTON 1: Aubrie Rennie and Talia Guardascione both went 3-for-4 for the Wolverines. Leah Clark scattered six hits and struck out eight in her six-inning complete game.

SCHALICK 19, SALEM 0: The Cougars took advantage of 23 walks.

WILDWOOD 21, PENNS GROVE 0: Emma Contreras homered, had six RBIs and spun a one-hitter with 10 strikeouts in the circle. She had a perfect game for 3 1/3 innings, until Jarlene Vichi-Torres broke up the gem with a fourth-inning single for Penns Grove’s only hit.

Photo: Schalick’s Luke Pokrovsky delivers the first pitch in the Cougars’ game with Bridgeton this morning at Doubleday Field in Cooperstown, N.Y. (Submitted photo)