Penns Grove long jumper Will Roy brings home Salem County’s only state title on first day of the NJSIAA Group I Track Championship, 4 others finish second to qualify for Meet of Champions
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
SOMERSET – Will Roy stood at the top of the runway facing his moment of truth. The way he would be remembered in this year’s Group 1 state championship meet was riding on what would happen in the next few seconds.
He had just gotten bumped from the lead in the boys long jump to Pennsville’s Danny Knight and if he wanted it back the Penns Grove junior would have to stick the landing on the final jump of the final event of the day. He needed to stand and deliver.
With a title on the line, Roy confidently bolted down the runway and hit a final jump of 22-feet, 10.75-inches to reclaim the gold medal.
“It was either a do or die,” he said. “It was either I get second place or I go on and be a state champion and take it back to my hometown.
“I was just trying to keep myself calm and not really get into my head about the jump. Everything was really good. The runway was good, the launch takeoff was good, the landing was good and I knew it was going to be a good jump all the way.”
It wasn’t the first time he needed to deliver in the clutch. During the sectional meet it came down to him needing a big final jump to qualify for the state meet and he nailed it with the same confidence he showed Friday. Penns Grove jumpers coach Damien Ware said Roy has “that (Michael) Jordan clutch gene.”
“One thing about Will is he’s a worker,” Ware said. “We put him through a lot of work, a lot of grind, in practice and he does it. Whatever we ask him to do he’s going to put his head down and do it. He’s been growing since his freshman year. He started out in the 20s, got to the 21 and today he almost skipped the 22s altogether.”
Roy moved to the top of the leaderboard on his second jump of the competition (21-11.25) and held it until Knight set the Pennsville school record (22-2.25) on his final jump.
“He knew what he had to do and went and did it,” Ware said. “He heard the jump, he knew he had to jump further than that to win and he did it. It was just a look. He said let’s go, bro, and he went and did it. It’s exciting for the kid because we see the work he’s put in and when you see it pay off there’s no better feeling.”
Knight had been stretching his PR in small increments each of the last three weeks and it all came together with a big burst here.
“It was the best jump I could ever think of,” Knight said. “I could’ve gotten my leg up higher, but I’m still grateful for what I got. I was not expecting that at all. Me and (Pennsville track coach Mike) Healy were talking about the school record holder (21-1) and it was like 1980-something. I was like ‘what.’ He said you got it next year. I said I got it today. It happened.”
Roy and Knight were among five Salem County athletes to qualify for the Meet of Champions. The others were all event runner-ups –Schalick’s Navaeh Robinson (girls javelin) and Ethan McLean (boys shot put) and Woodstown’s Josh Crawford (boys 800). Three others — Salem’s Ramiyah Jones (girls triple jump) and Woodstown’s Aidan Taulane (boys discus) and Kami Casiano (girls high jump) – placed third and will be looking for a wildcard spot.
Glassboro leads both team leaderboards. Woodstown (fifth) and Penns Grove (T-8) are both in the top ten in the boys race. Schalick is currently tied for ninth in the girls standings.
NJSIAA GROUP I TRACK CHAMPIONSHIPS Friday’s Results BOYS TEAM SCORES: Glassboro 26, Camden 23, New Providence 22, Manville 16, WOODSTOWN 14, Newark Tech-Essex 12, New Milford 12, PENNS GROVE 10, Bound Brook 10, Kinnelon 10, Wallington 10, Wallkill Valley 10, SCHALICK 9, Buena 8, PENNSVILLE 8, Haddon Twp. 6, Woodbury 6, Shore 6, Whippany Park 6, Dayton 6, Indian Hills 4, Burlington City 4, Pequannock 4, Thrive Charter 3, SALEM 1, Gateway 1, Saddle Brook 1. INDIVIDUAL RESULTS (Winners, Salem County point scorers (top 6)) (Top 2 finishers guaranteed spots in Meet of Champions) 4×100: 1. Camden 42.16 800: 1. Zacchaeus Harrigan, Glassboro 1:55.00; 2. Josh Crawford, Woodstown 1:55.64 100: 1. Jawan Brownlee, Camden 10.76 400 Hurdles: 1. Connor Killian, New Providence 55.33; 6. Grady Buzby, Salem 57.48 3200: 1. Jayran Rodriguez, Manville 9:17.53 Discus: 1. Patrick Szabo, Wallington 165-5; 2. Ethan McLean, Schalick 144-8; 3. Aidan Taulane, Woodstown 140-6 Long Jump: 1. Will Roy, Penns Grove 22-10.75; 2. Danny Knight, Pennsville 22-2.25 Pole Vault: 1. Jake Markey, Bound Brook 13-6; 6. Sal Longo, Schalick 12-0
GIRLS TEAM SCORES: Glassboro 26, Audubon 21, Whippany Park 20, Roselle Park 20, Shore 18, Metuchen 18, Hasbrouck Heights 12, Verona 11, SCHALICK 9, Delaware Valley 9, Hawthorne 9, Woodbury 8, Burlington City 8, David Brearley 8, Manville 8, Academy Charter 9, Midland Park 8, SALEM 6, Maple Shade 6, Buena 6, Kinnelon 6, WOODSTOWN 5, Butler 5, Clayton 4, University 4, Cresskill 4, Mountain Lakes 3, Florence 2, New Providence 2, Waldwick 2, Haddon Twp. 1, Highland Park 1, Dayton 1. INDIVIDUAL RESULTS (Winners, Salem County point scorers (top 6)) (Top 2 finishers guaranteed spots in Meet of Champions) 4×100: 1. Glassboro 48.49 800: 1. Gwendolyn Neale, Verona 2:12.06 100: 1. Skylar Boyd, Rosselle Park 12.63 400 Hurdles: 1. Gina Minichiello, Hasbrouck Heights 1:02.50 3200: 1. Alexandra Kline, Shore 10:40.04 Shot Put: 1. Sunny Moore, Glassboro 42-2 Javelin: 1. Ava Forstenhausler, Roselle Park 121-3; 2. Naveah Robinson, Schalick 120-10 Triple Jump: 1. Riley Wright-Ohillips, Whippany Park 39-1; 3. Ramiyah Jones, Salem 35-11; 6. Jaelynn Jarmon, Schalick 35-0.5 High Jump: 1. Riley Wright-Phillips, Whippany Park, 5-2; 3. Kami Casiano, Woodstown 5-2
Here is the Salem County sports calendar for the week of May 25-May 30
TUESDAY, MAY 26 SOFTBALL South Jersey Group I Tournament Paulsboro at Audubon Riverside at Maple Shade Wildwood at Pennsville Haddon Twp. at Pitman Glassboro at Palmyra Cape May Tech at Gateway Schalick at Woodstown, 3 p.m. Burlington Twp. at Buena GOLF TCC Showcase, Pitman GC GIRLS LACROSSE Woodstown at Nottingham, 5 p.m. TENNIS South Jersey Group I Quarterfinals Penns Grove at West Deptford Pennsville at Pt. Pleasant Beach Pitman vs. Woodstown Schalick vs. Haddon Twp., 3 p.m.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 27 BASEBALL South Jersey Group I Tournament Cape May Tech at Schalick Gateway at Audubon Paulsboro at Wildwood Riverside at Maple Shade LEAP at Haddon Twp. Pitman at Pennsville Buena at Glassboro Clayton at Woodstown, 3 p.m. South Jersey Group II Tournament Salem Tech at Barnegat
THURSDAY, MAY 28 SOFTBALL Penns Grove vs. LEAP, Rutgers-Camden, 6 p.m. South Jersey Group I Quarterfinals Paulsboro-Audubon vs. Riverside-Maple Shade Wildwood-Pennsville vs. Haddon Twp.-Pitman Glassboro-Palmyra vs. Cape May Tech-Gateway Schalick-Woodstown vs. Burlington Twp.-Buena South Jersey Group II Quarterfinals Haddon Heights-Lower Cape May vs. Salem Tech-Cinnaminson GIRLS LACROSSE South Jersey Group I Tournament West Deptford at Woodstown TENNIS South Jersey Group I Semifinals Penns Grove-West Deptford vs. Pennsville-Pt. Pleasant Beach Pitman-Woodstown vs. Schalick-Haddon Twp.
FRIDAY, MAY 29 BASEBALL South Jersey Group I Tournament Cape May Tech-Schalick vs. Gateway-Audubon Paulsboro-Wildwood vs. Riverside-Maple Shade LEAP-Haddon Twp. vs. Pitman-Pennsville Buena-Glassboro vs. Clayton-Woodstown South Jersey Group II Tournament Salem Tech-Barnegat vs. Mastery Camden-Haddon Heights TRACK NJSIAA Championships, Franklin HS
SATURDAY, MAY 30 TRACK NJSIAA Championships, Franklin HS
Thursday sports report: Schalick tennis advances in South Jersey Group I playoffs; Salem basketball gets high-scoring transfer from Delaware after Lecator transfers to Vineland
By Riverview Sports News
The Schalick boys tennis team beat the rain and Wildwood 5-0 in the opening round of the South Jersey Group I tennis tournament Thursday.
The seventh-seeded Cougars (9-10) now travel to second-seeded Haddon Twp. (13-7) Tuesday at 3 p.m.
Pennsville’s and Penns Grove’s first-round matches were postponed by the weather. Eighth-seeded Penns Grove will host Palmyra Friday at 2:30 p.m. Fifth-seeded Pennsville is scheduled to host Audubon.
In another match, Pitman defeated Lower Cape May 4-1 and will play third-seeded Woodstown in Tuesday’s quarterfinals.
Basketball: Transfer news
The Salem Rams lost a dynamic player to the high school “transfer portal” earlier this spring, but Thursday they landed an equally dynamic player coach Anthony Farmer believes will make them better.
Gi’lyl Conrad, a 6-foot junior combo guard from AI DuPont High School in Delaware, enrolled in Salem Thursday. He’ll fill the void created by versatile rising senior guard Tymear Lecator’s transfer to Vineland.
Lecator scored 1,061 points and dished 272 assists for the Rams in three seasons. Conrad averaged a fraction over 20 points a game last season and was the second leading scorer in Delaware. The news of Lecator’s departure had some basketball observers writing the Rams off for the coming season, but the arrival on Conrad has them back on the favorites list.
“Ty was good for us,” Farmer said. “He got us to a point to get to the big one; we just didn’t get over the hump. You’d love to see a guy that close run it back.
“We were fortunate enough to get a guy who I think fits well with the group of guys we already have who I think can get us over the hump this year. We don’t miss a beat. I think he’s gonna make us better.”
On Friday, the Rams also posted a “Welcome to Salem City” post for 6-7 incoming freshman William Cooper Reed of Alloway.
The Rams have a heavy summer lined up. Their June schedule includes City of Lave Basketball (June 6), Total Turf Summer League (starting June 17) and Philly Live II (June 26-28).
Schalick has game with Collingswood waved off leading in the fifth, two outs from making milestones by Watt, Hartley official; includes scores and highlights from Wednesday’s Salem County sports calendar
BASEBALL Wildwood Catholic 7, Salem Tech 5 Schalick at Collingswood, canceled
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
COLLINGSWOOD – Ricky Watt got his milestone hit – and then some – and Cole Hartley was working on a no-hitter, but the only thing winning Wednesday was the weather.
Watt collected his 100th career hit and hit two home runs to tie Schalick’s single-season home run record and Hartley was building a lifetime memory, but it all got wiped away as the Cougars had their game with Collingswood called in the fifth inning before becoming official because of the weather.
The Cougars were leading 5-0 and just two outs away from the game and all the milestones becoming official when play was halted due to lightning in the area. Once they got on the bus, the skies opened and the umpires called it a day.
“It was definitely a bummer for it to go out in the bottom of the fifth like that,” Watt said. “I can’t remember a high school game that got rained out in the middle of the game my whole career. I wasn’t aware of the ruling. I walked off the field and everybody was just telling me that nothing counted.”
“I was definitely a little annoyed,” said Hartley.
The Panthers had cause to beef, too. They were mounting a charge when play was halted, loading the bases with one out on an infield error and two walks.
Watt got what would have been his 100th career hit in his first at-bat, a sharp RBI single into left field that put the Cougars on top 1-0. He then hit solo homers to center in the third and fifth, giving him 10 for the season. That’s what would’ve been entered into the record had the game been official. Instead, with the washout, he’s still sitting on 99 hits and eight homers.
“That would’ve tied Luke (Pokrovsky) and all of his brothers for the single-season home run record,” Watt said. “That’s kind of what I was more excited for, to be honest, aside from the 100 hits. Not only did it suck for me but Cole was pitching such an awesome game.”
Hartley took a perfect game into the fifth inning, but lost the gem on an error leading off the fifth. He struck out the next batter, then, pitching into a gusting wind that signaled the approaching rain and “messed with” his breaking ball, he walked the next two. That’s where it ended.
He was part of a combined five-inning no-hitter with Jamari Whitley two years ago and a five-pitcher, five-inning no-hitter last year, but had never put one together by himself. He had thrown just 45 pitches through the first four innings with three strikeouts.
“I was dealing, I was on a roll,” Hartley said. “I had a goal of at least getting closer to my 100th strikeout (he had four, still needs 18). I was actually feeling like I might throw a perfect game today, or at least close to it, and I did.”
The Cougars don’t play again until Wednesday’s first round of the South Jersey Group I playoffs. As the No. 1 seed, they’ll play all their sectional playoff games at home, where it’s a bit more challenging to put one out.
SOFTBALL GLASSBORO 19, SALEM 3: Marissa Rode’s three-run double highlighted a nine-run third inning that broke the game open. Rode had three hits and six RBIs in the game. Phoenix Holland had two of Salem’s three hits. WOODSTOWN 9, ATLANTIC TECH 4: Woodstown’s Ellie Wygand ran her career hit total to 103 with three singles. The Wolverines broke a scoreless tie with three in the third inning on Kendall Young’s RBI single and Maddie LaPalomento’s two-run single and built their lead to 9-0. The Wolverines (16-8) have won seven in a row and 10 of their last 11. MIDDLE TWP. 4, SCHALICK 2: Sophia Brown’s two-run single highlighted a three-run fourth inning that gave the Panthers a 3-0 lead and they withstood Cougars comeback bid. Katie Creamer kept the Cougars off the board until the sixth and struck out 10. Alex Shimp had two hits for Schalick.
GIRLS LACROSSE Woodstown at Nottingham, ppd. to Tuesday
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT Projected First-Round Pairings (16) New Egypt at (1) Haddonfield (9) Shore at (8) Point Pleasant Boro (12) Gateway at (5) Delaware Valley (13) Dayton at (4) Bernards (14) Middle Twp. at (3) New Providence (11) Lower Cape May at (6) Haddon Twp. (10) West Deptford at (7) Woodstown (15) Johnson at (2) Rumon-Fair Haven
Schalick sophomore right-hander throws masterful complete-game in longest outing of his career, likely to start in Cougars’ playoff opener; Woodstown pair no-hits Pitman; includes SJ baseball playoff pairings
TUESDAY BASEBALL Schalick 12, Pennsville 3 Woodstown 8, Pitman 0 Clayton at Penns Grove Gloucester at Salem Tech Salem at Glassboro
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
PITTSGROVE – Matt Karr flat-out said Schalick pitcher Mason Sanchez played truth or dare with his Pennsville hitters Tuesday afternoon.
The sophomore right-hander threw it up there, dared the Eagles to hit it and the truth was they never did, or simply couldn’t.
The Cougars’ projected first-round playoff starter looked like a righthander version of another pitcher named Sanchez in the Philadelphia market – Phillies’ left-hander Christopher Sanchez – especially in the late innings of a masterful 12-3 complete-game victory over the Eagles,
“That’s what they call me in school, actually,” the slender sophomore said with a smile.
The Schalick Sanchez, who still plays Little League baseball and is proud of it, allowed just three hits, no earned runs, walked one and struck out three. He was especially sharp late in the game, retiring the last 15 batters he faced after throwing away Mason O’Brien’s bunt single leading off the third inning. He threw 94 pitches, 64 for strikes.
“We got our butts kicked – period,” Karr said. “He threw well, shoved it. Threw the ball right down the middle and played truth or dare. Said I dare you to hit it and we couldn’t. Just an absolute, awful, poor, no effort. It’s just … embarrassing.”
It was the longest outing of Sanchez’ career and clearly the most effective. He had never gone more than three innings in any outing before. The Cougars are 7-3 in the games he pitches.
“I was thinking before the season even started what do I want to be this season, a starter, reliever, a starter, reliever,” the pitcher said. “They’ve been talking about it and now we decided on starter. My goal coming into this game was to get at least three strikeouts and keep it under four hits, because that’s just my goal for every game. I’m not a big guy who goes up there and strikes everybody out like Jamari (Whitley) and Cole (Hartley). I’m a guy who goes up there and tries to (get them to) hit the ball. I know my defense is really good, the guys behind me.”
“I wanted him to challenge them,” Schalick coach Sean O’Brien said. “We don’t want to walk guys. You saw what happened yesterday where we give free passes and teams will hurt you. Limit the walks and challenge guys to give you weak contact is kind of what we want to do. He did that, embraced that, and did a great job. If you compete and you’re not walking guys ,hitters are going to get themselves out. You just make the right pitch and you just have to trust your fielders behind you to make the plays and he did a good job doing that today.”
Offensively, it was a complete 180 from what both teams experienced the day before. Pennsville kept the meter running and crushed Penns Grove 28-8, while Schalick was lethargic in a 13-5 loss to Haddon Heights.
The Cougars (17-7) answered Pennsville both times the Eagles (14-9) scored in the first three innings. They finally took the lead for good on Jamari Whitley’s two-run single in the fourth, then broke it open with seven in the fifth on a combination of hard-hit balls, soft or seeing-eye liners and poor Pennsville defense. Ricky Watt had a chance to walk it off with his 100th career hit in the sixth, but flew out to center for the final out of the inning and leave him sitting on 99.
Five Cougars had at least two hits in the game. Evan Glaspey had three hits and three RBIs.
“The good thing about having a bad game and then you get to play the next day is then you can kind of quickly forget about the day before,” O’Brien said. “We did a good job of settling into the game, Mason did a good job settling into the game. We started a little slow, we were making some errors behind him, but we picked it up there and then offensively we finally started to pick things up. One through nine we were hitting the ball hard and we didn’t do that consistently yesterday.
“I just want our guys to just be playing good baseball when next week comes around. Playing good teams and beating good teams is playing good baseball. I think that helps us going forward.”
WOODSTOWN 8, PITMAN 0: Blake Rodriguez and Stone Hassler combined on a seven-inning no-hitter, facing the minimum 21 batters. The only base runner they allowed was a third-inning walk to Payton Miller by Rodriguez and Miller was erased on a double play.
Rodriguez worked the first 5 2/3 innings, coming out after 73 pitches. Hassler threw 16 pitches to get the final four outs.
The Wolverines took control of this one early, scoring four runs in the first inning. Luke Fraley had two hits and two RBIs. Drew Sutton and Sol Elmer also had a pair of hits. Tommy Tucci went 1-for-3 to collect his 50th career hit and Ty Coblentz went 1-for-4 to move within nine of 100.
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I PLAYOFFS Wednesday’s First-Round Games (16) Cape May Tech at (1) Schalick (9) Gateway at (8) Audubon (12) Paulsboro at (5) Wildwood, Tuesday (13) Riverside at (4) Maple Shade (14) LEAP at (3) Haddon Twp. (11) Pitman at (6) Pennsville (10) Buena at (7) Glassboro, 2 p.m. (15) Clayton at (2) Woodstown
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP 2 PLAYOFFS Wednesday’s First-Round Games (16) Collingswood at (1) Haddonfield (9) Manchester Twp. at (8) Middle Twp. (12) Lower Cape May at (5) Seneca (13) Gloucester at (4) Sterling (14) Pleasantville at (3) Cedar Creek (11) Medford Tech at (6) West Deptford (10) Salem Tech at (7) Barnegat, 3:45 p.m. (15) Mastery Camden at (2) Haddon Heights
Here are scores and highlights from Tuesday’s Salem County sports calendar; detailed stories will be posted on the website soon
BASEBALL Schalick 12, Pennsville 3: Mason Sanchez looked like another pitcher named Sanchez in Philly market with masterful complete game win. Woodstown 8, Pitman 0: Blake Rodriguez and Stone Hassler combined seven-inning no-hitter, facing the minimum 21 batters. The only base runner they allowed was a third-inning walk and he was erased on a double play. Clayton at Penns Grove Gloucester at Salem Tech Salem at Glassboro
SOFTBALL Clayton 26, Penns Grove 8: The Clippers erased an early 7-0 Penns Grove lead with 17 runs in the second inning. Woodstown 5, Pitman 3: Ellie Wygand collects her 100th career hit in her first at-bat. Schalick 6, Pennsville 5: Paige Sparks, down to her team’s last strike, hits go-ahead three-run homer in seventh, drives in five runs.
GOLF Schalick 180, Cumberland 186: One day after beating the Colts in a three-way card playoff for the Salem/Cumberland Challenge team title, the Cougars edge them in a match to claim a share of the TCC Diamond Division title (with Woodstown).
TENNIS Clayton at Penns Grove
BOYS LACROSSE Bishop Eustace 9, Woodstown 7: The Crusaders outscored three goals in the fourth quarter to win. Connor Haney and Bob Waddington each scored three goals for Woodstown. Bryce Downer made 15 saves, finishing his Woodstown career with 731.
Here are scores and highlights from Monday’s Salem County sports calendar; this report will be updated
BASEBALL Haddon Heights 13, Schalick 5 Pennsville 28, Penns Grove 8 Camden Academy Charter 10, Salem 8 SOFTBALL Pennsville 17, Salem 0 Haddonfield 13, Salem Tech 2 BOYS VOLLEYBALL Triton 2, Salem Tech 0 (27-25, 25-18) GIRLS LACROSSE Woodstown 21, Haddon Heights 8 TENNIS Pennsville 5, Penns Grove 0
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
PITTSGROVE – A division title and the number one seed in the South Jersey Group I baseball playoffs may be firmly in Schalick’s back pocket, but the Cougars know there’s a lot more work to be done.
The Cougars have three games between now and the start of the playoffs – starting with Monday’s 13-5 loss to Haddon Heights – and while the games might not count for power points they still carry a lot of weight.
“These are games we need to try to get heading in that right direction, where we’re playing our best baseball heading into next week,” Schalick coach Sean O’Brien said. “There’s a week gap between the games so I think if we end on a positive note it just sets us up nicely for that first round. So, we’re trying to get playing good baseball before we start next week.:
It didn’t start the way they wanted. The Garnets (15-6), the No. 2 seed in the South Jersey Group 2 playoffs, led for the entirety of the 3-hour, 12-minute marathon. They reached Schalick starter Jamari Whitley for two runs in the first inning, extended the lead to 5-1 in the third and then broke it open with seven in the fifth to threaten to run-rule their hosts.
The Cougars (16-7) scored in the home half of every inning the Garnets did, but it was never enough.
“The three aspects of the game – pitching, hitting and fielding – we didn’t do any of them well,” O’Brien said. “It’s hard to beat a good team when you don’t do those things well. They’re a scrappy team, they find ways to get runs, and we just didn’t do our job overall today. That’s what it came down to.”
The Cougars did manage to avoid the run rule by scoring just enough in the home fifth to keep the game going.
“I think offensively we’re too good to be held down for that long, so I knew we could still get some runs; it was just our mentality,” O’Brien said.
The Cougars just couldn’t get that timely hit to spark a big inning. They left the bases loaded in the second, third, fifth and sixth innings. The only production they got out of those situations was RBI singles by J.T. Fleming and Whitley in the fifth and Wyatt Cushane getting hit by a pitch in the sixth. They left 14 runners on base, 10 in scoring position.
“We’ve gotten better with less than two outs and bases loaded, but now with bases loaded with two outs it’s like a new challenge that we have to deal with,” O’Brien said. “We’re getting guys on, we’re just not getting them in, and you can’t do that against good team. You have to capitalize to stay in games and win games.”
Garnets leadoff man Ryan Govito had a big day. He singled in each of his first five at-bats and had a chance in the seventh to go 6-for-6, but Bo Schalick, the Cougars’ fourth pitcher, got the sophomore shortstop to line softly to second.
“Five is a lot, six would’ve been nice, but I did the job,” said Govito, who had a four-hit game earlier this season. “The last at-bat I was just trying to keep the approach simple, middle of the field, same thing as before. I was trying to get a fastball, but I didn’t; maybe swung at a bad pitch.”
Ricky Watt got the Cougars on the board with his eighth homer of the season in the first inning.
“I saw five or six sliders before and then I finally got a fastball and got the barrel to it,” he said.
Watt had a double later in the game. He now has 97 career hits.
“I want to get it before playoffs hit,” he said. “I hadn’t really thought about (100 career hits) a whole lot; it’s not the No. 1 thing on my mind. But I’m excited about it.”
PENNSVILLE 28, PENNS GROVE 8: Jeff Wagner hit a grand slam and drove in five runs, Mason O’Brien homered and Steve Fatcher and Logan Cowperthwait each had four RBIs. The Eagles scored 10 in the third to break it open and 11 in the fourth.
CAMDEN ACADEMY CHARTER10, SALEM 8; The Cougars answered Salem’s six-run fourth with five in the bottom of the inning to tie the game, then pushed across runs in the fifth and sixth to win. Andry Placencia scored the go-ahead run on a ball that got away at the plate and Lenox Angeles singled home the insurance run. Austin Davis had two hits and three RBIs for the Rams, Troy Carey had two RBIs.
SOFTBALL PENNSVILLE 17, SALEM 0: The Eagles scored 10 runs in the first inning and Savannah Guglielmo pitched a four-inning no-hitter.
HADDONFIELD 13, SAEM TECH 2: The Bulldogs pulled away from a 3-2 lead with seven runs in the fifth inning. Shelby Drummond had two hits for the Chargers and scored their first run on a steal of home.
TENNIS PENNSVILLE 5, PENNS GROVE 0 Sawyer Humphrey (P) def. Anthony Pacheco, 6-0, 6-0 Lucas Cooksey (P) def. Juan Ortiz, 6-0, 6-0 Carter Willis (P) def. Jesus Arredondo, 6-3, 6-0 Jacob Cheeseman-Coen Rinnier (P) def. Jordan Hernandez-Fernando Palacios Lima, 6-0, 6-0 Lucas Thomas-Matthew Forino (P) def. Alan Lopez-Jeremy TeJada, 6-2, 6-0 Records: Pennsville 17-6, Penns Grove 5-8.
Haddon Heights’ Ryan Gavin had five hits in his first five at-bats Monday against Schalick. The Cougars finally got him out in the seventh. Top photo: Schalick’s Ricky Watt crosses the plate after hitting his eighth homer of the season in the first inning.
Here is a list of Salem County’s all-time leading scorers in basketball; documented additions/updates should be sent to al.muskewitz@gmail.com
Boys
PLAYER
SCHOOL
TOTAL
YEAR
Paul Gause
Schalick
3144
2005
Keith Jackson
Salem
1940
1986
Richard Brokenbaugh
Penns Grove
1730
1989
Marcus Robinson
Salem
1726
1990
Joe Hickman
Woodstown
1726
1972
Zach Manorowitz
Pennsville
1679
2020
Mike Holloway
Schalick
1634
2015
Rashan Holloway
Schalick
1622
2014
Kavon Lewis
Penns Grove
1600
2020
Dominique Roy
Penns Grove
1574
2008
Mike Wright
Penns Grove
1551
1988
Derrick Parsley
Salem
1532
2008
Greg Frith
Schalick
1532
1990
Fred Drains
Woodstown
1444
1989
Jawan Roane
Penns Grove
1424
2018
Jerry Dickerson
Salem
1416
1963
Sean Collins
Schalick
1393
1996
Geshawn Davis
Penns Grove
1393
2013
Melvin Allen
Schalick
1355
2014
Ron Michael
Salem
1350
2002
Bradley Rowand
Woodstown
1346
2000
Tyler Lunsford
Schalick
1345
2016
James Rowe
Salem
1300
1997
Dan Feruck
Pennsville
1284
1980
Lowell Fortune
Salem
1255
1989
Brian Sye
Salem
1227
1978
Ralph Kowalkowski
St. James
1220
1955
Josh Hedgeman
Schalick
1219
1989
Luke Wood
Pennsville
1198
2025
William Barnes
Salem
1192
2005
Jamar D. Johnson
Penns Grove
1189
2020
Anthony Farmer
Salem
1175
2024
Jim Shivers
Woodstown
1170
1973
George Seager
Pennsville
1158
1989
Michael Moore
Penns Grove
1147
1991
Gage Ausland
Salem
1144
2020
Butch Karr
Pennsville
1143
2009
Scott Powers
Woodstown
1134
1993
Joe Cassidy
St. James
1117
1983
Clifton Shaw
Penns Grove
1111
1996
Blake Bialecki
Woodstown
1107
2026
Billy McMackin
Woodstown
1105
2003
Joe Mecholsky
Pennsville
1103
1992
Mike Driscoll
Woodstown
1100
1968
Brandon Bermudez
Salem Tech
1097
2023
Tim Buzby
Pennsville
1093
1987
Jim Brown
Salem
1085
1985
Ramon Roots
Salem
1080
2016
Mike Harrell
Schalick
1075
1986
Brian Booker
Woodstown
1068
2002
Keith Robinson
Penns Grove
1065
2019
Troy Johnson
Schalick
1062
2017
x-Tymear Lecator
Salem
1061
Lew Ridgeway
Salem
1058
1975
Eric Spencer
St. James
1054
1990
Tom Summiel
Salem
1050
1971
Clint Hitchner
Woodstown
1050
1996
Jamy Thomas
Pennsville
1048
1994
DeAndre Solomon
Schalick
1044
2014
Charles McNeil
Penns Grove
1040
1956
Jim Smith
Woodstown
1038
1955
Charles Haines
Penns Grove
1030
1953
Bruce Spencer
St. James
1023
1983
Colin Rieger
Pennsville
1014
2015
Terrence Sorrell
Salem
1014
1988
Darryl Gause
Schalick
1007
2001
Dan Yucis
Pennsville
1003
1999
Matt Kates
Schalick
1002
2008
Woodrow Furbush
Salem
1002
2011
x-active
Girls
PLAYER
SCHOOL
TOTAL
YEAR
Katie Kline
Pennsville
2110
2004
Amanda Young
St. James
1762
1995
Sharias Hill
Penns Grove
1661
2009
Brittany Smith
Salem
1623
2007
Talia Battavio
Woodstown
1620
2025
Megan Donelson
Woodstown
1588
2025
Tia Furbush
Schalick
1574
2021
Tori Smick
Woodstown
1566
2013
Shayla Llanos
Salem
1436
2008
Crystal Bailey
Schalick
1406
1984
Stephanie Owen
Woodstown
1381
1993
Marley Wood
Pennsville
1362
2026
Dawn Curry
Pennsville
1288
2008
Tamara Watkins
Penns Grove
1276
2005
Charlie Baldwin
Woodstown
1275
2020
Shaqui Coppage
Salem
1265
2010
Vynette Miller
Salem
1255
1985
Kelli Griffith
Pennsville
1248
1989
Paige Caldwell
Woodstown
1237
2017
Taylor Bass
Pennsville
1237
2026
Shanann Gavin
St. James
1234
1997
Ryane Wood
Pennsville
1224
2022
Carly Lane
Penns Grove
1217
2001
Shaniece Banks
Penns Grove
1205
2008
Elizabeth Hudock
Salem
1203
2019
Marie Patrick
Salem
1186
1995
Hannah Cooksey
Pennsville
1168
2019
Lindsey Minch
Pennsville
1163
2010
Riley Fulmer
Woodstown
1163
2022
RaNiyah Wilson
Penns Grove
1156
2025
Nora Ausland
Pennsville
1144
2025
Tiasia Tatem
Salem
1139
2015
Che’Na Thompson
Salem
1130
2009
Ashley Hansen
Schalick
1124
2008
Bethany Humenik
Woodstown
1120
2009
Kelly Thompson
Woodstown
1115
1990
Latika Ross
Salem
1102
2001
Lindsay Rivell
Salem
1081
2001
Caitlin McCaffery
Pennsville
1080
2003
Natrice Reed
Penns Grove
1065
2018
Meely Horace
Penns Grove
1063
2024
Kayla Mayers
Woodstown
1041
2015
Shannon Pollock
St. James
1037
1993
Christy Britton
St. James
1037
1989
Ashley Engel
Woodstown
1012
2007
Susanne Daly
St. James
1002
1991
Sandy Alston
Penns Grove
1983
x-active
There are a lot of points in this picture of 1,000-point scorers (L-R) Woodstown’s Talia Battavio and Pennsville’s Marley Wood, Ryane Wood, Luke Wood, Nora Ausland and Jamy Thomas. There were more than 7,100 points represented here at the time this photo was taken.
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
