Category: SCHALICK

Boy, oh Roy

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


Salem County sweep

All three Salem County teams in the South Jersey Group I baseball quarterfinals won Friday; stories posting to the website soon

SJ GROUP I BASEBALL
Friday’s quarterfinals
(1) Schalick 5, (8) Audubon 1
(4) Maple Shade 4, (5) Wildwood 3
(6) Pennsville 13, (3) Haddon Twp. 7
(2) Woodstown 5, (10) Buena 1
Wednesday’s semifinals
(4) Maple Shade at (1) Schalick
(6) Pennsville at (2) Woodstown

SCHALICK 5, AUDUBON 1: Jamari Whitley takes a no-hitter into the fifth, gives up three hits, strikes out career-high 13 in 6 1/3 inningsfans career-high. Cooper Willoughby and J.T. Fleming deliver big hits in four-run sixth that breaks the game open.

PENNSVILLE 13, HADDON TWP. 7: Coach Matt Karr said Logan Streitz “may have just played the best game in Pennsville baseball history.” The senior went 4-for-5 at the plate with two doubles, the go-ahead three-run homer and seven RBIs, made a game-saving unassisted double play with bases loaded, then threw two innings of no-hit relief to slam the door.

“As he rounded third (after the homer) I just said to him ‘You are the man,'” Karr said. “I had no other words.”

WOODSTOWN 5, BUENA 1: The Wolverines scored two runs in the first inning and three pitchers held the Chiefs off the board until the seventh inning. The Wolverines survived a crazy fifth inning in which they survived a bases-loaded no out situation, picking off two runners on the base paths.

Look for full stories soon elsewhere on the website.

Deja vu with higher stakes

Pennsville rallies to beat Pitman in a South Jersey Group I playoff game eerily similar to a regular-season game they played a month ago; Schalick rolls in another Elmer win, Salem Tech falls in first-ever playoff game

SJ GROUP I BASEBALL
Friday’s quarterfinals
(8) Audubon at (1) Schalick, 3 p.m.
(5) Wildwood at (4) Maple Shade, 3 p.m.
(6) Pennsville at (3) Haddon Twp., 4 p.m.
(10) Buena at (2) Woodstown, 4 p.m.

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE – Somebody had to remind Pennsville baseball coach Matt Karr it was May 28 and he hadn’t been magically transported back to April 17. Stop him if you’ve seen this movie before. 

The Eagles found themselves in the same kind of game against Pitman Thursday they were in when the teams played for lesser stakes a month earlier. The Panthers had one big inning again to make them sweat, but just as they did that day in April the Eagles rallied and escaped with a 6-5 win in the opening round of the South Jersey Group I playoffs.

It was Karr ‘s 150th win as the Eagles’ head coach – “and 150 more grey hairs, too,” he quipped.

“I think the word I used walking down with the coaches was ‘aw, this is like déjà vu, man,’” Karr said. “It was that same kind of inning they were literally just putting the ball in play. But that’s baseball. When you get in those situations those little things are amplified because of the pressure that’s created by having baserunners and we did that to ourselves, walking guys, not picking our pitcher up with ground balls that should be outs.

“We magnified the situation and we amplify the pressure on ourselves because now we’ve got to be perfect. Now any little thing goes wrong and it’s a run here, a run there. We talk all the time that great teams have the ability to say who are we and how do we win ballgames. It’s hard for us to fire up a four- or five-run inning. We have to play good defense, we have to do the little things and win innings throughout the course of the game and that one got away from us.”

In the April game, Pitman scored five runs in a squirrely third inning to take a three-run lead and the Eagles chipped away each of the next three innings to come back and win. On Thursday, the Panthers scored four in an equally squirrely third to take a three-run lead and the Eagles chipped away over the next three innings to tie the game and ultimately go ahead on Dante Cummings’ bases-loaded fly that got away from the outfielder and scored two runs.

In April, Karr called on Gavin Spears to shut the door behind starter Logan Streitz and Spears gave up no runs over the final four of his 5 2/3 innings striking out 12. In this one, Karr brought in Mason O’Brien behind starter Logan Cowperthwait and O’Brien gave up one run and four hits over the final 4 2/3, striking out eight, including the 100th of his career.

“In a perfect world I would love to get to (Friday) with Mason and Gavin both available, but we did tell Gavin we were trying to get to him tomorrow as the starter,” Karr said. “Mason does a really good job coming in as a reliever. He’s got a lot going for him. I didn’t want to go from a righty to another righty, so we went to Mason as a lefty to throw them off.

“Mason and Gavin are our 1A and 1B. When you have those guys on the mound for you it’s a different mindset. Your team just feels a little more relaxed when their guy’s on the mound. We had that to finish today’s game with Mason and we’ll have that again tomorrow with Gavin on the mound to start.”

The game was tied 4-4 going into the home sixth. Pinch-hitter Scott Streitz drew a leadoff walk and forced a pitching change. Jake Layfield greeted reliever Drew Keefe with a sacrifice to move the runner into scoring position. O’Brien walked (for the third time), but Keefe fanned the next batter for the second out.

Jeff Wagner took an 0-2 pitch off the elbow to load the bases and bring Cummings to the plate. The junior designated hitter who has developed into one of the Eagles’ best hitters barreled a ball into the gap that was tailing away from centerfielder Logan Williams. The Pitman outfielder appeared to get his glove on it but couldn’t pull it down and both Streitz and O’Brien scored.

“He threw a first-pitch fastball and I saw Mason on second base, he was giving me that sign, so I knew I had to get my foot down, hit it hard, make someone make a play,” Cummings said. “I know it hit the barrel and I took off. All I saw was it hit the ground and after that I got excited. It’s probably one of the biggest hits in my career. It felt good coming back both games but today felt a lot better knowing now we get to advance and get these seniors one last home win.”

“We’ve talked a lot this year about creating our own luck and we created a pressure situation there,” Karr said. “We had runners on, we put the ball in play, we made them have to make a play. In that moment, the lucky bounce went our way.”

But O’Brien and the Eagles still had to get through seventh before they could claim victory. The Panthers got one run closer on Dylan Tyler’s RBI single and had the tying and go-ahead runs on base with two outs, but O’Brien got the final out on a grounder to second.

O’Brien came on in the third after Cowperthwait loaded the bases, threw a wild pitch to allow the tying run to score and then issued a walk to reload the bases with one out. O’Brien had gotten out of bases-loaded jams in the past this season, but this outing got off to a balky start, literally. On his first play in the game he was called for a balk after making a pickoff attempt to first without the first baseman covering the bag, bringing in the second run. 

“We saw the Seattle Mariners do it and I was like I could do this as a lefty,” O’Brien said. “They looked it up and sent an email and I saw it was a balk. I got a sign to pick off a runner, it was supposed to be at second, but I thought it was first base and then that happened.”

Kiernan Clark followed with shot first baseman Grady Sanders knocked down to keep in the infield, but another run scored. The Panthers made it 4-1 when Payton Miller hit a slow roller to the left side of the infield and beat a high throw to first. The Eagles eventually got out of the inning and after that the southpaw with the sparkly cleats kept the Panthers off the board until the seventh.

“I trust myself and I know I’ve got guys behind me who’ll make a play any day of the week,” O’Brien said. “I’m just going to throw the ball over the plate and if they don’t hit it, they don’t hit it, good for me, but if they do I know my defense is going to make plays.”

The Eagles got a run back in the fourth on Steve Fatcher’s RBI single and tied it in the fourth on another RBI single by Fatcher and Gavin Spears’ sacrifice fly.

“I trusted my guys that we were going to score runs and come back and win this ball game,” O’Brien said.

After all, he had seen it before. They all had.

Pitman0040001-562
Pennsville100122x-651
WP: Mason O’Brien. LP: Kiernan Clark.

SCHALICK 23, CAPE MAY TECH 0: The top-seeded Cougars scored 13 runs in the fourth inning to turn an already one-sided playoff opener into an outright rout.

The Cougars (18-7) pounded out 21 hits in the game. Travis Snodgrass went 4-for-5 with three RBIs. Evan Glaspey drove in four runs. Jamari Whitley had three hits, Evan Sepers had three RBIs and Ricky Watt collected his 100th career hit on a second-inning RBI single that gave the Cougars a 4-0 lead.

They batted around twice in their big inning. The first 13 batters reached base and 10 scored before an out was recorded. Sepers had three RBIs in the inning, Glaspey and Snodgrass each had two.

“It’s good to kind of get things rolling and going in the right direction heading into the next round,” Cougars coach Sean O’Brien said. “We looked pretty good pitching wise, defensively and at the plate, so we saw positive things going on to the next round.”

It looked like Watt had become the second Cougar this season to reach 100th hit when he had three hits, including two record-tying homers, at Collingswood May 20, but the game was washed out two outs from becoming official. So he had to wait more days to reach the milestone.

He flew out in his first at-bat Thursday, but didn’t miss his second time up, ripping a liner to left field.

“To be honest, the second time around was definitely less special,” Watt said. “And I also didn’t add two homers on top.”

Mason Sanchez and Mason Hollywood combined on a five-inning one-hitter with 12 strikeouts. Sanchez worked the first four innings, giving up a bloop single in the first inning and striking out eight. The sophomore hasn’t given up an earned run in his last three appearances (13 innings).

“He was attacking the hitters, he was commanding the strike zone, he did good job getting ahead of guys,” O’Brien said. “He looked a lot like what he did against Pennsville, which is definitely reassuring for us this year and moving forward for next year, too.”

The game was moved to the Cougars’ second home, the Elmer Little League complex, because of field conditions. It was their eighth straight win at the alternate site and third this year. They are 16-6 and have won 15 of their last 18 there since Sean O’Brien became head coach in 2016.

“I didn’t realize overall our record there,” O’Brien said. “I know we’ve had a lot of success there, there are very few games I can remember losing, but I didn’t realize we had that good a record there.

“Playing there, it’s like our second home where I don’t feel uncomfortable being there. I like being at our place, but when we play there it’s comfortable. It’s not like we’re playing at a different field.”

“Playing at Elmer is always fun,” said Watt, who is 11-for-18 with nine RBIs at the complex the last two seasons.

The Cougars now host eighth-seeded Audubon (10-12) back in their traditional home Friday at 3 p.m. It’s an earlier start time than usual to accommodate the Green Wave’s prom later in the evening.

Cape May Tech00000-013
Schalick280(13)x-23210
WP: Mason Sanchez. LP: Owen Galvin. 2B: Travis Snodgrass (S), Cooper Willoughby (S), J.T. Fleming (S), Mason Sanchez (S).

Sweet Home Away From Home

Here is Schalick’s baseball ecord at the Elmer LL complex since Sean O’Brien became head coach (16-6)

YEARRESULTYEARRESULT
2026Cape May Tech, W 23-02022Woodstown, W 9-7
2026Bridgeton, W 17-42022Bridgeton, W 21-0
2026Woodstown, W 4-32021Woodstown, W 15-7
2025Glassboro, W 7-22019Woodstown, W 12-0
2025Buena, W 10-02019Glassboro, L 3-2
2025Salem, W 26-22018Woodstown, W 12-2
2025Woodstown, W 5-02018Glassboro, W 5-4
2024Bridgeton, W 25-42017Glassboro, L 8-5
2024Woodstown, L 12-42017Woodstown, L 6-5
2023Bridgeton, W 12-02016Glassboro, L 8-6
2023Woodstown, L 4-22016Woodstown, W 8-4

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP 2
BARNEGAT 16, SALEM TECH 1: The Chargers were playing in their first-ever sectional tournament game as a program and the home team didn’t make it easy for them. Barnegat pitcher Ray Danbrowney threw a five-inning one-hitter and struck out seven. The Bengals put four on the board in the first inning and added on every inning.

Jack Beal had the Chargers’ only hit, a single leading off the third inning. He moved to second on a passed ball and scored when the Bengals misplayed Lucas Clement’s grounder to short. 

Salem Tech00100-114
Barnegat4435x-16122
WP: Ray Danbrowney. LP: Jack Beal. 2B: Nick Bruno (B), Declan Brain 2 (B)


Thursday playoff report

Woodstown wins a pair of third-set tiebreakers to lock down a spot in SJ Group 1 boys tennis finals; Wolverines win their girls lacrosse playoff opener; includes scores from Thursday’s South Jersey Groups 1&2 playoff action

BASEBALL
South Jersey Group I Tournament
Schalick 23, Cape May Tech 0
Audubon 3, Gateway 0
Wildwood 10, Paulsboro 0 (Tues.)
Maple Shade 2, Riverside 1
Haddon Twp. 19, LEAP 1
Pennsville 6, Pitman 5
Buena 8, Glassboro 2 (Wed.)
Woodstown 12, Clayton 0 (Wed.)
South Jersey Group II Tournament
Barneget 16, Salem Tech 1
(Story on website)
SOFTBALL
Penns Grove vs. LEAP, Rutgers-Camden, 6 p.m.
South Jersey Group I Quarterfinals
Audubon 10, Riverside 0
Pennsville 8, Pitman 0
Palmyra 3, Gateway 2
Woodstown 3, Buena 1, 8 inns.
(Story on website)
GIRLS LACROSSE
South Jersey Group I Tournament
Woodstown 11, West Deptford 8
(See story below)
TENNIS
South Jersey Group I Semifinals
West Deptford 5, Pt. Pleasant Beach 0
Woodstown 4, Haddon Twp. 1
(See story below)

Tennis: Woodstown plays for title

WESTMONT — Luke Shaw and the doubles team of Connor Miller and Josh King both came all the way back from dropping the first set to win third-set tiebreakers and lift Woodstown to a 4-1 win over Haddon Twp. for a spot in the South Jersey Group I boys tennis championship match.

The Wolverines (14-8) will play at top-seeded West Deptford (23-1) in the title match Tuesday. It’s their first trip to the SJ Group 1 boys final since 2019 — and first under head coach Jesse Stemberger — when they lost to Middle Twp. 3-2. Stemberger was the program’s assistant coach when it made the South Jersey final four straight years from 2016 to 2019.

Shaw lost the first set at third singles to Grady Carson, then evened the match 6-2 and won the pro set 10-5. Shaw was 9-9 at third singles, 10-10 overall, entering the match. Carson had won his last six matches and 13 of his last 15.

“Luke’s win was a little more intense because we had two points and if he wins, the match is over,” Stemberger said. “After losing the first set he told his parents he wasn’t going to lose. He took control of the second set, built a lead in the tiebreaker and closed it out with a big first serve on his first match point.”

Miller and King dropped their first set to Sylar Kennedy and Jack Considine at second doubles 5-7, then won the second set 6-3 and the pro set 10-4. Miller and King were 13-4 entering the match (2-1 in third-set tiebreakers). Kennedy and Considine had won their last five matches

“They didn’t have the pressure, but they wanted to win and basically followed the same script as Luke,” Stemberger said.

WOODSTOWN 4, HADDON TWP. 1
Nathan Keating (HT) def. Drew Stengel, 6-4, 6-2
Mason Shimp (WO) def. Declan Gallagher, 6-4, 6-4
Luke Shaw (WO) def. Grady Carson, 2-6, 6-2, 10-5
Vincent Merendino-Nick DiTeodoro (WO) def. Cristian Picerno-Shea Anderson, 6-4, 6-1
Connor Miller-Josh King (WO) def. Sylar Kennedy-Jack Considine, 5-7, 6-3, 10-4
Records: Woodstown 14-8, Haddon Twp. 14-8.

GROUP 1 SECTIONAL FINALS
Tuesday’s matches
Central: Edison Magnet (7-12) at Metuchen (14-0)
North I: Pascack Hills (15-4) at Glen Rock (16-3)
North II: Glen Ridge (8-12) at Verona (17-5)
South: Woodstown (14-8) at West Deptford (23-1)

Girls lacrosse: Woodstown wins opener

WOODSTOWN — Delaney Walker added four more goals to her school-record total and Emma Morgan added another assist to that all-time school record, powering Woodstown to an 11-8 victory over West Deptford in the first round of the South Jersey Group 1 playoffs.

Walker’s four goals ran her career total to 243. Morgan extended her assist record to 85 and also scored a goal.

Blair Baldi, Arianna Hyman and Emma Perry all scored twice for the Wolverines (10-7), who now travel to second-seeded Rumson-Fair Haven (14-5) for Monday’s quarterfinals.

TCC Showcase

Here are the tresults of the Tri-County Conference Showcase at Pitman GC

GIRLS

Clearview’s Stella Bernardi survived a double bogey on her final hole and a late charge from her twin sister Lydia to win medalist honors. Stella made four birdies in a 1-over-par 74. Lydia made four straight birdies (7-10), a bogey and a par over her final six holes to finish with 75. Salem/Cumberland Challenge winner Nicole Tarquinio of Cumberland finished fourth (81). Salem Tech’s Hannah Kormann was the top Salem County finisher (108, T-11).

TEAM SCORES: Clearview 149, Washington Twp. 184, Williamstown 204, Kingsway 221, OLMA 222, Salem Tech 223, Schalick 243, Pennsville 247, Delsea 252.
TOP 5 INDIVIDUALS: Stella Bernardi, Clearview 74; Lydia Bernardi, Clearview 75; Tessa Reilley, Washington Twp. 79; Nicole Tarquinio Cumberland 81; Adrienne Abalos, Gloucester Catholic 92.

SALEM TECH (223): Sophia Conto 115, Hannah Kormann 108.
SCHALICK (243): Lena Virga 118, Miya Watkins 125.
PENNSVILLE (247): Abigail Bohn 121, Makenna Minguez 126.

BOYS

Kingsway sophomore Nick Fargnoli made three birdies and shot 1-under-par 69 to win medalist honors and lead the Dragons to the team title. Schalick finished second and Woodstown was fourth. Schalick’s Jaxon Weber was the top Salem County finisher, (75, T-5). Teammate Mikey Nelson, the Salem/Cumberland Challenge runner-up, was T-14 (82)

TEAM SCORES: Kingsway 297, Schalick 338, Pitman 343, Woodstown 368, Triton 384
TOP 5 INDIVIDUALS: Nick Fargnoli, Kingsway 69, Christopher Parrish, Kingsway 73; Christian Trabosh, Washington Twp. 73; Ryan Stankoski, Clearview, Clearview 73; Michael Links, Kingsway 75; Jaxon Weber, Schalick 75

SCHALICK (338): Jaxon Weber 75, Mickey Nelson 82, Reed Bucolo 92, Shawn Kelly 89.
WOODSTOWN (368): Logan Jones 97, Jack Bucksar 93, Nate Valente 94, Alejandro Vazquez 84.
SALEM TECH: Thomas Conto 122.
PENNSVILLE: Trevor Hann 103.

Girls medalist Stella Bernardi (C) is flanked by runner-up Lydia Bernardi (L) and third-place finisher Tessa Reilley.

TEE ASSIGNMENTS
1A: Bradyn Skokowski (Triton), Landen Hedrick (GCIT), Christopher Parris (Kingsway), Thomas Luu (Clearview)
1B: Cole Murray (Delsea), Mac Weldon (Highland), Nick Fargnoli (Kingsway), Ryan Stankoski (Clearview)
2A: Austin Tennyson (Deptford), Jaxon Fretz (Williamstown), David Dempsey (Delsea), Jack Kessler (Kingsway)
2B: Braydon Lewis (Triton), Dylan Simonson (Williamstown), Jake Bowen-Ashwin (Pitman), Jaxon Weber (Schalick)
3: Colin Buri (Triton), Evan Hall (GCIT), Christian Trabosh (Washington Twp.), Michael Links (Kingsway)
4: Joseph Nolan (Cumberland), Logan Jones (Woodstown), Max Pappalardo (Pitman), Mike Gallagher (Washington Twp.)
5: David Prante (Deptford), Madden Goss (Timber Creek), Nate Valente (Woodstown), Mikey Nelson (Schalick)
6: Nick Landi (Triton), Jack Bucksar (Woodstown), Joey Zubert (Pitman), Anthony Beach (Gloucester Catholic)
7: George Schultz (Timber Creek), Alejandro Vazquez (Woodstown), Zack Payne (Gloucester Catholic), Reed Bucolo (Schalick)
8: Manntram Patel (Cumberland), Sam Adams (Pitman), Shawn Kelly (Schalick), Luca Calabro (Highland)
9: Jackson Venuto (Clayton), Braxton Gillis (Overbrook), Trevor Hann (Pennsville)
10: Kyle Lex (Clayton), Daniel Atanasio (Salem Tech), Caden Thomas (Pennsville)
11: Angel Gonzalez (Wildwood), Thomas Conto (Salem Tech), Jeffrey Boyd (Overbrook)
12: Nicole Tarquinio (Cumberland), Tessa Reilley (Washington Twp.), Stella Bernardi (Clearview), Adrienne Abalos (Gloucester Catholic)
13: Maahishee Patel (Cumberland), Kendall Stewart (Kingsway), Lydia Bernardi (Clearview), Kaci Adams (Williamstown)
14: Julia Świerczyński (Woodstown), Camryn Heil (Clearview), Olivia O’Neill (Kingsway), Lena Verga (Schalick)
15: Sophia Conto (Salem Tech), Hannan Meloro (Clearview), Isabella Gordon (Williamstown), Emily Devecchis (Washington Twp.)
16: Hannah Kormann (Salem Tech), Claudia Bui (Delsea), Amelia Voronov (OLMA), Jess Alameno (Wildwood)
17: Leigh Ann Nage (Clayton), Gianna Spinelli (OLMA), Miya Watkins (Schalick), Abigail Bohn (Pennsville)
18: Madison Traister (Clayton), Kirra Ritz (Delsea), Makenna Minguez (Pennsville)

Top photo: TCC Showcase boys medalist Nick Fargnoli of Kingsway (C) is flanked by runner-up teammate Christopher Parrish (L) and third-place Christian Trabosh.

Tuesday playoff report

Woodstown rallies to take down Schalick in South Jersey Group I softball tourney opener; Pennsville win, Salem Tech falls; Woodstown lone survivor in SJ Group I tennis quarterfinals


SOFTBALL
South Jersey Group I Tournament
Audubon 15, Paulsboro 0
Riverside 8, Maple Shade 1
Pennsville 10, Wildwood 0
Pitman 11, Haddon Twp. 2
Glassboro at Palmyra, 3:30 p.m. (Wed.)
Gateway 12, Cape May Tech 8
Woodstown 7, Schalick 3
Buena 14, Burlington Twp. 1
South Jersey Group II Tournament
Gloucester 10, Haddonfield 0
Middle Twp. 8, Oakcrest 7
West Deptford 11, Collingswood 0
Cedar Creek 15, Manchester Twp. 0
Haddon Heights 15, Lower Cape May 0
Cinnaminson 11, Salem Tech 0
Medford Tech 5, Sterling 1
Barnegat 14, Overbrook 0

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN – He watched his team hit softball after softball on the button for four innings and get nothing for it, but Woodstown coach Rob Hildebrand remained confident all it would take is one ball falling in play to change the Wolverines’ fortunes.

There was a slow roller up the first base line that refused to go foul, a dropped fly in the outfield, another ball just out of the reach of an outfielder that cleared the bases and suddenly the Wolverines had a rally going.

The dropped fly, instead of being the last out of the fifth inning, opened the door for a five-run rally that gave Woodstown the lead and lifted them to a 7-3 win over Schalick in the opening round of the South Jersey Group 1 playoffs.

“All that it takes is putting one ball in play, I literally told them that the inning before,” Hildebrand said. “The first inning it’s rocket, rocket, rocket and a blooper falls in for our base-runner. That’s the game of softball/baseball. It will fall when it wants to fall; when it doesn’t (want to), it doesn’t.

“That’s why you have to put the ball in play and we’ve got to limit our strikeouts. That’s something we’ve really been working on, having better quality at bats. The girls have only gotten better and better at that as the year’s gone on.”

The seventh-seeded Wolverines looked in real danger of losing to their county and division rivals for the third time late in the game. 

The Cougars took a 3-0 lead into the bottom of the fifth and Addi Shimp was pitching brilliantly in the circle. The left-hander held the Wolverines to just two hits and three baserunners to that point, and kept them off the scoreboard with the help of a diving catch by centerfielder Noelani Whitley in the first inning that Hildebrand called “the best play I’ve seen all year in the outfield” and robbed Kendall Young of an RBI double or more.

The offense, meanwhile, pushed across a run in the third on Liv VanAcker’s RBI single and two in the fourth on a walk and four consecutive singles. They also had two runners cut down on close plays at the plate.

Shimp was headed for another quiet inning in the fifth when she retired the first two batters on a fly to center and a strikeout. But Emma Hitchner, pressed into her second career start due to an injury to regular catcher Lila Bowling, kept the inning alive with a single to center.

Ellie Wygand followed with a roller up the first base line that stayed in for a single, bringing Talia Guardascione to the plate for the at-bat that changed the game. Wanting to “do something big” after a hard flyout in her previous at-bat, Guardascione lifted a fly to center that looked like it would end the inning. Instead, the ball hit the heel of Whitley’s up-turned glove and after making an attempt to save it the ball fell away to score Hitchner with the Wolverines’ first run.

“That girl made a great catch the first inning and I was really shocked that she dropped my ball.,” Guardascione said. “When I saw it hit in the air I knew I got under it. I thought for sure she had it and I was just hoping everyone was still running. I even slowed up a little bit at first because I was already there by the time they were. It was great to see her drop it. I think she tried to be a little nonchalant (and) it got to her, and then after that it sparked the rally a little bit.”

Leah Clark walked to load the bases. Young then dropped a single in front of a diving Whitley that cleared the bases and gave the Wolverines a 4-3 lead. Maddie LaPalomento then doubled past a diving Kassady Sickler in right to make it 5-3.

“I just really let it all happen,” Young said. “After it comes off my bat I just run all the way through the bases and see what happens.”

“I could tell off the bat it was a base hit but because she made that other great catch I was just running as fast as I could with two outs because I knew I was getting home,” Guardascione said.

For all the balls the Wolverines put in play in the fifth, several of them said the biggest hit of the inning belonged to Hitchner for setting it all in motion. The sophomore had played in only seven games this season prior to Tuesday’s start and had nine career at-bats prior to her hit.

“Emma’s hit gave us the confidence to come back,” Young said.

“I was pretty nervous going up there because my first at bat was not very good,” she said, “but then I just told myself it’s a 2-2 count you’ve gotta do something here. Definitely going into (the game) I was just like I’ve got to prove myself,  I haven’t really gotten the opportunity all year, but I definitely proved myself today.”

The Wolverines extended their lead to 7-3 with two runs in the sixth. The Cougars threatened in the seventh, getting two on after two were out, but Clark struck out the next batter to end the game. Clark held the Cougars to just one hit and four base runners over the final three innings to pick up her 15th win of the season, believed to be the most by a Woodstown pitcher since Anna Marino’s 16 in 1979.

It was the third year in a row the Cougars (14-7) were eliminated by Woodstown.

“It wasn’t our best effort; we didn’t put out the defensive effort that we should have and it cost us,” Schalick coach Rick Higinbotham said. “We knew that would be the case, we would have to play defense; we didn’t do what we needed to do. We’ve got to play seven innings of solid softball, not five, not four, and that’s what we haven’t been able to do on some of our games this year. We get five, six innings, and then we have a cluncker of an inning. We’ll get better from it.”

Woodstown (17-8) now travels to second-seeded Buena (18-8) for Thursday’s quarterfinals game. The Wolverines have won eight in a row and 11 of their last 12

Schalick0012000-372
Woodstown000052x-761
WP: Leah Clark. LP: Addison Shimp. 2B: Karly Spears (WO).

PENNSVILLE 10, WILDWOOD 0: Graillyn Weber went 3-for-3 with two RBIs and spun a four-hit shutout in the circle, Avery Watson went 3-for-4 with two RBIs and Lily Edwards went 3-for-3 to collect her 100th career hit. The Eagles walked it off on Taylor Bass’ RBI single following Reagan Wariwanchik’s leadoff triple in the fifth.

Weber walked three and struck out four while shutting out the Warriors for the second time this season. She threw a three-hit shutout at them with a career-high 11 strikeouts on April 13.

Edwards led off the home first with a single, stole second and third, and scored on Weber’s sacrifice fly. She singled in the second and scored on an RBI single by Watson and collected her milestone hit with a single to center in the third. She’s had three hits in three of her last four games.

Wildwood00000-041
Pennsville23311-10140
WP: Graillyn Weber. LP: Emma Contreras. 2B: Graillyn Weber (P). 3B: Reagan Wariwanchik (P).

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP 2
CINNAMINSON 11, SALEM TECH 0: The Pirates put together Hailee Hunter’s two-run homer and three consecutive doubles to produce five runs in the first inning to take the upper hand.

The 11th-seeded Chargers (13-6) were held to two hits in their first-ever playoff game in program history — singles by Izzy Roberts in the first and third innings. They did put two runners on with one out in the first, but the Pirates quelled the threat with a pair of strikeouts.

Hunter had three hits and four RBIs for the Pirates (13-11). Mia Zuccarelli had three hits and three RBIs.

Salem Tech00000-023
Cinnaminson5213x-11110
WP: Evelyn Astor. LP: Izzy Roberts. 2B: Delaney Kroll (C), Hailee Hunter (C), Mia Zuccarelli (C), Peyton Farquhar (C). 3B: Makayla Sheker (C). HR: Hailee Hunter (C).
Woodstown celebrates its come-from-behind playoff victory over Schalick in the circle with pitcher Leah Clark after getting the final out.

Tennis

South Jersey Group I Quarterfinals
West Deptford 5, Penns Grove 0
Pt. Pleasant Beach 3, Pennsville 2
Woodstown 4, Pitman 1
Haddon Twp. 5, Schalick 0
Thursday’s Semifinals
Pt. Pleasant Beach (14-4) at West Deptford (22-1)
Woodstown (13-3) at Haddon Twp. (14-7)

WOODSTOWN 4, PITMAN 1
Drew Stengel (WO) def. Nolan Russell, 6-1, 6-2
Liam Etter (P) def. Mason Shimp, 7-5, 1-0 (ret.)
Luke Shaw (WO) def. Ben Williams, 6-1, 6-0
Nick DiTeodoro-Vincent Merendino (WO) def. Spencer Bianchini-Jonah Raymer, 6-1, 7-6 (7-3)
Josh King-Connor Miller (WO) def. Ezra Ralph-Ayden Employ, 6-0, 6-0
Records: Woodstown 13-8, Pitman 14-8

WEST DEPTFORD 5, PENNS GROVE 0
Carter Watson (WD) def. Stuart Mondragon
Aiden Bardon (WD) def. Anthony Pacheco, 6-1, 6-1
Carter Weber (WD) def. Juan Ortiz, 6-1, 6-2
Chase Eagle-Jeffrey Hack (WD) def. Jesus Arredondo-Adan Gonzalez, 6-0, 6-1
Allen Eastlack-Connor Watson (WD) def. Jordan Hernandez-Fernando Palacios Lima, 6-1, 6-0
Records: West Deptford 22-1, Penns Grove 7-9

HADDON TWP. 5, SCHALICK 0
Nathan Keating (HT) def. Gabe McFeeley, 6-0, 6-0
Declan Gallagher (HT) def. Reece Loatman, 6-1, 6-1
Grady Carson (HT) def. Tyr Brattlie, 6-2, 6-0
Cristian Picerno-Shea Anderson (HT) def. Cooper Halperin-Jack Genievich, 6-1, 6-2
Sylar Kennedy-Jack Considine (HT) def. Angelo Boston-Gavin McGrath, 6-1, 6-0
Records: Haddon Twp. 14-7, Schalick 9-11

This week’s schedule

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

Cougars tennis advances

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).





What might have been

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

A real Paige turner

Down to the game’s last strike, Schalick freshman hits go-ahead three-run homer in seventh to send Cougars past Pennsville; Woodstown’s Wygand collects hit No. 100 in win over Pitman

TUESDAY SOFTBALL
Schalick 6, Pennsville 5
Woodstown 5, Pitman 3
Clayton 26, Penns Grove 8

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE – Most of the boxes the Schalick softball team has marked off their historical checklist this spring are linked to things they haven’t done since that magical season of 2021. But there is something the Cougars pulled off Tuesday night that takes them back a lot farther than that.

SPARKS

Among the big things they’ve done this season are sweeping the regular-season series from rival Woodstown and winning the TCC Diamond Division title, two things that hadn’t happened in five years. When they beat Pennsville 6-5 at the Pennsville Little League complex Tuesday night, it marked the first time since 2017 they have completed a sweep of their Salem County rivals the regular season.

They went 6-0 against Woodstown (twice), Penns Grove (twice), Salem (once) and Pennsville (once). They didn’t play start-up Salem Tech. In 2017, they beat Woodstown (twice), Penns Grove (twice) and Salem (once) in the regular-season and then Pennsville in the playoffs.

“Oh, really, I didn’t know that,” Schalick coach Rick Higinbotham said. “I didn’t keep track of that, but that’s great. That’s good to know.

“That’s a historical thing I didn’t really think about, but it’s always fun to play Pennsville. We played them last year, I think the game 5-4 and we pulled it off at home. They’re a good team. A good quality win against them heading into the playoffs that would be a good thing for us.

“It’s nice to be the top dog in the county, but this is Year No. 1 of some of our freshmen and I’m looking for more from them going down the line. I hope we get some more county wins along the way. That’d be fun.”

They got the latest one in dramatic fashion with one of those freshmen providing the biggest punch. Freshman Paige Sparks, down to the team’s final strike in the seventh inning, drilled a go-ahead three-run homer to swipe the lead back after the Eagles snatched it from them with five runs the inning before.She also broke a scoreless tie with a two-run single to center in the third.

“All I was thinking was just make contact,” Sparks said of her game-winning blast. “Don’t swing away, just make contact.

“It was pretty exciting, being my first home run in high school. I was really happy, real excited, because it landed right next to my parents (watching in the outfield).”

Addi Shimp kept the Eagles off the board for five innings. But as he has done in the past Higginbotham lifted her in favor of hard-throwing freshman Kaylee Broglin as a late-game change of pace. This time the move backfired as the Eagles reached her for five runs through a combination of hits, speed and wild pitches.

The Eagles scored their tying and go-ahead runs on balls that got away at the plate, forcing Higinbotham to bring Shimp back into the circle from first base to prevent further damage. The first batter she faced, Taylor Bass, beat out an infield single and in her attempt to catch Reagan Wariwanchik straying too far from third, Broglin’s throw skipped in the dirt and got away allowing the fifth run to race home.

“They showed grit in that inning and showed they’re never out of it,” Pennsville coach Beth Jackson said. “They hit the ball today. They were making contact, but it was right at them. It’s tough.”

“I was thinking I made a mistake,” Higinbotham said. “She’s done that in the past four or five games for us, come in and shut the door. They were ready for it. We’ll learn from it.”

Now that they had the lead, all the Eagles had to do was hold the line in the seventh and they’d have a Senior Night win to remember. And they nearly got out of it. Neolani Whitley traded places with Shimp on the bases with a fielder’s choice that brought the second out. Pinch hitter Taylor Brown kept the inning alive when she reached on an infield error. 

That brought Sparks to the plate. Graillyn Weber, who earlier in the game recorded her 100th career strikeout, had the freshman down in the count. One more good pitch could end it, but she threw a juicy fastball in the zone and Broglin sent it into the night to give Schalick a 6-5 lead.

“I think it’s pretty mind blowing,” Sparks said. “I’ve been watching it for a while because my sister played before me. It was very big because I didn’t see them do that.”

The Eagles did mount a threat in the bottom of the seventh. Lily Edwards reached on an error and got into scoring position with one out, but Shimp got out of it with a fly out and ground out to end the game.

The Cougars aren’t done playing county rivals, actually. They’ll open the South Jersey Group I playoffs Tuesday at Woodstown.

“We beat ‘em twice, there’s no reason why we shouldn’t beat them a third time,” Higinbotham said. “We’ll see what happens. You never know. It’s playoff time.”

Wygand gets milestone hit in win

PITMAN – Ellie Wygand had been sitting on 99 career hits since last Thursday and was eager to get the milestone across the line.

The Woodstown senior wasted little time nailing down career hit No. 100, sending a payoff pitch into centerfield leading off the game in an eventual 5-3 Wolverines win over Pitman.

Woodstown’s Ellie Wygand warms up between innings during a recent game.

“I was just waiting to sit on the right pitch,” she said. “She was kind of a wildish pitcher, not sure what she was going to throw next, and I sat on a pitch. It wasn’t like a line drive, but it got the job done. It landed perfectly and that was my hit.”

The FDU-Florham signee went 1-for-3 in the game with a walk. She got her milestone hit in her 247th high school at-bat over four years. She’s increased her hit total each season she played and now had 37 for the season. She needs nine runs for 100 in that category.

“I think it took a lot of pressure on me,” she said of delivering in her first at-bat. “Coming in as a freshman I didn’t even have this as one of my goals, but going into my senior year I was really excited to have the opportunity to achieve that. Coming into my first at-bat and getting it done it took a lot of pressure on my shoulders and now you can just have fun with the rest of the season and work hard.”

After locking down the milestone hit, Wygand got all the way to third base, but the Wolverines could get her home. The Wolverines were then thrown into catch-up mode after Pitman scored three in the home half of the inning, but they steadily climbed back into it.

They got a run in the second on a wild pitch and tied it in the third on Karly Spears’ bases-loaded fielder’s choice and another wild pitch.

They took the lead in the fourth on Leah Clark’s tie-breaking RBI single and a run-scoring grounder to first by Maddie LaPalomento.

Meanwhile, Clark put up zeroes from circle after the first inning. She scattered five hits the rest of the game and allowed only one runner past second base, and that was with two outs in the sixth. 

The Wolverines are gearing up for the South Jersey Group I playoffs, where they enter as the No. 7 seed and host rival Schalick in the opening round Tuesday. They’ll have some extra motivation for the game, having lost both games of the season series for the first time since 2021.

“We weren’t aware of this until a couple days ago and when I found out it definitely was shocking,” Wygand said. “But I fully believe if we go out there and play with our hearts on the line and give it our all we have a very good shot at winning that game.”

CLAYTON 16, PENNS GROVE 8: The Clippers erased an early 7-0 Penns Grove lead with 17 runs in the second inning. They sent 23 batters to the plate in the eruption. Janice Blair went 4-for-5 with four RBIs for Clayton.

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I SOFTBALL
Tuesday’s First-Round Games
(16) Paulsboro at (1) Audubon
(9) Riverside at (8) Maple Shade
(12) Wildwood at (5) Pennsville
(13) Haddon Twp. at (4) Pitman
(14) Glassboro at (3) Palmyra
(11) Cape May Tech at (6) Gateway
(10) Schalick at (7) Woodstown
(15) Burlington City at (2) Buena

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP 2 SOFTBALL
Tuesday’s First-Round Games
(16) Haddonfield at (1) Gloucester
(9) Oakcrest at (8) Middle Twp.
(12) Collingswood at (5) West Deptford
(13) Manchester Twp. at (4) Cedar Creek
(14) Lower Cape May at (3) Haddon Heights
(11) Salem Tech at (6) Cinnaminson
(10) Sterling at (7) Medford Tech
(15) Overbrook at (2) Barnegat