Here are scores and highlights from Tuesday’s Salem County sports calendar
BASEBALL
Salem Tech 21, Camden Academy Charter 5: Cooper Coles, Lucas Clement and Logan Hearn all had three hits and three RBIs in the Chargers’ fifth straight win, Cole Sacks had three hits and two RBIs.. Cooper Rappa and winning pitcher Jaxson Raymond both had two hits.
Millville 13, Pennsville 2: Cole Mulharan had three hits and four RBIs to lead the Thunderbolts’ 12-hit attack and three pitchers combined to strike out 16. Dante Cummings had three hits and Jeff Wagner two for Pennsville.
Bridgeton 4, Penns Grove 3: Bridgeton broke a 3-3 tie with a run in the fourth inning. Josh Widen drove in a pair of runs for Penns Grove. Liam Irvin struck out 11 in 4 2/3 innings.
SOFTBALL
Salem Tech 22, Camden Academy Charter 8: Despite not playing for more than a week, the Chargers scored 22 runs for the second game in a row and extended their winning streak to seven. They have scored at least 14 runs six times this season. They’ve scored 125 runs during the winning streak, an average of nearly 18 runs a game.
BOYS LACROSSE
Williamstown 17, Woodstown 3: Ian Basillo scores five goals, deals four assists.
GIRLS LACROSSE
Woodstown 15, West Deptford 12: Delaney Walker’s 200th career goal among her five, Emma Morgan scores six. Story posting soon at Riverview Sports News.
GOLF
Schalick 169, Pennsville 198: Medalist Seth Fisher shot 3-over 38 to lead Schalick at Centerton CC. Caden Thomas (47) had Pennsville’s low round.
Salem Tech 215, Wildwood 221: Wildwood’s Angel Gonzalez was medalist (48) at Sakima CC. Hannah Kormann and Thomas Conto both shot 52 to lead the Chargers.
TENNIS
Clayton at Schalick
Pennsville 5, Penns Grove 0
West Deptford 3, Woodstown 2
PENNSVILLE 5, PENNS GROVE 0
Sawyer Humphrey (P) def. Stuart Mondragon, 6-1, 6-1
Lucas Cooksey (P) def. Anthony Pacheco, 6-0, 6-0
Carter Willis (P) def. Juan Ortiz, 6-1, 4-6, 10-8
Coen Rinnier-Jacob Cheeseman (P) def. Adan Gonzalez-Jordan Hernandez, 6-0, 6-2
Ian Peacock-Matthew Forino (P) def. Jesus Arredondo-Doel Torres, 6-1, 6-2
Records: Pennsville 9-5, Penns Grove 3-3.
WEST DEPTFORD 3, WOODSTOWN 2
Drew Stengel (WO) def. Carter Watson, 1-6, 0-2, ret.
Aiden Bardon (WD) def. Mason Shimp, 6-1, 6-4
Carter Weber (WD) def. Luke Shaw, 6-1, 6-3
Vincent Merendino-Nick DiTeodoro (WO) def. Chase Eagle-Jeffrey Hack, 2-6, 6-4, 10-6
Allen Eastiack-Connor Watson (WD) def. Josh King-Connor Miller, 6-4, 6-1
Records: West Deptford 14-1, Woodstown 8-4.
BOYS VOLLEYBALL
Timber Creek at Salem Tech
Category: WOODSTOWN
How sweep it is
Schalick’s softball team breaks close game open with 4 in the sixth, sweeps Woodstown for first time since 2021
MONDAY’S SOFTBALL
Schalick 9, Woodstown 3
Gloucester Catholic 14, Salem 0
Winslow at Penns Grove
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
ELMER – They handed Schalick softball coach Rick Higinbotham the Elmer Classic trophy while he standing near the pitching circle. His players had already gathered in the outfield grass to celebrate the win. He didn’t mind the walk.
The Cougars made a lot more history Monday night than just getting their hands on the new-to-them Classic trophy for the first time. In beating Woodstown at the Elmer LL complex, 9-3, they swept their rival for the first time since 2021. They beat them on April 1, the first time they’d beaten the Wolverines since May 6, 2021, snapping an 11-game losing streak in the series.
“This was something we’ve been working for for four years,” Higinbotham said. “I’ve been working for it for four years, too, to sweep them. It puts us in a good spot in the (Tri-County Diamond) division, too. We’re up two on them right now (with three to play) and that’s big.”
The game was tight for five innings as starters Addi Shimp and Leah Clark were unyielding in the circle, but the Cougars (8-2) broke it open with four runs in the sixth after two were out. In fact, all nine of their runs came with two outs.
The sixth started innocently enough with Clark retiring the first two batters. The next six, though, all reached safely. Emma Cain scored on an error, Liv VanAcker drew a bases-loaded walk, Kaylee Broglin had an RBI single and Emily Miller scored when the Wolverines played a pickoff through to second base.
“The girls kept hustling, didn’t stop,” Higinbotham said. “When we got two outs, we kept hitting, kept fighting, got some key walks … it was great. They did a great job.”
After Shimp kept Woodstown bottled up for five innings, Higinbotham brought in Broglin for a hard-throwing change of pace and the freshman slammed the door. Broglin retired all six batters she faced and recorded two strikeouts.
“This is something our team in general has been working for,” Shimp said. “We knew if we really worked hard – and we’ve been working so hard for this – we knew we could get it. Woodstown kept us close the whole time. We knew they would, so we just had to outhit them.”
Khloe McGrath had three hits to lead Schalick’s 10-hit attack. Alexa Shimp and Broglin had two hits apiece. Ellie Wygand, Talia Guardascione and Kendall Young all had two hits for Woodstown.
Schalick struck first with four in the first, highlighted by Broglin’s two-run single. Woodstown made it 4-3 with three runs in the third, highlighted by Young’s solo homer. Paige Sparks raced home with an insurance run for Schalick in the fifth on a passed ball.
| Woodstown | 003 | 000 | 0- | 3 | 7 | 2 |
| Schalick | 400 | 010 | x- | 9 | 10 | 2 |
Willoughby’s walkoff
Schalick senior’s walk-off single caps two-run seventh-inning rally that lifts Cougars over Woodstown in Elmer Classic
MONDAY BASEBALL
Gateway 9, Salem 7
Salem Tech 12, Bridgeton 1
Schalick 4, Woodstown 3
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
ELMER — The home team missed an opportunity to break the game open with bases loaded in the second inning and couldn’t make it happen. They weren’t going to miss it again in the seventh with the game on the line.
Schalick loaded the bases after tying the game earlier in the inning, then with two outs Cooper Willoughby dropped a fly ball between two outfielders, sending home the winning run and giving the Cougars a 4-3 walk-off win over Woodstown in a classic Elmer Classic game.
“I’ve never had a team leave the bases loaded as much as this team,” Cougars coach Sean O’Brien said. “The good thing is we’re getting the bases loaded quite often, but not consistently coming up and situationally doing what we need to do. I think that will come.
“The pitching and defense has started to kind of turn the corner and been pretty solid for us, but offensively, that’s something we can get better at. We kind of go up and down. I think we’ll figure that out. At least we’re getting the bases loaded, but I’m glad we didn’t leave them loaded at the end.”
The Cougars trailed 3-2 going into their last bats, but had the heart of their order coming up against Walker Battavio, the Wolverines’ fifth pitcher of the game and one of their best.
Hot-hitting Ricky Watt drew a leadoff walk and Jamari Whitley shot a single through the hole at short to put a runner in scoring position. Bo Schalick then laced an opposite-field single into right field to score Watt with the tying run. Evan Glaspey followed with a single to load the bases with none out.
Battavio got the next two hitters on a foul pop to first and a strikeout. With the idea “coach would be too mad” if they let another bases-loaded situation slip away, Willoughby lofted the first pitch he saw into right field for what appeared to be the final out. Sol Elmer, the usual right fielder who moved when Battavio came in to pitch, raced over from center and Colton Williams, inserted to fill the vacancy in the outfield, moved over from right and the ball fell between them for the game-winning hit.
Williams had his glove up, but appeared to pull it back as Elmer moved into his space.
“This is probably the biggest game of my life I’ve played on the baseball field,” Willoughby said. “It’s probably the most high-pressure at-bat I’ve ever taken in my entire life, but I trusted my gut and was ready to go up there.
“I was a little more calm than I thought I would be. I remember thinking in my head like I don’t know if I’m ready for this, but just coming up to the plate I just knew it. I knew I was ready. I texted my coach last night and said I’m ready, ready to go, just go up there hacking.”
Willoughby went 3-for-4 in the game, the fourth three-hit game of his career.
“I think he had one of the best approaches all day,” O’Brien said. “He was very consistent at the plate. Other guys were kind of up and down, but I felt like Cooper had good approaches all day. I was actually happy to have him in that moment where he could have the opportunity to win the game.”
Up to that point almost all the runs in the game came on home runs. Certainly, all of Woodstown’s were.
Woodstown took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first on Drew Sutton’s two-run homer. Schalick got a run back in the bottom of the first on Whitley’s double and an error in the infield, then tied it on Cole Hartley’s leadoff homer in the second. The Wolverines (7-5) retook a 3-2 lead on Luke Fraley’s one-out homer in the third. The homers by Sutton and Fraley were the first of their varsity careers.
The Cougars (9-3) missed a chance for more runs in the second when they loaded the bases with one out after Hartley’s homer, but the Woodstown got out of it with an infield force at the plate and a line out to third.
“We don’t get out of that too often,” Woodstown coach Marc DeCastro said. “Something always finds a way of happening.”
Whitley started on the mound for Schalick and struck out 10 through six innings. After the Fraley homer and Ty Coblentz double that followed, he retired the next nine Wolverines in a row. Hollywood came on in the seventh and got the Wolverines in order with two strikeouts.
The win comes on the heels of a 3-2 walkoff loss to Vineland that was played just hours after the upperclassmen on the Cougars’ roster returned home from the Senior Trip to Orlando.
“We just haven’t hit the ball very well the past two games,” O’Brien said. “Our approach to the plate hasn’t been good, so it was good to find a way at the end where we started to turn it around. Maybe it’ll get us going in the direction to swing the bats better.”
| Woodstown | 201 | 000 | 0- | 3 | 6 | 4 |
| Schalick | 110 | 000 | 2- | 4 | 9 | 0 |
Full circle milestone
Woodstown’s Mason scores 400th dual meet win in nail biter against Penns Grove, the place it all began and the Hall of Fame coach made his mark
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
WOODSTOWN — The irony was not lost on Tom Mason.
Mason, the Hall of Fame track and cross country coach who came out of retirement to help take Woodstown’s program to the next level, scored his 400th career dual meet victory Monday when the Wolverines took a 72-63 nail biter on the final day of the dual meet season from Penns Grove, the school where it all began for him a lifetime ago.
“It means a lot,” Mason said. “Never thought I’d get to it. I had a lot of success at Penns Grove and St. James through the athletes and assistant coaches. I never planned on this, but when we had the opportunity to get to 400 I was like it would be cool to do it against Penns Grove, that would make it really good.
“Losing a close meet to Glassboro, the 400 would have come against Schalick and then this meet would have been moot. But losing that close meet put us in a situation beating Schalick it’s going to come against Penns Grove and it’s gonna come here to Woodstown, this is kind of cool.”
Before the meet, the spry septuagenarian walked the grounds talking with the Penns Grove coaches, all of whom ran for him at one time during his 45-year coaching career. Former athletes representing 14 individual state championships made it to the meet. Long-time coaching colleague and rival John Maniglia came back early from a trip to the Outer Banks of North Carolina just to be on hand for the occasion.
“It’s historical,” said Russell Willitt, the Penns Grove discus record since 1985. “The reason I say that is when I was in high school we only got to, I think, 100 dual meet wins, so he’s surpassed Jack Ware four times. That’s amazing. I didn’t want to miss that. This 400th win is monumental for not only Woodstown and Penns Grove, but for the whole Salem County.”
And those are just the dual meet track and cross country wins. He figures the cross country segment is around 160. If you counted the county (15), conference (15), sectional (7), state (4) and 11 assorted relay championships, the number would have thinking about sticking around for 500. He said he still can’t answer the question everyone has been asking him about next year yet.
Chris Robinson, who broke Willitt’s Penn Grove shot put record, had mixed emotions, but was genuinely happy for his former coach.
“You’re happy, but at the same time it’s like ahhh you did it against Penns Grove,” Robinson said at the height of the meet. “I have two ways to it, probably just like Mr. Mason does. I know his insides are probably eating him up right about now. You want to win at your new school because you have some good quality athletes out here that he believes in and then you’re going against your old team. For everybody it’s a big accomplishment.”
The meet, as Mason expected, was a battle. Both teams used their strengths to their advantage. Bryan Garlic (both hurdles, triple jump) and Kylee Goodson (100, 200, 400) both won three events for Penns Grove. David Farrell (800, pole vault) won two events for Woodstown. Woodstown’s Aidan Taulane won the discus (164-10), but was nosed out by Penns Grove’s JaKai Ingram (47-2) in the shot.
“I knew it was going to be a war,” Mason said. “They brought everything because they didn’t want to be the team for me to get to 400, where I wanted them to be the team I beat to get to 400.”
The Wolverines led 36-27 at the completion of the field events despite Penns Grove winning four of the seven. The Red Devils led 42-39 after the 400 hurdles and 100, but the teams traded the lead three times over the next four events. The Red Devils went 1-2 in the 200 to tie the meet at 63 before the Wolverines clinched it with Pacey Hutton, Jackson Perry and Jacob Marino going 1-2-3 in the 3200.
“I knew it was really close,” Hutton said. “Our coach came up to us and was like you need to go 1-2-3 in this. It feels really amazing. We all worked really hard this week to get him there.”
Once the meet was decided, the Wolverines presented Mason with a poster commemorating the occasion and had a set of balloon numbers spelling out “400.” Humorously, one of the zeroes slipped out of someone’s grasp as they were positioning the numbers and it drifted away into the sky before the group could assemble for the group photo.
The Woodstown girls won their meet, 93-29.
WOODSTOWN 72, PENNS GROVE 63
400 Hurdles: Bryan Garlic, Penns Grove 58.9
100: Kylee Goodson, Penns Grove 10.7
1600: Jacob Marino, Woodstown
400: Kylee Goodson, Penns Grove 48.6
110 Hurdles: Bryan Garlic, Penns Grove 15.5
800: David Farrell, Woodstown 2:04
200: Kylee Goodson, Penns Grove 22.1
3200: Pacey Hutton, Woodstown 10:43.8
4×400: Scratched
Long Jump: Will Roy, Penns Grove 21-4.25
Triple Jump: Bryan Garlic, Penns Grove 42-8.5
High Jump: Tommy White, Penns Grove 6-0
Discus: Aidan Taulane, Woodstown 164-10
Shot Put: JaKai Ingram, Penns Grove 47-2
Javelin: Noah Chiu, Woodstown 142-3
Pole Vault: David Farrell, Woodstown 10-0
Keeping track
Here is an update on the former Salem County high schoolers playing in college; anyone missing? send additional players to al.muskewitz@gmail.com; statistics as valid as program reporting
Baseball
| PLAYER | SCHOOL | GP | BA | H | HR | RBI |
| Elijah Crespo, Penns Grove | RCSJ-Cumb | 15 | .190 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| Lucas D’Agostino, Schalick | RCSJ-Cumb | 20 | .262 | 11 | 1 | 19 |
| Andrew Pedrick, Woodstown | Harford CC | 27 | .395 | 32 | 2 | 34 |
| Lucas Prendergast, Woodstown | York | 38 | .413 | 59 | 5 | 26 |
| Jarrett Pokrovsky, Schalick | Penn | 35 | .284 | 40 | 1 | 17 |
| Terrell Robinson, Salem | Rosemont | 25 | .261 | 18 | 0 | 9 |
| Jackson Schalick, Schalick | Frostburg | 45 | .358 | 54 | 6 | 44 |
| Caiden Spinelli, Woodstown | Rosemont | 31 | .337 | 34 | 0 | 15 |
| Connor Starn, Pennsville | Keystone | 10 | .154 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Rocco String, Woodstown | Salem CC | 28 | .265 | 22 | 3 | 24 |
| Chase Swain, Woodstown | LaSalle | 43 | .364 | 60 | 8 | 33 |
| Mike Valente, Woodstown | Salem CC | 8 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brent Williams, Woodstown | G-Beacom | 30 | .264 | 29 | 2 | 21 |
NOTE: Chase Swain is 6 hits shy of 250 for his college career and 1 RBI shy of 150.
| PITCHER | SCHOOL | GP | W-L | ERA | IP | K |
| Evan Biddle, Salem | Frostburg | 8 | 1-0 | 9.00 | 9.0 | 6 |
| Lucas D’Agostino, Schalick | RCSJ-Cumb | 9 | 3-2 | 2.56 | 38.2 | 35 |
| Ben Foote, Woodstown | Caldwell | 6 | 1-1 | 11.37 | 6.1 | 3 |
| Jack Holladay, Woodstown | Neumann | 6 | 0-3 | 11.15 | 15.1 | 12 |
| Peyton O’Brien, Pennsville | Harford CC | 7 | 0-0 | 1.74 | 10.1 | 12 |
| Luke Pokrovsky, Schalick | Penn | 12 | 0-1 | 12.89 | 14.2 | 15 |
| Terrell Robinson, Salem | Rosemont | 4 | 0-0 | 8.10 | 6.2 | 2 |
| Caiden Spinelli, Woodstown | Rosemont | 2 | 0-0 | 27.00 | 1.1 | 1 |
| Rocco String, Woodstown | Salem CC | 4 | 0-1 | 46.29 | 2.1 | 4 |
| Mike Valente, Woodstown | Salem CC | 7 | 2-1 | 6.05 | 19.1 | 11 |
| Luke Wood, Pennsville | McDaniel | 9 | 4-1 | 5.05 | 41 | 34 |
Softball
| PLAYER | SCHOOL | GP | BA | H | HR | RBI |
| Emily Holladay, Woodstown | Hartwick | 12 | .226 | 7 | 0 | 3 |
| Tulana Mingin, Woodstown | East Stroudsburg | 46 | .320 | 49 | 0 | 5 |
| Ava Ortiz, Salem | Salem CC | 14 | .438 | 7 | 0 | 6 |
| Savannah Palverento, Pennsville | Salem CC | 42 | .398 | 41 | 2 | 37 |
| Lilly Peverelle, Pennsville | Salem CC | 44 | .478 | 66 | 6 | 55 |
| Bella Rappa, Pennsville | Salem CC | 35 | .427 | 38 | 0 | 33 |
| Cayla Sbrana, Schalick | RCSJ-Cumb | 18 | .279 | 12 | 0 | 7 |
| Sawyer Simmons, Pennsville | Salem CC | 30 | .317 | 19 | 1 | 15 |
NOTE: Tulana Mingin has 36 runs and is 17-21 in stolen bases
| PITCHER | SCHOOL | GP | W-L | ERA | IP | K |
| Savannah Palverento, Pennsville | Salem CC | 16 | 2-0 | 6.16 | 25.0 | 27 |
| Cayla Sbrana, Schalick | RCSJ-Cumb | 9 | 2-7 | 10.27 | 45.0 | 16 |
| Raegan Wilson, Salem | Salem CC | 21 | 10-6 | 5.85 | 81.1 | 48 |
This week’s schedule
Here is the Salem County sports calendar for the week of April 27-May 2; all games start at 4 p.m. unless noted
MONDAY, APRIL 27
BASEBALL
Pennsville at Pitman
Salem at Gateway
Salem Tech at Bridgeton
Schalick vs. Woodstown, Elmer LL, 6:30 p.m.
SOFTBALL
Gloucester Catholic at Salem
Pitman at Pennsville
Winslow at Penns Grove
Schalick vs. Woodstown, Elmer LL, 6:30 p.m.
BOYS GOLF
Woodstown vs. Cumberland, TBA, 3:30 p.m.
Salem Tech vs. Triton, Valleybrook CC, 3:45 p.m.
GIRLS GOLF
Schalick vs. Clearview, Centerton CC, 3:30 p.m.
TENNIS
Glassboro at Penns Grove, 3:45 p.m.
Wildwood at Pennsville
TRACK
Schalick at Glassboro, 3:45 p.m.
Overbrook at Pennsville
Penns Grove at Woodstown
BOYS LACROSSE
Woodstown at Washington Twp., 5:30 p.m.
TUESDAY, APRIL 28
BASEBALL
Camden Academy Charter at Salem Tech
Millville at Pennsville
Penns Grove at Bridgeton
SOFTBALL
Salem Tech at Camden Academy Charter, 3:45 p.m.
GOLF
Schalick vs. Pennsville, Centerton CC, 3:30 p.m.
Salem Tech vs. Wildwood, Sakima CC, 3:45 p.m.
TENNIS
West Deptford at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m.
Clayton at Schalick
Pennsville at Penns Grove
BOYS VOLLEYBALL
Timber Creek at Salem Tech, 3:45 p.m.
BOYS LACROSSE
Woodstown at Williamstown
GIRLS LACROSSE
West Deptford at Woodstown
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Mercer CC at Salem CC (2), 3 p.m.
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 29
BASEBALL
Pennsville at Woodstown
Pitman at Penns Grove
Rancocas Valley at Schalick
Salem at Overbrook
SOFTBALL
Overbrook at Salem
Penns Grove at Pitman
Woodstown at Pennsville
BOYS GOLF
Schalick vs. Pitman, Centerton CC, 3:30 p.m.
Salem Tech vs. Williamstown, Scotland Run CC, 3:45 p.m.
GIRLS GOLF
Schalick vs. Cumberland, Running Deer GC, 3:30 p.m.
TENNIS
Pennsville at Clayton, 3:45 p.m.
Woodstown at Triton, 3:45 p.m.
Glassboro at Schalick
GIRLS LACROSSE
Woodstown at Ocean City
THURSDAY, APRIL 30
BASEBALL
Schalick at Clearview
SOFTBALL
Salem Tech at Bridgeton
Winslow at Penns Grove
Woodstown at Washington Twp.
TRACK
Salem County Championships, Pennsville, 3:30 p.m.
TENNIS
Penns Grove at Pitman
BOYS VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Camden Co. Tech, 3:45 p.m.
BOYS GOLF
Schalick vs. Overbrook, Centerton CC, 3:30 p.m.
Woodstown vs. Pennsville, Town & Country, 3:30 p.m.
FRIDAY, MAY 1
BASEBALL
Gloucester at Woodstown
Lindenwold at Salem Tech
Pennsville at Salem
SOFTBALL
Camden Tech at Schalick
Salem at Pennsville
Salem Tech at Woodbridge Academy (NJTAC(
TENNIS
Deptford at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m.
Glassboro at Pennsville, 3:45 p.m.
Wildwood at Penns Grove
GIRLS LACROSSE
Maple Shade at Woodstown
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Union at Salem CC, TBA
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Region XIX Tournament, Mercer CC
Salem CC vs. Mercer, 10 a.m.
Lackawanna vs. Delaware Tech, noon
SATURDAY, MAY 2
BASEBALL
Schalick at Timber Creek
Woodstown at Audubon, 11 a.m.
TRACK
SJTCA Meet, Delsea, 1 p.m.
SJTCA Meet, Rancocas Valley, 1 p.m.
BOYS VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Highland, 3:45 p.m.
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Salem CC at Union (2), noon
Mighty Oaks sweep
Here are scores and details from Thursday’s Salem County sports calendar
SOFTBALL
LEAP 21, Penns Grove 11
BOYS GOLF
Pitman 172, Salem Tech 247
Sterling 161, Woodstown 167
TENNIS
Haddon Heights 5, Schalick 0
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Salem CC 3-8, Brookdale 8-3
By Riverview Sports News
LINCROFT — The Salem CC softball team outdueled Brookdale’s top pitcher in Game 1 and then jumped out quickly in Game 2 to sweep the Jersey Blues 3-0 and 8-3 in its last tough tuneup before the Region 19 playoffs.
The Mighty Oaks will be the No. 4 seed in the playoffs and wrap up the regular season this weekend against Raritan Valley. a team they outscored 51-2 in a doubleheader two weeks ago.
Raegan Wilson and Jordyn Busch combined on a two-hit shutout and outdueled Brookdale ace Jules Hart in the circle in the opener. Wilson pitched the first five innings, giving up two singles and walking none, while Busch notched a six-out save. Hart gave up just three hits and struck out nine, leaving her one shy of 300 for her career.
The Mighty Oaks scored two runs in the first inning when the Blues misplayed a ball hit by Emme Witter. J.J. Aguirre drove in a run in the third.
They erupted for 13 hits in the nightcap and jumped out to a 7-0 lead after batting in the fourth inning. Lilly Peverelle continued her hot hand at the plate, going 3-for-4 with a double and homer.
“She said I think I can hit a home run,” assistant coach Chris Watson said. “I said, ‘Lilly, the wind’s blowing in, just hit a line drive.’ She said OK, then put the first pitch over the left field wall.”
It was her fifth homer of the year and helped raise her team-leading batting average to .470. In her last 14 games she is hitting .460 with 23 RBIs.
Witter also had three hits in the nightcap. Megan Koski and J.J. Aguirre both had two hits. Busch pitched the first 5 2/3 innings to get the win, with Savannah Palverento picking up the final four outs without allowing a hit.
Track
The girls 4×100 and 4×400 relay teams from Salem and Schalick ran at the Penn Relays Thursday.
Salem’s girls 4×100 (Raniyah Parsons-Smith, Amaia Massengil, Aniyah Williams, Dynastie Tucker) ran 49.89 and the 4×400 team (Massengil, Williams, Brooklynn Jackson, Tucker) ran 4:25.90 in the South Jersey Small race.
The Rams’ boys 4×100 team runs Friday and their South Jersey Small 4×400 team goes Saturday.
Schalick’s 4×100 team (Karlie Bakley, Willow Davis, Brooke Valentine, Jaelynn Jarmon) ran a 54.45 The 4×400 team (Bakley, Lucy Virga, Jarmon, Valentine) ran a 4:28.23.
The Cougars’ boys 4×100 relay team runs Friday and their 4×400 relay goes Saturday.
Golf
STERLING 161, WOODSTOWN 167: Sterling’s Ethan Weitzel and Colin Bove both shot 3-over-par 38 to share medalist honors at Town & Country. Jack Bucksar (39) posted Woodstown’s low round. The Wolverines also counted 40s from Logan Jones and Chris Porreca.
PITMAN 172, SALEM TECH 247: Micah Frost played his final five holes at Sakima CC in 1-over-par and parred at the last to pull into a tie with teammate Jake Bowen-Ashwin for medalist honors. Freshmen Daniel Atanasio and Thomas Conto had the Chargers’ low rounds (59).
Tennis
HADDON HEIGHTS 5, SCHALICK 0
Owen Peakes (H) def. Gabe McFeeley, 6-0, 6-0
Jackson Zalkind (H) def. Reece Loatman, 6-1, 6-2
Gavin Ewing (H) def. Tyr Brattlie, 6-1, 6-2
Nibal AlKhatib El Baayni Abou-Andrew D’Amelio (H) def. Cooper Halperin-Jack Genievich, 6-1, 6-4
Joe Foster-Cameron Wilson (H) def. Angelo Boston-Gavin McGrath, 7-5, 7-5
Records: Haddon Heights 5-5, Schalick 4-6
Putting a big Charge(r) into it
Big inning carries Salem Tech softball to its most impressive win of inaugural season; also, scores and highlights from Monday’s Salem County sports action
SOFTBALL
Salem Tech 22, Buena 7, 4 inns.
Schalick 17, Gloucester County Christian 1
BASEBALL
Salem Tech 15, Pilgrim Academy 5
GOLF
Woodstown 174, Wildwood 242
Salem Tech 157, Clayton 159
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
WOODSTOWN – The schedule makers at Salem Tech laid out a calendar for all their newest teams this year that was built for competitive games and first-year success.
The difficult thing is you can’t predict the improvement or success some of those teams might make from the projection when they’re scheduled to the time they actually play the game.
The Chargers softball team faced an opponent with by far the best won-loss record of any they’ve faced so far this season, but they handled it just as they had most all of the others they’ve played so far.
It was tough at the start, but they recovered more than nicely and eventually overran Buena 22-7 in a game that ended in the fourth inning. It was their eighth win in nine games as a varsity program and sixth in a row.
“If you would’ve asked me on March 9, our first day of practice, if you’d be 8-1 on April 20, I’d be shocked,” Chargers coach Pat Fisher said. “But as we’ve gone on each day, our goal is to be one percent better. We’ve been doing that.
“With this being our inaugural season, we don’t even know what we don’t know. We haven’t played anybody, we don’t have a history with anyone, we just come in and play hard. One thing I like about the team is when the other team scores and punches us, we punch back. All year we’ve been able to answer. I think that’s been the secret to our success.”
The game laid out as the first serious test of the Chargers’ legitimacy. They had risen to No. 8 in the South Jersey Group 2 power points standings, but had only played two and beaten one team with a winning record heading into Monday. Buena, meanwhile, started the season with an 11-game winning streak and was No. 7 in South Jersey Group 1.
Like all of the Chargers’ new teams this school year, the softball team is playing as an independent before joining the Tri-County Conference during next year’s scheduling cycle, but is eligible for the playoffs.
“We’re making history for a first-year team,” pitcher Izzy Roberts said.
The Chargers went down 6-0 before even coming to bat and when they finally did bat their first five hitters in the lineup, a group batting a collective .616 (69 for 112) with 66 RBIs entering the game, went down without a hit.
Some teams might have continued to spiral, but the Chargers don’t do that. Roberts threw up a zero in the top of the second and her hitters came in and erupted for 15 runs in the bottom of the inning.
They batted around twice and then some, sending 20 batters to the plate. They batted around before the Chiefs recorded an out. There six hits, seven walks and three hit batsmen. Even the first two outs produced runs. Eight players scored in the inning and seven scored twice. Shelby Drummond, the leading hitter in the county, had a two-run single and a two-run double. Claire Kier had two hits and Kaitlyn Liber walked three times.
They walked it off with six runs in the fourth, capped by a two-run, two-out single from Shelby Liber, the tenth batter of the inning.
“I thought it was really great,” Drummond said of the second-inning outburst. “I’m happy that my team exploded. Once one person gets going, that’s when we all start getting fired up and we all just get hits right after that. That’s one thing with us Chargers, we never give up. We always keep fighting.”
Buena sent 10 batters to the plate in the first. Jen Agosto had the big hit of the inning, a bases-loaded triple to make it 5-0. Callie Grabowski’s RBI single made it 6-0, but after that Roberts allowed only one hit, one run (on a ball that got past the catcher on a ball four) and four base runners. The Chiefs scored most of their runs after the Chargers turned a nifty double play on the bases, nailing runners at second and the plate.
“I was proud of the girls that they went down six and didn’t pack it in, they didn’t give up,” Fisher said. “They were finding barrels and staying aggressive. When you’re aggressive in the batter’s box good things will happen. We knew that team was 11-2, so they were capable of a big inning. We play them (again) in two weeks; we’ve got to be ready. Today was our day.”
| Buena (11-3) | 600 | 1- | 7 | 5 | 2 |
| Salem Tech (8-1) | 0(15)1 | 6- | 22 | 12 | 1 |
SCHALICK 17, GLOUCESTER CO. CHRISTIAN 1: Emily Miller hit her first career home run and was among six Cougars with a pair of RBIs
Miller hit a two-run homer in the first inning to give Schalick a 3-0 lead. The Cougars broke it open with nine in the second inning. The first 14 hitters of the inning reached safely. Alexa Shimp had a two-run triple in the frame.
Noelani Whitley and Addi Shimp combined on a three-hitter in the four-inning game. They each struck out five.
Baseball
SALEM TECH 15, PILGRIM ACADEMY 5: Daulton Sites and Logan Hearn had three hits apiece and Brayden McAlister drove in three runs.
The Chargers jumped out with three runs in the first inning, then broke it open with four in the third. Three Salem Tech pitchers allowed six hits and struck out 13. Bryce Harris worked the first 4 1/3 innings to get the win.
Golf
WOODSTOWN 174, WILDWOOD 242: Logan Jones played his final four holes in even par and shot 4-over 39 to win medalist honors and lead the Wolverines to victory at Town & Country Golf Links. The Wolverines also counted a trio of 45s from Chris Porreca and freshmen Jacob Tocco and Bradley Heck.
SALEM TECH 157, CLAYTON 159: Clayton’s Kyle Lex (34) and Noah Crewalk (37) posted the two lowest scores at par-28 The Birches, but Salem Tech’s fourth, fifth and sixth seeds – Avery Dalton, Daniel Atanasio and Hannah Kormann – all shot 39 to lead the Chargers to the victory. The Chargers also counted a 40 from 1-seed Cohen Sutton.
Keeping track
Here is the weekly update on former Salem County high school baseball and softball players on the college level; will be updated every Monday; anyone missing? send additional players to al.muskewitz@gmail.com
Baseball
| PLAYER | SCHOOL | GP | BA | H | HR | RBI |
| Elijah Crespo, Penns Grove | RCSJ-Cumb | 13 | .167 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Lucas D’Agostino, Schalick | RCSJ-Cumb | 16 | .250 | 7 | 0 | 11 |
| Andrew Pedrick, Woodstown | Harford CC | 22 | .388 | 26 | 2 | 26 |
| Lucas Prendergast, Woodstown | York | 34 | .425 | 54 | 5 | 25 |
| Jarrett Pokrovsky, Schalick | Penn | 31 | .287 | 35 | 1 | 14 |
| Terrell Robinson, Salem | Rosemont | 23 | .246 | 15 | 0 | 9 |
| Jackson Schalick, Schalick | Frostburg | 40 | .368 | 49 | 5 | 41 |
| Caiden Spinelli, Woodstown | Rosemont | 29 | .283 | 26 | 0 | 11 |
| Connor Starn, Pennsville | Keystone | 10 | .154 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Rocco String, Woodstown | Salem CC | 26 | .263 | 20 | 3 | 22 |
| Chase Swain, Woodstown | LaSalle | 39 | .368 | 56 | 8 | 33 |
| Mike Valente, Woodstown | Salem CC | 8 | .000 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Brent Williams, Woodstown | G-Beacom | 26 | .284 | 27 | 2 | 17 |
| PITCHER | SCHOOL | GP | W-L | ERA | IP | K |
| Evan Biddle, Salem | Frostburg | 7 | 1-0 | 7.56 | 8.1 | 6 |
| Lucas D’Agostino, Schalick | RCSJ-Cumb | 9 | 3-2 | 2.56 | 38.2 | 35 |
| Ben Foote, Woodstown | Caldwell | 5 | 1-1 | 16.62 | 4.1 | 2 |
| Jack Holladay, Woodstown | Neumann | 5 | 0-3 | 12.83 | 13.1 | 11 |
| Peyton O’Brien, Pennsville | Harford CC | 6 | 0-0 | 0.90 | 10.0 | 11 |
| Luke Pokrovsky, Schalick | Penn | 11 | 0-0 | 11.85 | 13.2 | 14 |
| Terrell Robinson, Salem | Rosemont | 4 | 0-0 | 8.10 | 6.2 | 2 |
| Caiden Spinelli, Woodstown | Rosemont | 2 | 0-0 | 27.00 | 1.1 | 1 |
| Rocco String, Woodstown | Salem CC | 4 | 0-1 | 46.29 | 2.1 | 4 |
| Mike Valente, Woodstown | Salem CC | 7 | 2-1 | 6.05 | 19.1 | 11 |
| Luke Wood, Pennsville | McDaniel | 8 | 3-1 | 5.08 | 33.2 | 29 |
Softball
| PLAYER | SCHOOL | GP | BA | H | HR | RBI |
| Emily Holladay, Woodstown | Hartwick | 7 | .200 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| Tulana Mingin, Woodstown | East Stroudsburg | 40 | .331 | 44 | 0 | 5 |
| Ava Ortiz, Salem | Salem CC | 12 | .455 | 5 | 0 | 3 |
| Savannah Palverento, Pennsville | Salem CC | 34 | .350 | 28 | 2 | 25 |
| Lilly Peverelle, Pennsville | Salem CC | 36 | .472 | 51 | 4 | 37 |
| Bella Rappa, Pennsville | Salem CC | 28 | .444 | 32 | 0 | 31 |
| Cayla Sbrana, Schalick | RCSJ-Cumb | 17 | .286 | 12 | 0 | 7 |
| Sawyer Simmons, Pennsville | Salem CC | 26 | .275 | 14 | 1 | 11 |
NOTE: Tulana Mingin has 33 runs and is 16-20 in stolen bases
| PITCHER | SCHOOL | GP | W-L | ERA | IP | K |
| Savannah Palverento, Pennsville | Salem CC | 14 | 2-0 | 7.11 | 21.2 | 25 |
| Cayla Sbrana, Schalick | RCSJ-Cumb | 8 | 2-6 | 10.07 | 41.0 | 13 |
| Raegan Wilson, Salem | Salem CC | 17 | 7-6 | 7.22 | 64.0 | 40 |
Top photo: Penn’s Jarrett Pokrovsky (Schalick)
This week’s schedule
Here is the Salem County sports calendar for the week of April 20-25; all games at 4 p.m. unless noted; senior trips reduce the high school slate
MONDAY, APRIL 20
BASEBALL
Salem Tech at Pilgrim Academy
SOFTBALL
Buena at Salem Tech, 3:45 p.m.
Schalick at Gloucester County Christian
GOLF
Woodstown vs. Wildwood, Town & Country
Salem Tech vs. Clayton, The Birches
TUESDAY, APRIL 21
BASEBALL
Penns Grove at Overbrook
Salem Tech at Clayton
BOYS GOLF
Schalick vs. Overbrook, Centerton CC, 3:30 p.m.
Salem Tech vs. Wildwood, Union League National, 3:45 p.m.
GIRLS GOLF
South Jersey Open, Westwood GC
TENNIS
Pitman at Schalick
TRACK
Salem at Cherokee, 3:30 p.m.
Penns Grove at Schalick, 3:45 p.m.
BOYS VOLLEYBALL
GCIT at Salem Tech, 3:45 p.m.
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Bergen at Salem CC, 3:30 p.m.
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Salem CC at Morris, 3:30 p.m.
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 22
BASEBALL
Overbrook at Penns Grove
SOFTBALL
Penns Grove at Overbrook
TENNIS
Winslow at Penns Grove
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Salem CC at Bergen, 3:30 p.m.
THURSDAY, APRIL 23
SOFTBALL
LEAP at Penns Grove
BOYS GOLF
Salem Tech vs. Pitman, Sakima CC, 3:45 p.m.
Woodstown vs. Sterling, Town & Country, 3:45 p.m.
TENNIS
Schalick at Haddon Heights
TRACK
Penn Relays
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Salem CC at Brookdale, 3:30 p.m.
FRIDAY, APRIL 24
BASEBALL
Buena at Salem
Cape May Tech at Salem Tech
Penns Grove at Winslow
SOFTBALL
Lower Cape May at Salem
TRACK
Penn Relays
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Salem CC at RCSJ-Gloucester, 3:30 p.m.
SATURDAY, APRIL 25
BASEBALL
Schalick at Vineland, 1 p.m.
SOFTBALL
Salem Tech at Highland, 10 a.m.
TRACK
Penn Relays
COLLEGE BASEBALL
RCSJ-Gloucester at Salem CC (2), noon
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Raritan Valley at Salem CC, noon
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