Wednesday saw four quarterfinal matchups in New Jersey high school baseball's Greater Newark Tournament. There weren't any upsets, but there were two close games, so let's dive in and find out what happened.
2 Seton Hall vs. 7 West Essex
Behind Roman Baldwin's pitching performance, the Pirates cruised to a 7-0 victory over the visiting Knights. At the dish, Vincent Mariniello's two-run single was crucial for the prep. However, Seton Hall got hits with runners in scoring position up and down their lineup.
William Brennan had an RBI single in the second inning, while JJ Drennan added a two-run single in the fourth. Seton Hall wasn't really tested in this one, but will they be in the semifinals? That remains to be seen as sixth-seeded Caldwell will head over to face Seton Hall in the semis on Seton Hall turf.
6 Caldwell vs. 14 Bloomfield
Balanced hitting with runners in scoring position was the key for Caldwell in their 12-2 victory over Bloomfield in the quarters. Dan Paris led all Caldwell hitters with two hits and three RBI, but his teammates, Joey Marinello and Julian Casale, had two RBIs apiece. Regarding pitching, Caldwell's Daniel Vybihal was electric, fanning six batters and allowing just one hit over five innings.
Sean Sayers had the only hit for Bloomfield who were thoroughly dominated partly because their starting pitcher Evit Dwyer conceded six runs (five earned) over the first three innings of the game.
Caldwell moves on to face second-seed Seton Hall in a road semi-final because it will be played at Seton Hall Prep.
4 Montclair vs. 5 Millburn
When the stakes were high at Woodman Field on Wednesday, Benjamin St. Pierre and the Mounties showed up. One of the Mounties' top hitters was their ace on the mound on Wednesday for Montclair's battle royale against Millburn. St. Pierre stayed on the mound for 6 1/3 innings and allowed just three hits and one earned run.
Montclair led 3-0 after the fourth inning thanks to RBIs from sophomore Patrick Van Note and seniors Mack Mathisen and Derek Lacey. In the seventh inning, Millburn gave Montclair a run for its money by scraping two runs across home plate, but that was all they got off of St. Pierre. Shea Goel came into the game and shut the door with 2/3 innings of shutout baseball to hold on for the victory. With the win, the Mounties booked their ticket to the semifinals, where top-seed Livingston awaits.
1 Livingston vs. 9 Barringer
Despite having the top seed in the Greater Newark Tournament, the quarterfinals took everything Livingston had to advance.
For Livingston, junior Julian Schultz started the game and pitched 3 2/3 innings where he struck out five batters. Jackson Becker came into the game in the fourth and proceeded to give up three runs over 2 2/3 innings. Junior Alex Yang led the way for Livingston offensively by contributing two RBI on two hits. The Lancers ace, Max Peri came in and closed the game by pitching for 2/3 innings and striking out one batter.
The Lancers advanced narrowly 5-4 past Barringer on Wednesday, earning them a place in the semifinals against the fourth-seed Montclair.
Jersey Sporting News will have continuing coverage of the Greater Newark Tournament.
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