Ocean County Tournament, Shore vs. CVC Challenge Share Spotlight in Busy Day of Softball at Adventure Crossing

JACKSON — It was a busy day at Adventure Crossing USA with two major softball events in action on the same day.

The Shore Conference hosted the first annual Shore vs. CVC Challenge, which pitted seven of the best Shore Conference teams against seven of the best Colonial Valley Conference teams.

Meanwhile, sixteen Ocean County teams started the day on adjacent fields, hoping to advance to the Ocean County Tournament semifinals.

Jackson Advances Behind Balanced Effort

Jackson, who returns a good portion of the Jackson Memorial team that defeated Pinelands last year in the finals, made quick work of Brick in their first round game, winning 17-0, and followed that with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Toms River South.

“The girls have been excited about this tournament all year,” Jackson head coach Laura Borrelli said. “The Memorial kids had that experience last year, and they are looking to defend their title. There are a lot of good teams in the tournament, so we are just trying to take it game by game.”

Sophomore pitcher Mia Ingenito struck out three batters and only allowed two hits in two innings to earn the win. Junior Summer Hunter contributed a triple and drove in eight runs. In the second-round game, senior pitcher Emily Hersh struck out three and earned the victory. Meanwhile, Jackson scored two runs in the bottom of the first inning and held Toms River South scoreless despite their baserunners. Last year, Hersh struck out eight in a shutout to help Jackson Memorial win 1-0 in nine innings.

“It is huge to have two pitchers, and we have another kid that pitched for me at Liberty for three years who is a senior,” Borrelli said. “Having a deep line-up is crucial, and it is a very fluid line-up. Whoever is on that day is what we roll with, which is great.”

Toms River East Powers Into Semifinals

Jackson, who is the 2-seed, will host the 3-seed Toms River East in the semifinal round.

The Raiders beat Brick Memorial in the first round 14-4 and defeated Point Boro in the second round 8-0.

Junior Kylie Paladino drove in six runs in two games, hitting two home runs in the first game. Paladino also struck out nine batters to earn the victory on the mound for Toms River East.

Barnegat Tested After Fast Start

On the other side of the bracket, top-seeded Barnegat defeated (16) Lakewood 18-2 in the first round. Junior Tristian Zalewski struck out five batters to earn her first win of the season. Junior Gianna Skwirut drove in four runs, and Amilianna Roach drove in three runs on two doubles.

“Having the number one seed allowed us strategically to play things a little differently,” Barnegat head coach Michael Palmieri said. “We didn’t have to pitch Gianna [Gomez] in back-to-back games, so that helped as well.”

In the Bengals second-round game, they had to battle back against (9) Pinelands and score two runs in the bottom of the 5th inning to win 3-2. Junior pitcher Gianna Gomez struck out 13 batters to raise her total to 138 on the season.

Sophomore Brooke Rizzo drove in Riley Schmidt, who started the inning off with a double, on a sacrifice fly to left field. Rizzo advanced to third on a single by Jadeyn Bodziak. Gomez drove in Bodziak, the game-winning run, on a fielder’s choice to the third baseman.

“This game will make us better for the rest of the season,” Palmieri said. “You put up a couple of 10, 12 run games, it does not make you any better. So we squeaked out a 1-0, 2-1, and 3-1. It shows we can come back and win these games, and it will pay dividends as we go deeper into the season.”

Southern’s Offense Erupts

Barnegat will host (5) Southern in the semifinal round. Southern’s bats were busy today, beating (12) Lacey 11-0 in the first round and (8) Central 14-1 in the second round.

Senior Emily Zellman went 2-for-3 with a double and a home run to straight-away center field in the first game. Senior Kaedyn Lipowski went 3-for-3 with a double, a home run, and a career-high six RBI. Junior Samantha Jillson struck out 10 batters in the shutout victory.

Junior Brooke Sutter struck out seven batters and did not allow an earned run in the second round for Southern. Southern proved they have one of the deepest line-ups in Ocean County against Central. Junior Madilyn Duralek drove in four runs on three hits, and Kendra Perrini drove in three runs on two hits.

Other First-Round Results

In the other first-round games, (6) Point Boro beat (11) Point Beach 8-3. The Panthers were trailing 3-2 going into the bottom of the 5th inning when they scored two runs to take a 4-3 lead and added four more in the 6th inning to seal the victory.

(9) Pinelands, who reached the finals last year, defeated (8) Toms River North 7-3. The Wildcats were leading 4-3 after 5 innings and scored three runs in the 6th to put the game out of reach. Sophomore Rory Krier struck out 12 batters on the mound for Pinelands.

(4) Central had 10 hits in the first round to beat (13) Manchester 10-3. Junior Kayla Fedor hit her third home run of the season and drove in three runs in the game. Jaelynn Witte and Kayla Rasmussen both drove in two runs for Central.

In a game that had four lead changes, (7) Toms River South beat (10) New Egypt 7-5 in the first round. TRS only had four hits, but took advantage of four errors by New Egypt. Sophomore Ella Fischer had a double and two RBI’s, and Samantha DiNicola had a double and one RBI for the Indians.

Shore Conference Dominates Showcase

The Shore Conference flexed its muscles today and showed why it is one of the best conferences in New Jersey. The Shore teams went 6-1 in the first-ever Shore Vs. CVC Challenge at Adventure Crossing in Jackson.

“It is a great day for softball all-around with the Ocean County Tournament being here too,” Marlboro head coach Nick Scalzo said. “Not only is the weather great, but Adventure Crossing is an awesome venue. Not a lot of teams have the opportunity to do this, and having the Shore Conference against the CVC, which has been fantastic year in and year out. It is nice to play new teams and challenge our kids.”

Every team from the American Division, along with Donovan Catholic, faced off against the Colonial Valley Conference.

“We wanted to get top teams playing each other,” said Colts Neck head coach Anthony Iachello, who organized the event. “A lot of the coaches in our division [American Division] were saying they had a hard time getting games, so we figured this would be a great opportunity for everybody to get some quality softball.”

Quality softball was an understatement of how the event went. Four of the seven games were decided by one run, and three games ended in the bottom of the 7th in walk-off style. The Shore Conference’s lone defeat was a foot away from being tied in the bottom of the 6th inning.

RBC Walks It Off in Extras

Red Bank Catholic (5-3) started the day with a 2-1 walk-off win in the bottom of the 8th inning against Allentown. The Caseys were trailing after the 1st inning after Allentown (11-4) scored an unearned run against Mackenna Savage. Savage finished the game with 15 strikeouts, bringing her total to 110 for the season.

Junior Grace Grimaldi was the hero for the Caseys in the bottom of the 8th inning, driving in Grace Lombardi. Lombardi led off the inning with a single to left field and advanced to second on an error. Sophomore Vivian Rudolph laid down a sacrifice bunt to the pitcher to move Lombardi to third. After two intentional walks to Savage and Jayden Kane, Grimaldi singled to center to win the game.

SJV Tops Defending Group 3 Champs

While the RBC game was ending, No. 1 St. John Vianney was battling three-time defending Group 3 champions Steinert (6-3). Lead-off hitter Brynn Utter started the game with a home run, and Madison McDougall followed with a line-drive single that was missed by center field, allowing McDougall to score.

Steinert responded with two runs in the top of the 2nd inning, but SJV regained the lead with Utter’s second RBI, driving in Peyton McDougall. The Lancers added two insurance runs in the 6th inning and ultimately defeated Steinert. Madison McDougall finished with eight strikeouts and did not allow an earned run.

Marlboro Earns Statement Win

Steinert, the only CVC team to play twice, faced No. 6 Marlboro (6-2) in its second game. Marlboro scored once in the 1st and twice more to secure a 3-0 win.

“This win is huge for us,” Marlboro head coach Nick Scalzo said. “It’s our biggest win of the year. They’re ranked 15th in the state, three-time defending champs going for number four. Beating a team like that and playing our best game means a lot.”

Junior Isabella Wuelfing continues to swing the bat well, going 3-for-3 in the game with a double and scoring all three of the Mustang runs. Wuelfing’s first run came in the 1st inning after she doubled and scored on a single by Emily Gaudio.

Wuelfing later scored in the 3rd and 5th innings, both on Ashlee Chen’s RBIs. Chen went 3-for-3 with a double, giving Gaudio breathing room. Gaudio allowed only four hits and no walks.

Colts Neck Falls in Pitchers’ Duel

While the Marlboro game was starting, another one-run game was wrapping up on another field. No. 5 Colts Neck (2-6) fell to Northern Burlington (10-1) 1-0. The lone run was scored in the top of the 1st inning for Northern Burlington, on a double down the left field line.

Colts Neck nearly tied it in the 6th. Gabby Bryce hit a two-out double for her 100th career hit. Adrianna Bryce singled, but center fielder Haley MacArthur’s throw beat Bryce at the plate.

Despite the loss, Colts Neck welcomed back ace Angela Sasso, who had missed games due to injury. She struck out 12 and walked none, returning to dominant form.

 

“She [Sasso] said she felt good throughout the whole game,” Iachello said. “She pitched her butt off and did a great job. We will check up with her tomorrow and see if there’s any soreness and go from there.”

Donovan Catholic Walks It Off

Later in the day, the fifth matchup featured No. 2 Donovan Catholic (9-0) in a back-and-forth battle that ended with a walk-off single to the gap by Caroline Kopp, sealing a 4-3 win over Robbinsville (5-3).

Kopp earned the win in relief, coming in with one out in the 6th after starter Gylian Hixenbaugh. At the plate, Kopp went 2-for-3 with a double and two RBIs and struck out one batter.

Auburn commit Bella Maria sparked the rally with a one-out single and a stolen base, advancing to third on an error. Kopp then drove a 2-0 pitch to right-center for the walk-off win.

Middletown South Wins Thriller

A pitching duel unfolded between No. 3 Middletown South (7-2) and Notre Dame (6-3) in the sixth game, which ended with an inside-the-park home run for the Eagles, giving Middletown South the win. In the bottom of the 7th, junior Nora Sarcone drove a 1-0 pitch to right field that reached the fence, while she sped around the bases.

“My approach was to get the bat on the ball and get a single,” Sarcone said. “That is all I wanted. I wanted to get on base because I knew the people behind me were going to do their job.”

Middletown South took a 1-0 lead in the third on Celia Collings’ RBI single. Chloe Testa reached on a misplayed bunt, advanced to second on Ciare Sparandero’s sacrifice, and moved to third on Riley Smith’s grounder to second.

Notre Dame was able to manufacture a run at the top of the 6th inning to tie the game 1-1. Smith, who has been one of the best pitchers all season in the Shore Conference, struck out 10 batters and allowed Notre Dame to get two hits in the game.

Notre Dame took advantage of an 1-out walk by Mia DiBari, who then stole second base. She would score on a single by Isabella Mayer.

Smith would close the door on Notre Dame in the top of the 7th with a 1-2-3 inning, getting two ground outs and striking out her 10th batter.

“We are really grateful to be here, and we are lucky to play against teams that you wouldn’t normally see,” Smith said. “It gives you a different view of a different pitcher, and every pitcher pitches differently, so it can add another idea into our brains, and seeing something different helps us become better hitters. Playing in our division and playing teams like this is just going to make our state run a lot better.”

Middletown North Caps Dominant Day

The final game matched Middletown North (4-7) with the Nottingham/Hamilton West co-op team. After a scoreless first inning, the Lions scored one run in each of the next four innings to take a 4-0 lead. Middletown North held Nottingham/Hamilton West to one run, giving the Shore Conference six wins in seven games. This dominant showing highlights the conference’s overall strength, a sentiment echoed by many involved.

“The Shore Conference, to me and no offense to anybody else, but I think it’s the best in the state, and I am a GMC guy,” Scalzo said. “I came from the GMC, and I used to think that we were the best. The Shore Conference puts out a good product every year, and so does the CVC. I am proud to represent the Shore Conference. I thank the Shore Conference for getting us better every day because there are no breaks.”