Shore Sports Insider 2025 Softball Final Top 10

SSI Week Final Softball Top 10

 

Final Top 10

 

1. Donovan Catholic (24-1) Last Week: 1 – Donovan fell one run short in the Non-Public A title game against Mount St. Dominic. Trailing 3-1 after the first two innings, the Griffins battled back to tie the game at 3, but gave up a run in the start of the 7th to lose 4-3. Donovan proved that had one of the most dangerous offenses in the Shore Conference, scoring 8 runs and beating St. John Vianney 8-4 to win the South Jersey Non-Public A title for the first time since 2022. Donovan’s team had a mix of seniors and underclassmen. Seton Hall commit Christina Ginex is one of the biggest bats they will need to replace. Ginex finished the season with a .511 average and had a career average of .482. A total of five starters will graduate, all who batted over .300 this season. Donovan does bring back two of their three pitchers who rotated innings. Sophomore Gylian Hixenbaugh led the Griffins with 72.2 innings and a 1.06 ERA. Junior Dani Rodriguez pitched 62 innings and had a 2.37 ERA. Rodriguez was also dangerous at the plate with a .429 batting average. Auburn commit Isabella Maria will return to patrol center field next year. She currently has 142 hits and a .495 batting average over her first three seasons. 

2. Red Bank Catholic (19-5) Last Week: 3 – RBC had an early exit in the South Jersey Non-Public A tournament, but won their first Shore Conference Tournament title since 2010. Playing in the hardest division in New Jersey, the Caseys were able to defeat last year’s SCT winner St. John Vianney two times this season. The biggest win came in the SCT semifinal round to advance into the finals with a 1-0 win over SJV. RBC graduates five starters that all batted over .300 on the season. One of the biggest pieces RBC needs to replace is shortstop Nicole Knox. The UNC commit finished her career as the all-time leader in hits for RBC with 176 and a .543 batting average. RBC also graduates pitcher Lily Hagan who is committed to Notre Dame. Hagan finished with a 1.35 career ERA and 550 strikeouts. Hagan was also dangerous at the plate with a career .416 batting average and 20 home runs. RBC will build on Mackenna Savage’s season, who finished as the SSI Freshman of the Year. Savage batted .395 in first season and had a 2.89 ERA on the mound with 47 strikeouts over 36.1 innings pitched. 

3. St. John Vianney (18-3) Last WeeK: 2 – It was not the typical season for the Lancers in 2025. The defending Shore Conference Tournament Champions and Non-Public A State Champions failed to make it to either final this season. SJV fell to Donovan Catholic in the South Jersey Non-Public A final to end their season. The Lancers graduate two starters in catcher Elisabeth Figliolino and second baseman Nicole Giglio. Figliolino has been a leader behind the plate and will graduate with a .380 batting average. Sophomores Mia Favato and Brynn Utter made major strides in their second season with SJV. Utter finished the season with .406 batting average and 4 home runs and Favato finished with a .425 batting average and 3 home runs. Madison McDougall had her second straight season with an era under 1.00 with a 0.98 ERA. 

 

4. Colts Neck (15-11) Last Week: 4 – Colts Neck had an excellent postseason, making the championship games in both the Shore Conference Tournament and the Central Jersey Group 3 sectional, but fell short in both. With only three starters graduating, the Cougars will be favorites next season in both the Shore Conference and CJG3. Junior Angela Sasso continued to be dominant on the mound with 176 strikeouts and a 2.49 ERA. Sasso was also one of the best hitting pitchers this season with a .427 batting average. Fellow junior Gabriella Bryce finished with a .432 batting average and hit five out of her seven home runs in the second half of the season. Outfielder Jillian Heyser finished as one of the best freshmen in the Shore Conference with a .407 batting average, 4 home runs and 27 RBIs.

5.Marlboro (13-13) Last Week: 5 – Marlboro’s season came to end in the Central Jersey Group 4 semifinal round against Hunterdon Central. Hunterdon Central battled back from a 3-1 deficit to tie the game in the bottom of the 6th inning and won the game on a 2-run home run in the bottom of the 8th. Errors hurt the Mustangs from going to their third straight CJG4 final. Marlboro graduates several key pieces from their championship teams including infielders Aimee Notaro and Addison Ditillo. Both players graduate with a .390 career batting average and over 100 hits. Marlboro will still be one of the favorites in CJG4 with ace Emily Gaudio returning for her senior year. She finished with a 2.28 ERA and 159 strikeouts this season and batted .412 at the plate.

 

6. Southern (17-9) Last Week: 6 – Southern’s season came to an end against Kingsway in the South Jersey Group 4 semifinal. Kingsway, the eventual SJG3 champion, jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning and did not look back. Southern needs to replace three important hitters, two of them also pitched the majority of the innings this season. Emily Evans finished with a .494 batting average this season and had a 3.79 ERA on the mound. Evans was able to improve on her batting average all four years at Southern. Southern also needs to replace Madison Groschel-Klein who graduates with a career batting average of .341. Kayla Riley was the Rams second pitcher behind Evans who finished with a 3.68 ERA on the mound and had a .329 at the plate. Southern brings back two hitters who hit over .400 on the season. Junior Emily Zellman finished the season with a .443 batting average and scored 40 runs and Sophomore Abigail Krill finished with a .453 batting average, 7 home runs and 31 RBIs.

 

7. Middletown South (18-6) Last Week: 8 – Building on last season’s 13 wins and trip to the Central Jersey Group 3 semifinal round, Middletown South increased their wins to 18 and won Class B North this season. They fell one run short for a trip to the CJG3 final in a 3-2 loss to No. 4 Colts Neck. The Eagles have the majority of their team returning, with only center fielder Ella Gardner being the only starter graduating. Sophomore Riley Smith continued her dominance on the mound, finishing with a 1.70 ERA and 203 strikeouts this season. Smith is also one of four sophomores to help at the plate. Catcher Nora Sarcone, outfielder Ciara Sparandero and Smith all batted over .300 on the season. 

8. Middletown North (11-11) Last Week: 7 – Middletown North’s season did not end the way they wanted with a first round exit in the Central Jersey Group 3 sectional. The Lions dropped four of their last six games to end the season. Madilynn Boyce’s injury played a big part in the way the Lions season ended. Boyce finished her career with 1,050 strikeouts and a 2.13 ERA. She became the 26th pitcher in New Jersey’s history to reach the 1,000 strikeout milestone. Middletown North has a lot of pieces to replace, including Head Coach Chris Hoffman. Hoffman coached the Lions to a Group 3 title in 2019 and a North Jersey Section 2, Group 3 title in 2018. Sophomore Grace English pitched 23 innings and showed she has what it takes to replace Boyce next year. In her best performance to the season she held St. John Vianney to just one run that was unearned in a 1-0 defeat. 

9. Raritan (22-5) Last Week 9: – Raritan’s run ended in the Central Jersey Group 2 semifinals to top seeded Johnson. The young Rockets went from 14 wins a season ago to 22 wins this season and was a permanent fixture in the SSI Top 10 rankings. Raritan only graduates three seniors with all-shore outfielder Julia Del Masto being the biggest piece they will need to replace next season. Del Masto finishes her career with over 100 hits and a .416 batting average. Raritan had 8 underclassmen make a big impact this season and will look to build on that for next year. Freshman Katelyn Ruta finished with a 1.97 ERA on the mound and batted .343 with 7 stolen bases. 

 

10. Pinelands (18-5) Last Week: 10 – After back-to-back 12 win seasons, first year head coach Kelly Fleck was able to lead Pinelands to a 18 win season and a trip to the Ocean County Tournament final. Pinelands season came to a close in the second round of the South Jersey Group 3 sectional to Hammonton. The Wildcats only have two seniors on the roster, but they are two important pieces. Pitcher Elianna Meola won all 18 games for Pinelands and posted a 3.07 ERA and also had a .322 batting average in the lead-off spot. All-Shore catcher Hannah Theuret finishes her career with a .496 batting average. Pinelands returns two sophomores who both batted over .400 on the season. Cassie Gould finished with a .400 average and was a strong defender at second base and first baseman Kendall Falduto finished with a .411 batting average this season. 

 

Bubble: Barnegat, Jackson Memorial, New Egypt