Class A North

Howell 9, No. 10 Middletown South 8

Junior Justin Steel went 2-for-4 with a home run, double, four RBI and two runs scored and the Rebels (2-0, 2-0) scored nine runs in the first two innings before holding on for a win over the Eagles (0-3, 0-2).

Junior Connor Fey and senior Matt Fletcher each went 2-for-3 for Howell, with Fey scoring and driving in a run and Fletcher knocking in two. Senior Dan Matrisciano added a double and a run scored for Howell. Senior Nick Poyer allowed one earned run over three innings to earn the win.

Junior Johnny Zega went 2-for-4 with a home run, two runs scored and three RBI to lead the Middletown South attack, which nearly came all the way back from a 9-1 deficit. Junior Dave Mangarelli went 3-for-4 with a double, an RBI and a run scored, senior Nolan Pereless finished 2-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI, and junior Freddie Yahn was 2-for-3 with an RBI in the loss.

 

Class A South

Brick 13, Brick Memorial 1

Senior Carmen Sclafani homered and drove in three runs to lead an offensive attack that broke open the game with eight runs in the top of the sixth, sparking the Green Dragons (3-0, 3-0) to a win over the Mustangs (0-3, 0-3), their third straight to open the season.

Matt Greenberg also added two hits and three RBI for Brick, while junior Trevor Rowe knocked in a pair as well in a 2-for-5 day at the plate. Matt Rosace also went 3-for-6 with an RBI for the Green Dragons, while Nick Moglia added an RBI single in the eight-run outburst.

Sophomore Mike Soldo pitched five scoreless innings for his first varsity win, allowing two hits and two walks while striking out five.

No. 3 Toms River North 8, No. 2 Jackson Memorial 7

Junior third baseman Joey Rose was 3-for-4 with a home run, double, three runs scored and three RBI and senior right-hander Brett Hyers recorded the final five outs to squash a Jackson Memorial rally and give the Mariners (2-0, 2-0) a win over the rival Jaguars (0-2, 0-2).

Hyers entered the game with the tying run on second and the go-ahead run on first in the bottom of the sixth inning with one out. The senior then picked off the runner at first base for the second out of the inning and won an 11-pitch battle against Jaguars senior left fielder Rich Rountree by inducing an inning-ending fly-out to center. Hyers retired the side in order in the seventh to nail down the save.

Rose doubled home a run with a line drive to the right-center gap in his first at-bat in the top of the first and the Mariners jumped ahead, 2-0, before Jackson Memorial came to bat. The Jaguars answered with three in the bottom of the first, ignited by a leadoff home run to right field by junior third baseman Kyle Johnson.

The Jaguars added a run in the second to go up 4-2 when Johnson tripled with one out and scored on an RBI single by senior second baseman John Carello.

Rose tied the game with a two-run blast to left field in the top of the third after designated hitter Joe Venditto reached on an error. Toms River North then took the lead on a two-out RBI double to right-center by sophomore shortstop Mike Nyisztor in the top of the fourth inning. Nyisztor then scored on an RBI single by senior center fielder Kevin Blum to make it 6-4 heading to the bottom of the fourth.

Toms River North added two unearned runs in the fifth inning off Jackson Memorial reliever Jim Plaganis to go up 8-4, with Rose starting the rally with a leadoff single, followed by a wind-aided single on a high pop-up by junior Jeff Ciervo and two more errors for Jackson Memorial.

Ryan Larsen pitched 4 2/3 to earn the win for Toms River North, allowing five runs on 10 hits, three walks and six strikeouts. He stranded runners in scoring position with inning-ending strikeouts in the second, third and fourth innings.

No. 7 Toms River South 11, Toms River East 6

Senior Ray Liguori belted a two-run home run and closed out the game with a two-inning save to lead the Indians (2-0, 2-0) to a win over the rival Raiders (1-1, 1-1), Toms River South's second straight victory to open the season.

Liguori finished 3-for-4 with four RBI and his homer in the bottom of the sixth keyed a four-run inning that helped Toms River South break open a 7-6 game. Liguori has now thrown 15 1/3 straight scoreless innings dating back to last year.

Toms River East cut the deficit to 7-5 on a grand slam by senior Jon Meola in the top of the fifth inning and pulled within 7-6 in the sixth when senior Jim Arnold tripled and scored on a ground out.

Toms River South jumped out to a 7-0 lead after three, beginning with a four-run first. Liguori came through with a two-run single to open the scoring and senior right fielder Jake Ryan blasted a two-run home run over the scoreboard in right field. Senior first baseman Spencer Kapp also doubled and scored in the four-run first and added a two-run doubled in the sixth.

Senior shortstop Austin Gonella was 2-for-4 with an RBI and junior center fielder Michael Conover finished 2-for-3 with a two-run single in the third to push the lead to 7-0. Senior right-hander Vinny Scrudato allowed one hit over 3 2/3 innings to earn the win.

Junior Chad Leonard also tripled for Toms River East, while seniors Will Johnson and Josh Sommerer each ripped a double in the loss.

 

Non-Division

Ocean 7, Monmouth 0

Senior right-hander Anthony Bartolomei fired a two-hit shutout with five strikeouts and the Spartans (2-0) topped the Falcons (1-1) to win their second straight to open the season. Bartolomei, Marc Chernin, Sam Maxwell, Jake Talarico and Tyler Rossback each chipped in a hit and an RBI and junior Brian Kochenash finished 1-for-1 with two walks, two runs scored and a stolen base.

Point Boro 17, Neptune 7 (5 Innings)

Senior Quin Hornish went 2-for-3 with a home run, two runs and two RBI to lead a potent Panthers (1-2) offensive attack in a win over th Scarlet Fliers (0-2). Junior Sam Monaco was 2-for-3 with three runs scored and an RBI, while junior Mike Falconetti went 2-for-2 with a double and two RBI.

Junior Mark Leyble went 1-for-3 with a double and three RBI, senior Jack Fitzsimmons was 1-for-3 with three runs scored and junior Sebastian Severio finished 1-for-2 with a double and two RBI for Point Boro.

Pete Maruca went 3-for-3 with a double, two RBI and a run scored to lead Neptune, while Matt Jegou was 2-for-3 with a double, two runs scored and an RBI in the loss.

Freehold 9, Shore 2

Junior Steve Rullo, junior Marco Meleo and senior Dante Cuzzolino each had two hits and junior Nick Zuppi pitched six strong innings to lead the Colonials (2-1) to a win over the Blue Devils (1-1). Rullo finished 2-for-2 with a triple, a run scored and an RBI, Cuzzolino was 2-for-4 with a double, two runs scored and an RBI, and Meleo went 2-for-5 with two RBI.

Zuppi allowed a run on four hits and two walks while striking out seven to earn the win on the mound. Senior Frank Granato also added two RBI and sophomore Chris Cassandra was 1-for-4 with two runs scored and an RBI.

 

Non-Conference

Lacey 5, Holy Spirit 4

Sophomores Paul Carluccio and Brandon Haggerty starred at the plate and senior Brett Kinsey earned his first varsity win on the mound as the Lions (2-1) rallied from an early 3-0 deficit to win their second straight.

Carluccio went 2-for-4 and knocked in what proved to be the winning run with a single in the top of the sixth, while Haggerty finished 3-for-4.

Cedar Creek 8, Southern 4

Cedar Creek scored all eight of its runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to spoil five-plus solid innings by sophomore Zach Fillmore in the Rams' third straight loss to open the season.

Junior Jared Lubanski singled home a run in the top of the fourth and sophomore Antonio Dinis doubled in a run in the fifth to give Southern a 2-0 lead. Fillmore allowed one run in his five-plus innings while striking out five.

Middletown North 6, Woodbridge 3

Junior Kyle Capo went 2-for-3 with an RBI and Phil Pecherski worked five innings for the win and the Lions topped the Barrons for their second straight victory to open the season.

No. 9 Marlboro 10, Hudson Catholic 0 (5 Innings)

Senior Steve Epstein and junior Jeremy Dyzenhaus combined on a five-inning no-hitter and the Mustangs (2-0) rolled to their second straight 10-run game to open the season. Epstein faced one batter over the minimum in four innings, allowing just a walk while striking out two.

Senior center fielder Mike Santaromita went 2-for-3 with a triple, two runs scored and two RBI and senior second baseman Jeremy Gerringer was 2-for-3 with two runs scored. Junior outfielder Matt Discuillo also knocked in three runs in a 1-for-3 day, while sophomore shortstop Will Trocchiano finished 1-for-1 with two runs scored and two RBI. Senior third baseman Steve Santigate also doubled for Marlboro.

 

Diamond Classic

At Diamond Nation, Flemington

Washington Twp. 10, No. 3 Toms River North 6

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