High School Baseball, Shore Conference Top 10, May 6

The division schedules are winding down this week, which means the Shore Conference Tournament is just around the corner. Talk of schedules and quality wins will begin to come into play as teams jockey for position in both the SCT and NJSIAA Tournament, which has its cutoff date set for this Friday.

Not much has changed within the Shore Conference this week, with the top seven teams from last week staying put. Some of those top seven suffered multiple losses, but the overall bodies of work still operate in their favor. At this point, the top nine teams seem like good bets to crack the top 10 in the SCT seeding should they all handle their business, but the last week of games could play tricks on the best of teams.

Through Monday's games:

1. Red Bank Catholic (15-1, 13-0) Last Week: 1

The Caseys have been almost perfect this season and stayed that way with two hard-fought wins over St. Rose and Manasquan in the last three days. For as good as they have been, it has all been leading up to the postseason and they will get their toughest test in some time when they take on Middletown South and its lockdown pitching staff on Saturday in the Monmouth County Tournament quarterfinals.

2. Jackson Memorial (16-1, 13-0) Last Week: 2

The Jaguars and Red Bank Catholic have been mirror images of one another, rolling together win after win against Shore Conference competition. The case can be made that Jackson has played the tougher schedule and should therefore be the No. 1 team, but RBC took the mantle by beating CBA in mid-April and has not done anything to give it up. To Jackson Memorial’s credit, the Jags have done all they can to make the move up.

3. Christian Brothers Academy (11-3, 10-2) Last Week: 3

The Colts are playing as well as any team in the conference, and their hot streak comes at the perfect time. CBA has flashed four standout arms on the mound and the offense is starting to get in gear as well, which means there could be three front-runners in the Shore Conference Tournament.

4. Toms River South (13-5, 9-4) Last Week: 4

The Indians lost to Manchester and Brick, but stay at No. 4 because they find ways to win the big game. Not only did they beat Toms River North on Thursday and win two OCT games over the weekend, but they did it without star slugger Russell Messler. Messler is back from a knee sprain and the Indians will look to add another big win to the resume when they host Jackson Memorial on Wednesday night.

5. Toms River North (12-5, 8-5) Last Week: 5

The Mariners are Ocean County’s answer to CBA. They have a deep, dominant pitching staff that has performed to expectations this season and buoyed the team thus far. The offense has been somewhat feast-or-famine, but when on, Toms River North’s bats can swing with anyone. With this pitching staff, nobody wants to see the Mariners in a tournament.

6. Wall (13-2, 10-1) Last Week: 6

The Crimson Knights locked down a division title this past week, a remarkable feat for a team of mostly varsity newcomers. Now it is time to turn the page to the tournaments, and who else is waiting for Wall in the MCT round of 16 but old nemesis Freehold. The Colonials handed Wall one of its two losses this year through Monday's games and also ousted them in both the MCT and NJSIAA Central Jersey Group III tournaments last year.

7. St. Rose (13-2, 12-0) Last Week: 7

The Purple Roses suffered their first two defeats of the season and both were close, shutout defeats to quality opponents (Red Bank Catholic and Manalapan). St. Rose should be a threat in the NJSIAA Tournament and don’t count them out in the Shore Conference Tournament either.

8. Middletown South (9-6, 8-5) Last Week: 3

The Eagles have yet to score more than four runs in a game this season and yet they are a serious threat to knock off RBC on Saturday and make a run at the Monmouth County title. With 32 runs allowed in 15 games, Middletown South is easily the best pitching-and-defense team out there.

9. Jackson Liberty (13-5, 11-2) Last Week: Not ranked

With some of the bigger division teams slipping up lately, it is time to finally recognize a Lions team that has been relatively steady all season. Monsignor Donovan has been tough on most of its schedule, but Jackson Liberty rolled past the Griffins in the second meeting between the teams to earn a season sweep. On the flip side, the Lions can’t seem to catch a break against top teams. They blew a 4-3 lead in the seventh inning against Toms River North and lost on walk-off hits to Toms River South and Jackson Memorial. Looking at it that way, they are not far from being a top-four team. In one-run games, Jackson Liberty is 2-4 this season, accounting for all but one of its losses.

10. Howell (9-5, 9-4) Last Week: 8

There are some smaller-division teams with similar or slightly better records, but the Rebels still have a resume that includes a win over CBA and a 9-4 mark in a loaded Class A North. When it looked like Howell might fall apart, the Rebels found a way to beat Middletown North on Friday.

Dropped Out

Colts Neck (8-8, 6-7) Last Week: 9 – The Cougars have played a ton of close games and those tend to be toss-ups. A .500 record is to be expected.

Brick (10-7, 7-6) Last Week: 10 – The Green Dragons have been rather streaky, but they have shown to be dangerous when they can line up their pitching.

On the Bubble

Monsignor Donovan (14-5, 8-5) Last Week: Not ranked – Win over Brick puts them on the cusp of Top 10 and knocking off Toms River North in the OCT quarters would pound down the door.

St. John Vianney (12-4, 9-4) Last Week: Not ranked – Like Monsignor Donovan, the Lancers are close to playing their way into the top 10 and can all but guarantee a spot by advancing another round in the county tournament.

Freehold (11-6, 6-6) – Winners of eight of their last nine, the Colonials have once again gone from disappointing to dangerous heading into the thick of tournament season.

Matawan (12-4, 8-3) - The Huskies have shown a knack for late-inning heroics this season and look to be a real threat to make a run to the Central Jersey Group II title in a wide-open bracket. They are just still searching for that signature victory after some near misses against top teams.