BY SHAWN LAYTON
Staff Writer
EDISON — In 1994, the J.P. Stevens High School softball team completed the penultimate trifecta by winning the Greater Middlesex Conference Red Division, the GMC tournament and a state title.
With the Red Division under their belt, the 2004 Hawks can earn a place in the record books alongside the storied team of ’94 with a string of wins this week. A win over Watchung Hills on Tuesday would put the team in the North Jersey Section 2 Group IV state championship game Thursday.
Likewise, a win over Old Bridge at South Plainfield High School on Wednesday and the Hawks will face the winner of the Middlesex and Bishop Ahr contest in Saturday’s GMC Tournament Semifinals.
"This could be a very big week for us," Stevens head coach Pete Catenacci said. "Then again, the season could end on Wednesday."
In his 23 seasons as head coach, Catenacci has led the team to six Red Division titles, five GMC Tournament Championships and two state titles. From 1998-2003, his teams won at least one of the three titles in all five years.
The Hawks advanced in both tournaments behind the arm of junior pitcher Becky Garibotto. In the 1-0 win over Bridgewater-Raritan in the quarterfinals of the state tournament, Garibotto recorded her second no-hitter of the season. Her first came a week earlier in a 2-0 win at South Brunswick.
Garibotto struck out eight Bridgewater hitters and walked none. She fanned another eight against the Vikings and issued just two walks.
"Becky is not an overpowering pitcher, but very few balls reach the outfield," Catenacci said. "She’s been flirting with no-hitters and perfect games for the last couple of weeks."
In Saturday’s 4-2 win over Sayreville in the GMC Tournament, Garibotto retired the first 15 batters in order. It wasn’t until the top of the sixth when Sayreville broke the almost-perfect game with a single.
The Hawks took a four-run lead in the bottom half of the fourth inning behind senior shortstop Stephanie Marciano’s game-winning, three-RBI double. For Marciano, it was her ninth game-winning hit this season, setting a new school record. The Hawks are currently 18-3.
"Nine game-winning hits out of 18 isn’t too bad," Catenacci said. "Stephanie also made a great stop at short, and Kristina Feltz made a nice stretch at first to get the runner and preserve the lead."
Right fielder Stefanie Kamin also enjoyed a productive day at the plate. Kamin finished the day 2-for-3 with a run scored and a RBI. Senior center fielder Kendra Goss was 2-for-4 with a stolen base.
Sayreville managed to make things interesting in their final plate appearance by putting two runs on the board.
"In the last inning, they suddenly started hitting the ball," Catenacci said. "They hit two singles and one double to make me nervous."
Garibotto kept her composure, finished off the Bombers, and now the Hawks will embark on their biggest week of the season.
Despite defeating Old Bridge twice earlier in the season, the Hawks understand how difficult it is to beat a team for a third time.
"The teams match up well," Catenacci said. "They are very similar to us. Their hitters can either be hot like us or cold like us. Whoever blinks first loses."
The Watchung Hills team the Hawks will meet in the state tournament semifinals is one of the state’s hottest and seasoned teams.
"Watchung Hills is a lot better than their record indicates," Catenacci said. "Their losses came to some of the better teams in the area, like Hunterdon Central and Hillsborough. You don’t get this far unless you’re pretty good."
Catenacci hopes a visit from former player and standout pitcher Lauren Belowich can make his good team even better.
Belowich is slated to pitch batting practice to the team this week in preparation for the approaching high stakes games. Belowich was the winning pitcher on the 2000 state championship team under Catenacci. In three years of varsity pitching, she recorded 927 strikeouts, 52 shutouts, two perfect games, 11 no-hitters, 13 one-hitters, and 25 two-hitters. She was a first-team All-American her senior year and currently pitches for Lafayette College.
"Lauren throws a nasty drop curve and the teams we will face this week throw a lot of junk pitches," Catenacci said. "If this doesn’t work, we’ll bring in Krystle Petty."
Petty is another Stevens graduate and former collegiate pitcher. She is currently the head softball coach at Metuchen High School.