Mustangs stay hot, slug way to victories

MHS hosts Ridge in SCT baseball

By: Rudy Brandl
   There’s an old adage that says be careful what you wish for. Manville High baseball coach Steve Venuto hopes his first-round bye in the Somerset County Tournament won’t lead to another early exit.
   Venuto attended last week’s county seeding meeting accompanied by MHS athletic director Pat LaMastro, a member of the rules committee and also the former head coach of the Mustangs. The current Manville skipper was looking for a little respect, something the smaller schools in the county rarely get.
   Manville was fresh off a 14-7 victory at Bound Brook, a win that ran the team’s record to 7-1. MHS was riding a five-game win streak and very few teams in Somerset County had a more impressive ledger. There’s always the question of competition, an issue teams like Manville, Bound Brook and Rutgers Prep face every time the county coaches convene to set up the bracket for the tournament.
   Venuto was looking for a ranking somewhere between 5-8, figuring his team would receive a preliminary round bye as long as Manville was seeded in the top eight. The 1-4 slots were locked up by powers Immaculata, Hillsborough, Watchung Hills and Montgomery.
   That left Manville to battle Somerville, Bridgewater-Raritan, Bernards, Rutgers Prep and Ridge for a spot in the next four. Somerville and B-R received the 5-6 slots, while the Mustangs earned the seventh seed.
   The No. 7 ranking gave Manville last weekend off and a second round home game. However, that county test will be a stiff one against a tough Ridge ball club that was seeded No. 10.
   "It’s nice we don’t have to play a preliminary and I’m happy we got a little respect," Venuto said. "But Ridge is tough. They don’t have a good record but that’s a good team."
   The Mustangs should look at this county game as an opportunity to prove they deserve the No. 7 seed. It’s a ranking that puts them in the upper half of the county field. It also gives them a chance to win and earn a trip to second-ranked Hillsborough, a team that was ranked third in last week’s state polls.
   Manville hasn’t defeated any team remotely close to top-20 caliber, but Venuto doesn’t feel his program should be penalized.
   "I’ve got 18 games, and 16 of them are in the conference," he said. "What am I supposed to do? We played South Hunterdon (non conference) and beat them just like Somerville did."
   Manville has started swinging the bats much better since its 10-3 loss at Dayton. The team has hit double figures in runs in almost every victory and last week’s 14-7 triumph at Robert Morris Park in South Bound Brook was a big one.
   "They know this game is my life, especially when we play Bound Brook," said Venuto, a former Middlesex High multi-sport star who loves to beat the Crusaders. "They came out hard. It’s a big win."
   The Mustangs needed to hit to support senior right-hander Ernie Lukacs (4-1), who gave up three doubles and seven singles in the victory. Manville never trailed but had to keep piling up runs to stay ahead on a windy day where balls were flying all over the place.
   "It was a slugfest," Venuto said. "Everything we hit just took off. Both teams hit the ball. The wind was tough."
   Manville used the long ball to score runs in bunches. Tommy Rock and Jeff Opachinski each belted their first homers of their varsity career. Rock smacked a three-run shot in the third when Manville took a 10-4 lead. Opachinski drilled a three-run blast in the sixth to make it 14-7.
   Rock and Opachinski, the first two batters in the lineup, scored runs in the top of the first when the Mustangs got it going. Rock walked and Opachinski doubled to put runners in scoring position. Steve Anderson singled in Rock and Opachinski scored on a fielder’s choice by Greg Babich.
   The Mustangs scored two more in the second. Scott Petzinger walked, Rock singled and Opachinski grounded out to score Petzinger. Rock came home on a base hit by Anderson, who went 4-for-5 with four RBI and two runs.
   Bound Brook tied the game at 4-4 but the Mustangs scored six times in the top of the third to regain a commanding lead. Kyle Sopko walked and Andrew Schaefer singled to put runners at the corners. Petzinger smacked an RBI single and Rock belted a three-run shot to center field.
   "That was a legit shot," Venuto said. "He got all of that."
   Anderson doubled and scored on a Babich ground ball to make it 10-4. Opachinski’s bomb to the road behind the left field fence capped the scoring in the sixth.
   Manville stretched its win streak to six straight games with an 8-3 home victory over Newark Technology last Friday. The team has scored 61 runs during the winning streak, which Venuto hopes to continue this week vs. Oratory Prep, St. Mary’s and Ridge. Saturday’s county game begins at 2 p.m. in Manville.