BY VIN RAPOLLA
Staff Writer
CHRIS KELLY staff Sayreville catcher Caitlyn Moskwa blocks the plate while applying the tag on South Brunswick’s Courtney Breese during Tuesday’s game in Sayreville. Though they didn’t score on this play, the Vikings did cross the plate enough to post a 7-0 win and improve to 8-5 on the season. Joe Riggins, the fictional manager of the Durham Bulls in the cult-classic comedy “Bull Durham,” simplified the game of baseball when he said, “You throw the ball, you catch the ball, you hit the ball.”
This year’s South River High School baseball team is finding out that two-out-of-three doesn’t get it done.
This year’s Rams squad has played to a 6-9 mark, a solid effort when you consider how much the team has struggled at the plate.
“We’re not hitting,” said eighth-year head coach Michael Lepore. “Our pitching has been keeping us in games, but we’re struggling at this point.”
With several batters hovering around the .300 mark, Lepore said it has been in key spots where the Rams have struggled the most, leaving runners on scoring position far too often.
“We’re not hitting when we need to,” he said. “As a result, we’ve lost four games by one run, and have been in every game. With a couple of breaks here and there, this season could look totally different at this point.”
South River’s pitching has been strong, with the rotation posting a 3.29 earned run average (ERA) as a unit — among the best in the Greater Middlesex Conference.
“These guys have been terrific all year for us, but it’s been tough for them because we don’t hit behind them,” the coach said.
Frank Fiumecaldo heads the staff and is 2-2 with a 2.10 ERA. He has struck out 48 batters in 36 innings.
He’s followed by Dom DeCorso and Dan McCluskey, who have been solid as well when given the ball this spring.
Lepore also credits senior catcher Kevin Periera with the pitching staff’s success, calling him one of the better defensive catchers in the county.
“He’s thrown out seven would-be base stealers already and has done a real nice job defensively,” the coach said.
And while Lepore thinks his team should have a better record with the way that it has pitched and played defense, he is happy with the fact that all three starters will be back next year, with juniors Fiumecaldo and McCluskey, and sophomore DeCorso.
That’s not to say Lepore has given up on this season. He knows that if the Rams’ offense starts to come around, his squad could be a dangerous one down the stretch.
And the potential is certainly there, with good athletes up and down the lineup.
Junior second baseman Dan Szabo has been the team’s leading hitter thus far, batting at a .306 clip (15-for-49) with nine RBIs. Senior first baseman Dan Kosko is the leadoff batter, while senior shortstop Chip Perkin is also a solid offensive player.
Among the other players Lepore will look to step it up over the last few weeks of the campaign are junior left fielder Kevin Feaster, senior center fielder Tom Lefever, junior designated hitter Vinny Teofrio, senior Andrew O’Hara and junior Emil Imbriano, who split time at third base, and the tandem of Fiumecaldo and McCloskey, who share right field duties.
With the May 13 state playoff deadline rapidly approaching, the Rams find themselves in must-win situations over the next week and a half.
“We need to win four of our next five games to make the states, and that will be a very tough task,” Lepore said. “But you never know.”
What you do know is that if the Rams are to pull it off, they will certainly have to earn it.
The five-game stretch starts today with a game against Spotswood, followed by games with Metuchen on Saturday and Bishop Ahr on Monday.
“We’ve got a tough road ahead of us, but we’ll be there,” Lepore said. “Our goal from the start was to make the state tournament, so I’m kind of disappointed that it’s going to be so tough to reach that goal. I had higher expectations than how we’ve played.”
But the coach sees some good things this year as well.
“I guess the biggest positive is that for the first time in 15 years we have freshman, JV and varsity teams, and the freshman and JV teams are doing well,” he said.
Lepore credits his coaching staff with helping to build the program at South River, including middle school coach Mike DelAversano, freshman coach Dustin Sweet, JV coach Matt Musante and his assistant varsity coach Matt DeSantis.
Beyond his state tournament aspirations, Lepore simply hopes his team finishes strong.
“We’re looking at a low seed in the county tournament, but who knows, maybe we’ll upset someone,” Lepore said. “We just have to take it one game at a time.”
And throw the ball, catch the ball, and most importantly, hit the ball.
Notes … If the Rams fail to make the state tournament, they may have the unfortunate distinction of being the only local team on the outside looking in.
With less than two weeks remaining before the cutoff, all five of the other local teams have played their way into position to qualify for the states.
In the Red Division, both East Brunswick (8-5 entering yesterday’s game at Perth Amboy) and Old Bridge (also 8-5 entering yesterday’s game with division-leading South Brunswick) appear to be in good shape, while Spotswood, at 13-3, clinched the postseason berth long ago.
That leaves White Division rivals Sayreville, who improved to 8-7 with an upset of Colonia on Monday, and Monroe (9-7), who blanked Woodbridge on Monday, 11-0, to put itself in position to clinch a playoff berth.
The playoff picture is not nearly as rosy for local softball teams.While the East Brunswick Bears are a lock for the CJ Group IV tournament at 11-4, they are the only local girls team that is assured of a postseason berth.
Both Monroe and Old Bridge entered yesterday’s action at 8-6, and in need of some clutch wins over the next week and half.
Old Bridge traveled to sixth-ranked South Brunswick (8-5) yesterday, and will take on second-ranked Colonia (15-1) today, and a solid Edison (10-8) team tomorrow. But with four more games scheduled prior to next Friday’s state playoff deadline, the Knights still have quite a bit of work ahead of them.
Monroe hosted 10th-ranked J.F. Kennedy (8-7) yesterday, and will play an out-of-conference game against a solid Howell team (5-9) team today. Tomorrow, the Falcons will be severely tested at Colonia, before traveling to North Brunswick (5-7) on Monday and Spotswood (2-15) next Thursday.
South River’s girls are 5-8, but with just four games scheduled before the cutoff, need to win all four. That will be a tough assignment, starting with today’s game at home against Spotswood, and Saturday’s game against Metuchen (5-7). Next week they will travel to Highland Park (5-7) on Tuesday, before hosting St. Peter’s (2-10) on Thursday.