Monroe well armed for GMCT

By: Ken Weingartner
   There’s an adage in baseball that momentum is only as good as the next day’s starting pitcher.
   As the Monroe High baseball team tries to build momentum for the Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament, pitching might be what sets the Falcons apart.
   The Falcons are the fourth seed in the tournament, behind South Brunswick, Spotswood and Edison. Although Monroe lost consecutive games heading into today’s (Friday’s) GMCT clash against No. 20 South River – which upset North Brunswick 10-4 Wednesday – coach Greg Beyer knows pitching plays a key role come playoff time.
   "That’s what makes baseball a tough game to predict; you’re changing your pitcher each game," Beyer said. "But I think we’re fairly deep in our pitching. To win playoff games you have to be good and you have to be a little lucky.
   "One thing I know is we’re good enough to beat anyone we have left to play. But they’re not giving us any games. That’s where luck comes in. You can play a team you should beat six out of 10 times, and if you’re unlucky one of the four losses will come up. You can hit line drives all over the place, but if you’re unlucky, they’re right at people."
   Beyer was undecided who would pitch today, but it would be either Mike Doros or Marc Povlosky, who has tossed only four innings the last three weeks because of a sore arm. Monroe, which is 13-7, will be looking to rebound from a 12-8 loss against Cherry Hill West and 8-4 setback to once-beaten Spotswood.
   "Part of it is that we’re not playing well, the other part is that balls are falling for the other team and not for us," Beyer said. "Plus, you play good teams to prepare yourself for the playoffs. We lost two games, but they’re playoff-caliber teams. We could have picked up two easy games and cruised into the tournament, but that wouldn’t have helped us.
   "I think we’re going to come out and play well, but there aren’t any easy games left."
   Mike Lezzo hit a two-run homer for Monroe in its game against Cherry Hill West. Jarred Jimenez, who is hitting .485 this year, scored four runs and had four stolen bases, giving him 29 for the season.
   Jimenez homered against Spotswood and Marc Magliaro had three hits. For the season, Nick Alberino has a school-record 30 RBI.
   Last week, Monroe beat Colonia 10-8 to claim the GMC White Division championship. It was the Falcons’ first crown since 1994. Alberino had three hits while Rich Feldhan had four RBI to lead the squad past the Patriots.
   Monroe was 14-14 last season and 6-17 in 2004.
   "That’s a tremendous accomplishment for our kids," Beyer said. "It shows how far they’ve come the last two years. It’s really great. The kids earned it."