In the midst of a week in which the entire Allentown community mourned the loss of one of its own, the high school baseball team managed to temporarily help ease the suffering with a historical achievement.
Above: Allentown’s Mike Ras proudly holds up the championship trophy after defeating Mahwah in the NJSIAA Group II baseball championship game at Toms River East High School on June 7. Below: Allentown’s Logan Gallagher (No. 17) slides safely across the plate during the game. The Redbirds, who have been one of the state’s best teams throughout the spring, cemented their status among the elite by routing Mahwah, 11-6, in Saturday’s NJSIAA Group II championship in Toms River. Their victory, which was celebrated throughout the close-knit community, comes after the tragic death of former student Briana Gaum.
Redbirds’ coach Brian Nice spoke of the cathartic nature of the victory, while respectfully keeping its importance in its proper perspective.
“It’s been especially nice given what the community has been through in the past week,” Nice said. “In what was one of the lowest moments in the school’s history, and as horrible as it was, it was nice that this gave people a reason to smile, at least for a couple of hours.”
CHRIS KELLY staff Since Saturday’s game, Nice and his players have been treated like royalty in a town that has waited a long time for a boys state title, in any sport.
“It’s been overwhelming, really,” said Nice of the reaction to the win.
“The whole community has seemed to come together, whether it was the 500 plus people at the games, or the well-wishers after we won with their emails and phone calls. It’s really been special the way the entire community has reacted.”
The game itself lacked any of the significant drama that usually accompanies a championship game. The Redbirds, who have been playing as well as anyone in the state over the last month, jumped onMahwah early, scoring five runs in the top of the first inning, led by Doug Ticse’s RBI single, and a three-run double from junior Thomas Koontz. Rob Guliano also had a big day, going 1-for-2 with three walks, three runs scored and two stolen bases.
“We knew from watching them and scouting them that they really had one very good pitcher,” he said. “He was 12-5 on the year, and to have 17 decisions in the 20-something games they played shows you that he was their guy. So we knew that if we could get to him early, and really work on his pitch count, that we’d be in good shape. Then we were fortunate enough to get a five-spot there in the top of the first and we were on our way.
“I don’t think he had his best stuff, and we were able to take full advantage of that.”
Meanwhile, Ethan Perro took the hill and completed his remarkable season with his 11th win. The unbeaten pitcher threw five innings before leavingwith an 11-4 lead, ending one of the best seasons of any pitcher in the state.
“Ethan has been our guy all season, and he finished the year 11-0,” Nice said. “He was brilliant in the regular season, and then was even better in the postseason, which is hard to believe. He gave up one earned run in 27 innings against the best teams we faced all year. You just can’t say enough about the way that he pitched, especially down the stretch.
“Knowing that you can put someone on the mound, and knowing the type of effort you’re going to get out of him is a real luxury.”
However, it was Allentown’s depth and balance that sparked this historical title run, as the Redbirds got game-changing contributions from a variety of players over the course of the postseason.
“One through nine, everybody on this team contributed,” Nice said. “If you just followed the headlines you saw the same guys, like Logan (Gallagher) and Ethan, coming up with big games, but honestly we had a very balanced attack.”
As he looks back over the past month and half of the season, Nice admits that his team’s run to its first state title did not come unexpectedly.
“Given the way they played at the end of the year, I really wasn’t surprised that they were able to win the whole thing, to be honest with you. This team really shined over the last month of the season, and we really hit our stride toward the end of the state tournament, playing against such a high level of competition.
“We won so many different types of games down the stretch,” he added. “We won our share of 1-0 pitchers’ duels, and had a couple of games where we had to come back and score a bunch of runs late in the game. This team just continued to come through every game.”
The championship caps a meteoric rise for this team, as the Redbirds entered the season coming off its finest campaign in school history- a 16-6 season that ended in the Central Jersey Group II championship game.
“Obviously (the championship) validates the program, and puts us up there as a legitimate state power,” Nice said. “We’ve had a lot of success the last few years, including being able to win the Patriot Division the last two years, but to be able to put that state title on the wall makes all the difference in the world.”
This year’s group of eight seniors has cemented its legacy atAllentownHigh School, and has raised the bar for future baseball teams at the school.And their departurewill certainly leave a void in the program.
“We’ve still got plenty of good players coming back,” he said.