St. Joe’s baseball caps season with GMC crown

BY SHAWN LAYTON Staff Writer

A3-2 win over Old Bridge gave the St. Joseph’s High School baseball team its third Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament title in the past five years. Left fielder George Gonzalez, the game’s Most Valuable Player, came up with a pair of clutch hits including the game-winner in the seventh inning.

Gonzalez, an accomplished hitter, struggled through the regular season as the team’s No. 9 hitter. He picked the perfect game to show the county just how well he can hit. His game-winning hit came against the county’s top pitcher, Mike Augliera.

“The entire team was peaking at the right time,” St. Joe’s head coach Paul Esposito said. “George delivered the big hit in the seventh, but he also had a big hit in the third inning when we plated our first run.”

In the third, the Falcons’ Rob Ellis reached base on a walk and was moved to third on a Gonzalez single. Esposito signaled for a double steal, and when Old Bridge’s catcher threw to third base, the ball sailed into left field. In the same inning, David Milanes knocked in Gonzalez with a single to right to give the Falcons a 2-0 lead.

Old Bridge got on the board in the third inning when Ian McIntyre’s triple drove in Rob Vafiadou. The Knights evened the score at 2-2 in the next inning when Joey Dunn’s single plated Tyler Brown.

Both Augliera and St. Joe’s Sean Hille were difficult to hit for the remainder of the contest. In the seventh, the Falcons’ Chris Bielak led off the inning with a base hit, and two outs later Gonzalez came up to bat and delivered the gamewinner, a line drive over the Old Bridge shortstop’s head. Old Bridge still had an opportunity in the bottom half of the inning, but Hille retired the Knights onetwo three.

During St. Joe’s run to the county title, the ninth-seeded Falcons knocked off No. 2 J.P. Stevens, No. 3 JFK, No. 4 Old Bridge, and No. 7 Colonia. Of the four wins, Hille won three and saved the other.

In order to win tournaments, you need your ace to step up,” Esposito said. “Sean came through for us in a big way. He was the biggest performer for us. In 21 innings, he allowed just four earned runs.”

Prior to the tournament win, the Falcons were bounced from the state tournament in a first-round loss to Holy Spirit. The team played well enough to win, and even held a 1-0 lead into the sixth, but Holy Spirit would eventually score the winning run on a wild pitch.

“It was a disappointing loss,” Esposito said. “We were playing really well at the time and felt poised to make a run in the states.”