The Hillsborough High baseball team joined some rare company when it repeated as Somerset County Tournament champions.
The Raiders became the first team since Immaculata in 2008 to repeat as county champions when they topped Watchung Hills, 3-1, last Saturday at TD Bank Park in Bridgewater.
“Immaculata is the only team in 43 years to win three in a row, which they did from 2006 to 2008 and they’ve never had a repeat other than that,” Hillsborough coach Eric Eden said. “This was the first time other than Immaculata that a team was able to repeat.
“With the one and done playoff system where you are not really in a series you have to show up and bring it and be on that day. You can’t have an off day.”
The sixth-seeded Raiders did not have an off day in the tournament as they came up with upset wins in the quarterfinals and semifinals to set up the final with ninth-seeded Watchung Hills. In the final, Mike Englehardt has a key two-run double and Dylan Finer tossed a five-hit complete game to earn the win on the mound. The Raiders added their third run when Kyle Zackeru scored from third on a fielder’s choice.
“Last year we were the fourth seed and this year sixth but when we’re playing at our best we feel like we can compete with anybody,” senior catcher Brian Cole said. “We find a way to start playing our best baseball at tournament time.”
Finer pitched like an ace in earning the win and the Hillsborough bats came through with enough runs. Unlike last year when the Raiders rode the arm of Matt Hornich to a title, this year’s team has a deeper staff that has more than one ace.
“He was a great asset because he could pitch in any position we needed and he pitched a lot of innings,” Cole said of Hornich. “This year we don’t have the stud ace but we have a bunch of different guys who are effective pitchers. Instead of throwing the ball we pitch and work multiple strategies and execute those strategies.
“We have two or three guys I know we can count on to keep the ball down and when they have command of their pitches they are tough to hit. The chemistry between pitcher and catcher is so import. With Dylan, I have all the confidence in giving him a curve sign when he is down in the count. We just have guys that can execute different pitches in different spots.”
Added Eden: “It’s never easy. Dylan has been our ace all year. We rode him. He seems to not let any moment get too big. He went out and threw extremely well and hit his spots and focused on the job that needed to be done. And we played good defense behind him.
“Mike Englehardt was big at the plate with two hits. It was one of those games where we came together as a team and picked each other up. We played very good defense. Our outfielders ran down balls. We just had some nice timely hitting.
The Raiders followed up their SCT win by topping Howell, 8-3, in the opening round of the Central Jersey Group 4 tournament. In that win, Chris Pudimott picked up the win on the mound.
Hillsborough would love to go on a run through the CJ IV tournament like it did three years ago when it reached the Group 4 state final.
“When they won in 2012 they had an unbelievable roster,” said Cole, a senior who will play at Kean University next year. “They started slowly and that team was just like this year and last year where when it comes to tournament play and you are motivated by a trophy we find ways to win. I’m not saying we’re not motivated by any other game, but when it is a win our go home situation we’re extra focused.”
The Raiders have been finding ways to win at tournament time for years and this year’s SCT was no different.
“You do as much as you can as a staff to prepare guys,” said Eden, whose team will play at Jackson Memorial in the CJ 4 tournament today. “We had played Watchung a couple times so we went down and created some spray charts and put time in off the field and came up with a good game plan and approach. But ultimately it comes down to the fact that no scouting report or game plan is worth a darn unless the players go out and execute.
“I am real proud of the way they came together and played as a team. I think we all also appreciate all the support we received from the community. The Hillsborough Little League sent out something and we had a great crowd there with the rec teams and travel teams and alumni back from college. It means a lot to have that support. With the camps and clinics we know a lot of the younger guys and we have kids that are great role models for these kids.”
Cole is one of those players. A three-year starter, he would love to close out his career with the Raiders with a nice run through the state tournament. He’s been a mainstay behind the plate during previous tournament runs.
“I started playing catcher full time in eighth grade,” Cole said. “Before then I was an infielder for youth baseball. My freshman year I was on the JV and then sophomore, junior and senior years I have been the varsity starter. So I have had a lot of experience behind the plate. Before me, Tyler Ferretti was a three-year starter and had a lot of experience.”
Most of that experience has involved winning, which is something the Hillsborough baseball program has gotten used to.
