Categories
State semifinal baseball roundup
State semifinal baseball roundup
South Jersey will have three baseball teams vying for state titles at Rutgers University this week.
St. Augustine (22-7) will face off against Delbarton (27-4) in Wednesday's Non-Public A title game while Gloucester Catholic (26-4) will play St. Mary's-Rutherford (17-11-1) in the Non-Public B championship. Start times are 4 p.m. and 7 p.m., respectively.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementGloucester Catholic is seeking its fourth straight state title, which would tie Cherry Hill West for the most ever in New Jersey history. West won four consecutive crowns from 1989-1992.
St. Augustine will attempt to earn the program's fourth state championship and second in the last three years.
State Group 4 semifinal
Kingsway 9, Hunterdon Central 1: The Dragons scored nine unanswered runs to earn a trip to the state final and will get an opportunity to win their first state championship.
Kingsway has now outscored teams, 37-6 in its five playoff wins.
The Dragons would tie the score in the bottom of the inning when shortstop Logan Taylor singled, advanced to second on a walk and later scored on an error.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe next inning, Taylor would have one of his biggest hits of the season, breaking a 1-1 tie with a two-run double. He finished 2-for-3 with two RBIs and three runs scored.
State Group 3 semifinal
Brick Memorial 2, Delsea 1: The Crusaders took a one-run lead into the bottom of the seventh and were one strike away from victory, but couldn't convert the final outs as the Mustangs rallied for two runs and their first-ever berth in the state final.
Delsea finished its season at 20-7 which included a share of the Tri-County Conference Liberty Division title and its second sectional championship in the last three seasons.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementMilo Gebhard singled home Luke Loguidice with Delsea's lone run in the third inning.
Kyle Harrison took a shutout into the seventh inning when he surrendered two runs. He finished with nine strikeouts.
State Group 2 semifinal
Governor Livingston 15, Haddon Heights 5: Kevin Clark and Carter Zetusky each drove in two runs, but Haddon Heights surrendered the final 11 runs of the game, falling short in its bid to get to the state championship game.
The Garnets finished their season at 20-8, winning the program's second sectional title in four years.
Clark homered in his final scholastic game, his fourth round-tripper of the season and fifth of his career.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementRyan Govito had a hit, run scored and an RBI for Heights.
Michael Novotny homered twice and drove in six runs from the leadoff spot for the winners. The Highlanders finished with 14 hits, including three round-trippers.
State Group 1 semifinal
Point Pleasant Beach 15, Woodstown 6: The Wolverines took a one-run lead in the second inning but were outscored 12-2 the rest of the way and were eliminated by the host Garnet Gulls.
Woodstown banged out nine hits, including two apiece by Walker Battavio, Drew Sutton, Blake Rodriguez and Talyn Priore, but couldn't keep up the pace with Point Pleasant Beach, which broke the game open with a seven-run, fifth inning.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe Wolverines completed their season at 21-9.
Tom McGurk is a regional sports editor for the Courier-Post, The Daily Journal and Burlington County Times, covering South Jersey sports for over 35 years. If you have a sports story that needs to be told, contact him by email at tmcgurk@usatodayco.com. Follow him on Twitter at @McGurkSports. Help support local journalism with a digital subscription.
This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: State semifinal baseball roundup