Glen Ridge HS baseball team making progress

GLEN RIDGE – For first-year head coach Liam Penberthy. it’s been a roller coaster start to his reign as the skipper for the Glen Ridge High School varsity baseball team.

Following a quick 3-0 start, his Ridgers split the next two, followed by a five-game losing streak. But the streak ended with a dramatic 6-5 walk-off win over Columbia HS on April 25 at Hurrell Field in a Super Essex Conference-Liberty Division game. The Ridgers, who scored two runs in the bottom of the seventh inning, improved to a 5-6 overall record and 5-4 in the division, handing Columbia its first loss in the division.

“Our main focus is to get better every day. I believe we have been doing so,” Penberthy said prior to the win over Columbia. “We have faced some adversity early on and I like the way the players are responding. Our goals are still intact.”

Highlighting the season thus far, the coach said he was especially pleased with the season-opening win.

“Opening day is always exciting,” he said. “We were also fortunate enough to get a win. We had a 9-8 comeback win against North 13th St. Tech (in the second game of the season).”

Penberthy said his team has been led by a handful of players.

One of those players has been sophomore Owen Hanngian, who has a .448 batting average with two doubles, three triples and eight RBI. On the mound, Hannigan has a perfect 4-0 record with 14 strikeouts and a 1.95 ERA.

Similarly, the Ridgers have been also been led by senior Griffin Cancro, who has a .364 batting average with a double, two triples, six runs and three stolen bases. In addition, sophomore Brian Schnack has performed well with a .310 batting average to go along with four RBI, seven runs and six stolen bases.

Another player who has stepped up his play to start the year has been senior Matt Buchmann, who has a .243 batting average with a double, eight RBI, five runs and seven stolen bases.

Also, senior Keelter Patton has a 321 batting average with a double, four RBI, five runs, seven walks and seven stolen bases, while senior Rob Spitaletta has a .242 batting average with a double, five RBI, seven runs and six stolen bases.

“We must continue to work hard and improve,” said the coach. “There is still a lot of baseball left to play.”

The seeding meeting for the Greater Newark Tournament – which is considered the Essex County tournament – is set for April 26.