Junior Kennan Bilotta fires a pitch.
NUTLEY —The fifth-seeded Nutley High School baseball team, under head coach Eric Puzio, defeated Cliffside Park and Wayne Valley to reach the semifinals of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association’s North Jersey, Section 1, Group 3 state tournament.
The Raiders defeated No. 12 seed Cliffside Park 2-1 in eight innings in the first round on May 27 at the Park Oval. Nutley tied the game at 1-1 in the bottom of the sixth and won it on a walk-off in the eighth inning.
Junior Sean Fealey had 10 strikeouts, including the 100th of his career, over seven innings, giving up one run on three hits. Junior Kennan Bilotta got the win with one inning of work. Junior Gabe Rodriguez went 3-for-3 for the Raiders.
NHS defeated 13th-seeded Wayne Valley 14-3 in the quarterfinal round on May 29.
Leading 8-3, the Raiders scored six runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to end the game.
Senior Chris Kovacs went 2-for-3 with a double a sacrifice fly and three RBIs; junior Dominic Saladino went 1-for-3 with a home run, three walks and three RBIs; sophomore John Machtemes went 1-for-3 with a triple and two RBIs; Rodriguez went 2-for-3 with a walk and an RBI; junior Andrew Raboy went 1-for-3 with an RBI; and junior Anthony Straface went 2-for-4 with a double.
Bilotta pitched a complete game four-hitter with three strikeouts and two walks, allowing three runs (two earned).
The Raiders, who improved to 16-13 on the season, will visit top-seeded Old Tappan in the semifinals on June 3. The other semifinal pitted No. 3 seed Fort Lee at No. 2 seed Ramapo (Franklin Lakes). The final is June 5.
NHS lost to Old Tappan 12-3 at the Park Oval in the third game of the season on April 4 to move to 2-1.
In the final regular-season game, the Raiders defeated Belleville 7-6 on May 26 at the Park Oval. Saladino went 1-for-2 with a home run and three RBIs; Kovacs went 2-for-3 with a walk; and Straface, junior Devon Schlitt, Raboy and sophomore Ryan Puleo each had an RBI. Schlitt pitched 1 ⅓ innings of no-hit ball with one strikeout for the win.
Photos Courtesy of Jose Raboy
Nutley vs. Wayne Valley in state sectional tournament quarterfinals
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