Columbia HS baseball team seeks strong GNT run

Columbia High’s Daniel Cotler swings at the plate during action this season. Photo by Steve Ellmore.

The Columbia High School varsity baseball team hopes to make a strong run in the Greater Newark Tournament.

The fourth-seeded Cougars will host 13th-seeded West Orange in the first round on Saturday, May 6  at 2:30 p.m. at Underhill Field. The winner will face the winner between No. 5 seed Nutley and No. 12 seed West Essex in the quarterfinals on May 11.

Christian Pierre, a junior, went 3-for-4 with a homer, double and five RBI to lead the Cougars to an 11-4 win over Nutley on April 28 in a Super Essex Conference-American Division game. Senior Reid Evans and senior Daniel Cotler each had two hits and two RBI; sophomore Phil Whitney had two RBI and junior Luke Jackson and senior Danny Boehmer each had two hits. Winning pitcher Michael Roseman, a junior, allowed six hits and one walk over six innings, striking out four.

The Cougars fell to Caldwell, 6-2, at Yogi Berra Stadium on the campus of Montclair State University on Saturday, April 29, in a SEC non-division game. Cotler had two hits and Jackson and Whitney each had an RBI for the Cougars, who moved to a 6-6 record.

In earlier action, the Cougars lost to Livingston, 6-5, April 24, in a SEC-American Division game at Underhill Field. Sophomore Eliot Dix went 3-for-3 with two doubles and two RBI; junior Dan Lawall went 3-for-3 with a solo homer and Boehmer went 2-for-3 with a solo homer.