WEST ORANGE – The three-time reigning champion Seton Hall Prep varsity baseball team received the No. 1 seed in the 84th High School Varsity Baseball Greater Newark Tournament, which is considered the Essex County tournament.
Millburn is the No. 2 seed. Nutley is the No. 3 seed and Montclair is the No. 4 seed in the field.
The Pirates will host the winner between No. 18 seed Cedar Grove and No. 19 seed Newark East Side in first round on May 7 at 2 p.m.
The Pirates had a 2-1 week to raise their record to 14-2 on the season.
On Monday, April 25, the Pirates defeated Bloomfield, 10-0, at the Kelly Athletic Complex in five innings in a Super Essex Conference-American Division game. Freshman righthander Nick Maldonado pitched a one-hit shutout, allowing a double to Andrew Altiery in the fourth inning. He had four strikeouts and one walk.
SHP scored one run in the first inning on a sacrifice fly to left by senior Patrick O’Hare. They had another sac fly to left by junior Kevin Gately in the second. Senior Ryan Toohers had an RBI double and senior John Savino had an RBI single in the third. In the fourth, senior Brenden Weiss and Savino each hit two-run singles; and senior Justin Miller had an RBI groundout. The game ended in the fifth when pinch-hitter Nico Mottesi, a junior, hit a solo homer to left field.
The Pirates defeated Newark Academy, 6-2, Thursday, April 28, at Newark Academy in Livingston in a divisional game. SHP scored two runs in the second on a single to left by senior Joe Giovinco and an RBI groundout by senior A.J. Cerbo. The Pirates added two runs in the third on senior Dwayne Marshall’s RBI fielder’s choice and senior Nick DeNicola’s RBI triple. SHP scored the final two runs in the seventh on Savino’s sac fly to right and Marshall’s RBI single. Senior righty Gerard DePhillips (2-0 record) picked up the victory, pitching four innings and allowing one run on three hits with three strikeouts and three walks. Junior righty Kevin Young picked up the save, allowing one run on one hit and two walks and striking out two over three innings.
The Pirates lost to Millburn, 4-3, in a tough game Friday, April 29, at the Kelly Athletic Complex in divisional play. Trailing 4-0 in the fifth inning, the Pirates scratched out a run on an RBI single to center by sophomore Jack Zyska. The Pirates scored two runs in the sixth on an RBI double by DeNicola and junior Francis Prior’s RBI single to cut it to 4-3. Toohers took the loss, allowing four runs, two earned, on three hits with five strikeouts and one walk. Marshall pitched the seventh with two strikeouts.
NOTES – The Pirates have won 15 GNT titles and appeared in 21 GNT finals, both tournament records.
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