Seton Hall Prep junior Owen Baratta connects at the plate against West Essex this season.
WEST ORANGE, NJ — The Seton Hall Prep baseball team went 3-1 last week to raise its record to 8-4 on the season. On Monday, April 18, the Pirates hosted Bloomfield and defeated the Bengals 12-0. Senior right-hander Ryan Sprock (2-0) threw a five-inning complete game, allowing three hits with nine strikeouts and one walk. Senior Matthew Monteleone was 2-for-2 with three RBIs, while Sprock was 2-for-3 with two RBIs and three runs scored. Junior Elijah Foster was 1-for-1 with two walks and two RBIs, while senior Luke Mahala and senior Liam Cavanaugh each had one hit and one RBI.
On Wednesday, April 20, the Pirates traveled to North Caldwell to take on West Essex and defeated the Knights 9-0. Junior right-hander Justin Shadek (1-0) threw five innings, allowing three hits with six strikeouts and two walks, while senior Patrick Walega pitched the final two innings, allowing one hit with one strikeout.
Sprock went 2-for-4 with three RBIs, one double and one home run; Monteleone, junior Owen Baratta and junior Ryan Probst each had an RBI hit.
Following the game, Shadek said about his performance, “I felt great on the mound. All my pitches were working well, and I was able to throw them consistently for strikes.”
The next afternoon, the Pirates traveled to Princeton to take on the Hun School and lost 5-1. Senior Chris Maldonado was 2-for-2 with an RBI and a double, while Probst, Monteleone, senior Sam Nomura and Shadek each had a hit.
On Friday, April 22, the Pirates took to the road again and played Nutley at the Park Oval. Seton Hall won 6-2. Senior John Cerwinski (3-0) pitched five innings, allowing one run on one hit with seven strikeouts and four walks, while Walega threw the final two innings, allowing one run and one walk.
Nomura had a two-run single in the first inning, Foster had a three-run homer in the third inning and Mahala added a solo homer in the sixth inning.
When asked about his first varsity home run, Foster said, “It feels great. The pitch was a fastball down in the zone, I got good bat extension and it felt good off the bat.”
Note: Earlier in the week, Chris Maldonado was named to receive the 11th annual Kevin Gilbert Scholarship from Diamond Nation. He met the scholarship committee’s stringent academic, athletic, and character requirements, and had to submit an essay as part of the application. Gilbert was a Diamond Jack player who died shortly before his senior season at Hunterdon Central High School in an automobile accident.
“Being a recipient of the Kevin Gilbert scholarship is a great honor,” said Maldonado. “I am very proud that the selection committee views me as a person and baseball player who exemplifies all of the things that made Kevin the great person and competitor he was. I will continue to play the game I love with great passion and respect as a tribute to Kevin.”
Photos Courtesy of Rich Morris/SHP
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