Yup, I am eating crow tonight as Wayne Hills proved me wrong with a 24-7 win at Old Tappan. Jaime Rowe was held to 55 yards on 17 carries and the Patriots had four interceptions in the second half to get their 33rd straight victory. Dan DeCicco and Carlton Marcin combined for 170 rushing yards. Jeremiah Kayal had three interceptions and a 13-yard touchdown catch.
So, I'll eat my crow and like it. Hey, sometimes we have to do that.
I entered last week feeling good with an 82-33 mark this season. I finished up Friday night happy after nailing 13 of the 17 games. Then Saturday came, and it wasn't pretty. I picked only 13 of 22 games correct, but since I did not include St. Joseph but would have picked them anyway, I'm giving myself another win.
That means I went 27-13 last weekend and now have my record up to 109-46. This is my last week of picks for obvious reasons, so no more dawdling. Let's have at it.
If you listened to the podcast, or heard me this afternoon talking on WGHT 1500 AM you know the news. The cat is officially out of the bag. I am leaving The Record and North Jersey Media Group to join a growing group of excellent staff writers at NHL.com. My last day is Oct. 9.
There is a new Varsity Aces podcast online.
You can listen to the show by clicking anywhere here.
We had a very good time on the show....and yes, Dan Rosen does make a big announcement. So you should listen, especially if you know Dan. We talked football for a while, then got into a long conversation about the new public-non public committee set up by the NJSIAA (a discussion that continued off the air). Then Rob Celentano gave us the low down on tennis, then Dan brought the house down with his Good Sport.
A lot has been going on lately and I regret not checking in on this blog since the weekend. There's big news coming in tomorrow's podcast, an announcement that I have not made yet because I haven't figure out how to make it. After Darren posts the podcast I'll go into further details.
However, until then, and really until this weekend because that's what matters most, I have had these thoughts running through my head that I wanted to get down just couldn't find the time. Well, I have it now, so here goes nothing...
The game is set. The teams are undefeated. It's time to start hyping the first HUGE game in North Jersey this year as No. 2 Wayne Hills gets primed to put its 32-game winning streak on the line next Saturday night at No. 6 Old Tappan.
Both the Patriots and Golden Knights won tonight.
Another solid week in the books for me as I compiled a 28-11 record with the games last Thursday, Friday, Saturday and even one on Sunday. Over three weeks that makes me 82-33, which isn't too shabby. I'm still going for a single digits in the L column, and I'm hoping for that this week.
For the record, Bergen Tech, Dumont, Englewood, Hasbrouck Heights, Ridgewood, Park Ridge, Pompton Lakes, Demarest, Ramsey, Passaic (I knew it) and Wood-Ridge proved me wrong last week.
There is a new Varsity Aces Podcast online.
You can listen to it by clicking anywhere here.
Also, this afternoon, I will be on Sports Overtime on WGHT, 1500 AM, at 2:30 p.m. (if you cant get enough of my voice).
The podcast was a good time, the football trio previewed the big games this weekend. We had Tim Leonard come on and talk about IHA girls soccer and whether they can go unbeaten, and Greg Mattura stopped by to talk about volleyball, and who he thinks is the 2nd best team in Bergen County.
I headed out to Wayne Hills yesterday for a story that's going to run in Thursday's editions. Upon arrival I saw a familiar face, but one I couldn't recognize. I thought I knew who it was, but I had to walk behind Patriots senior QB Mike Giampapa and whisper, "Mike, who are you throwing the ball to?" I felt stupid, but I had to know...
That's Jake Seibert, Ramsey's senior quarterback, rolling out with Pascack Valley's Colin Schmitt breathing down his neck. Photo courtesy of Danielle Richards of The Record. Read on for an in-depth look at this upset victory for Ramsey.
I'll have more analysis later, but the Rams beat the Indians, 23-12, this afternoon. Ramsey dominated on defense. PV standout Matt Gray went out with a hip flexor pull in the second quarter. I'll have an update on him as soon as I know, too. He did not return.
Ramsey did a nice job on defense, and made some big plays on offense. The Rams also lost tailback Joey Marraffino to an ankle injury, but his doesn't appear too serious. Enjoy the Friday Night Final!
Wayne Hills got 295 total yards, including 202 on the ground and 93 on punt returns, from Dan DeCicco in a 41-7 romp over Ramapo. DeCicco scored five touchdowns and Carlton Marcin also had a 36-yard punt return for a touchdown. The Patriots defense looked a bit suspect at times against the run, but blame that on not having ILB Tim Waller, who was out with a sprained ankle. Overall, though, Wayne Hills looks good, and it's only getting better. Can't wait for that game against Old Tappan in two weeks.
Continue reading "Wayne Hills streak at 31; Paramus loses" »
After going 23-12 in the season-opening weekend, I got better with the larger slate of games last week.
How's 31-10, baby!!!!
I'm proud of myself, but I can still do better. I'm going for single-digits in losses this week. Just so you know, last week I was burned by picking against these teams: Ridgefield, Garfield, Madison, Boonton, Bergen Tech, Wood-Ridge, Wallington, St. Joseph WNY, Newark West Side, and Caldwell.
39 games to pick. Here goes...
UPDATE: Three other games were postponed due to the bomb threats. Old Tappan at Fair Lawn is now Friday at 1:30; Emerson at Harrison is now Friday at 3; River Dell at Fort Lee is Sunday at 1. All this can be found on www.highschoolsports.net.
For those interested, there are two football games this weekend that are now on different days at different times, and in one instance, a different venue.
Continue reading "Two football scheduling notes: UPDATED 9/20" »
There is a new Varsity Aces podcast online.
I thought it was a very interesting show. We went over week 2 of the high school football season and the guys made their picks for week 3. Plus, the one, the only, Paul Schwartz came on to talk about the opening of cross country season.
You can listen to the show by clicking anywhere here.
Also, Mark Czerwinski just filed the latest Varsity Aces video, which you can also view by clicking here.
Saw three games this weekend, got reports on a slew of others, and talked to a plethora of other coaches about their games. So, yeah, I'd like to believe I have at least somewhat of a grasp on what happened this weekend in North Jersey high school football.
Then again, I also like to believe I'm still in playing shape, so maybe my beliefs are a tad askew.
Nevertheless, here are five things that rung my bell from another weekend of high school football:
In the newspaper business, whether I like it or not, space is the defining issue, which is why the last four paragraphs of my story on last night's Bergen Catholic game were lopped off before today's paper hit the streets. Hey, I'll take the blame, I wrote more words than my editor wanted me to. But, the full story won't go to waste. Here it is, and check the next blog to get some of my analysis from the weekend.
Still sitting in my car here in Palisades Park after Bergen Catholic's impressive 40-8 win over Gilman. Don Bosco also won tonight, 56-7 I believe, over Cardinal O'Hara. You can read all about these games and the rest of the North Jersey football action in tomorrow's editions.
I was also in Saddle Brook this afternoon to see the Falcons edge Pompton Lakes, 14-0. So, this is the end of a busy day for me. Time to go home, but I hope to be back on with further analysis tomorrow at some point.
So, I lied earlier when I said I was going to Demarest-Indian Hills. Joe Duffy was there. I instead went to New Milford to see the Knights against Becton, and I'm glad I did. Knights junior TB A.J. Scoppa ran 22 times for 342 yards and 6 touchdowns in New Milford's 43-7 win. The 342 yards breaks a single-game school rushing record set by Jeff Bliss in 2004.
You can read more about Scoppa in tomorrow's papers. For now, just know he had TD runs of 20, 63, 2, 82, 52 and 42 yards. He was very, and I stress VERY impressive. More to come tomorrow when I have a double dip with Saddle Brook-Pompton Lakes in the afternoon and Bergen Catholic-Gilman at night.
It was not, and I repeat WAS NOT a good start for me last week. I finished 23-12 in the season opening weekend of high school football, and that's just not getting it done. They might as well send me back down to the JV team if I can't get it going this week.
I went 10-7 on Friday as Bloomfield, Paramus, Belleville, Rutherford, Tenafly, Mahwah and Kinnelon proved me wrong. I rebounded to go 13-5 on Saturday, but Passaic, St. Joseph, Woodbridge, Lakeland and Caldwell took offense to my picking against them and went out and won.
Here goes for Week 2. Hope I do better:
Yes, fresh off of the Kickoff Classic and the first big week of the high school sports season, there is a new Varsity Aces podcast online.
You can listen to it by clicking anywhere here.
The football trio of Mark Czerwinski, Dan Rosen and Art Stapleton talk about whose stock went up and whose went down in week 1 (ok, its week 0) and look ahead to the big games of week 2 (Becton-New Milford, anyone). Then Kimberley Martin stops in to talk field hockey. Plus, a couple of Good Sports, Art on Demarest girls soccer and me on Manchester girls soccer coach Denise Weinberg.
The opening weekend is over. We're getting closer to another Friday night frenzy. First, though, if you an handle it, here's our Monday football notebook, a look back at some important points of last weekend. And, here's our new Top 25 with next weekend's coming attractions and our stock report if you scroll down.
After you're done checking all that out, I finally have some pictures to post from Saturday night's Don Bosco game, a 34-20 win for the Ironmen. These shots are courtesy of Dave Rubel at NJ Sports Media. Great stuff Dave.
Tony Jones scored three fourth quarter touchdowns, including runs of 1, 25, and 41 yards as the Ironmen simply wore down St. Joes in the fourth for a 34-20 victory. The secondary also got some revenge as Steve Proscia had two interceptions in the final three minutes, including one that helped set up Jones' go-ahead 25-yard touchdown run.
Greg Castillo again got behind the Ironmen secondary, this time beating both DiSanzo and Steve Proscia for an 83-yard TD reception with 40 seconds left in the third quarter to give the Hawks a 20-13 lead entering the fourth quarter.
Castillo now has 3 grabs for 166 yards and all of them going for touchdowns. Prep QB Aaron Haas is 9 of 12 for 217 yards. The Ironmen have the ball now on a 2nd and 5 at their own 42-yard line.
I just wrote up this big blog and it got erased. Wonderful.
Anyway, it was 13-7 Bosco with 39 seconds left, but the teams traded turnovers and then Prep QB Aaron Haas hit Greg Castillo for a 43-yard TD with 10 seconds left. The PAT failed leaving it 13-13. Castillo also had a 43-yard TD catch in the first quarter after Alexander DiSanzo fumbled the ball after a 6-yard gain. DiSanzo was beat on both of Castillo's TDs.
However, Bosco QB Brett Knief is 10 of 13 for 160 yards. He also has 6 carries for 29 yards and a 9-yard TD run. Pat Murray has booted field goals of 22 and 23 yards. Bosco also stopped St. Joes on a 4th and goal at the 1 on the second play of the second quarter, and then went 14 plays for 99 yards and a TD.
PLYMOUTH MEETING, PA. -- I've arrived, and in a couple of words, this press box is hotter than.....get the picture.
I know I'm interjecting on the updates of the St. Joes-Xaverian game, but this won't take long.
In about an hour or so I'm going to be hitting that sweet highway, taking the Jersey Turnpike to the Penn Turnpike to Plymouth Meeting, Pa. where I'm headed to see Don Bosco open its season against St. Joseph's Prep of Philly. The game can be seen live on CN8.
Just wanted to check in before I hit the road saying I'm going to provide as many updates on this blog as I can tonight. I'll either be posting them myself, or calling into the guys at the Giants Stadium press box so they can post it. I'm not sure of what the place will be like tonight, so I can't make any promises of providing the updates myself. Plus, I'll be way up against deadline for tomorrow's editions.
This catchy headline (thanks, I thought so, too) is for Old Tappan senior fullback Jaime Rowe, who rushed only 13 times Friday night but churned out 226 yards and scored four touchdowns as the Golden Knights dominated Ramapo, 40-14. Rowe had a long run of 67 yards, and a long TD run of 40 yards, which came with 7:39 to play in the third quarter and gave OT a 33-0 lead. Rowe didn't step on the field again until the postgame handshakes.
HOWEVER, before reading on, make sure to look at the blog below and click to listen to the first installment of the Friday Night Final hosted by Darren Cooper. When done listening, come back to read through this blog entry.
There is so much football hype today my head is about to explode. Thankfully, and I really mean it, we're only hours away from kickoff. I know we can never do enough when it comes to covering high school sports, especially football, the beast of them all, but did you see everything we had in today's editions?
If you didn't, I'll lay it out for you all right.....
It's that time of the year again. The pigskins will be flying around the fields of North Jersey starting tomorrow night, and now the score actually counts, the first downs matter. Scrimmage season is thankfully over, meaning it's time to start picking games. I may be on my own this season in this endeavor, but so what. I'm still ready to take my place on the proverbial limb with my weekly predictions. If any of you want to counter with your picks in the comments section, bring them on!
Here goes nothing:
Before we start our first football crazed weekend, and believe me there is plenty coming your way, including my picks for the opening weekend of the season, I wanted to throw out some hockey news passed my way by Don Bosco coach Matt Nielsen.
Nielsen found a press release on the U.S. Hockey Report saying that Montvale resident and former St. Peter's Prep star Kyle Palmieri has committed to play at Notre Dame. Palmieri is currently in Ann Arbor, Mich. (not the happiest place in the world these days) getting ready to play his first season with the U.S. Under-17 National team.
Here is what the release said:
Here's just a quick update for all you football fans out there wondering what's still ahead before the footballs get launched off the tee at 7 o'clock Friday night.
Ex-Bergen Catholic standout linebacker Brian Cushing sprained his ankle in the first quarter of USC's 38-10 win over Idaho last night. According to the L.A. Times, Cushing hopped off the field with 5:45 to play in the first quarter and was later carted into the locker room. He never returned to the game.
Cushing returned a text message to me this afternoon explaining it was just a low ankle sprain and he'll be ready for the Trojans next game, which is Sept. 15 at Nebraska. He told the L.A. Daily News the same thing. Cushing, who is from Park Ridge, said he was initially concerned that he had broken his ankle because the pain was severe. However, the x-rays turned out negative. Cushing was last year's defensive MVP of the Rose Bowl.
Spent the afternoon yesterday in Oradell, half of the time with Mr. Stapleton, watching Bergen Catholic's scrimmage against Hudson Catholic. I'll confirm what Art said before, that the Crusaders were sloppy in the first half but dominant in the third quarter. A terrible personal foul penalty, and an absolute criminal holding penalty -- one of the worst plays I've seen at any level -- kept Hudson in the game in the first half, but the Crusaders established a running game and that opened up the pass in the third quarter.
When I left, they led 27-7.
First, the serious:
Northern Highlands senior split end/linebacker John Sica had to be carted off the practice field today and taken by ambulance to Hackensack University Medical Center for precautionary measures due to a potential neck/back injury. This puts everything we do on this blog and in high school sports into perspective, but thankfully it turns out Sica is not seriously injured. He felt some burning in his back, but by the time the ambulance arrived Locurto said he was able to move his hands and legs. This happened while the Highlanders were conducting a special teams drill.
Locurto, who I spoke to both at noon and around 6:30 tonight, said Sica is doing well and it will likely be some weeks before he returns to football action. I'd say this is a bullet dodged, and my hope is Sica recovers fully from what I can only believe is a scary and traumatic experience.
This entry is intended to answer a question posted in the comments second of my previous entry on some preview quickies. The question posed to me was what do I think of kids repeating 8th grade before entering high school, and how widespread it is? I can only assume Bill, who asked the question, was asking about high school athletes gaining an advantage by repeating 8th grade so they're a year older and more mature than others in their class.
Eight previews down. Twelve to go. Not a bad start...not that any of you really care either. Nevertheless, I figured it was time to give some quick hits of what I have learned over the last couple of days, including a late Sunday night half-hour converasation with Bergenfield coach Joe Gambardella.
It's preview season. You talk to coaches when you can.
I know, I'm a football-hockey-baseball guy, but I still have some hoops knowledge, too. And, a quick call today from Westwood athletic director Trish Benevento landed us a story for tomorrow's editions. John Santulli is now the former boys basketball coach at Clifton because he is taking over for Frank Connelly at Westwood. Santulli, who lives in Westwood with his wife and two young boys, will remain at Clifton as an English teacher and Dean of Students.
Ahoy. It's been a rather long time since my last blog entry, but sorry to say that I wasn't thinking about high school sports on the open seas as I sailed down the Atlantic like Christopher Columbus. Um, well, not really, but I did cruise down the Atlantic, so at least I got that going for me. Last week I was on a cruise with my varsity wife and her family to San Juan, St. Thomas and Tortola. It was the first cruise I have ever been on. Eight nights on the open sea. What an experience.
I just got off the phone with Demarest athletic director Jim Grasso, who explained in detail the situation regarding relieving Don Merritts of his duties coaching the varsity baseball team, and confirmed that he is accepting applications and would like to find a replacement quickly. Merritts also tried to get in touch with me last night by leaving a message on my voicemail. Here is what the sides are saying:
I have it confirmed by multiple sources that Don Merritts has indeed been let go of his duties as head coach of Demarest's baseball team. Attempts to reach both Merritts and Demarest athletic director Jim Grasso both Tuesday and Wednesday were unsuccessful. However, candidates are already submitting applications for the job and I know of one for certain who has done so.
Merritts had been the head coach at Demarest, his alma mater, since 2001. Demarest finished 13-13 this past season and lost in the first round of the North 1, Group 3 State tournament to Morris Hills.
As I learn more information about this situation I'll pass it along.
As promised at the bottom of this post I had what I believe was an interesting feature today on Bergen Catholic senior Bill Schautz, who has transitioned from quarterback to tight end/linebacker and is still a Division I-A recruit committed to the University of Virginia.
As per usual when I write about Bergen Catholic, I received some interesting e-mail today regarding not just that story, but coach Fred Stengel. These two e-mailers, who I choose to keep anonymous in order to protect their privacy, criticized Stengel for never taking the blame when things go wrong in his program such as Schautz failing to handle the QB job, and then they took me to task for taking Stengel at his word all the time.
Continue reading "Where there's BC football, there's turmoil" »
Checking in for the first time in a short while, I want to congratulate former New Milford southpaw ace P.J. Saporito, who tossed a perfect game last Thursday night pitching for the Brockport Riverbats of the New York Collegiate Baseball League. Saporito, who is entering his junior year at NJIT, is the first player in the 29-year history of the NYCBL to toss a perfect game.
Saporito struck out five, recorded 13 flyouts, and nine groundouts in his perfect effort. He recorded the last out on a called strike three. You can read more about it right here.
I battled the heat coming off the turf that badly needs to be replaced at Crusader Stadium this afternoon and enjoyed the hour and a half I spent watching Bergen Catholic, Ridgewood, Wayne Hills and Glen Rock in a quad 7-on-7. There's only so much we can glean from a 7-on-7, but then again, if you can look like a team in shorts and tee-shirts in July you're on your way to becoming a team that can play with pads on in November. As you can imagine, most of what you see in a 7-on-7 is more offense-based, so that's what I'll focus on here.
Been a while folks, but aren't we all allowed some R and R. I just had mine last week as I took nine days off. I'm here for two more weeks before I take myself off the Aces 40-man roster again for 10 days as I embark on the open sea for my first ever cruise. However, between now and then I'm hoping to get to some stories that I've been planning on doing. In the process of researching, though, you learn a thing or two...
I learned today from someone close to the Wood-Ridge football program that former Leonia coach Chris Lange was named the Blue Devils new coach at a Board of Education meeting Wednesday night. Former coach Joe Berlingo was let go after serving six years as the head coach and four as an assistant. The Blue Devils were 21-39 under Berlingo, including 6-4 and a playoff team this past season.
Lange, who was an All-League standout at Park Ridge, was the Lions coach from 1997-99. He most recently was an assistant at Pascack Valley, but he has also been an assistant at various colleges, including Ramapo College, Southern Connecticut, Jersey City State, and William Paterson.
As promised I reached out to both Frank Eufemia and Mike Lauterhahn to allow them to either confirm or deny the rumors of them leaving their posts as baseball coaches at Pascack Valley and Rutherford.
One said yes. The other so not yet, but...
It's been a while since my last post because frankly there isn't much going on to report. I just wanted to check in this morning (Tuesday) to say hello and give a quick rundown of things I have learned, seen or done over the past couple of days. And, don't be alarmed because there isn't much. These are the dog days of summer, and I expect things to pick up in about a month.
Got back a couple of hours ago from this morning's instructional 7-on-7 at Riggin Field in East Rutherford, home of the Becton Wildcats. It was both fun and enlightening because not only did I have a wonderful time hanging out with some of the coaches, including Paramus' Dan Sabella, pictured above while going over a play, but I got to learn a thing or two about the six teams in attendance: Becton, Ramapo, Pascack Valley, Rutherford, Paramus and Elmwood Park.
Here's what won't make my story in tomorrow's editions.
About 20 minutes ago the fans started going back to their seats and the players came on the field. It was still raining, but my favorite PA announcer said they had the all clear to play ball, which they are doing now. Apparently, all these flashes of lightning, I've counted three so far since the game resumed, don't really matter. This is just comedy at it's finest...now we just hope no one gets hurt. I doubt it because the weather really is cooperating around the stadium.
Anyway, the South tied it, 7-7, on a 3-yard touchdown grab by Absegami's Brandon Bullock, who checks in at 6-4 and 290 pounds. Bogota's James Lynch just tossed an INT. That's about all the in-game updates I'm doing.
With 8:18 remaining in the second quarter here at Rutgers Stadium for the North-South All-Star Game, the PA announcer butts in during Vernon quarterback Dan Lisa's cadence and announces the stadium has a lightning detection system and it's time to evacuate. The announcement came so sudden it was as if there was something really serious going on here, like a bomb being found or some other tragic thing.
Relax folks, it's just the thunderstorm warning as expected. Really, did anyone not see this coming?
Here I am, sitting in the nice air conditioned press box at Rutgers Stadium, awaiting the North-South All-Star football game that I'm almost positive will get delayed by lightning and thunder that's headed down the Turnpike as we speak. The weather is nice here now, but I heard it's pouring at home.
Anyway, I had some time to pass so here are some thoughts:
It's 7-on-7 season now, and schools are out in full force. In fact, Art wrote an interesting piece today on the state of offseason football in New Jersey. The Schiano Shootout, which is a 7-on-7 tournament at Rutgers, is Saturday with more than 75 teams participating. Locally, I've learned of some more that are taking place in the next few weeks that are of interest.
UPDATE: I heard from somone close to the situation that a decision was made to table Berlingo's firing and it will get voted on again at the next BOE meeting. Chances are Berlingo is still out because a search is on for his successor. I also heard that Berlingo is staying on as a teacher at the school.
Wood-Ridge football coach Joe Berlingo contacted me to tell me he has been fired as the school's head football coach. A source told me yesterday that it happened a little less than two weeks ago in a closed door meeting of the Board of Education. There is more to come regarding this situation, and Berlingo may even have a chance to regain his job, although that does seem unlikely at this time. The district is accepting applications.
There is a new Varsity Aces Podcast up and you should find this one very interesting.
Click here to listen to myself, Art Stapleton, Kimberley Martin, Greg Schutta, Paul Schwartz, Joe Duffy, Tim Leonard, Greg Mattura and Rob Celentano talk about our memories of the spring season.
I took over the host duties this week for the vacationing Mr. Cooper, so let me know what you think. I would have liked to do the opening another time, but all in all I think Darren would be proud.
Now that our All-North Jersey section for baseball is out, I'm finally getting a chance now to make some football calls. And, wouldn't you know, one of my first landed me some news as Bergen Catholic coach Fred Stengel just confirmed to me that senior-to-be Bill Schautz (pictured left from last summer) has committed to the University of Virginia, where he was recruited to be a tight end/H-back.
With a tip of the cap to The Sopranos and the controversial ending to one of the most watched television shows of all-time, the high school baseball season in North Jersey has officially faded to black.
Lots of games. Some unforgettable moments. Both Dan and I spent plenty of time selecting our choices for the season awards, all of which are revealed in The Record's season-ending honors section, which comes out today.
For now, though, taking a page out of Darren's scorebook, as requested by a reader of his post, here are my thoughts on the baseball season, following up Dan's previous post on his memories ...
Tomorrow marks the official end of another high school baseball season. The best seniors, or at least most of the best seniors, including Dumont resident and Rutgers-bound CF Mike Lang from St. Peter's Prep, will play in the All-Star festivities down in Mercer County Park. So, with that in mind, I figured it was my turn to dish out some of my memories of the season. These are in no particular order:
Just got a call from Jon Goldstein, or "Goldie" as everyone knows him, from Wayne Hills telling me former Patriots and St. John's catcher Brendan Monaghan has signed a free agent contract with the Baltimore Orioles and is headed to play Single-A ball tomorrow. Monaghan went undrafted last week, but now he's getting his shot. Good for him. Also was told today by Rutgers coach Fred Hill that former Pascack Valley and RU left fielder Ryan Hill signed a minor-league contract with San Diego, which drafted him in the 15th round last week. He's likely headed to rookie ball in Arizona.
Check back tomorrow as I will make my attempt at unveiling some of my top moments of this past baseball season.
There really isn't much analysis that I can offer from Indian Hills' 11-1 loss yesterday to Spotswood in the Group 2 State final. The Braves didn't pitch well. The Braves didn't hit well. The Braves certainly didn't make the proper plays in the field in the third inning when their six errors helped Spotswood to a six run inning. It just wasn't a good day, but at least The Record's Tyson Trish took some nice photos. So, instead of clamoring on and on about how it just wasn't Indian Hills' day, I figured I'd just put up some photos and call it a day. Hope you enjoy.
Indian Hills is down 11-0 right now in the top of the fourth. It's not pretty. The Braves made six errors in the third inning, and only one was off a ball hit into play. Five errors were made on Hills' trying to get runners, including two by catcher David Goodmark on throws to second base. Another throw to second base went off of second baseman Jason Freeman's glove. One of Goodmark's throws also went by CF Alex Sariyan. A pickoff attempt to first base went off of Jared Avidon's glove as well.
More analysis to come later. This Spotswood team is good, and the Braves have just picked the wrong day to play their worst baseball. Ryan Furbeck lasted just 2 1/3 and gave up six hits and seven runs. Jack Lynch pitched 2/3 of an inning and gave up four runs on three hits. Avidon is pitching now.
At the completion of 50 rounds -- yes, 50 rounds -- it was a big day for seven players from North Jersey, all of whom were selected in the annual Major League Baseball Draft.
Rutgers' Ryan Hill, a former Pascack Valley star now living in Park Ridge, went first, 477th overall. Jaren Matthews of Don Bosco was the first high schooler to come off the board in the 17th round, chosen by the Boston Red Sox, 534th overall.
Ex-Pequannock infielder Mike Bionde was also selected by the Royals in the 36th round with the 1,081st pick in the draft. Bionde just finished his senior season at Rutgers, where he played second base and hit .304 with 32 RBI for the Scarlet Knights. Click here to read all about Bionde's improbable story.
Former Emerson catcher Tom Hill from the University of Albany was selected by the Kansas City Royals in the 34rd round, 1,023 overall, moments ago. Hill, who was first-team All-County as a junior and senior, just finished his junior year at Albany. He hit .311 with six home runs and 34 RBI. When I called Emerson coach Bob Carcich to ask him about Hill, he was shocked and elated to hear he was drafted. Hill is Carcich's first former player to be drafted.
"He's a tremendous power hitter, and a great defensive catcher," Carcich told me. "He had about 20 home runs as a four-year player. He learned to hit the ball to the opposite field. He got picked in the draft. That's just wild."
Old Tappan star third baseman Rob Segedin, who has a scholarship to Tulane, still has not been selected in the draft, which is in the 33rd round, but that doesn't come as a surprise to him. Sure, Segedin wants to be picked, but as soon as he fell out of the top five rounds last night he told me that he was definitely going to college. Segedin's signability was in question from the start, and he knew there was a chance he could fall drastically in the draft, or even not get picked at all. The latter remains in question.
Listen to Segedin talking about Tulane and other things on this week's Varsity Aces podcast.
Continue reading "MLB DRAFT: Segedin still not picked, will go to Tulane" »
Don Bosco first baseman/outfielder Jaren Matthews was just selected by the Boston Red Sox with the 534th pick in the draft. It was the 17th round. Matthews, who is headed to Rutgers, hit .500 with 5 HR, 33 RBI and 30 stolen bases for the Ironmen this season. He's the second Bergen County player selected today, and the first high school player selected.
"After each round went by, I got a little more upset, a little more upset each time," Matthews told Art by telephone moments after he was selected. "When it popped up, I just yelled out loud at the top of my lungs. It's just a great feeling."
Rutgers and ex-Pascack Valley standout Ryan Hill was chosen moments ago by the San Diego Padres as the 477th pick in the draft. It's the 15th round. Hill hit .350 with 11 HR and 59 RBI for the Big East champs this season. More on Hill to come later and in tomorrow's editions.
Rutgers star David Williams, who played his HS ball at Pope John, was selected 10 picks after his teammate by the Yankees. Williams led RU with a .412 batting average this season.
Nothing yet on any of North Jersey's standout players through eight rounds, but a pair of Seton Hall University pitchers have been selected. Dan Merklinger was selected in the sixth round, 191st overall, by the Milwaukee Brewers. Dan McDonald was selected in the eighth round, 273rd overall, by the Mets. Not a bad start to a beautiful Friday for the Pirates.
Here's a great shot of Indian Hills right-fielder Mike Marscovetra, one of three sophomores I profiled today, slugging his second home run of the day Tuesday in the Group 2 semifinals. This one is captured by The Record's Brandon Lee, our summer intern. Notice the ball. Read on for extensive preview coverage of the Braves run to Toms River.
None of our locals were picked today in the MLB Draft, but that's only because they completed just five rounds thanks to the ridiculous TV coverage on ESPN2. The draft resumes at 11:30 a.m. tomorrow and I expect our locals to start getting called soon thereafter. Remember, there are 50 rounds to this thing, and they usually do half on the first day. With TV involved, though, they had to cut it down considerably.
Rutgers shortstop/third baseman/outfielder Todd Frazier was just picked 34th overall by the Cincinatti Reds. He's turned into a power hitter and could become an outfielder in his professional career. Click here to get the link to Tara Sullivan's story on Frazier.
Rick Porcello of Seton Hall Prep was just selected by the Detroit Tigers with the 27th overall selection in the draft, which, by the way, is taking forever to complete the first round. Porcello was slated to go as high as No. 2 just yesterday, but the Kansas City Royals likely balked at him because they didn't want to deal with his super, uber agent, Scott Boras.
Before we get to Saturday, the biggest day of the spring season around New Jersey, today and tomorrow take centerstage with the MLB Draft. Plenty of locals could get their names called, including Rob Segedin of Old Tappan, Jaren Matthews of Don Bosco, Sean Bierman of Kinnelon, Dylan Cacciola of Westwood, Jesse Santo of Passaic Valley, Anthony Collazo of Passaic Tech, and Steven Brooks of Seton Hall Prep via Wyckoff.
Continue to check back here throughout the day for any draft news. As soon as we find it out, we'll be posting it. If it doesn't happen today, we'll be back tomorrow.
Indian Hills beat Hackettstown, 8-4, today in the Group 2 semifinals, earning a trip to Toms River on Saturday for the State final. More analysis to come later, after I play my own softball game. Hopefully will have photos to put up as well from Brandon Lee, our summer intern who took some good ones today.
The big day is upon us, the State Group semifinals. In baseball we're down to two. Indian Hills vs. Hackettstown today at 4 p.m. at William Paterson for the right to go to the Group 2 final. Hasbrouck Heights vs. Hoboken at 4 p.m. at Ramapo College for the right to go to the Group 1 final. I'll be in Wayne to check on the Braves. Art will be in Mahwah with the Aviators. Here are some of my thoughts on the Indian Hills game:
Don Bosco got a strong effort on the mound from junior righty Mike Dennhardt, who scattered six hits and allowed just two runs over seven innings, and the offense produced seven runs on 10 hits in the first four innings as the Ironmen won their second straight Bergen County championship with a 7-2 victory this afternoon.
Don Bosco senior right-hander Jeff Hoffman came back strong on the mound less than 24 hours after walking in the decisive run against Seton Hall Prep, tossing six solid innings as the Ironmen downed Emerson, 6-3, to reach Sunday's Bergen County championship game.
Thanks to The Record's Tyson Trish for this photo of Hoffman and two others on this post.
It was a difficult bounce-back for Don Bosco, which seemed to spend much of the game trying to find a spark after suffering such a heartbreaking loss to Seton Hall Prep on Friday in the State tournament. The Ironmen (26-2) survived, although they nearly blew another lead late when miscommunication caused a sure fly ball out in the bottom of the seventh to drop in for an error. That gave Emerson life in its last at-bat, but after a strong play by Steve Proscia at third base -- a real close play at first base that went Bosco's way -- Bosco sophomore closer Anthony Gomez got a fly ball and a strikeout to end the game, putting his team back in the finals.
Here's Rob Segedin of Old Tappan making one of his two diving stops at third base. All photos courtesy of The Record's Tyson Trish. Click on photos for full images.
So, the games are over, and thankfully they got them both in despite starting at 2 p.m. this afternoon. Old Tappan slugged its way to an 11-6 win over St. Joseph and Don Bosco edged a gutsy Emerson squad, 6-3, to set up Sunday's final at 3 p.m.
Here's some information on the Old Tappan game. Art has all the stuff from the Don Bosco game.
Big day at Demarest begins in less than three hours (as I am writing this, of course) and both Art and myself will be on hand. I haven't offered up predictions yet, and since I'm about to go get some early lunch/late breakfast with my Varsity Wife (yes, Darren, there can be two) I'll make them brief. Plus, with no idea how the pitching is going to shake out today based on Bosco and OT going deep into their staffs yesterday, unfortunately there isn't much insight to offer in that department anyway.
UPDATE: Old Tappan lost to Montville, 9-7, tonight in the North 1, Group 3 final, meaning nobody playing tomorrow in the Bergen County tournament is still alive in the State tournament. Rob Segedin struck out swinging with two outs and two on in the top of the seventh. He went 1-for-4 with an intentional walk.
OT scored twice in the top of the fifth to slice a four run deficit in half, but the Knights stranded the bases loaded. James Puglia didn't make it out of the second inning and Mike Soumas didn't make it out of the fourth. Nick Pulsonetti also pitched for OT, which led, 5-0, in the first.
The game started late because of lightning, but Montville has lights so that means the Bergen County tournament is on as scheduled tomorrow with OT against St. Joseph leading things off at 1:30.
Thanks to Marco Balletti of WGHT Radio (www.ghtradio.com) for the updates.
Back in 1986, Indian Hills celebrated its third sectional title in four seasons. Twenty-one years later, the Braves can add to that banner in their gymnasium as they knocked off Westwood, 5-0, to win the North 1, Group 2 sectional title. They play Tuesday at William Paterson against either Cliffside Park or Hackettstown, which played only an inning today before lightning and rain hit. The Red Raiders will again make the near two hour bus ride to Hackettstown today for the game at 3.
The times of Satruday's Bergen County baseball tournament semifinals have again been changed and the first pitch will now not be thrown until 1:30 p.m. when third-seeded Old Tappan takes on second-seeded St. Joseph. The game between fifth-seeded Emerson and top-seeded Don Bosco will FOLLOW AT 4 P.M.
Continue reading "UPDATE: NEW TIMES FOR BERGEN BASEBALL SEMIS" »
We're only a couple of hours away now from first pitch around North Jersey with five Public sectional champs to be decided. So, I'll make you wait no longer...and I know, you've all been pining for these selections:
Continue reading "Prediction time: Dan's Sectional finals picks" »
The game times for Saturday's semifinal and Sunday's championship game have changed. Saturday's semifinal doubleheader at Demarest will now begin at 11 a.m. with Emerson playing Don Bosco. St. Joseph vs. Old Tappan will follow at roughly 1:30. The championship game is now set for 3 p.m. at Demarest on SUNDAY.
The times were changed because of graduation masses and SAT conflicts. I hope this doesn't affect your day. It just means you have to rise and shine and get yourself to Demarest a bit earlier than anticipated.
Thanks to the memory of Rob Segedin, some help yesterday by colleague Adam Zagoria, assistance from Old Tappan coach Tim Byron, and a little work by yours truly, we have now found out that Rob Segedin has 183 career hits, which may or may not be a New Jersey record.
Here's a photo from The Record's Tom Franklin of Old Tappan senior Rob Segedin embracing senior Matt MacLean right after MacLean scored the game-tying run in Sunday's 6-4 come-from-behind win over St. Mary in the Bergen County tournament quarterfinals. Nick Pulsonetti (25) is celebrating in the background. Read on...
Ten, count 'em 10, County tournament games today when you factor in eight in Bergen County and a pair in Passaic. Big day, folks, big day.
I watched Emerson take care of Tenafly, 8-3, and Bergen Catholic do enough to get past Glen Rock, 6-3. Art saw Paramus edge Indian Hills, 6-5, and St. Joseph smack Pascack Valley, 9-2. At Old Tappan, the Golden Knights beat Lyndhurst, 11-1, and St. Mary squeezed out the upset over Westwood, 12-9, in eight innings. Over at Demarest, Ramapo and Hasbrouck Heights played 12 innings before the Green Raiders won, 8-6, and Don Bosco made quick work of Dumont in an 8-1 win.
Over in Passaic County, Passaic Valley topped West Milford, 5-3, and Passaic Tech came back to beat Wayne Valley. That sets up Monday's championship game between Passaic Valley and Passaic Tech.
Old Tappan had it all on display today at Wayne Valley in a 4-1 win. Rob Segedin crushed a two-run homer in the fifth and Nick Pulsonetti also drove in two runs, including a solo shot in the fourth. Alex Caravella was dominant for six innings, tossing less than 60 pitches and allowing just three hits and no runs. He gave up three straight hits to start the seventh, so closer Jon Scott came in and retired three straight with a pair of runners on to pick up his eighth save of the season.
Great picture of Old Tappan senior Rob Segedin's level swing, although I do think that's the ball already past him. This photo is courtesy of The Record's esteemed staff photographer Tyson Trish.
It's now time for me to completely put myself out there and open myself up to criticism to no end. The following are my predictions for this weekend's County tournament games. Art gave you the States, I'll give you the Countys. I'll have the Bergen County tournament narrowed down to four, and offer you up a champion in the Passaic County tournament. So, when you don't like what I've said, please be merciful in your responses...nah, who am I kidding, let 'er rip!
Don Bosco was given the No. 1 seed despite not playing 22 games. Shocker, right? The Ironmen deserve it. They are 20-1. St. Joseph was No. 2 followed by (3) Old Tappan, (4) Bergen Catholic, (5) Emerson, (6) Westwood, (7) Indian Hills, (8) Hasbrouck Heights, (9) Ramapo, (10) Paramus, (11) St. Mary, (12) Tenafly, (13) Glen Rock (14) Lyndhurst, (15) River Dell, (16) Dumont, (17) Cresskill, (18) Pascack Valley and (19) New Milford.
Pascack Hills baseball coach Mike O'Brien is nauseous and weak in the knees after a two-day stay at The Valley Hospital in Ridgewood, but he's got his sense of humor. OB, as he's been called for years in the coaching business here in North Jersey, said that despite a swollen face as a result of getting hit by a line drive while throwing batting practice on Friday he's still "a cross between Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt."
Art and I have broken up the eight brackets we cover for The Record, and I have taken on the responsibility of previewing Groups 3 and 4 in North 1, North 2, Group 2, and Non-Public North B. Click here for the link to Art's previews on Groups 1 and 2 in North 1, North 2, Group 1 and Non-Public North A. We followed similar formats, with each of us throwing our own styles in as well. Hey, it's the Internet, nothing has to be the same. Toggle back and forth and enjoy. The games are virtually upon us.
Continue reading "State Baseball Tournament: Dan's breakdown" »
Nothing like coming back from vacation for the State tournament, the Bergen County tournament seeding meeting and the Passaic County semis, all in the same week. Talk about a whirlwind.
OK, Dan and I have divided up the duties for our State baseball tournament preview and here's the breakdown for the following sections: North 1, Group 1; North 2, Group 1; North 1, Group 2; North Non-Public A. Click here for Dan's post on his four brackets, so you can toggle back and forth for all the sections covered by The Record.
Enjoy.
Continue reading "State Baseball Tournament: Art's Breakdown" »
Sorry, I'm talking about Indian Hills. I wish I were talking about the Atlanta Braves. Let's go Mets!
Anyway, after Friday's 5-2 loss to Old Tappan in eight innings, Indian Hills has hit a bit of a slump. That is, of course, if you can call back-to-back losses to Ramapo and OT a slump. I will because the Braves had won 10 in a row, but as they say, better to lose them now, right?
So, I'm not going to gloat, but yes I did correctly pick Eastside to beat Hawthorne as a guest on WGHT 1500 last Friday. Than again, I also picked Wayne Hills to beat Clifton, Paterson Catholic to beat West Milford, Pompton Lakes to beat Passaic and Lakeland to beat DePaul. So, no, I'm not gloating...I'm instead wiping egg off my face.
Either way, I'm going at it again with four more picks for Saturday's games, virtual locks if you ask me...don't ask me.
If you read my story today you learned that yes, after six months of being told they were not gaining entry, the Pascack Hills football team will indeed become a member of the BCSL Olympic Division starting in 2008. I blasted the athletic directors from both the Olympic and National in this blog entry back in early November for voting to not grant access to the Cowboys into the league.
Hot Shots, gotta love it.
Anyway, I thought I was crazy as I drove up Route 208 around 3:20 this afternoon, on my way from our office in Hackensack to Indian Hills for the Braves game against Old Tappan. The skies weren't pretty, and luckily I didn't get to Oakland during armageddon. I got there right after. Power lines were down. Traffic was at a standstill. Flooding was everywhere, including on the base paths, where no one stood.
Well, I think it was fairly obvious, but Don Bosco belongs in the top spot again in The Record's Top 25, and that's exactly where they are. The Ironmen are 18-1 overall, so they are the top team again.
As for another team that has been a staple in the poll all season, Pascack Hills is no longer in the Top 25 after losing to Pascack Valley and Old Tappan last week. The Cowboys, who I will see play today against Ramapo, can't gain an automatic berth in for the Bergen County tournament either because it is impossible for them to get to .650 by next Monday night. However, if they don't pick up an extra game between now and then, they also won't even be considered for an at-large berth.
So, with St. Joseph losing to Hackensack last week, and The Record's new Top 25 set to unveil tomorrow, I pose this question to our loyal blog readers out there: Who should be No. 1 this week?
With all the hub-bub surrounding the selection of SJR last week -- warranted because at the time they had proven to be the best team in North Jersey, and it is a North Jersey Top 25 -- I thought I'd throw it out there for you guys to weigh in. The choices you come up with, be it Don Bosco, Passaic Valley, SJR, Passaic Tech, Indian Hills, etc. won't be the deciding factor in the ultimate decision, but it will serve as food for thought.
Let the comments begin...
UPDATE: Demarest did clinch a spot in the North 1, Group 3 bracket with a 9-5 win over New Milford. And, in the oh wow department, Hackensack beat St. Joseph, 10-7. The new poll will be out Monday.
Thanks to 'Hemi' for that write up in the comments section of the "On the bubble" blog about Ramsey's 3-2 loss to Wayne Hills. The pitcher the Patriots threw was Chris Lala, and he's really their No. 3 or 4. Elliot Shaw and Dave Ogden are their top two. I expect Ogden to pitch tomorrow against Clifton in the County tournament. That's a big win for Hills going into tomorrow's game. Big for confidence. Heartbreaking for Ramsey, though.
UPDATE: Palisades Park earned its berth in the State tournament today when its game against Leonia was called in the bottom of the second due to rain. The field was unplayable after 10 minutes of heavy rain left puddles at third base and down the line to home. The Tigers are 9-9.
It appears that a 9-9 record will be good enough for Lodi to get into the State tournament. According to www.highschoolsports.net the Rams' game at Hawthorne today has been postponed, meaning they are in the tournament. The athletic directors update that web-site, which we have access to, so I have to think it's a fact that the game is off because of the rain.
Well, after a nice little vaca (vacation) I'm back. Went to Hilton Head Island with my wife and family, and it was very nice, although the weather could have been better. Now that I am back, officially today, unofficially yesterday, it's time to take a look into the big day (today) and see which teams need to win. It's three hours until the first pitch, and by my count North Jersey has six teams in desperate need of a win today to clinch a berth in the State tournament.
Let's start a debate, shall we? I saw Glen Rock beat Saddle Brook today in baseball, 4-2, but that's hardly the story. It was a well played, crisp game. That's hardly the story. Glen Rock scored two of its runs, one in the fourth inning and another in the fifth, when Saddle Brook catcher Keith Rosso threw down to second base to get a runner trying to steal second, thereby allowing the runner on third to come home easily.
Should the catcher throw through there? Or, should the throw be cut off at all times?
It's been a difficult Wednesday for River Dell football and track coach D.J. Nimphius. He found out that last night the district's Board of Education did not approve his tenure to continue teaching social studies. Nimphius, a teacher for 22 years in Wallkill Valley, Glen Rock and now River Dell, said he has an opportunity to appeal the BOE's decision, but he's still unsure if he's going to do that.
Well, I lied. I said all of my report cards would be out before Monday's games. It's Wednesday at 2:30, so I was close. No? Oh well. Here is the long anticipated semester grades for the BCSL Olympic Division teams. It's a tight race with Emerson leading Cresskill by a game and a half.
Just received a phone call from Pompton Lakes coach Paul Tanis with the seeds for the upcoming Passaic County baseball tournament. Here they are, with a schedule underneath.
Here is your update on the B-PSL King and Carpenter Divisions heading into the second half of the season. Glen Rock leads the King Division and Paterson Catholic leads the Carpenter.
A lot of readers have been asking about Old Tappan, and specifically Rob Segedin and Nick Pulsonetti. Well, things aren't going so well for the Golden Knights, who I saw get mercy-ruled today by Bergen Catholic, 13-3, in five innings. That's the third straight loss for Old Tappan.
Here is a look at the NBIL through the month of April. As I've said, it's been wacky, and every coach I speak to agrees with me.
Pompton Lakes certainly has an ace this season in senior Chris Mongelli, who today had one of the best outings of the season for any North Jersey pitcher by tossing a 1-hit shutout of Glen Rock. The Cardinals staked him a 2-0 lead in the top of the first, and that was all Mongelli needed to improve his 2007 record to 5-0. The Cardinals are now 6-2. Watch out for them.
Here are some results from today's action that will appear in the paper tomorrow, but for those of you that just can't wait. Wait til you get down to the NBIL results. I'm going to go more in depth on this league soon, breaking down team by team and giving some predictions that are about as bold as possible. However, you won't believe what you see with this league:
If I'm reading this right, and I like to think I am, Bergenfield pulled a monumental upset today by beating Old Tappan, 7-4. Now, this is not to disparage the Bears in any way because I've seen them this season and they're a good little squad with some pop and some good pitching. This is more shocking to me because it's Old Tappan, and I know I'm not supposed to think the Golden Knights are going to be dominant like they were last year but it's hard to get those thoughts out of my head.
There were a couple of real interesting games this afternoon, and since I'm stuck in the office on late night duty I figured I'd throw the results from my leagues out there to you in cyberspace.
In my previous blog I wrote about teams that I believe will have enough to truly contend in May, and I can't believe it...and I'm slapping myself around right now...but I FORGOT OLD TAPPAN!!! How in the world could I have done that. The people in Old Tappan know it was an honest mistake. Hey, after last season, they all know me good enough to realize that. Anyway, of course Old Tappan is right in the mix. Heck, the Knights proved it again Tuesday with their 7-6 win over Pascack Hills.
Looks like the Rangers picked a pretty good time to play a couple of home games. Well, at least last night, that is, considering how many games have been postponed over the last two days, not to mention the still yet to be determined amount today. What's a high school baseball fan to do when Mother Nature spits on us for so long? Go to a volleyball game? Please.
So our first Top 25 of the regular season is out, released in Monday's editions of The Record.
And I've got to tell you, it was a lot harder to put together than it may look. Both Dan and I spent nearly an hour working through the possible combinations, made even more complicated with losses by St. Joseph, Westwood and Pascack Hills last week. Don Bosco was locked in at the top, but in case you missed it, keep on reading for expanded analysis.
Unfortunately, there was rain and real life today with the Virginia Tech shooting. I spoke with a Va. Tech freshman lacrosse player, Faith Richards, who is from Montclair, earlier this afternoon. John Brennan, our staff writer handling the story, used some of her comments for this story, but here is the entire story from Richards' perspective, some of which had to be edited out to get all the pertinent information about all the other North Jersey families affected by this horrific and unexplainable tragedy. This is jarring.
Waldwick used some pitching to get past Midland Park, 5-3, on one of the coldest afternoon's I have ever encountered during baseball season. Taking a page out of Darren's book, the game-time temperature was 44 degrees, and who knows what it was with the wind chill. And, hey, there were geese in the outfield.
Nevertheless, they bundled up and played a baseball game.
I was scheduled to be in Saddle Brook this afternoon for the Falcons game against Paterson Catholic off of Saddle River Road, but that got wiped out because Vander Sande Field is unplayable, according to SB coach Tim Sheldon. So, instead I will find myself at another game that intrigues me in Waldwick between the Warriors and Mildand Park. Waldwick is 2-1 and the Panthers are 3-2, but 2-0 in the league. The Warriors were 11-13 a year ago and Midland Park was 5-18.
I don't control the heat in my apartment, and my downstairs neighbor has left the heat off. Lucky for me I have to go soon, but not to a high school baseball game. While the rain would have kept me away anyway, I'm scheduled to cover the Devils opening round game tonight against Tampa. Still, I have a four-track mind these days as I am always thinking about the Devils, the Rangers, of course high school baseball, and yes, my wife as well. Since high school baseball is what we care about on this blog, here are some thoughts I have come across this afternoon...
Art posted his, and now it's my turn. In an effort to get this in quickly, I will limit my analysis. So, let's get to it.
Taking a page out of Darren's book, Dan and I have decided to each weigh in with how we would rank our North Jersey Top 25, even though the next official poll will not come out until Monday's edition of The Record.
Emerson coach Bob Carcich talked about a lack of timely hitting, about some poor defense, and about some sheer bad luck. Nevertheless, the Cavos are now 0-2 this season, including 0-1 in the league, after Leonia pulled off the upset in eight innings, 4-1, Monday afternoon to hand Nick Ramagli his second loss of the season. I'll be at the Emerson-New Milford game tomorrow at Gibbs School in New Milford, and who would have guessed that the Cavos and Knights would be a combined 0-5.
After watching Wayne Hills outlast Old Tappan yesterday, I spent my drive back home from Wayne on the phone with Art talking about the Golden Knights middle-of-the-order dilemma. Here they have the top two hitters in the NBIL (bar none), and arguably the top two in all of North Jersey (arguable), but Nick Pulsonetti and Rob Segedin will only be as good as the protection behind them this season.
Gotta run out now because it's car shopping time with my wife, but just wanted to jump on real quick to let you know that Wayne Hills beat Old Tappan, 9-7, today. It's the Knights first NBIL loss since 2005. Remember, they won 28 straight games last season, including all 22 in the NBIL. Dave Ogden got the win on the mound, and also had three hits, including a solo HR in the first, and three RBI. I'll have more analysis later, and believe me, there's a lot to talk about. So, check back either later tonight or tomorrow morning. Sorry, gotta run now.
This wasn't vintage or crisp by any means, but Pascack Hills did it again. The Cowboys proved how resilient they can be as they came back from a 4-0 deficit to beat Bergenfield, 5-4, in nine innings this afternoon. Yes, it was cold. Yes, I was wearing ear muffs and gloves. Yes, this was an exciting first game of the season for me.
Gotta correct you Art, but it's my mistake. Got a note from Wayne Hills coach Chris Ianniello yesterday saying they are not playing Ramapo today, and instead will be playing the game on Tuesday. So, that makes the game I'll be at today, Pascack Hills at Bergenfield, the only one on the docket.
Hawthorne Christian gets the best comeback of the season award....two days in, of course. Hey, the Defenders deserve some kudos tonight for what they did this afternoon. Freshman catcher Ben Prinz hit a 3-run homer with two outs in the sixth, culimating a 6-run rally for the Defenders, who came back to beat the Vikings, 6-3. In a small slate of games today, this was easily the best of the bunch.
After days, and I mean days, of playing a great game of phone tag with Jim Bononno, I finally got it confirmed with him earlier this afternoon that he has officially resigned his post as Becton's football coach, a position he held for 13 seasons. Bononno told me he has other interests now, and he can't devote the same amount of time he believes the Wildcats deserve.
How about Andrew Collazo and Jared Forestieri yesterday afternoon? A combined 23 strikeouts, one earned run and five hits allowed in 10 total innings of work. That's not too shabby for an opening day for two of North Jersey's top pitchers who pitch for two of North Jersey's small schools.
OK, I know baseball season in North Jersey officially began yesterday with Lyndhurst upsetting Emerson, 2-0, thanks to James Ostag's 1-hitter. However, it begins in earnest today with a slew of games. Funny, though, because I think the only leagues not opening today are the NBIL, BCSL Olympic and BCSL National. Two of those are mine, but that's good because my mini-vacation (I was in Boston over the weekend with the wife) continues today because of Passover. Still, there's some good action this afternoon.
The awards are out and now we'd like to hear what you think. Do you like our selections? Do you dislike our selections? Are you totally outraged at some picks? Are you totally surprised that we got it right (hope not, but you're out there, I know it). Post your comments and tell us what you think. We really do want to know.
According to Ridgefield baseball coach Joe Gambardella, Royals senior catcher Matt Fiorvanti has committed to play his college ball at Division III Johnson & Wales in Rhode Island. Fiorvanti, a three-year starter, hit .386 last season as the cleanup hitter and threw out over 40 percent of base stealers. He'll again hit cleanup this season, and is the early leader to be the BCSL Olympic first-team catcher.
I should have blogged about this last week, but I was waiting for confirmation that I got tonight. It's officially official (redundant, no?) that Montvale resident Kyle Palmieri, a sophomore at St. Peter's, made the U.S. under-17 national team after trying out last week in Ann Arbor, Mich.
The amazing thing about this blog, and really about high school sports in general these days, is whenever the words public or parochial come up in any blog or discussion, it fuels a debate. The passion out there is so amazing, and so wonderful, that it sometimes blows me away.
I just got back from spending an hour at the Ice Vault working on a magazine story, and found out from the arena's GM Larry Tippner that the Kaiya's Cup charity game between Indian Hills and Ramapo this past Sunday raised an estimated $25,000 for Lee and Jill Barber, whose daughter, Kaiya, has cerebral palsy. Lee Barber is the head ice hockey coach at Indian Hills, and a teacher at Ramapo. That's an amazing amount of money to go to Kaiya's care, and I'm so thrilled for the Barbers. If this article did anything to help the cause, well even better, but what a great job by the Ramapo-Indian Hills hockey communities. Mahwah and Fair Lawn deserve kudos as well since they also participated in the charity event.
Two and a half frantic days later, I'm three previews away from being finished. And here I thought I was going to have to skate over to some indoor scrimmages. Hey, it's still hockey season, I can use the word skate. Anyway, I do feel as though I've got a particularly good feel on how the three divisions I cover (NBIL, BCSL Olympic, B-PSL) could shake out.
OK, so I lied. I told you we were on a short hiatus, and that was flat wrong. Hey, I'm the one blogging, so clearly I was wrong. I couldn't even speak for myself. Nevertheless, we were all working diligently today on our spring sports preview section which is due out next week. Art and I are baseball men, and I'm so far tackling the NBIL and BCSL Olympic. Was able to track down a bunch of coaches today, and here's are some of the talking points:
Yes, even an Ace can tire. Hey, when you throw over 100 pitches and you've gone a full nine, extra innings can be tough. So, yeah, an Ace can tire. So with that baseball metaphor, I'd like to beg for all of our high school sports fans out there yearning for more coverage to just hang tight for another couple of days as us Aces close the book on the winter season and head toward spring.
Despite being outshot by a near two-to-one margin by St. Peter's Prep, Bergen Catholic's ice hockey team still led 3-2 entering the final minute of regulation last night in the quarterfinals of the Non-Public bracket. However, the Crusaders were snakebitten by penalties all night, and they were about to be burned big time.
Montvale-resident Kyle Palmieri scored the game-tying goal on the power play with just 38 seconds remaining in regulation, and 8:14 into the overtime session Matt Runciman ended it for the Marauders with a put back goal, sending St. Peter's to the semifinals with a 4-3 OT victory.
The NHL did the appropriate thing Sunday by suspending Islanders forward Chris Simon for the rest of the season, playoffs included. He's out for a minimum of 25 games, which means if the Islanders don't play at least 10 playoff games, a distinct possibility, Simon will serve the balance of his suspension at the beginning of next season. If the Islanders go deep into the playoffs, Simon still won't be able to play.
Not much to say about Fair Lawn's 5-1 loss to Morris Knolls other than this:
Tommy Tomensky. Wow.
The Golden Eagles senior center scored all five goals as his team advanced to the semifinals for the fourth straight season. The Cutters, meanwhile, still haven't made it past the quarterfinals in team history. Four years ago they lost to Randolph in the quarters, 5-0, as the 25th-seed.
I've never done this before, but I'm going to rant a bit about what I witnessed last night at the end of the Rangers game. If you're a hockey fan, you know what I'm talking about. Chris Simon of the Islanders taking a baseball swing at Rangers forward Ryan Hollweg's neck as if he was trying to hit a fastball out of the park. It was one of the most disgusting acts I've ever seen in a hockey game, and it has no place in this wonderful sport.
I'll make it quick tonight because, really, there isn't much to say. Ramapo got outworked and outplayed by Watchung Hills here at Sport-O-Rama, and the Green Raiders fell, 4-0. Their season ends prematurely, at least by their standards, one round short of the quarterfinals of the Public State tournament.
Fair Lawn's Colin Lemay won the battle of freshmen goalies tonight at Sport-O-Rama as the Cutters beat the Highlanders, 1-0, in a shootout that went five rounds. Lemay stopped 29 shots. Highlanders goalie Jordan Nathan was perfect against 22. Lemay, though, kicked aside two in the shootout and watched Brian Halpin's attempt sail wide left. Tyler Novielli, Dan Roccanova, and Dan Spitzfaden scored for Fair Lawn in the shootout and the Cutters won a thriller in front of the best crowd I've ever seen at a high school hockey game.
Three North Jersey teams were eliminated last night while two advanced in the State ice hockey tournament.
Ramapo got a phenomenal effort by senior goalie Dan Menken to top Wall, 4-1, in the Public bracket. Paramus Catholic also nudged out MKA, 2-1, in the Non-Public bracket. However, Mahwah lost to Montgomery, 5-2; Pequannock lost to Mendham, 5-2; and Steinert crushed Kinnelon, 10-3.
For those of you who missed it last night, and yes, I was one of them, arguably the best hockey game of the year took place at Sport-O-Rama. Northern Highlands came back from a 3-0 deficit to beat Ridgewood, 4-3, in overtime to advance into the third round of the Public State tournament.
The Highlanders, who beat Fair Lawn, 3-2, on Feb. 23 to win the NBIL Cup, will play those same Cutters tomorrow night at Sport-O-Rama (7:30) for the right to play in the quarterfinals on Friday night at South Mountain Arena.
No, I wasn't there to see it, but I just got the result and yes Paramus Catholic did beat Bergen Catholic this afternoon, 3-1, at the Ice House. This is huge for the Paladins. This, coupled with thei Earl Hoerner Cup title, puts them on the proverbial map in New Jersey.
But, of course, it'll be March in less that five hours, and I'll be 29 in the same time span, by the way. That means the State tournament takes precedence, and unfortunately these hockey teams just aren't getting this whole publicity thing.
North Jersey's participation in the Ice Hockey State tournament got underway yesterday when Fair Lawn beat Passaic Valley, 6-2, at the Ice House. At the same time, I think I was watching Star Wars, or some random college basketball game while my wife prepared for the big red carpet show on E!.
After a day off, I'm ready to roll into this State tournament.
I predicted another one, but I won't boast about it, I swear. Paramus Catholic topped Ridgewood this afternoon, 5-2, in the Earl Hoerner Cup championship game, just as I predicted yesterday. Yup, nailed the score. I won't brag, though.
Getting my Oscars theme yet? I hope so. Anyway, a quickie tonight just to report the scores, and see how I did with my predictions.
I stepped away from the blog for a few days, but I'm back baby. OK, no idea why I threw that baby in there. Make fun of me later. Right now, though, I'm going to take you through the Cup finals, which of course begin in just over two hours in West Orange at lovely South Mountain Arena, or is it Codey Arena? Who knows? Who cares? Let's drop the puck.
Who celebrated President's Day, a day off for most, by watching and writing about hockey?
Yours truly, that's who.
Actually, I never made it to the Ice Vault for the NBIL games, but as we speak I'm still waiting for the box scores on the last two games. However, I've got all the results for you right here...
Hills did all it could, but BC never lost the lead in the fourth quarter because it never lost its composure. The Crusaders hit 10 of their last 12 free throws, and that was the difference in holding off the Cowboys.
Rigg got fouled with 16.4 seconds left. He hit the first, and for some unknown reason BC coach Joe Dionisio called a timeout between attempts. Why? I have no idea. Someone please tell me. Anyway, Rigg came to the line, and he hit the second to give BC the five point lead. BC pressed, Wolfin missed a three. However, a turnover by Kahler led to a long two by Mike Friedberg, his first points of the game, with .2 seconds left. The refs stopped the game, and after a long deliberation they added 2.2 seconds to make it 2.4 seconds to play. Mazawey fouled Carroll with 1.5 seconds left. He hit the first, and that was all she wrote.
Hope you're ready for yet another installment of Bergen Catholic vs. Don Bosco on Wednesday here at the Rothman Center at 7:30. Should be a dandy as BC makes its 17th trip to the final. The Crusaders last won the title in 2003.
So, there you have it. One down, one to go. Don Bosco absolutely dominated from the opening tip. The Ironmen frustrated Raji. They didn't let him do anything inside the paint. By the end of the game, the Boston College-bound star was taking threes.
Milligan led everyone with 21 points and eight rebounds. DiSanzo had 13 and four off the bench before leaving to an ovation with just over two minutes left. Pernice had four points, four rebounds, four assists and five steals. He was also the key factor in why Raji was limited to 13 points, six rebounds, one assist, and three steals. Smyth had a quiet five points, but he had four assists.
Don Bosco's ball movement was exceptional. That, coupled with Westwood's inability to control possession, was the deciding factor in the first half. The Cardinals won't beat a disciplined and sound team like the Ironmen by turning the ball over 14 times in a half. Don Bosco, meanwhile, won't lose its 18-point lead over the next 16 minutes if it continues to smother Raji inside, and play smart with the ball. The Ironmen had eight turnovers, and Raji had just six points and two rebounds. He also missed the front end on both of his one-and-one chances at the free throw line.
A transition layup by DiSanzo gave Bosco its biggest lead, 35-17, with just over two minutes remaining in the first half. Westwood guard Mike Deans hit two free throws to bring it back to a 16-point deficit. Raji, though, committed his second foul with 39.8 seconds left after Milligan stole the inbounds pass and went in for a layup. Milligan hit both, and Raji went to the bench.
Kyle Hourigan hit a three with just under six minutes left, cutting Don Bosco's lead to 27-17, but Alexander DiSanzo's layup on the other end brought the Cardinals deficit back to 12. A.J. LoRusso's jumper with 4:15 left made it 31-17. Westwood, in fact, scored the first four points of the second quarter, but Bosco guard Peter Bonilla converted a three-point play with 6:40 to play, giving Don Bosco a 27-14 lead.
Continue reading "Live at Jambo: DB 31, WW 17 (4:04 in second)" »
Don Bosco hit its first seven shots while Westwood made only three of its eight shots in the first quarter and turned the ball over eight times and had just one rebound. Milligan led all scorers in the first with eight points. Mike O'Keefe had seven points, including a buzzer beating field goal from the corner. Kyle Smyth had five. Vinny Pernice had two points, two rebounds, three assists and three steals.
Max Padula snapped Bosco's 9-0 run with a layup and one. He missed the free throw, though, and it remained 16-8. Bosco led 18-8 when coach Kevin Diverio called a 30-second timeout. Don Bosco is killing Westwood with its dribble drives. In fact, with 2:35 to play Bosco had made all 7 shots and Westwood is only 3 of 7 with five turnovers. A miss by Bosco's O'Keefe led to a transition bucket for Raji, slicing it to 18-10. Bosco, though, scored the next four points.
Continue reading "Live at Jambo: DB 24, WW 10 (end first)" »
Corey Raji picked up his first foul just nine seconds into the game, a ticky-tacky call underneath on Georgia Milligan, who hit both free throws to make it 2-2. Don Bosco started Vinny Pernice on Raji. Pernice did a fantastic job in the quarters against Ridgefield Park standout John Tello. Kyle Smyth hit an early 3 to put the Ironmen ahead, 5-4. Smyth to Milligan in transition made it 7-4. After two free throws from Dylan Cacciola, Bosco's Michael O'Keefe hit a three from the corner and Milligan made a layup to give the Ironmen a 12-6 lead.
They just announced that there are a couple hundred people still outside trying to get in. They're asking people to move closer together in the gym. This is nuts.
Continue reading "Live at Jambo: DB 12, WW 6 (5:14 in first)" »
The starters are being announced for both Westwood and Don Bosco. I'll try to post as often as I can, and each time I do post, I'll attach the previous post onto the bottom. So, if you miss one, you can catch up by just reading on.
So, we're less than an hour away from tipoff here at FDU's Rothman Center. Westwood, the Cinderella Cardinals as I'll call them now, is the 16th seed trying to knock off fourth-seeded Don Bosco, the defending and six-time champion. Westwood has never been to a final. Pascack Hills, the NBIL flavor of the year and the undefeated third seed, is here to try to beat No. 2 Bergen Catholic. The Cowboys have reached the final just once, 26 years ago.
So, it begs the question: Will we have a repeat of last year's Final Four Flameout, or will tonight's action actually be exciting?
One last hockey blog before we become basketball-centric here at Varsity Aces. I am going over to FDU in roughly an hour to start my night of blogging from the Jamboree semifinals, but first this afternoon I saw River Dell stun Paramus, 4-3, in overtime to advance to the semifinals of the McMullen Cup playoffs.
Space is the defining element in the newspaper business. There's only so much of it, and there's so many stories to tell. That's why we have the blog, folks. It gives us an opportunity to clear out our notebooks and give you more information than you could get within the pages of our newspapers.
So, here is what was left on the cutting room floor from my story on Bergen Catholic's 2-1 win over St. Joseph yesterday at the Ice House, and it's all telling quotes from Crusaders coach Dan May:
Ladies and gents, if you don't think this intrepid Ace has some versatility....well, you most likely would be correct, except for this weekend. I'll be skating, grappling, and rebounding all in the same weekend. Let's just hope no one puts me in the box for fighting, calls an illegal clasp on me, or blows the whistle in my direction for a flagrant foul.
Sorry, as a hockey guy I can only assume the answer to my headline is a rousing YES. Enough of this weather. If it's going to snow, well then snow already. If not, stop this nonsensical icy rain. It does no good for anybody. My dog doesn't like playing in this stuff. He likes playing in snow.
Anyway, on to the important things, such as Northern Highlands naming Chris Locurto the head football coach. And, the upcoming Cup playoffs, which begin in earnest this weekend. That link is to the story that appeared in the Herald News. There's one in The Record too that also includes the Gordon Conference. Also, a major salute goes out to Luke Menken, the Ramapo ice hockey player who is now home after 26 nights in a Paterson hospital overcoming a deadly disease that has a 90 percent fatality rate.
Chris Locurto was approved as the new Northern Highlands football coach at the district's Board of Education meeting last night. Locurto has never been a head coach before, but has been on former coach Steve Simonetti's staff as the offensive coordinator for the last two seasons. Prior to that Locurto coached at Spring Valley, N.Y. High School.
Locurto is a physical education and health education teacher at Northern Highlands. He replaces Simonetti, who was the head coach for the past 19 seasons.
Check back to Varsity Aces for more information on Locurto later today.
If you had told me prior to the season that Dumont, River Dell and Pascack Valley would be headed to the State tournament, I'd have said something to the effect of you being crazy, wild, nuts, a lunatic.
Shows how much I know about hockey, huh?
Dumont, River Dell and Pascack Valley each picked up upset victories yesterday at the Ice House, and now all three are headed to the State tournament. The Golden Hawks got their first win in the Northern White, beating Lakeland, 4-1. PV beat Ramsey, 4-3. Dumont upended Sparta, 4-1.
Sorry for not blogging in the past couple of days. Signing Day will do that to you. Anyway, I just rolled out of bed not too long ago, came to my computer to check my email. A daily ritual. Sorry for the visual. Well, I received an email from the father of the Ramapo player who was striken with meningococcal disease saying he was relased from the hospital on Wednesday, and could potentially be at the Green Raiders game Sunday against Wayne Hills (2:30, Sport-O-Rama).
That's fantastic news, and I will have more later this weekend. Now, on to what is important this weekend, which is teams vying to get into the State tournament before Monday's cutoff date.
Before I even get into last night's hockey, let's first get the business of football out of the way. Congrats to Frank Morano, who last month became Rutherford's head coach. Morano is a hard worker, and he'll restore the pride back into that program.
Now on to the hockey. Last night I caught two excellent games as Ramsey played to a 3-3 tie with Northern Highlands, and Mahwah outlasted Indian Hills, 4-1, on the heals of a tremendous performance in net by goalie G.T. Wall.
Just thought I'd get my good buddy Paul Schwartz with that headline. Hockey matters, at least to me and hopefully to many of you. With that in mind, let's take a look at three important games tonight, some of the key action that makes hockey in February so exciting.
That's the one question I have regarding this whole NNJIL public schools vs. their non-public brethren issue, because in essence, that's what this story that details the latest separation plan put forth really comes down to.
Where are we going from here? Where will the lawyers on either side let this thing go? Here's a poll in which we'd like you to participate: Vote on the Public vs. Non-Public issue.
Here we go again.
That's really the only four words I can come up with regarding the public school athletic directors from the NNJIL and their quest to separate the publics and non-publics, which is again a major issue at hand. The news, which appeared first in this morning's editions of The Record and Herald News, shouldn't come as a surprise to any because these 14 public schools have been hot on this topic for quite some time, and every year they seem to find a new and innovative way to head to Robbinsville with a plan. While I believe it's getting out of hand and they just won't let this issue die, this new soon-to-be proposal might have the best chance of passing through the NJSIAA membership because it is too vague.
Hey, I'm back after a few days away from blogging. My bad. Shouldn't have taken a break. I know you were all dying for my insight (wink, wink). Since National Signing Day is approaching (Feb. 7) I decided to call up Bergen Catholic senior linebacker Dean Scaduto last night. His recruiting story should be of interest to those who follow this stuff in North Jersey.
DISCLAIMER: Before I even begin this blog I want to say that even though I am a Fair Lawn graduate, I have absolutely no ties to the school anymore. My business is to be a professional reporter, not a fan, and any ties I had to FLHS were cut when I left the building in June of 1996.
He's back, and wouldn't you know it, Stan Myles has another reclamation project on his hands. The former Hudson Catholic, Fort Lee, Hawthorne, Waldwick and Waldwick/Midland Park coach was hired as Fair Lawn's new head football coach. The district's Board of Education approved Myles on Tuesday night. The head coach for 11 seasons has taken on arguably the toughest challenge of his career.
It was the perfect ending to one of the most dramatic games in high school ice hockey in recent years. Ramapo forward Chris Martin shoving the puck towards the net, and watching it slide just inches across the goal line before the official, standing right in position, blew his whistle and pointed at the goal.
With 13.8 seconds left in the third period, Martin scored the game-winner as Ramapo upended Indian Hills, 4-3. As senior Dylan Macaluso said after the game, "it was the greatest gift we could have given him right now."
If you can remember more than 24 hours ago, you will remember the story I wrote for Tuesday's editions regarding league and state playoff realignment being talked about by administrators in the Sussex County Interscholastic League.
You can read the link above, which also includes what the North 1 divisions would have looked like if this plan were in place this past season, to get the nuts and bolts out of the story. I am going to offer my opinion on this matter, and I'm hoping that you offer yours as well. Post into the comments section. This topic begs dialogue, so let's get it started...
So I was covering today's Glen Rock vs. Ridgewood game today with Jim McConville of northjerseysports.com and The Ridgewood News. You know who he is, especially you hockey fans. He's at just about every game.
Anyway, before the game, a 5-3 Glen Rock win, by the way (more to come later), Jim explained to me what happened at the end of the Mayor's Trophy game between Wayne Hills and Wayne Valley on Friday night. This is secondhand, so forgive me if some of the facts may be a bit askew, but I couldn't believe what I was hearing.
Thirty-two days ago, Bergen Catholic lost to Seton Hall Prep, 3-0, at Codey Arena. Friday afternoon, the Crusaders reversed the score in their favor, proving they are once again an elite contender in New Jersey high school hockey. If BC keeps progressing, I wouldn't be surprised to see them go deep, if not all the way, come March.
Here's a quick morning poll along with your bagel and coffee. I'm hoping this generates some comments, so please post them in the comments section, and also click on this link to cast your vote. Hopefully we can start a discussion about this, and perhaps we'll have future in the online poll business as well. Here goes:
What team has been the biggest surprise in the 2006-07 hockey season so far?
A. Northern Highlands (10-0-2)
B. Ridgewood (8-4)
C. Wayne Valley (6-2-4)
D. Pequannock (14-0-2)
Thought the headline was catchy, no?
It's a big weekend of high school ice hockey blog fans. We're talking define-the-season big for some teams, including DePaul, Dumont, Glen Rock, West Milford, Ridgewood, St. Joes, Bergen Catholic...the list goes on.
Maybe I'm exaggerating a bit, but hey, it's mid-January and we're only a month away from the Cup playoffs. So, forgive me if I hype this weekend up a bit. Here are my 10 to watch, and mind you this does not include the Ramapo-Indian Hills game, originally scheduled for Sunday but now rescheduled for Wednesday at Sport-O-Rama (5 o'clock). More to come on that later, but for now, away we go...
There is a highly recruited North Jersey hockey player who you will soon be able to find at one of the top collegiate programs in the country.
Hillsdale resident Brooke Ammerman - hey, we never said it had to be a he, right? - committed to the University of Wisconsin over the weekend, her father and New Milford interim principal, Bert, told me today. Brooke is only a junior, but she chose the Badgers and coach Mark Johnson, he of 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey fame, over both Minnesota and Boston College.
Sorry blog fans, I haven't posted in a day or so and that's bad of me. The latest update I have received on the Ramapo students in the hospital is positive. Unfortunately, I am not able to reveal everything I learned because the families request the privacy of the students remain in tact for now, but suffice it to say that today was a good day, and we're hoping more are to come.
As we wait for more news, and hopefully some good news, on the 15-year-old Ramapo hockey player still at St. Joseph's Regional Medical Center in Paterson, still not breathing on his own (at least since Sunday night) I have word of an interesting policy change in at least one of North Jersey's hockey programs.
For everybody who gets caught up in all the arguments, debates, and rivalries that make sports so great, pardon me for this blog. Real life has interjected into the ice hockey world today as one Ramapo ice hockey player may very well be fighting for his life.
It's another big ice hockey weekend, and it begins in oh a little less than an hour from now as Ramapo and Fair Lawn faceoff at the Ice House (4:30). I'll be there, but it's certainly not the only game of interest this weekend.
Here's my 10 to watch, with a little explanation thrown in to light some fire under all you hockey fans.
I'll start off my first blog in a couple days by saying I'm not surprised by Matt Simms' decision to drop his oral commitment to Louisville. Players do not commit to schools these days. They commit to coaches. That's what Simms did. When the coach couldn't commit to him, well Simms has every right to change his mind as well. I think Michigan State would be a perfect fit.
Anyway, on to the ice, and some interesting things that have occurred since you last heard from me.
Just a quickie tonight to tell everyone that Steve Simonetti, the football coach at Northern Highlands for the past 19 seasons, told me tonight he resigned on Tuesday. There will be more to come in The Record later this week about how and why this came to pass, but now Northern Highlands joins a long list of teams seeking a head coach. From what we know and have already reported, the teams already on that list are Paramus, Lakeland, Rutherford, Fair Lawn, Passaic, and Waldwick/Midland Park.
Unlike every other winter sport - save fencing, of course - the ice hockey season is actually a month and two days old today, so I figured what a great time it would be to just do a quick rewind as to what has gone on in the last 33 days. I'll start with the Gordon, move down to the North Red, White and Blue, and then hit the NBIL and a bit on Morris County.
Hello all and welcome to 2007. What an honor it is to have the first blog of the year. I hope everyone had a happy and healthy holiday season and is ready to roll in 2007.
Two of North Jersey's best football players in recent history, Brian Cushing and Greg Olsen, surely proved yesterday that they are primed and ready for a big year.
Dan Rosen did a wonderful job talking about the late Herb Cohen in his Wednesday blog and Rob Celentano wrote a terrific article in Saturday's Record about the moving ceremony at Wood-Ridge Friday when Wood-Ridge honored Herb Cohen by officially naming Bergen County's oldest continuous boys basketball tournament after him and honored longtime baseball and football coach Gerry Labenski by naming the gymnasium after him.
But even though I wrote about Herb's passing Wednesday and my colleagues did such a great job in writing about him, I have to relate some personal memories about the man I knew, admired and flat out liked for more than 30 years.
Wow, was I way off with my prediction. OK, so I got the team right. Yes, West Milford did win. The score? Well, that's another story. I said 4-2 with a goal late. Even most of the people associated with the tournament, including Clifton coach Tom Danko, thought it would be close, and maybe even tilted in Wayne Hills' direction.
Try 9-1 West Milford. Yikes. There was 25 minutes of garbage time in this game, including the last period as West Milford built a 7-1 lead on back-to-back goals from Andrew Atieh 11 seconds apart at 14:30 and 14:41 of the second period.
If you're a high school hockey fan, and you want to see a couple of young scorers going head to head, head over the Floyd Hall Arena tonight for the Passaic County Tournament championship game. West Milford senior forward Andrew Atieh and Wayne Hills senior forward Albert Campbell exemplify exactly what good high school hockey players in North Jersey should be like.
I'm sure Paul Schwartz will have more to say on this later today or tomorrow, but North Jersey high school sports lost one of its finest leaders yesterday as former Wood-Ridge and Northern Highlands coach and athletic director Herb Cohen passed away at the too young age of 62.
It's amazing what happens when a team plays a disciplined brand of hockey.
Wayne Hills stayed out of the penalty box for the most part, passed the puck with efficiency, and played well in front of its own goal in dominating an undermanned DePaul squad, 7-3, in the first round of the Passaic County tournament.
West Milford upended Passaic Valley, 5-1, in the second game. Clifton and Wayne Valley are still playing.
First off, welcome back to Mr. Schwartz. Now we've got to get Stapleton and Mattura to start giving us some regular information. Did anyone catch Stapleton's story on "We Are Marshall" and it's affect on North Jersey. Simply riveting stuff.
However, as you can probably tell from the headline of this blog, that's not what I want to focus on. In Sunday's editions I laid out my concerns on the sportsmanship issues in today's high school sports.
Expect Bergen Catholic to have this entire thing figured out before the middle of February. The Crusaders showed again on Friday in a 4-2 loss to St. Peter's Prep that they are not too far off from being one of the best teams in New Jersey.
Sure, their 1-5 record won't show it, but Bergen Catholic showed marked improvement in a span of only seven days. You'll be able to read all about it tomorrow in The Record, but here is my take for some extra analysis.
Something tells me Dave Ogden is going to have one heck of a collegiate career for Monmouth University. The Wayne Hills senior defensive end, a two-time first-team All-State selection, gave his verbal commitment to Hawks coach Kevin Callahan last night.
This may be one of the best finds of the recruiting season for any New Jersey college.
North Jersey was represented well on the Associated Press All-State team. For the second straight season, 11 players from our area were selected to the first-team, which consisted of 30 players in all.
Don Bosco led the way with four, including Matt Simms, Justin Trattou, Brian Hanly and Ike Garrow. Wayne Hills, for the second straight season, had three in Dave Ogden, Matt Johnson and Scott Schultz. DePaul's Chaz Cervino, Teaneck's Rashad White, Paterson Catholic's Markeece Preston, and Pascack Valley's Colin McEvoy also earned first-team recognition.
Northern Highlands won't win like this every time out, but the penalty box was actually the Highlanders best friend tonight at Sport-O-Rama. Despite being whistled for 10 penalties and giving Clifton nine power play chances, including two 5-on-3s, the Highlanders got a hat trick from Pat Erstling and won, 4-0. Two of Erstling's goals came while short-handed. Clifton managed only five shots on their nine power plays, and none in 6:57 with at least a one-man advantage in the second period.
In a few minutes I'll be heading up to Sport-O-Rama in Monsey, NY for tonight's game between Northern Highlands and Clifton. I'm excited about this one because not only does it give me the chance to see two more teams this season, it'll give me a great read on what to expect in the upcoming Passaic County tournament, which seeds tonight (I think).
It's not often that you see a player score 6 goals in the same game 30 penalties are recorded. Well, I, along with the several hundred fans at the Ice Vault last night, got to see it as Fair Lawn topped Wayne Hills, 7-1, behind senior Justin Scales six goals. This was about as choppy of a hockey game I've ever seen, and although I'm only 28 years old, I've seen a lot of hockey in my lifetime.
Why does it feel that football season rolled right into ice hockey? Oh, that's because it did, and hockey is mostly played on the weekends now as well, at least here in North Jersey. So, here is a quick rundown of what to look for in Week 3 of the Ice Hockey season.
It didn't take long for Scott Schultz to find his new home. The 6-4, 267-pound defensive tackle and tight end from Wayne Hills gave his verbal commitment to UConn after making his official visit to the Storrs campus over the weekend.
Schultz told UConn coach Randy Edsall on Sunday, and the coach was meeting with Patriots coach Chris Olsen on Monday. Schultz was gaining interest from Penn State (the Lions wanted him to be a guard), N.C. State, Marshall, Akron, and others. UConn was his favorite by far.
Paramus Catholic got a pair of goals from Justin Booth and two assists from Dan Minda for an impressive, 6-1, win over Ridgewood at the Ice House on Sunday afternoon. The Paladins proved their scoring depth as Nick Peroni, Joe Frasciello, Matt Minda and Rob Dotto also scored a goal apiece. PC banged out 39 shots on goal. Its goalie, John Podesta stopped 20 of 21 shots for the win.
The win propels PC into sole possession of first place in the Northern Red, two points ahead of Ridgewood and three above both St. Joseph and Vernon. The Paladins, though, are 3-0 in the division while the Maroons are 2-2.
Well, I have now seen it, and can feel free to officially comment on it.
My first hockey game of the season was both exciting and interesting, but boy oh boy, were there too many penalties being call. Without having my notebook sitting in front of me, I can recall 13 penalties in Lakeland's 3-1 win over West Milford on Friday night.
Amazingly, there were none in the first 15 minutes of the game, but that clearly is going to be rare this season.
I'll be attending my first hockey game of the season tonight when I head over to the Ice Vault in Wayne to catch Lakeland vs. West Milford at 6 o'clock. In my estimation, this is the first big night of hockey in North Jersey even though there were games all last weekend.
It shouldn't come as a surprise to many, but Fair Lawn athletic director Cory Robinson told me the administration has decided not to rehire football coach Greg Tanzer, who has been with the Cutters as the head coach for five years and both played and coached in the program for parts of two decades.
"The administration felt it was in the best interest of the high school that now would be the time to go in a different direction with the football program," said Robinson, who also announced Tanzer's entire staff is not coming back either.
Robinson said he has no candidates just yet, but anyone interested should fax him a resume at 201-794-8107.
I've given myself a couple of days now to digest everything that happened over the weekend, and I think it's safe to say that outside of picking the All-North Jersey team, which Art, myself and Mark Czerwinski plan to do today, I'm ready to move on and leave everything that happened over the weekend well enough alone.
There's plenty of fodder for next year's football season, and I'm sure it will all be drudged up, but for now it's time to move on because that's the only way people are going to relax.
Kickoff is less than two hours away, and I just wanted to send out a quick reminder that if you aren't willing to brave the weather, or simply just can't make it to Giants Stadium tonight, join the Varsity Aces right here as we'll have all the action from Bogota vs. Mountain Lakes and, of course, the Super Bowl of New Jersey High School Football, Don Bosco vs. St. Peter's Prep.
Reminder that tomorrow you can come back to the Aces and get a rundown of all the action from the three remaining games: Westwood vs. Pascack Valley and Eastside vs. Clifton at Giants Stadium, and Wayne Hills vs. Parsippany Hills at Rutgers Stadium. You can also listen to the Wayne Hills game live on an Internet-only broadcast at www.ghtradio.com.
And so we're here, less than 8 hours until kickoff at Giants Stadium. It's time for Stapleton and I to go head to head one last time this season. Five games left and Stapleton's lead is still at four games after we each went 19-4. The records now stand wit him at 324-98 and me at 320-100, but chances are we won't have enough differences in our selections for me to take over the lead, or even tie him.
Oh well, it's been fun. It was a valiant comeback.
I spent over an hour with the Indians yesterday at Old Tappan, and this time I actually came away with more than just some information on that vaunted defense led by DE Colin McEvoy. Offense was my focus yesterday, but more importantly an injury report on running backs Danny Williams and Matt Gray.
I spent a brief amount of time at Pascack Valley's practice yesterday afternoon for my story on Indians senior DE and sack machine, Colin McEvoy. McEvoy has been an amazing presence coming off the edge of PV's defensive line since he moved there from linebacker in Week 4. At least in my estimation, he has changed the course of the Indians season. Here's why...
I spent my first afternoon of finals week at Wayne Hills' practice, and not only was it nice not to be wearing a jacket in late November - isn't this weather amazing - it was also interesting to see how the Patriots are preparing for Saturday's showdown against Parsippany Hills in the North 1, Group 3 final.
Still sacked out from your turkey nap? If so, well you wouldn't be reading this. Chances are we're all recovered from what I hope was another great holiday for all of our readers out there. Of course, my best wishes to you and yours.
Just in case you didn't know, in the process of Turkey day, the football, and the naps, The Record and Herald News put out its 2006-07 High School Ice Hockey preview. It was done by....you guessed it, yours truly.
If you opened up your papers this morning, you saw the great debate between myself and Stapleton. I believe Thanksgiving Day games have lost their appeal, while my esteemed colleague takes the opposite stance, saying these traditional games deserve to live on.
Thanksgiving weekend, my four-game lead is still intact and we're all anxiously awaiting the events of next week. Happy holiday everybody ...
Here are the picks ...
Do you believe it's already Thanksgiving week? Boy has this season flown by. It's been fun blogging about everything and anything, offering up some opinions, and of course, battling with Stapleton on these pigskin picks. As it stands now, with 23 games this week plus the remaining five State finals left to pick, Art still owns a four game advantage on me. He is 305-94 and I'm 301-98.
For a quick Sunday blog, I have but one question to ask all of our readers: Are you in favor of Thanksgiving Day football games?
I have my opinions, but I'm not going to share them yet. I'm doing research on this topic, and what better way to find out what the public thinks than to simply ask them. Therefore, I'm asking you, the reading audience of Varsity Aces, to be heard on this topic.
Yay or nay? Good or bad? Let me know your thoughts on Thanksgiving Day football games.
Clifton did it again, this time knocking off Randolph, 14-6, in front of a capacity crowd at John J. Bauer Memorial Field in Randolph. The Mustangs certainly love living on the edge, and today was no different.
They pulled it out thanks to some exceptional play by senior QB Anthony Giordano and senior RB Matt Davella. You can read all about it in tomorrow's editions of The Record and Herald News.
Just as Art had a disagreement with a coaching decision last night in his game, I had one as well in my game up at Wayne Hills. Just as Art said he didn't think John Whitehead's decision to fake punt would have changed the outcome of the 56-0 rout, I don't think Angelo DeSalvo's decision to go for a touchdown on 4th-and-goal from the 4-yard line midway through the first quarter would have meant Passaic Valley would have gone on to upset Wayne Hills. Afterall, the Patriots defense is that good, and that's why it was 33-0.
However, both plays undoubtedly turned the tide of the game.
Thanks to Mike Schnackenberg for pointing out two errors on my part. The first was a miscount as I wrote there are 32 state titles handed out, when of course there are 20. The second was a typo as I wrote Al-Ghaffaar Lane plays for the Gaels, when of course he plays for Paterson Catholic. Of course, since we have the ability to correct our mistakes in blogs, I went back and did that, but what kind of person would I be without admitting my mistakes.
Now that that's over, on with the picks for the semifinals, and I'll be picking every game in North 1, plus Non-Public Groups 1 and 4. I went 26-7 last weekend, and now trail Art by four games considering he went 22-11 (although I'm giving him a victory despite him not picking the St. Joes-Hammonton game. For the season, I'm now 295-93 and Stapleton is 299-89.
Well, the countdown is still on, and as I write this blog at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday we're nearing the 24-hour mark before kickoff. It should be an exciting weekend. A champion will even be crowned, and that leads me to the point of this blog, a little breakdown of Paterson Catholic vs. St. Mary's in the Non-Public Group 1 State final.
It's getting later in the week, and who isn't getting excited for the weekend already? I've already had two stories this week, the first on Mahwah QB Paul Scherer, and today's story on Wayne Hills dominant D-line. We've broken down North 1, Group 2 and North 1, Group 3 already as well.
Still to go is North 1, Group 4, Non-Public Group 4, North 1, Group 1, and the Non-Public Group 1 championship game breakdown. Art and I will, of course, be weighing in with our picks either tomorrow or early Friday. I guess I'll go first this week and offer up my picks for tomorrow.
Sometimes you've just got to cut a big slice of humble pie and chomp it all down, and that's what I'll do right now. I went 13-3 in picking last night's games, and I'm pretty proud of it, but boy was I dead wrong on two of those three.
Here we go folks, it's playoff time and I'm back in it. Last weekend I went 16-3 on Friday night compared to Art's 12-7. That's four games in my favor, a huge start for me. We were even on Saturday, each going 16-4, so now Art is up eight games on me. He's 277-78, and I'm 269-86.
OK, the playoffs are here. Let's dive right in and get going ... I'll pick all the North 1 brackets, North 2, Group 1; North 2, Group 2, and all the Non-Publics. Hey, let's have fun.
If I may, I want to step into the college ranks for a second because watching this Rutgers-Louisville game has brought me back to a story I wrote two years ago, when Brian Cushing highlighted one of the best senior classes North Jersey has ever had.
The story detailed how none of the state's top recruits, and at the time we were not only talking about Cushing, but Isaiah Williams, Jim Dray, Michael Ray Garvin, etc. were not even considering the State University of New Jersey. Greg Schiano's program had a big win over Michigan State that season, but followed it up with a loss to Division I-AA New Hampshire. That loss killed some of RU's recruiting within its home state.
On the surface, things were not looking so hot for Rutgers. The surface is on fire now.
Round Two of today's blogs. These sometimes become a lot of work, so I'll be surprised if I get to Round 3 and breakdown some of the Non-Public games. Either way, as promised, here is my look into North 1, Groups 3 and 4.
We're not far now. After all the talk in August, all the prognostications, the analysis, etc, the playoffs will officially kick off tomorrow night at 7 p.m. There are 32 teams in The Record's coverage area dotting 10 brackets.
I'll start today with Groups 1 and 2 from North 1 and North 2. I'll give some of my insight and analysis on the big games. A little later on I'll give you a quick analysis of North 1, Group 3 and North 1, Group 4. If there's time, I'll come back on with the Non-Public brackets.
My picks will come shortly thereafter, so away we go...
At least Bergen Catholic put on a good show Saturday, because nobody there, and yes I'm including the Bosco fans at the game, wanted to see a big-time route, an over-by-halftime game. That's just no fun for anybody in high school sports, so at least the Crusaders came to play before losing, 34-10. ...
First, I wanted to apologize for my absence from the blog yesterday. I was spent, exhausted, and really didn't want to go anywhere near a computer. After covering Bergen-Bosco (great game, by the way) Saturday afternoon, I went to Wayne Hills-Mahwah at night.
That's a long day folks, but I will have some playoff analysis later on, and some words about the Bergen-Bosco game as well. Now, though, I just wanted to send out the reminder to everybody to visit www.northjersey.com/playeroftheyear and cast your votes for the offensive and defensive players of the year in each Group. We have combined Non-Public 1-2 and 3-4 because of the limited amount of teams. Your votes do count, so PLEASE GO CAST THOSE VOTES.
Hey, it's almost election day anyway, right?
I understand my comment calling Don Bosco, "the University of Don Bosco" has raised the eyebrows of some sensitive fans.
Folks, that comment was made out of respect to the Ironmen. I called it a University because Don Bosco has constantly been producing Division I-A and I-AA talent, and boasts a roster the size of most Division I-A or I-AA programs.
It is time to make my stand, so here goes nothing. I'm going to pick differently than Art in at least 12 games (likely more) and hope that can make the difference in me catching him. I will either fall way behind, too far to even think about a comeback, or make a historical (Varsity Aces is new, I know) rise to the top.
Here we go...
The athletic directors from the BCSL National and Olympic Divisions had a chance today to accept Pascack Hills into the Group 1 league for football only, thereby making scheduling life easy with 18 football teams in the pool, nine for each division like it once was when Bergen Tech was in the mix.
All they needed was two-thirds of the 19 athletic directors to vote yes. Instead, you'll be able to read in tomorrow's edition of The Record about how they blew it, and how the league has gone haywire because of it.
We've got one week left before the playoffs get started. Make sure you check out www.gridironnewjersey.com for the latest updated power points. The site has become a tool no coach or media member covering high school football can live without, especially this time of year.
We'll have our big playoff projections package later this week in The Record, but for now, here are my teams on the spot.
I had to see Mahwah for myself before I could really give an accurate assessment. After watching the Thunderbirds thoroughly dismantle Northern Highlands on Saturday in a 28-6 victory, I have to say they are for real. This win over the Highlanders means Mahwah is the top seed in North 1, Group 2, rendering next weekend's game at Wayne Hills is meaningless.
What a finish last night in Clifton, one of those never-forget-where-you-were moments in high school football. Mayhem broke out at Clifton School Stadium following the Mustangs absolutely thrilling, 20-17, victory over Ridgewood thanks to a dive for the pylon by senior QB Anthony Giordano with no time left on the clock.
This is a bit weird for me. I'm the NBIL football reporter and Ramapo is playing at Wayne Hills tonight, yet here I am, sitting in my car, on the street that runs parallel to Clifton Stadium. I'm here to cover the Mustangs vs. Ridgewood, a much more meaningful game than the one that's taking place in Wayne tonight between those two perennial rivals. Still, it's weird. I'm actually missing a Wayne Hills-Ramapo game. Because of that, I know something screwy is going to happen in Wayne tonight.
Well, I'm back and boy do I have a lot of work to do to catch up to Art. I don't see it happening, but I'll give it the old college try. Darren proved he's more than a two sport junky in the fall, combining his gymnastics and soccer prowess with a little football knowledge to crank out 30 wins last week. Thanks Mr. Cooper. Now, on to the picks.
Darren held the fort down for Dan, who returns this week from his honeymoon hoping to cut into my 11-game lead. For those who care, here are the numbers after both Darren and I went 30-7 last weekend (213-60 overall for Art, 202-71 overall for Dan).
Now onto the picks:
So there I am enjoying the most memorable wedding day anyone could ask for, and what happens: Some schmo (did I spell that right?) from either my parents side or my wife's (blur at this point) asks me, "So, how did Bergen Catholic do today?"
So it's time again for the weekly picks. At least Mahwah won't be hammering me for not picking the T-Birds, mainly because they're off this week. We get it, guys -- you deserve credit for beating Pascack Valley, for making NBIL experts like the honeymooning Dan Rosen look silly for doubting you in the preseason, for so-called experts like me look silly for picking Ramapo last week.
Point taken.
So the lead is 13 games. Can't rest on my laurels, though, so here we go, from the friendly confines of the press box at Bauerle Field in Paterson as we prepare for tonight's huge NNJIL showdown between Eastside and Clifton.
And that's where we'll start ...
These are my last picks as an unmarried man. On Saturday I'll be getting married and heading off on my honeymoon for the next seven days. So, this is also the last time you'll hear from me until we get back in a little less than two weeks.
My man Mr. Cooper will be taking over for me next week, and Art can already see me in his rear view mirror. As if he needed any help from Darren. Afterall, after he went 34-7 and I went a respectable 31-10 last weekend, he's now up 13 games. Art is 150-45 and I'm a paltry 137-58.
Anyway, on to the picks, starting with the rare Thursday night game in Paterson:
Things are slow this morning, but I have received two comments recently that have caught my attention and I wanted to respond. One came from my recent blog about NBIL Craziness over the weekend, and another on my blog last week about the NNJIL being overrated.
I was taking a chance today not going to Hillsdale to check out Mahwah-Pascack Valley, and instead going to Allendale to see Old Tappan at Northern Highlands. Big chance. Relatively big mistake, at least in hindsight.
Mahwah pulled off yet another stunner, this time upending Pascack Valley, 7-6, thanks to a blocked extra point by Greg Stripe and a late interception by Chris Johnson. It's no longer Pascack Valley in line to win the NBIL Division 2 crown. The Thunderbirds and Ramsey, which beat Indian Hills, 32-14, behind David Duvall's 243 rushing yards and two touchdowns, could potentially be playing for the league title on Thanksgiving morning.
What a tremendous game I saw tonight in Little Falls as I stepped out of both the NBIL and BCSL National and picked up a thriller in the Northern Hills Conference. Mike Frequenza's 26-yard field goal split the uprights with 3 seconds left to give the Hornets a 16-14 victory over previously unbeaten Wayne Valley. You can read all about it tomorrow in The Record and Herald News.
I'm going to plug along. I'm going to still make my picks. I'm no quitter. So I'm down 10 games now after Art again beat me last week. He had 26 out of 37 and I had only 23. However, since we each forgot to pick the St. Joseph win over Xaverian Brothers, I'm giving us each wins on that one too.
The records now stand like this: Art is 116-37 and I'm 106-48. I've got some serious catching up to do, and I'm going to leave the trash talking out this week. Clearly, it's gotten me nowhere. Let's see if I can do this straight up and take some games back:
Everybody who has been around North Jersey football over the last decade understands why it felt weird last weekend when Clifton beat Hackensack, and Paramus Catholic topped Bergen Catholic.
I think it's fair to say now that we have overrated the NNJIL. Maybe it is no longer North Jersey's premier football conference. It's still top heavy, but the middle has shown its soft side and the bottom brings the league down more than a few notches.
With the ball at the 3-yard line and one play left to win the game, you have to like your chances. Sure, you could play for a tie, play for overtime, but that's not what Brian Dunn of Old Tappan did today, and even though it didn't work out, I admire him for doing it.
Old Tappan lost 28-27 to Pascack Valley, and you'll be able to read all about it in tomorrow's edition of The Record. However, what happened at the end will resonate in the NBIL as loud, if not louder, than Ramsey's 3-0 start and Ramapo's 0-4 start.
I spent last night in East Rutherford, right along Route 17 South at Riggin Field, hoping for a good game between Becton and Secaucus. A Becton win would re-open the race for the BCSL National title, giving North Arlington, Wood-Ridge, and St. Mary's new hope.
Instead, it was Secaucus senior Kasey Kelly putting together a dominating defensive performance, and with the help of the Patriots offense, which decided to arrive in the second half, the Patriots breezed to a 43-0 victory. Kelly had three interceptions, and returned each one for touchdowns. The first two came in the first half, giving the Patriots their only points for a 12-0 lead. After a trio of touchdowns, one by QB John Barnitt and the other two by RB Ricky Nunez, Kelly added a 97-yard interception return for good measure.
I really could hear the tremble in his voice as Ray Montoni spoke about his mother, who has now been gone for nearly 11 months. The Lyndhurst senior football player told me his story on Tuesday and let us publish it in Thursday's papers. He didn't have to go into detail about how he found out his mother was killed. He didn't have to tell me about calling his coach, Joe Castagnetti, and telling him the next morning. He didn't have to go into detail about how he still sometimes just wants to go home, lie in bed, and cry the night away knowing that she's gone.
No, Ray Montoni didn't have to do all that, but he did. Why? I don't think I'll ever know. Maybe it's healing. Maybe he knows it's a good story, that it's good journalism. Maybe he just wants the story out there so people understand how he's feeling, especially those people in Lyndhurst.
I couldn't trust Stapleton, so I went over last week's picks myself. Much to my dismay, he was correct. He got me by six games last week, and now holds an eight game lead over me. This is not going to be easy to overcome, but think of the Minnesota Twins, or the Houston Astros.
Don't ever count me out, so let's begin the comeback right now.
To avoid any accusations that I've had an unfair advantage over Dan because I've submitted my picks second the last three weeks, I've decided to jump the gun a little bit and put my picks for Week 4 in early.
Early like today.
Before we get going, here are the numbers: Stapleton (Overall: 90-26; Last week: 34-4); Rosen (Overall: 82-34; Last week: 28-10).
Now onto the games ...
I spent most of my day yesterday trying to track down a follow story to the horrible news out of Tampa, Fla. that Chris Simms' spleen ruptured in the Bucs loss to Carolina on Sunday, and he needed an emergency surgery to remove the organ.
Of course, it's national news that our hometown boy from Franklin Lakes had successful surgery Sunday night and will be just fine, but don't believe what Jon Gruden is saying that Simms could return this season.
One medical expert I spoke with yesterday claimed that because Simms is going back to play full contact football, he'll likely need four to six months to return. You and I, the regular working Joes of the world, would take four to six weeks to recover before we could go back to work.
Sorry it's taken me nearly 24 hours following my game yesterday to blog, but hey, I'm a busy man. For those who didn't know, I'm getting married on Oct. 14, so things are hectic.
Anyway, I caught a good one yesterday in Ramsey as the Rams were able to finally knock out Fair Lawn, 21-14, on Jake Seibert's 1-yard touchdown run. Ramsey has now equalled its win total from last season and is remarkably 2-0.
Ironically, I spent most of halftime talking with both Demarest coach Scott Rubinetti and Ramapo's Drew Gibbs, each of whom has the task of building up a pair of surprising 0-3 teams. Who would have thought that Ramsey and Mahwah would be a combined 5-0, but Demarest and Ramapo would be a combined 0-6.
Usually around Week 3 of the football season -- that's when you get a good read on teams throughout North Jersey. The ebb and flow that is the early part of the year turns into a grind by late September, allowing the cream to rise and contenders to emerge.
Through Friday's games -- Stapleton: 27-4 (83-26 overall). Rosen: 21-10 (75-34 overall).
Respectable numbers from my colleague, but I hit a couple of games that made the difference. Here's some of what we learned since Thursday:
To say I'm struggling with my picks is about the biggest understatement ever made on this blog. I went 7-6 last night. Do you believe that, 7-6? Of course, of those six losses, only one was a blowout (Mahwah 35, Indian Hills 6), but that was my upset special in The Record and I had to keep with it on the blog. I may be going against that philosophy soon enough.
Rutherford topped Englewood by one point. Ridgewood edged Hackensack by two touchdowns. Bergenfield surprised Demarest by just one score. Old Tappan needed a late touchdown to beat Ramapo. Millburn edged West Milford by a field goal.
However, everyone was dead on about the Wayne Hills game, except no one, not even Patriots coach Chris Olsen, thought it would be 42-0 at the half.
There were a few interesting news items coming out of Wayne Hills, all of which were much more interesting than the Patriots ho-hum destruction of Northern Highlands, 49-0, which you can read all about in The Record and Herald News tomorrow. Suffice to say, the Patriots aren't just better than everyone else on their NBIL schedule (they don't play Pascack Valley), they are so far superior that it's even getting a little boring to some of the players.
Anyway, that's for another post, likely to come tomorrow after you can read the story. On to the interesting items:
Here we go again, and this time I promise not to go out on as many limbs as I have in the previous two weeks. This risk-taking, living on the edge stuff is killing my chances to squash my fellow Ace, Stapleton. However, I did pick up a game on him last week as I went 32-10 and he went 31-11. Art still leads by two games. He holds a 56-22 record after two weeks and I'm at 54-24.
Stapleton just talked a little smack to me, telling me to enjoy that one game I picked up, but now he's back from Ohio he's taking over. Oh yeah, Art. Let's rock.
Although most never will out of jealousy, hate, envy, etc., New Jersey football fans should be thanking Don Bosco, Bergen Catholic and St. Joseph today. The Big Three officially put Jersey on the national radar with three impressive wins over out of state competition yesterday.
Of course, I know most public school coaches don't care too much about what The Big Three do, but remember that these teams were representing your state, not just their school, in Ohio, Maryland and against a New York power. They each won convincingly, and that should be a proud moment for all of New Jersey football players, fans, coaches, etc.
I'm going to make this brief because I've really got to hit that sweet highway, but I definitely wanted to give you a quick synopsis before you pick up tomorrow's edition of The Record and get all the information on the game.
Bergen Catholic didn't dominate, but the Crusaders played a smart and effective football game. They ran the ball well, threw when they had to, and played sharp on defense. Sure, there were mistakes, like a dropped punt that should have been fair caught, leading to new life and a touchdown for Gilman, but overall I was impressed with BC. The team did a lot of growing up today, and that had to happen.
There were a lot of playmakers all over the field. From Dean Scaduto to Bill Schautz to George Kocher to Dan Mulroy to Jonathan Rigg to Jonpaul Sticco. BC played an excellent ballgame and certainly deserves today off, which coach Fred Stengel is giving them.
I'll be back with more later, probably sometime tomorrow. For now, enjoy the updates from Don Bosco's game.
Obviously an impressive second half for the Crusaders for a much-needed victory. I'm sure Dan will check in later with more.
They just went to the half in Baltimore and Gilman has pulled within a point at 14-13. The Greyhounds scored with 1:10 left in the second quarter on an eight-yard TD run after Dean Scaduto fumbled deep in BC territory. Jadd Schmeltzer blocked the PAT kick, though, preserving the lead for the Crusaders.
Unfortunately, this will be my last post, since I must leave for the University of Cincy now. Hope you enjoyed these updates. I'll try to get on here when I arrive at Nippert Stadium and get a late scoring update from Rosen.
Live from Baltimore, Bergen Catholic has just taken a 14-7 lead over Gilman with 7:30 remaining until halftime. The big play on the scoring drive came on 3rd and 11 from the 19 when QB Bill Schautz hit Jon Rigg with a 76-yard pass play.
He followed two plays later by finding Dan Picinic in the corner of the end zonen from 6 yards out, giving the Crusaders the lead.
It was still drizzling as I pulled into the Gilman School parking lot behind the Bergen Catholic team busses and a few coaches who drove separately. The campus is sprawling here. Think Delbarton, but no hills. It's nice, but boy oh boy is that football field a mud pit. The beautiful new white road jerseys the Crusaders are wearing won't be white for too much longer.
Anyway, I've been with the team since breakfast this morning. I'm now going to attempt to take you with me on a little journey of Bergen Catholic's morning.
It's a quarter after 9 in the morning on gameday, and wouldn't you know it, a peak out of my window here at the Burkshire Marriott reveals more rain. Great. Just what everyone was hoping for, right? The Crusaders better be prepared for a mud bowl, because Gilman's field, at least what I'm told, is worse than Ridgewood when that brook near the Maroons digs floods.
Anyway, we'll see if it stops. The weatherman just told me it might, but you never know.
It's late, probably too late for anybody to be reading this post now, but I wanted to get you all something before I went to bed tonight. It was a little hectic earlier upon arrival, waiting for Bergen Catholic's busses to pull up and then to watching everyone get their room assignments from Touchdown Club president Bruce DeBon, Matt Bush's step-father. However, it appears everything got to Baltimore (or, rather, Towson, where the Burkshire Marriott is located) in one piece.
Twelve more hours til kickoff...
It's 5:25 p.m. and I'm sitting in my car outside of Bergen Catholic, shielding myself from this constant nuisance we call rain. Four hours down to Baltimore in the rain by myself, it's a good thing I have some good music to listen to.
Does anyone get ripped more on this blog than me?
First, Darren takes me to task, or rather takes my Arizona Wildcats out to the woodshed for a beating. OK, Darren, enjoy it. Remember, if you want to be considered a basketball power, you need to do it for more than one year. Luuuuuuuuuuuuuuute!!!!!!!!
Then, I take a look at Art's picks, and he's getting on me for taking some chances. So I like to gamble, so what? Doesn't it make things a little more interesting. Sure I could have picked Delbarton over DePaul and played it safe, but what's the fun in that. And, what DePaul fan doesn't love me today?
Anyway, I'll bounce back just fine. It's early Friday morning and I've got some packing and mapquesting to do for my trip to Baltimore this evening, but first a few tidbits that are on my mind:
I think I went out a limb a little too much for my own good in Week 1, and that's why I was what I consider a paltry 22-14. Art, meanwhile, happily has a three game advantage on me as he was 25-11, with smart picks in six swing games last week: Don Bosco, Phillipsburg, North Arlington, Clifton, Dumont and Fort Lee. OK, so I gave him a little credit, now it's time to get back in the game with my Week 2 picks:
Football has dominated this blog and the North Jersey sports landscape as a whole over the past couple of weeks, but that doesn't mean the balls and bats were put away until spring. Over the past few days, some of the most prominent North Jersey baseball players have filed their verbal commitments to play at the next level, proving again that North Jersey is also a breeding ground for some excellent diamond studs.
Bergen Catholic has had enough time to get over its stunning loss to Phillipsburg. Move on, Crusaders. You've got an even tougher opponent, at least historically, coming up this weekend, not to mention a four hour bus ride on Friday evening to Baltimore.
And, don't think the Gilman Greyhounds are going to take the Crusaders lightly just because they're 0-1. Gilman is also coming a 24-6 loss to DeMatha, which broke the Greyhounds 17-game winning streak.
It's halftime now in the St. Joseph game, with the Green Knights ahead, 7-0, thanks to a 34-yard touchdown run by Wayne Drummond. As for Bergen Catholic, this 28-27 loss is going to be tough to get over, but the Crusaders have no choice.
They better get over it by tomorrow or their trip to Baltimore next weekend could turn into a disaster. The last time BC was 0-2 was in 2004. Brian Cushing and Co. led the Crusaders to the Non-Public Group 4 championship that season. This year, though, the Crusaders don't have Cushing, Jim Dray, Isaiah Williams, Wolf Jean-Pierre and Company.
In no way did Bergen Catholic envision losing a game like this. Dave Kuncio, the All-State kicker, missed an extra point after Dean Scaduto scored on first down at the 25 to start overtime. One play later, Justin Viscomi raced into the end zone from 25 yards out to tie the game, but Dennis Hardick split the uprights and Pburg celebrated a 28-27 victory.
Kuncio missed just short from 52 yards out with nine seconds left in regulation. His kick was on line, but fell short. BC, though, could have given him a little more of a cushion. The Crusaders missed on two straight passes and then Schautz fumbled a snap and lost another two yards. If they had just picked up seven or eight more yards running the ball, Kuncio would have won it in regulation.
Instead, he was inconsolable after the game ended. More to come later, but check out the story in tomorrow's edition of The Record.
Trailing 14-7 with just 1:15 to play in the first half, Schautz found JP Sticco on a screen pass and he went the distance, taking it 81 yards to the end zone. Sticco made some great open field moves, cut completely back across the field, and got one last block from Rob Monaco to free him the rest of the way.
After a timeout, Kuncio nailed the extra point and BC tied it at 14-14 with just 58 seconds left in the first half. What a huge turnaround. Instead of going in to halftime reeling, the Crusaders went in on a high, and they get the ball to start the second half.
