Montclair coach Mike Goldstein knew it wouldn’t easy for his team to get hits off Verona pitcher Christina Colon, when the Mounties and Hillbillies met in a first-round Essex County Tournament (ECT) game on May 3, in Verona.
“Christina is a really good pitcher,” said Goldstein of Colon. “We hadn’t faced a pitcher like her this year, and I knew it would be tough to get a lot of offense going.”
The game had been scoreless until Verona, the seventh seed, scored a run in the bottom of the sixth, with two outs.
When Montclair’s Frankie Testa reached base to start the top of the seventh inning, Goldstein had his stud shortstop turn on the jets.
Francesca ‘Frankie’ Testa is joined by her mom, Louisa Amabile and brothers Kenny and Mark, after collecting her 100th career hit on May 7. (Click on photo for larger image)
Testa, who will play at Franklin & Marshall this fall, got to third with two outs on a pair of steals, then took off in an attempt to steal home, when the ball was being returned by the catcher to Colon. Colon winged back and threw a good ball to the plate and Testa was called out, in a close play, and Verona held on for the 1-0 win.
Testa, along with her teammates and coaches, celebrates a milestone for MHS.
“It was close,” said Goldstein of the play at home. “The umpire who made the call is one of the better umps in our county. It was a bang-bang play. That’s part of the game. I was proud of our team’s effort.”
Montclair, the tenth seed in the 42nd annual Essex County Tournament, played its best game of the season, according to its coach.
“We played really good defense,” said Goldstein. “And it was a scoreless game until the bottom of the sixth. Our pitcher (Aliyah Andrews) threw the ball well and our defense made plays behind her. I hope it’s something we can use to our benefit for the rest of the season.”
Montclair (10-8) has qualified for the NJSIAA Tournament, and has two big wins to its credit, in defeating Nutley and Columbia. The Mounties also rallied from an 8-2 deficit on May 6 to defeat Newark Academy, 15-9, as Remi Antinoro hit two homers and drove in six runs. Milani Davis tripled and drove in three, and Testa, Brianna Leech and Charlotte Carr had two hits each.
Testa reached the 100-career hit plateau in a game on May 7.
“She’s such a tremendous player,” said Goldstein. “Frankie works so hard and is always playing to win.”
The seeding committee for the Essex County Tournament has done a perfect job, so far. The top eight seeds are all in the quarterfinals, and the four games of the ‘Elite 8’ will be played in Verona, on Saturday, starting with a 9 a.m. game between fifth-seeded Livingston and fourth-seeded Caldwell.
The matchups also include #6 West Essex taking on #3 Nutley, at 11 a.m., #7 Verona taking on #2 Mount St. Dominic at 1 p.m. and #8 Columbia playing top-seeded and defending champion Cedar Grove, at 3 p.m.
The semifinals will be on Friday night, May 17, at Ivy Hill Park and the championship game is the following evening, also at Ivy Hill.
Belleville got off to a 16-0 start this season before losing its first game, to Caldwell, in the first round of the Essex County Tournament, on May 6. The Bucs play in the Super Essex Conference’s Colonial Division, where the competition isn’t as fierce as it is in the SEC’s American and Liberty. Nevertheless, Belleville head coach Chris Cantarella has a very good team, which played well against an American Division foe in Caldwell.
The Bucs led, 1-0, when CherylAnn Nicosia hit an opposite-field, RBI triple in the third inning. Caldwell rallied back in the bottom of the third inning with three runs and went on to win the game. Belleville pitcher Charlotte Colon, a junior, scattered seven hits and gave up just two earned runs while striking out three and walking two. She also made an outstanding defensive play in the circle to end the second inning.
Nicosia, a senior catcher, was outstanding on defense, to go along with a 2-for-3 day at the plate. The Bucs had six hits in the game, including three in the sixth inning, but were only able to score the one run.
Also playing well for the Bucs is shortstop Janelle McCann, who, quite simply, just makes plays at one of the most difficult positions to play in high school softball. She’s also a reliable hitter.
Belleville coach Chris Cantarella, along with (l to r), pitcher Charlotte Colon, catcher CherylAnn Nicosia and shortstop Janelle McCann. (Click on photo for larger image)
Belleville is expected to have a high seed for the upcoming NJSIAA Tournament and will win the SEC’s Colonial Division title.
Caldwell’s Caitlin Cetrulo continues to wield a hot bat while also playing very good defense at first base. Cetrulo, a freshman, who recently hit her first varsity homer, started a rally against Belleville which led to the winning runs and then made a tremendous catch, in foul territory during a May 7 home game against Columbia.
Cetrulo is batting fourth in Caldwell’s lineup, behind the Chief’s most dangerous hitter in Nicolette Luzzi.
“I like batting fourth,” said Cetrulo. “I think it helps Nicolette see better pitches, too.”
Caitlin Cetrulo and her dad, Rob. (Click on photo for larger image)
Two of the hotter teams in the SEC are West Essex and Nutley, both of whom had 6-game winning streaks through games of May 7. Nutley had a huge contest scheduled on May 8, at home, against Cedar Grove. West Essex won its sixth straight, rallying from 5-0 down to defeat a much-improved Montclair Kimberley squad, in the first round of the ECT, on May 7. That win sets up what should be a really good game on May 11, as Nutley and West Essex will meet in the quarterfinal round of the Essex County Tournament, in Verona.
These two are long-time rivals, both in conference, county and occasionally in state tournament action and Saturday’s game could be another thriller, with the winner moving onto the ECT semis against the Verona-Mount St. Dominic winner on May 17, at Ivy Hill Park. Expect a good pitcher’s duel between West Essex senior Julia Vardiman and Nutley’s Fallyn Stoeckel, a freshman.
Nutley’s Fallyn Stoeckel will have some big games this week, as the freshman pitches against Cedar Grove on May 8 and West Essex on May 11. (Click on photo for larger image)
The latest FMTC Top 10:
1-Mount St. Dominic (16-3)
2-Cedar Grove (15-3)
3-West Essex (9-6)
4-Nutley (11-7)
5-Livingston (14-6)
6-Caldwell (12-6)
7-Columbia (11-8)
8-Verona (7-10)
9-Bloomfield (8-7)
10-Belleville (16-1)
Mike Lamberti, From Margate To Cleveland, And Back ! 