CLARK, NJ- The Johnson varsity baseball team will face off against Raritan HS in the first round of the NJSIAA Central, Group 2 state playoffs. After facing an early 1-6 record and possibly a long season, the Crusaders, a team who reached the NJSIAA Central, Group 2 Semifinals last year, powered to a .500 record through their offense and continued the hot hitting.
Raritan will come into the game with a 15-5 record, while the Crusaders will come in with a 10-12 record.
Those wins included a comeback from a 14-8 deficit against Summit HS on Friday, April 28 to capture the game 15-14. They defeated Union Catholic 7-6 (9 innings) in the first round of the Union County Tournament and stunned top-seeded Governor Livingston HS 9-5 to reach the Union County Tournament Semifinals.
The run came to an end with a 15-4 loss to Westfield HS in Cranford.
The Crusaders are led by seniors Vin Crisafi, Mike Sot, Brendan Stanzione and Connor Fayard. On the season, Crisafi is batting .213 with 16 hits, including one triple and 20 RBI’s as the team’s starting catcher.
Mike Sot, pitcher and second baseman, holds a .337 batting average that includes 28 hits, including six doubles and two triples. He’s collected 17 RBI’s on the season so far. On the mound, Sot holds a 2-2 record with seven strikeouts and nine walks.
Other key hitters in the lineup include junior Joe Turek (.404 batting average, going 23-for-54 (five doubles) with 18 RBI’s and five walks), junior Kevin Metz (.368 batting average, 25-for-68 with five doubles and 12 RBI’s), freshman Max Carmino (.364 batting average, going 20-for-55 at the plate with one home run, one double, one triple and 14 RBI’s), junior Zach Thornton (.316 batting average, going 25-for-79 with one double and 16 RBI’s), junior Mike Casalino (.240 batting average, going 12-for-50 at the plate with one double and nine RBI’s) and junior Anthony Caldiero (.273 batting average and going 18-for-66 at the plate with four doubles, one triple and ten RBI’s).
Pitchers in the rotation for head coach Dave Kennedy include Sot, Caldiero and junior Joe DiProfio, who will look for good starts to give the team a chance to capture a win.
Brendan Stanzione, right-fielder, carries a batting average of .314 that includes 11 hits, four of them doubles, and four RBI’s. He was with head coach Dave Kennedy for the run to the NJSIAA Central, Group 2 State Sectional Final and said at the beginning of the year that it’s exciting, seeing what could be done in baseball.
The Crusaders, starting Monday at 4:00 p.m., begin their quest to get to a deep run in the state tournament.
Johnson will win IF: The offense continues to produce and cash in on hits and situational hitting with runners in scoring position. Although Raritan has a good record, Johnson’s lineup has the capability to come up with big hits, which was seen in big games, especially the unexpected UCT Quarterfinals win over Governor Livingston HS. The offense will be a reason why the Crusaders could go far in the state tournament.
Second, errors cannot be made. The Crusaders have mishandled some groundballs and made a few misplays that led to chances for their opponents. Although the offense has helped rescue the team in games, a Shore Conference foe in Raritan HS could produce some problems, especially if the Crusaders go deep in the tournament and take on tougher opponents.
Monday, May 22 at 4:00 p.m. is when the teams will go at it in Clark.
