LINCROFT – The Jersey Blues punched their ticket to the NJCAA Region XIX DIII final four by sweeping seventh-seeded Northampton 15-5 and 3-1 Saturday at Brookdale’s MacLaughlin Field in a best-of-three series.
“It was big for us, real big,” Brookdale head coach Johnny Johnson said about not having to play a third game. “I’m glad we got it done in two games. We played well.”
Second-seeded Brookdale (37-8) – ranked No.3 in the country in junior college DIII play – will now face third-seeded RCSJ-Cumberland (31-16) in the first round of the double elimination round-robin tournament this Thursday at 3 p.m. on the Rutgers-Camden campus.
In game one Saturday, starting and winning pitcher Christian Simonsen (7-2) was tagged for five runs in the top of the first inning, but settled down after that and tossed four scoreless innings to get the win after Brookdale put up 15 unanswered runs for a five-inning mercy-rule win.
Brookdale banged out 18 hits, led by standout catcher Shane Andrus, who went 4-for-4 with three RBI, and centerfielder Declan Sheehan, who went 2-for-4 with two doubles and four RBI. Third baseman Junior Nunez drilled three doubles in four at-bats and drove in three runs, while third baseman Richard Kernan banged out two doubles and an RBI. Right fielder Casey Gardner added two doubles and a single in three trips to the plate with an RBI and three runs scored.
In the second game, freshman left-hander Gary John Perone (4-1) went the distance, hurling nine innings of three-hit ball, allowing one run and three walks while striking out 14 Northampton batters.
“We brought Gary along slowly,” said Johnson. “Now he’s getting his feet wet, and he’s grown into an elite pitcher for us, and he’s also a pretty good hitter. He plays in left field when he doesn’t pitch.”
Brookdale led 2-0 after six innings in game two on the strength of a sacrifice fly by Kernan in the fifth inning and an RBI double by freshman left fielder Anthony Pizzuti in the bottom of the sixth. Northampton pulled to within one on a solo home run by Shane Henrick in the top of the seventh, but the Blues added an insurance run in the bottom half of the frame on an RBI single by Sheehan to increase its lead to 3-1. Perone then breezed through the eighth and ninth innings to complete his dominant outing.
Brookdale will head into the NJCAA Region XIX DIII final four riding a 10-game winning streak. The Blues haven’t lost since they dropped three in a row to RCSJ-Gloucester back on April 18 and 19. The Roadrunners are the two-time NJCAA DIII defending national champions, five-time defending NJCAA Region XIX DIII champions, and are ranked No.1 in the country. So, it seems inevitable that Brookdale will need to get past Gloucester for them to make it back to the NJCAA DIII World Series for the first time since 2009.
“We’ve been steady all year; that Gloucester series is just one of those things that just happened,” said Johnson. “Two of our pitchers didn’t pitch how they’re capable of pitching. If they pitched the way they’re capable of, it would’ve been a different story.”
However, they first must take care of their immediate business and get past a tough Cumberland squad in their first game Thursday to avoid playing an additional game in the loser’s bracket. Brookdale went 3-0 against the Dukes in the regular season, outscoring them 57-26.
“It’s crucial, you always want to get into the winner’s bracket,” said Johnson. “It always helps you out to avoid the extra game and put added pressure on your pitching staff. They’re a good team, but we beat them three times this season. If we play our game, we have a good shot at beating them there. But in the tournament, whoever comes to play that day will win the game.”
Brookdale can hit with the best of them. They own a .392 team batting average with an OBP of .501 and a slugging percentage of .608, giving them a whopping 1.11 team WHIP.
Sheehan’s .500 batting average is second in the country, and his 62 RBI are sixth nationally, while Andrus’ 61 RBI are tied for seventh nationally. Andrus, batting .464, leads the team with eight home runs, while Gardiner (.435 BA) and Pizzuti (.390 BA) are tied for second at six homers, with Sheehan, Kernan (.330 BA) and Anthony Martino (.375 BA) each clubbing four home runs on the year. Pizzuti is third on the team with 46 RBI, while shortstop and leadoff hitter Justin Lopez has driven in 35, Kernan 34, Gardiner and Martino with 28 RBI each.
Lopez is hitting .383 and is second on the team with 54 hits, including 11 2B, 8 3B, and 2 HR. Third baseman Junior Nunez is hitting .414 with 12 2B, 2 3B and 2 HR, while DH Malik Little Jr. has a .359 BA with 10 2B, 3B, and HR.
Cumberland also knows how to swing the bat and is led by first baseman Tyler Bunting, who is hitting .421 with 12 home runs, 67 RBI, and a blistering 1.244 WHIP. The Dukes as a team are hitting .343 with an OBP of .468 and a slugging percentage of .498 for an OPS of .966.
The Dukes’ pitching staff has a combined 6.36 ERA, so Brookdale’s stacked lineup should be able to do some damage.
Brookdale boasts three solid starting pitchers: Perone (4-1), Simonsen (7-1, 3.55 ERA), and Tyler Spencer (6-1, 4.70 ERA). However, they’ll have to be on top of their game for Brookdale to make the championship round.
“The teams are excited; they have a lot of confidence,” said Johnson, describing the team’s mindset entering the final four. “They worked their butts off and if they play the way they’re capable of, we have a good shot at winning this thing.
“Honestly, we were right there,” Johnson added when asked if his team can beat Gloucester. “In the first game, we had them beat before a bloop hit beat us, and we lost 5-4. Don’t get me wrong, they’re good, really good. Our goal is to get to that championship game and win. Then, hopefully, if we don’t win it all, we’ll get the at-large bid to the College World Series since we’re ranked No.3 in the nation.”
