Mustangs playing for their playoff berths

BY WAYNE WITKOWSKI
Staff Writer

PHOTOS BY JERRY WOLKOWITZ staff Brian Streilein and the Brick Memorial Mustangs entered the week in need of one win to assure themselves of a state tournament berth. Brick Memorial’s baseball team rallied in all three games in a 2-1 week that moved it to the edge of qualifying for the first time in many years for the NJSIAA and Shore Conference tournaments, both of which have their cutoffs this weekend.

Brick Memorial, 8-7 coming into the week, needed only one victory in its three games before the cutoffs — a win over Point Borough on Monday, St. John Vianney on Tuesday or Freehold Township yesterday. All three were home games.

“I kept telling the players that they need to keep going 2-1 every week,” said coach Jeff Pierce. “They’re playing their hearts out. None of these guys have seen what it’s like to be in the state tournament and Shore Conference tournaments like when I played for Brick Memorial.”

The team rebounded from a loss last Monday in its Ocean County Tournament opener to Toms River South, 5-4, on a walk-off home run with one out in the eighth inning off Chris James (2-2), who parted with nine hits over the distance. Rob Gonzalez scored the tying run in the seventh inning when he ripped a double, moved up on a passed ball and scored on a groundout by Jay Frank. Rob Russo belted a solo homer.

The Mustangs would get revenge against Toms River South last Friday, nailing down a 6-4 victory after beating Central Regional, 8-5, on Wednesday.

Central led, 3-0, when Brick Memorial tied it in the fourth inning, went ahead in the fifth, and scored four runs in the sixth, capped by Jay Frank’s two-run homer, for an 8-3 lead. Frank was batting .430 with 20 RBIs late last week. Central Regional pulled to 8-5 in the seventh inning, but Brian Streilein (2-2) pitched out of trouble with a runner on base. Joe Baldasare and Russo smacked run-scoring singles in the sixth inning. Russo’s batting average is hovering around .500 and Gonzalez is hitting .480. Chris James blasted a home run in the fourth-inning rally that tied it, and Kyle Strang kept it going with a base hit and rode home on Baldasare’s triple.

Against Toms River South last Friday, Gonzalez lined a run-scoring double, and Mark Cerrachio and Strang poked run-scoring singles in a three-run rally in the fourth inning for a 6-4 lead. The victory closes Brick Memorial’s Shore Conference A South record at 6-6.

Brick Township’s fickle baseball schedule again poses a hurdle as the Green Dragons look to qualify for the NJSIAA and Shore Conference tournaments by the weekend cutoffs.

The Green Dragons (6-7-1) went 1-1-1 on the week and need to win three of four games in a four-day stretch, and they won’t come easily.

Brick Township on Monday played at Southern Regional at 3 p.m. in Manahawkin and then had to head up to Toms River South for a 7 p.m. start against Lakewood in the second round of the Ocean County Tournament. Brick Township early last week advanced to the second round of the county tournament with a 5-1 victory over Manchester.

The schedule continues Wednesday with a home game against Monsignor Donovan and then on Friday at Toms River North.

It resembles the start of the season, when Brick Township played eight games in 11 days and then had a week off.

Jay Wilson pitched the win over Manchester while Ryan Pharo and Mike Murano each batted in two runs. Murano collected three hits.

Then, the Green Dragons lost to Toms River South, 5-2, as starting pitcher F.J. Lucchetti (3-3) took the loss even though he was replaced with two out in the second inning by Murano.

Brick Township tied Lacey, 5-5, after committing nine errors in the game, a problem that has haunted the Green Dragons throughout the season. Lacey scored twice in the top of the sixth inning for a 7-5 lead as a heavy downpour soaked the action and umpires called the game with one out in the bottom of the sixth inning after Brick Township pulled to 7-6. The decision reverted the game back to the fifth inning with the score tied, 5-5.