One week ago, the Green Wave stood at 1-2 and faced a week that consisted of 5 games in 6 days. After taking the first three games against NJAC opponents by a combined score of 43-8, the team was poise to travel south for two games on Saturday against Ranney Prep, ranked #1 in the state by NJ.com, and Middletown South, the defending Monmouth County champions.
The early game at Ranney proved to be a slugfest between the Green Wave and the Panthers that saw the teams combine for 13 runs on 18 hits, and 5 home runs. Delbarton scored in the first inning when Kevin Hager (Sr., Cornell) hit a 2-run homerun. Marco Maselli (Sr., Holy Cross) added a 3rd run in the second with a solo home run over the right field wall. Freshman AJ Saccento started on the mound for Delbarton where he pitched 3 ? innings, allowing five runs on seven hits, striking out four, and walking one until he was replaced in the 4th inning by Christian Zebrowski (Jr.).
Going into the 5th inning and trailing 6-3, Delbarton's offense exploded for 4 runs, the first 3 coming off a first-pitch 3-run home run by Sal Garcia (Fr.). The final run of the inning, which proved to be the winning run, was scored when Hager crossed the plate off a ball hit by Rob Russo (Sr., Villanova). That was all the Green Wave staff needed. Zebrowski and Aidan Dill (Jr., Seton Hall) combined to close out the last two innings and secure the 7-6 win for Delbaton. In scoring 7 runs Saturday afternoon, Delbarton scored more runs on Ranney than they had let up all year combined.
Coach Shatel's team quickly got on the bus for a short trip to Middletown South for the second game of the day which started less than an hour later. Delbarton wasted little time against the Eagles scoring 1 run in each of the first two innings when Griffin Mills (Sr., Northwestern) scored on a wild pitch and Philip Folmar (So.) scored on a Garcia hit. That was all Dill needed on the mound. Picking up where he left off in game one, Dill threw a complete game, 2-hitter.
On the day, the Green Wave offense was led by Garcia (4 for 5, 3 runs, 4 RBI), Russo (4 for 7, 3 RBI), and Hager (3 for 7, 2 runs, 2 RBI). Zebrowski picked up the win in Game 1, and Dill finished with a save and a win.
The team improved its record to 6-2, but faces another busy road week with NJAC games at Randolph, at Pope John, at Chatham, and finally against Voorhees on Saturday in the Autism Awareness Challenge.
