Lessons learned well paid off for the third-seeded Cranford 12U baseball Cougars in their rematch against the second-seeded Millburn Millers in the Cal Ripken Jr. District 12 semifinal game at Gumbert Field 2 in Westfield on June 24. Unlike their previous 8-6 loss to Millburn on June 20 when they yielded several runs on passed balls after strikeouts, the Cougars yielded none this time and received timely hitting to earn a 7-4 victory and advancement to the championship game scheduled for June 27 to face the undefeated, top-seeded, 50 Chatham Cougars.
The Cranford Cougars began their march by stopping the Scotch Plains-Fanwood SPF Raiders, 12-4, then shut out the Watchung Hills (WH) Warriors, 10-0. After stumbling to Millburn, 8-6, they rebounded with a 10-0 shutout of the New Providence Pioneers before jolting Millburn. The Chatham Cougars took out the WH Warriors, 12-2, South Orange-Maplewood (SOM), 9-1, Mountainside, 17-6, and the SPF Raiders, 10-0, before defeating SOM, 9-3, in their semifinal.
In the semifinal game, the Millers put Will Crofton on the mound first and in 4.1 innings, he was charged with three runs (2 earned), three hits and three walks, while recording four strikeouts. AJ O’Neill relieved with one out in the fifth inning and allowed three runs on two hits and a walk. Lucas Pick pitched the sixth inning and permitted an unearned run, while striking out two Cougars.
Jake Perrotta went the distance for the Cougars and allowed four runs on seven hits and just one walk, while striking out one. Of those seven hits, the most eyebrow-raising one came off the bat of Zander Zibel (1-for-2, walk), who crushed a colossal two-run home run onto the roof of a car in the parking lot. O’Neill also did some damage with a two-run double and a single.
The Cougars totaled only five hits but they all happened at the right time. Brendon Matlosz went 2-for-3 with a double, RBI single and two runs scored. Bret Friedman had an RBI double, walked, stole a base and scored twice. Nick DiChiara had an RBI single, walked and swiped a base. Jack Burns tapped an RBI infield single. Dylan Masterson (stolen base) Mason Englese and John McGarry (walk) each scored once.
As the visiting team, the Cougars struck first with a pair of runs in the top of the first inning. Matlosz slammed his double down the leftfield line and scored on Friedman’s double to deep centerfield. DiChiara and Perrotta both walked to load the bases then Friedman scored on Burns’ slow infield wiggler near third base.
The Cougars held off a Millburn threat in the lower first inning. With one out, O’Neill reached safely on a
Photos at goleader.com Ballyhoo Sports throwing error, Crofton scribbled a single up the middle and Zibel walked to load the bases. Perrotta struck out Tyler Black and got Lucas Pick to ground out back to the mound. In the Cranford second, Pick made a fabulous diving snag in centerfield to keep the Cougars off the board then the Millers knotted the score in the bottom of the inning. Reed Kelley lashed a single to right-center and strutted to second on a balk. Gray Pollard hacked an infield single then alertly dashed to second when nobody was covering the bag. O’Neill then drilled a tworun double to centerfield.
Both teams were silent in the third then the Millers posed another threat in the fourth. Ryan Hado, the catcher, chopped a one-out single down the third base line and was replaced by courtesy runner Femi Ogunjuma. Pollard rapped a grounder toward shortstop Mateo Rubert, who tossed to first for the second out. Ogunjuma felt lucky and headed to third but first baseman Shane Gergich alertly fired to third baseman Mason Englese for the third out.
The Cougars rattled the Millers with four runs in the fifth for a 6-2 lead. Englese struck out but the ball was dropped and he sprinted to first. He skipped to second on Dom Testa’s sac bunt. McGarry walked but another passed ball allowed Englese to score. Matlosz slapped an RBI double past third. Rubert added an RBI ground out to short. Friedman walked, swiped second and scored on DiChiara’s single into right field.
With Crofton on first, Zibel crushed his two-run home run into the parking lot to cut the lead to 6-4 entering the seventh when Masterson drew a oneout walk, stole second base, scooted to third on a wild pitch then caught the pitcher off-guard, sprinted to the plate and was tagged out but in the process, a balk was called and the run counted.
The Millers went down 1-2-3 in the sixth.
Cranford 12U 200 041 7 Millburn 12U 020 020 4
