| UCSSL 2019 PLAYOFF RESULTS | ||||||
| 50’s Divisions | ||||||
| Playoff Rounds for Week of August 18, 2019 | ||||||
| Deegan Roofing 25, Phenomenal Boyz 9 | ||||||
| The Deegan 33 hit onslaught was led by Mike Juchnik, Doug Fischer and Tom Baldowski who all notched four hits each. Also contributing to the Roofer offense were Ricky McMahon, Scott Mugele, Farlan Alusik, Joe DiFabio, Marty Bernstein and Peter Appolito who all had 3 hits on the night. The defensive highlight of the season came when Deegan Pitcher Peter Appolito literally kicked a slow dribbler back to catcher Doug Fischer for a force out at home to quell a Phenomenal Boyz bases loaded rally. | ||||||
| Deegan Roofing 16, Phenomenal Boyz 11 | ||||||
| Peter Appolito took the mound for the Roofers and had an outstanding pitching performance while helping his cause by going 3 for 3 at the plate. Farlan Alusik was also perfect at bat with a 4 for 4 night. John Garced, Nick Russo and Steve Barba added three hits each for the Roofers. Marty Bernstein and Doug Fischer each homered for Deegan. Deegan Roofing wins the A Division semifinal series 2-0. | ||||||
| Roselle American Legion 22, JoeMax Telecom 11 | ||||||
| The Legion, banging out 31 hits, was led by Mike Shriner with a 5 for 5 night. Bill Buteau added 4 hits while Hector Munoz, Joe Caliguari and Jimmy McCullough each had 3 hits for Roselle in this team victory. | ||||||
| Roselle American Legion 13, JoeMax Telecom 9 | ||||||
| The Legion were led by the stellar pitching of Rich Gaul. At the plate, Geno Antonucci had 3 hits coming off the DL, Bill Buteau hit a mammoth homerun, and Ed Kushner contributed 2 hits including a long triple. Mike Shriner continued his torrid hitting with 3 more hits, 8 in the 2-game series, while Dave Wayman also contributed 2 hits & 5 RBIs for Roselle. Roselle American Legion wins the A Division semifinal series 2-0. | ||||||
| Contact Lens & Vision 10, Linda’s Driftwood #2 9 | ||||||
| In a dramatic come from behind win, Eddie Quinn came up big with two huge clutch hits and the walk off with 2 outs bottom of the 7th. Timely hitting from Dr. Joe DeRosa, Tony Grabowski, Neil Kaufman, Brian Dayton, Doc Kerry Gelb and Dave Rosenberg. Tremendous fielding from Mikey Ramirez, Timmy Walsh and Dr. Joe sealed the victory. | ||||||
| Contact Lens & Vision 12, Linda’s Driftwood #2 3 | ||||||
| Neil Kaufmann’s 3 run blast helped drive CLV in support of a great pitching performance by Steve Wieczerzak. Mike Ramirez, Tim Walsh and Dr. Joe DeRosa each added 3 hits to the attack. Dave Rothenberg, Kerry Gelb, Steve Wieczerzak and Scott Cohen all contributed clutch hits. Cohen also made a tremendous throw nailing a runner at home from deep right field. Contact Lens wins the B Division quarterfinal series 2-0. | ||||||
| Cranford VFW 13, Garwood Metal 8 | ||||||
| Cranford VFW battled back from an early deficit and held on to record the victory. Winning pitcher Chris Kaminski paced Cranford defensively and at the plate with 3 hits, including a long home run over the left field fence. Dan Ravetier was a perfect 4-4 to lead a potent Cranford attack. Carl Gamba, Bob Ghiretti and Bob LaConti added 3 hits apiece. | ||||||
| Advanced Financial 17, AJ Jersey 9 | ||||||
| Dave Grandmaison led AF with 6 RBIs. Bruce Crawford, Jerry Isolda, Mike Bernardo and Emil Coca each contributed 3 hits. | ||||||
| Garwood Metal 20, Cranford VFW 19 | ||||||
| GM came up big in the top of the 7th, throwing out the potential tying run at home with a great scoop by catcher Jose Jimenez. Greg Hartnett banged out 5 hits, Don Montefusco blasted 4 hits, and 5 other players with 3 hits apiece led the way for Garwood. | ||||||
| Cranford VFW 12, Garwood Metal 9 | ||||||
| Cranford VFW jumped out to a 9-3 lead and held on to take the well played series. Ron Kulik, Dave Lloyd and Bob D’Meo led Garwood with 4 hits each. Cranford VFW wins the B Division quarterfinal series 2-1. | ||||||
| Advanced Financial 20, AJ Jersey 11 | ||||||
| Dave Grandmaison led the offensive charge for AF driving in 5. John Rachko, Billy Hillyer, Bruce Crawford, Mike Bernardo, Paul Gregory and Frank Mastrocola each contributed 3 hits and two RBIs. Al Dente smacked a 2 run homerun to spark AJ. Advanced Financial wins the C Division semifinal series 2-0. | ||||||
| Playoff Rounds for Week of August 25, 2019 | ||||||
| Deegan Roofing 6, Roselle American Legion 2 | ||||||
| In the series opener both teams had their aces on the mound (Rich Gaul for Legion and Pete Appolito for Deegan) for this old-fashioned pitcher duel. Heading into the 4th inning, Deegan led 2-1 and scored 4 runs with the big blow coming off a Steve Barba triple to deep left center field. That turned out to be enough to seal the victory. Barba had two hits on the night as did Ricky McMahon for the Roofers. Hitting stars for The Legion were Jim McCullough, Joe Caliguari and Bill Buteau. Mike Shriner sparkled on defense for Roselle. | ||||||
| Riverside Inn 12, Contact Lens & Vision 11 (8 innings) | ||||||
| Paul Newton stroked the walk off hit to decide this well played, close contest. Rich Polonitza added 5 RBIs and Paul McClung homered to lead the Innkeepers. Hitting stars for CLV were Steve Wieczerzak and Dan Righetti each with 3 hits. Dave Rothenberg added a long triple along with Tim Walsh’s two hits. | ||||||
| Linwood Inn 18, Cranford VFW 5 | ||||||
| The Tap House bats came out early and established a 13 to 5 lead by the end of the 3rd inning. Then the Linwood defense shut the VFW out for the remainder of the game. At the plate for Linwood, Slope Rzewuski, Mike DiRienzo and Steve Lerner each had 3 hits. Brian Latham, Paul Cassidy, Shawn Smith and Brian Schaefer added 2 more hits each. John Fiore (homerun), Carl Gamba and Frank Verducci paced Cranford's hitting attack. | ||||||
| Advanced Financial 24, Bad Brains 16 | ||||||
| In a game not decided until the final frame, AF had John Rachko going 5 for 5 (BB), Billy Hillyer 5 for 6, Paul Gregory 4 hits and Vic Trindade 3 hits in 4 trips to the plate. Dave Morturano had an outstanding night patrolling centerfield for Advanced. | ||||||
| Deegan Roofing 11, Roselle American Legion 3 | ||||||
| Deegan Roofing defeated Roselle American Legion to capture their 6th consecutive UCSSL 50+ A Division championship. The key to the championship was the stellar pitching of ace Peter Appolito backed up by a solid Deegan defense. Appolito gave up only five total runs for the entire series. Roofer Scott Mugele struck the big blow with a long 3-run homer to cap a four run first inning. Deegan never trailed from that point. Hitting stars for Deegan were Joe DiFabio who was a perfect three for three at the plate. Ricky McMahon, Damon Roth, Nick Russo, Marty Bernstein and Peter Appolito contributed two hits each for the offense. For The Legion, another super pitching performance from Rich Gaul, supported at the plate by Ed Kushner, Bill Buteau and Dave Wayman. Deegan Roofing wins the series 2-0 and is crowned the UCSSL A Division champions. | ||||||
| Contact Lens & Vision 9, Riverside Inn 5 | ||||||
| Great pitching from Steve Wieczerzak, stellar defense from Tony Grabowski, and timely hitting from Anthony Miccio and Kerry Gelb both with run scoring doubles, led the way for CLV. Also coming up big were Matt Kasper perfect in 3 trips, Chris Jones, Grabowski, Tim Walsh and Dave Rothenberg all pounding out 2 hits, and Mike Ramirez. Terrific infield defense by Bob Beiner and Tim Walsh. John Llano and Marc Capizzi each had 3 hits for the Innkeepers. The B Division Semifinal series is tied one game each. | ||||||
| Linwood Inn 16, Cranford VFW 4 | ||||||
| Clinching the semifinal series, the Tap House bats came out early, building up a 6-run lead and never looking back. Leading the attack, which had every Linwood player reach base safely at least one time, were Leo DiGuilio with 4 hits, while Mike DiRienzo and Shawn Smith blasted 3 hits each. Joe Sarica, Brian Latham, Jim Sydlo, Richie Johns and Brian Schaefer each also contributed a pair of hits. John Fiore and Jerry Veglia paced the offense for Cranford. Linwood Inn wins the series 2-0 to advance to the B Division Finals. | ||||||
| Advanced Financial 15, Bad Brains 13 | ||||||
| In a hotly contested game, AF came out on top showcasing great hitting, pitching and fielding. Winning pitcher Paul Gregory dominated with 12 footers hitting the corners, the infield making all the plays and the outfielders including Dave Morturano dominating. Morturano, having an outstanding all around game, went 5 for 5. Frank Mastrocola was 4 for 5, and Vic Trindade was 3 for 4 with key two out RBIs. The final out was recorded by Al Feigenbaum with a sliding play at first base. Advanced Financial wins the series 2-0 and is crowned UCSSL C Division champions. | ||||||
| Playoff Rounds for Week of September 5, 2019 | ||||||
| Contact Lens and Vision 11, Riverside Inn 9 | ||||||
| Steve Wieczerzak, with a masterful performance, pitched and tripled Contact Lens into the finals, supported by a complete team effort both at the plate and in the field. Dan Righetti had 3 hits including a clutch homer, while Bob Beiner, Tim Walsh and Mike Ramirez added key RBI singles. Also coming up big in the RBI department were Anthony Miccio, Kerry Gelb, Matt Kasper, CJ Jones and Dr. Joe DeRosa. Tony Grabowski made several outstanding plays in the field as the game ended on a tremendous double play by CJ Jones and Dan Righetti. Riverside was led by John McClung's HR and 3 RBIs, Brian Clark’s 4 hits, and Ross Pennise’s 3 hits and 2 RBIs. Contact wins the series 2 games to 1 to advance to the B Division Finals. | ||||||
| Linwood Inn 9, Contact Lens & Vision 8 | ||||||
| In this well played defensive struggle, Shawn Smith’s leadoff double and Brian Schaefer’s single tied the game for the Tap Men in the 6th. Then Brian Latham tripled and Jim Sydlo singled to put Linwood up one run. CL&V threatened in the top of the final inning but a double play sealed the victory. For the Tap House, Brian Latham had 3 hits, while Tim Mulhall, Mike DiRienzo, Richie Johns and Shawn Smith added two hits each. Hitting stars for Contact were Kerry Gelb a perfect 3 for 3 and 3 RBIs, Tim Walsh including a double off the fence, CJ Jones, Tony Grabowski and Neil Kaufman. | ||||||
| Contact Lens & Vision 13, Linwood Inn 3 | ||||||
| Again, led by pitcher Steve Wieczerzak, CL&V combined offensive power with defensive skill to take this second game of the final’s series. At the plate, Neil Kaufman doubled and tripled, Dave Rothenberg had a bases loaded triple that put Contact on top, Kerry Gelb had a double and a triple with 4 RBIs, and Dan Righetti was a perfect 3 for 3. Also, with key hits were Matt Kasper, Dr. Joe DeRosa, Tony Grabowski, Chris Jones, Anthony Miccio, Eddie Quinn and Scott Cohen. Mike Ramirez made 8 very tough defensive plays while Scott Cohen lasered 2 terrific throws to put out runners at home. | ||||||
| Linwood Inn 14, Contact Lens & Vision 9 | ||||||
| In this deciding game of the B Division playoffs, the Tap Men came up big on defense, holding a potent CL&V lineup scoreless entering the 6th inning while completing 3 double plays. After Contact put together 14 hits and scored 7 runs to pull within a run, Linwood responded in their half of the frame plating 6 to regain control. For the Tap House, Tim Mulhall went 3 for 3 and Jim Sydlo, Paul Cassidy, Shawn Smith, Joe Menza and Mike DiRienzo added 2 hits each. For Contact Lens, Kerry Gelb, Matt Kasper, Ed Quinn, Steve Wieczerzak, Neil Kaufman and Dan Righetti sparkled on offense. Linwood Inn wins the series 2 games to 1 to become B Division Playoff Champions. | ||||||
| Playoff Rounds Completed | ||||||