DISTRICT 3 AT TEENER FIELD IN UNION

8 Teams: South Orange, Union Catholic, Bloomfield, Cresskill 21

Brooklawn 72, Park Ridge 153, Flemington 159, Union 35

One (1) team advances to the Aug. 2-6 State Finals at Moody Park in Ewing.

There were eight (8) teams that qualified in each of the eight districts.

Saturday, July 26

Game 1: Union Catholic 9, South Orange 2

Game 2: Cresskill 7, Bloomfield 5

Game 3: Brooklawn 10, Park Ridge 2

Game 4: Union 12, Flemington 2

Sunday, July 27

Game 5: Park Ridge 14, South Orange 1

South Orange went 0-2 and is out.

Sunday’s other three games were rained out.

Monday, July 28

Game 6: Flemington 3, Bloomfield 1

Bloomfield went 0-2 and is out.

Game 7: Union Catholic 9, Brooklawn 2

Game 8: Cresskill 8, Union 4

Tuesday, July 29

Game 9: Flemington 9, Brooklawn 2

Brooklawn went 1-2 and is out.

Game 10: Park Ridge 8, Union 5

Union went 1-2 and is out.

Game 11: Cresskill 9, Union Catholic 2

Wednesday, July 30

Game 12: Flemington 12, Union Catholic 1 (8 inn.)

Union Catholic went 2-2 and is out.

Game 13: Park Ridge 5, Cresskill 4

Thursday, July 31

Game 14: Flemington vs. Park Ridge, 4 p.m.

Game 15: Winner of Game 14 vs. Cresskill, 7 p.m. (roughly)

RECORDS through Game 14:

Cresskill 21 (3-1)

Flemington 159 (3-1)

Park Ridge 153 (3-1)

Union Catholic (2-2)

Union 35 (1-2)

Brooklawn 72 (1-2)

South Orange (0-2)

Bloomfield (0-2)

Vikings need to win Wednesday and then twice Thursday to advance to Senior American League State Finals

Union Catholic is the only Union County team still alive in Senior American Legion baseball district play.

The Vikings lost to Cresskill Tuesday night and are 2-1 in District 3 at Union's Teener Field.

Union 35 lost to Park Ridge 153 by the score of 8-5 and is out. Union 35 went 1-2 in the double-elimination tournament.

On Wednesday, Union Catholic will face Flemington 159 at 4 p.m., while Park Ridge 153 will play Cresskill 21 in the game to follow.

Union Catholic and Flemington 159 are both 2-1, with the winner advancing to Thursday and the non-winner being eliminated.

Cresskill is 3-0 and Park Ridge 2-1. If Cresskill wins, then Park Ridge is eliminated and Cresskill will just have to win one game Thursday to be the team that advances to the State Finals out of District 3.

If Park Ridge wins, then there will be two games Thursday, with the winner of Union Catholic/Flemington, Cresskill and Park Ridge still alive.

The times of Thursday's game or games will be determined after Wednesday's games.

Eight teams made it to each of the eight districts, with one team coming out of each district for the State Finals, which are Aug. 2-6 at Moody Park in Ewing.  

Going into Tuesday, Union Catholic is 2-0 and Union 35 is 1-1 in the double-elimination District 3 Senior American Legion baseball tournament at Union's Teener Field

UNION CATHOLIC'S MONDAY LINEUP AND RESERVES:

26-Rey Lopez, shortstop

11-Kristian Cortizo, right field

25-Jimmy Thornton, catcher

7-Mike Canales, third base

27-Steve Tansey, second base

16-Matt Canales, center field

19-Steve D'Angelo, designated hitter, relief pitcher

21-Joe Lentini, left field

14-Anthony Caravano, first base

10-Nathaniel Roe, starting pitcher

Also:

18-Connor Dick. 35-Anthony Lentini.

33-Steve Berger. 11-Kevin Schulhafer.

49-Matt Monaghan. 17-Anthony Marsal.

UNION'S SATURDAY LINEUP AND RESERVES:

14-Jaret Sumner, right field

6-Antonio Serrano, left field

15-Julian Castro, center field

10-Tom Becht, pitcher

5-Jonathan Valdez, catcher

13-Jake Foehner, third base

24-Jesse Lara, first base

2-Michael Wolfe, shortstop

1-John Motacki, second base

Also:

18-Justin Fernandez. 23-Brian Hornlein.

7-Peter McTernan. 3-Anthony Nascondiglio.

9-Ryan Pascullo. 8-Marc Santoro.

11-Ryan Shupe. 21-Dorian Sierra. 12-Asad Syed.

See story about District 3 on home page of http://www.localsource.com/. Click on sports at the right of top stories.

UNION COUNTY SENIOR AMERICAN LEGION

DISTRICTS UPDATE

The 6 teams that qualified were:

Roselle 229, Cranford, Watchung Hills,

Union Catholic, Union 35 and Scotch Plains

District 1 at Breslin Field in Lyndhurst

Saturday, July 26

Roselle 229 11, Newton 86 5

Bergenfield 90 6, Cranford 0

Sunday, July 27

Florham Park-Madison 43 9, Cranford 6

(Cranford out)

Lyndhurst 139 4, Roselle 229 0

Monday, July 28

Florham Park-Madison vs. Roselle 229, 1 p.m.

Winner plays Tuesday at 4 p.m. and loser is out.

District will now end on Wednesday.

District 2 at Jannarone Park in Parsippany

Saturday, July 26

Mt. Morris 13, Watchung Hills 3

Sunday, July 27

Pascack Valley 12, Watchung Hills 2

(Watchung Hills out)

District 3 at Teener Field in Union

Saturday, July 26

Union Catholic 9, South Orange 2

Union 35 12, Flemington 159 2

Monday, July 28

Union Catholic vs. Brooklawn, 4 p.m.

Cresskill vs. Union 35, DH

Both teams guaranteed of playing Tuesday.

District will now end on Thursday.

District 5 at Toms River East in Toms River

Saturday, July 26

Seaside Heights 351 3, Scotch Plains 1

Monday, July 28

Hightstown 148 vs. Scotch Plains, DH

Winner plays Tuesday at 4 p.m. and loser is out.

Winner plays loser of Monday’s 4 p.m. game between

Toms River North and Randolph.  

St. Patrick’s beat Linden 52-42 in Thursday night’s Linden Team Basketball Camp championship game at Linden High School.

In the semis, Linden beat Cardinal McCarrick 65-23 before St. Patrick’s beat St. Joseph’s, Metuchen 60-47.

Cardinal McCarrick replaced Seton Hall Prep as Linden’s semifinal opponent.

LINDEN TEAM BASKETBALL CAMP

AT LINDEN HIGH SCHOOL

PLAYOFF SEEDING:

1-St. Patrick's (11-0). 2-Linden (11-2). 3-Colonia (9-2). 4-St. Joseph's, Metuchen (9-4).

5-Paterson Kennedy (8-5). 6-Seton Hall Prep (8-4). 7-Watchung Hills (6-5). 8-Immaculata (5-7).

9-Wagner (4-8). 10-Rahway (4-7). 11-Bridgewater (4-8). 12-Hillsborough (3-9).

13-Cardinal McCarrick (3-8). 14-East Brunswick (2-9). 15-Newark Academy (1-10).

MONDAY, JULY 21:           

Preliminary Round

Rahway over Newark Academy

East Brunswick over Bridgewater

Cardinal McCarrick over Hillsborough

TUESDAY, JULY 22:

First round

Watchung Hills over Rahway

Seton Hall Prep over East Brunswick

Cardinal McCarrick over Paterson Kennedy

Immaculata over Wagner

WEDNESDAY, JULY 23:

Quarterfinals

Seton Hall Prep 65, Colonia 44

Linden 58, Watchung Hills 29

St. Joseph's, Metuchen 60, Cardinal McCarrick 53

St. Patrick's 59, Immaculata 38

THURSDAY, JULY 24

Semifinals

Linden 65, Cardinal McCarrick 23

St. Patrick’s 60, St. Joseph’s Metuchen 47

Final

St. Patrick’s 52, Linden 42

Roselle 229, Cranford, Watchung Hills, Union 35, Union Catholic and Scotch Plains in mix

As many as six baseball teams from Union County Senior American Legion advanced to district play.

Those six teams are Roselle 229 and Cranford at District 1 in Lyndhurst, Watchung Hills at District 2 in Parsippany, Union 35 (host automatically qualifies) and Union Catholic at District 3 in Union and Scotch Plains at District 5 in Toms River.

Barring rainouts, competition is scheduled for four consecutive days - Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday.

The State Finals will follow at Moody Park in Ewing. Last year's State Finals took place at Breslin Field in Lyndhurst.

Here's a look at Saturday's opening game schedules for all six Union County Senior American Legion teams:

District 1 at Breslin Field in Lyndhurst

Roselle 229 vs. Newton 86, 4 p.m.

Cranford vs. Bergenfield 90, to follow 4 p.m. game

District 2 at Jannarone Park in Parsippany

Watchung Hills vs. Mt. Morris, 4 p.m.

District 3 at Teener Field in Union

South Orange vs. Union Catholic, 10 a.m.

Flemington 159 vs. Union 35, to follow 4 p.m. game

District 5 at Toms River East High School in Toms River

Scotch Plains vs. Seaside Heights 351, to follow 4 p.m. game 

IT WILL BE SETON HALL PREP VS. LINDEN AT 4:30 P.M. AND AND THEN ST. JOSEPH'S, METUCHEN VS. ST. PATRICK'S AT 5:30 P.M. AT LINDEN

THE FINAL IS ALSO THURSDAY, SET FOR 6:30 P.M. AT LINDEN

Here are Wednesday’s four Linden Team Basketball Camp quarterfinal scores from games played at Linden High School:

Seton Hall Prep 65, Colonia 44

Linden 58, Watchung Hills 29

St. Joseph's, Metuchen 60, Cardinal McCarrick 53

St. Patrick's 59, Immaculata 38

THURSDAY'S SEMIFINALS AT LINDEN HIGH SCHOOL

6-Seton Hall Prep vs. 2-Linden, 4:30 p.m.

4-St. Joseph's, Metuchen vs. 1-St. Patrick's, 5:30 p.m.

THURSDAY'S FINAL AT LINDEN HIGH SCHOOL

Semifinal winners at 6:30 p.m.

NOTES: St. Patrick’s improved to 12-0, St. Joseph’s to 10-4, Seton Hall Prep to 9-4 and Linden to 12-2. The playoffs, with 15 teams seeded, began on Monday with three games played. Competition continued Tuesday night with four more games.

HOW ABOUT SPARKY LYLE FOR THE HALL OF FAME?

Goose Gossage goes in the Hall of Fame Sunday.

It's about time.

How about Sparky Lyle?

The longtime manager of the Somerset Patriots minor league team didn't have a dominating fastball like Gossage, but he had one heck of a slider.

Albert Walter Lyle, who was born in DuBois, Pa. which is not that far away from Punxsatawney where the ground hog is, turned 64 today.

Lyle was - without a doubt - one of the best relief pitchers in baseball in the 1970s. His career began with the Boston Red Sox in 1967 and ended with the Chicago White Sox in 1982, spanning 15 years.

On March 22, 1972 the Red Sox were dumb enough to trade Lyle to the Yankees for first baseman Danny Cater and a player to be named later, who turned out to be the not-so-famous Mario Guerrero.

While Boston finished six games better than the Yankees in 1972 and just one half game behind American League East Division champion Detroit (games were cancelled in the beginning of that season because of a players strike and not made up, thus Detroit's half-game lead stood up), the Yankees got so much better of the deal.

Lyle ended up saving a career-high and AL high 35 games his first year with the Yankees in 1972 and was also 9-5.

Lyle also led the AL in saves in 1976 with 23 and was second in 1973 with 27 and second in 1977 with 26.

In 1977, he became only the second relief pitcher to win the Cy Young Award and the first from the AL. Mike Marshall of the Los Angeles Dodgers won the 1974 National League Cy Young Award, becoming the first relief pitcher to win the honor and also the first from the NL to do so.

Lyle also rescued the Yankees in the 1977 AL Championship Series, winning Games 4 and 5 in Kansas City as the Yankees came back from a 2-1 deficit to win the series 3-2.

Lyle pitched 5 and 1/3 innings of two-hit, scoreless ball as New York's third and final pitcher on a Saturday afternoon at Kauffman Stadium as the Yankees held on for a 6-4 win to force a deciding Game 5.

Then the next day on Sunday night, Oct. 9, 1977, Lyle entered the game in the bottom of the eighth with runners on first and second, two out and the Yankees trailing 3-2. The Yanks trailed 3-1 before Reggie Jackson produced a pinch-hit RBI-single in the top of the eighth.

Billy Martin started Paul Blair in right over Reggie because Kansas City started lefty Paul Splittorf, Jackson was hitting below .200 in the series and Blair was much better defensively.

However, Reggie still managed to come through when his time was called.

Lyle struck out KC second baseman Cookie Rojas to end the eighth and put out that fire.

The Yankees then scored three runs in the top of the ninth to take a 5-3 lead. That was one of the most clutch top of the ninths in Yankee history, with KC just three outs away from winning its first pennant.

In the bottom of the ninth, Lyle got diminutive Kansas City shortstop Freddie Patek - all 5-foot, 4-inches of him - to hit a game-ending 5-4-3 double play.

Nettles to Randolph to Chambliss and just like that the Yankees won a second consecutive AL pennant and Lyle had won his second straight post-season game.

That Game 5 was also famous for the George Brett into Nettles slide at third early in the game that emptied both benches after Brett and Nettles swung at each other.

If they had given out MVPs in the AL Championship Series back then (they didn't start until 1981, with Graig Nettles getting the first one), Lyle would have been a unanimous selection.

Lyle went on to also win Game 1 of the World Series against the Dodgers. Although he gave up the save in the top of the ninth in almost an impossible situation - inheriting runners on first and second with just one out and then giving up an RBI-single that tied the game at 3-3 - Lyle pitched outstanding baseball for 3 and 2/3 innings as the Yankees went on to win 4-3 in the bottom of the 12th when Paul Blair singled in Willie Randolph from second.

Lyle gave up an RBI-single to Lee Lacy, who was the first batter he faced. He then retired the next two batters to end the top of the ninth.

Lyle then set down the Dodgers in 1-2-3 fashion in the top of the 10th, 11th and 12th innings. He faced 12 batters total, giving up a hit to the first one and then retiring the next 11 in a row.

So, Lyle pitched 5 and 1/3 scoreless innings and got the win in Game 4 against the Royals and then the very next day pitched 1 and 1/3 scoreless innings and got the win in Game 5 vs. KC.

He followed that up just two days later by pitching 3 and 2/3 innings of scoreless ball (he wasn't charged with the run he gave up) and got the win in Game 1 against the Dodgers.

Lyle pitched for the Yankees from 1972-1978 and was better than great. In 1972 - to the tune of Pomp and Circumstance - he used to come out of a car at the old Yankee Stadium - I think it was a Datsun or something similar - and enter the mound with applause, almost similar to Mariano coming out to the tune of Enter the Sandman.

Lyle was a three-time All-Star who also pitched for the 1980 World Series champion Philadelphia Phillies, although he was not on the post-season roster.

To me, he's just on the other side of the Hall of Fame, along with Munson, Nettles and Guidry. I think Munson should be in, but that's another blog for another day. Nettles, with 390 home runs and his fielding prowess, and Guidry, with his dominance over a 10-year period, could be argued at length as well.

Lyle orchestrated one of the most underrated Yankee comebacks ever in 1977. Man that was sweet.

In his book, "The Bronx Zoo," Lyle said he used to sit on birthday cakes in the nude in the lockerrom.

I hope you get plenty of cake today Albert Walter.

Happy Birthday and many, many more.

SOME RANDOM THOUGHTS ON A MONDAY AFTERNOON IN THE MIDDLE OF JULY:

- In sports, we're obsessed with knowing who is the best. Millions of dollars throughout this great land of ours are spent on scoreboards so that we will immediately know who is better than who.

It's the same way in business and politics.

However, does what it say on the scoreboard tell us who is the best? What really makes somebody better than somebody else or some group of people, i.e. a team, better than another group of people?

- Here are two arguments I've heard my whole life and just heard again this past weekend:

Parent of son or daughter who made the All-Star Team: "Yeah, my kid is one of the best."

Parent of son or daughter who didn't make the All-Star Team: "It's all politics and a popularity contest. They didn't pick the best kids. They only picked the kids who were the most popular. If they had picked the best kids, than my kid would have made it."

So, according to many parents, it still pays to be popular even in the year 2008. To them, you don't have to be good to succeed, just highly noteworthy.

- Because I love the game of baseball so much I am still amazed at how many times I see a major leaguer strike out looking. I understand that a batter could be fooled by a pitch and not end up swinging at it.

However, I see too many batters standing in the batter's box and watching fastballs go right down the middle for strike three. One of the first things you are taught in Little League is to protect the plate when you have two strikes on you.

Sometimes it looks like the players don't even care. Sometimes it appears that they don't have the same zest for the game as did their counterparts 30-40 years ago.

If that's the case - with the amount of money they're making at the forefront - it's a shame.

- Speaking of money, 10 years ago when the New York Yankees were the best team in baseball and winning 125 games and the World Series in 1998, you could go to Yankee Stadium and watch a game against - say Tampa Bay - and there would only be about 25,000 in attendance. You could go to the Stadium, get a good seat for still not that much, stretch your arms and legs, and have a good time watching Brosius, O'Neill or Martinez get a clutch hit.

Now, as Yankee fans, we get an All-Star softball team that draws 4 million a year and can't get out of the first round of the playoffs or might not even make it to the post-season this year. Every game is 50,000 plus or the equivalent of slam-dancing in the Bronx to see the Yankees play at home in person.

Where have you gone Scott Brosius?

Those were the days!

The following is a list of game-scrimmages for the 17 football playing schools in Union County:

UNION - Sept. 4 at Brick Memorial, 6 p.m.

ROSELLE PARK - Sept. 5 Dunellen, 7 p.m.

BREARLEY - Sept. 5 Iselin Kennedy, 7 p.m.

DAYTON - Sept. 5 at Robbinsville, 4:30 p.m.

SUMMIT - Sept. 5 Rahway, 4 p.m.

GOVERNOR LIVINGSTON - Sept. 4 Roselle, 4 p.m.

ELIZABETH - Sept. 11 at Red Bank Catholic, 4 p.m.

HILLSIDE - Sept. 5 at Pequannock, 6 p.m.

LINDEN - Sept. 5 at Monroe, 6 p.m.

RAHWAY - Sept. 5 at Summit, 4 p.m.

ROSELLE - Sept. 4 at Governor Livingston, 4 p.m.

JOHNSON - Sept. 5 Hanover Park, 7 p.m.

CRANFORD - Sept. 4 at Somerville, 5 p.m.

PLAINFIELD - Sept. 4 at St. Peter's Prep, 7 p.m.
Caven Point in Jersey City

WESTFIELD - Sept. 5 Livingston, 4 p.m.

SCOTCH PLAINS - Sept. 12 Ridgewood, 5 p.m.

NEW PROVIDENCE - Sept. 13 Belvidere, 10 a.m.

Union County teams that open Week Zero, Sept. 12 and 13, include:
Union, Roselle Park, Brearley, Dayton, Summit,
Governor Livingston, Hillside, Linden, Rahway,
Roselle, Johnson, Cranford, Plainfield and Westfield.

Union County teams that open Week One, Sept. 19-20, include:
Elizabeth, Scotch Plains and New Providence.

County teams vs. each other scrimmages include:
Rahway at Summit and Roselle at Governor Livingston.
Roselle is in the Valley Division of the Mountain Valley Conference
again this year, so it does not play GL in the regular season.

Union County game-scrimmage schedule:

Thursday Sept. 4 (4):
Roselle at Governor Livingston, 4 p.m.
Cranford at Somerville, 5 p.m.
Union at Brick Memorial, 6 p.m.
Plainfield at St. Peter's Prep, 7 p.m.
at Caven Point in Jersey City

Friday, Sept. 5 (8):
Livingston at Westfield, 4 p.m.
Rahway at Summit, 4 p.m.
Dayton at Robbinsville, 4:30 p.m.
Linden at Monroe, 6 p.m.
Hillside at Pequannock, 6 p.m.
Hanover Park at Johnson, 7 p.m.
Dunellen at Roselle Park, 7 p.m.
Iselin Kennedy at Brearley, 7 p.m.

Thursday, Sept. 11 (1):
Elizabeth at Red Bank Catholic, 4 p.m.

Friday, Sept. 12 (1):
Ridgewood at Scotch Plains, 5 p.m.

Saturday, Sept. 13 (1):
Belvidere at New Providence, 10 a.m.

Here's one more look at the All-Star Football Game between Middlesex and Union counties, including the records of both teams at each site:

SNAPPLE BOWL
SCORES AND MVPS

2008: Middlesex 14, Union 7
MVP - James White, Piscataway, linebacker
At East Brunswick
•
2007: Middlesex 17, Union 10
MVP - Aireil Adams, New Brunswick, wide receiver
At Kean University
•
2006: Middlesex 13, Union 7
MVP - Herbert Nieves, Sayreville, defensive end
At South Brunswick High School
•
2005: Union 21, Middlesex 14
UC MVP - Chris Drechsel, Cranford, quarterback
MC MVP - Matt Mariano, East Brunswick, quarterback
At Kean University
•
2004: Union 19, Middlesex 7
MVP - Jan Cocozziello, Westfield, quarterback
At East Brunswick High School
•
2003: Union 13, Middlesex 0
MVP - Mike Vicci, Johnson, quarterback
At East Brunswick High School
•
2002: Middlesex 28, Union 20
MVP - Zack Earvin, South River, running back
At Kean University
•
2001: Union 17, Middlesex 16
MVP - Brandon Bracey, Linden, defensive back
At East Brunswick High School
•
2000: Union 27, Middlesex 21
MVP - Billy Gilbert, Elizabeth, running back
At Union High School
•
1999: Middlesex 28, Union 7
MVP - Jeff LeSeur, Perth Amboy, wide receiver
At East Brunswick High School
•
1998: Middlesex 33, Union 7
MVP - Luke Cianello, Dunellen, quarterback
At Union High School

•
1997: Union 28, Middlesex 7
MVP - Louis Campbell, Rahway, quarterback
At East Brunswick High School
•
1996: Middlesex 21, Union 6
MVP - Kenny Rogers, South Brunswick, running back
At Union High School
•
1995: Union 17, Middlesex 15
MVP - Jamie Allen, Summit, wide receiver
At Sayreville High School
•
1994: Middlesex 35, Union 14
MVP - Khamisi Jackson, Monroe, running back
At Union High School 

Series lead: Middlesex County 8-7

Home team: 5-10

Road team: 10-5

Most points: Middlesex, 269

Least points: Union, 220

Shutouts: 1 - Union County

3-game win streaks: both have (1)

Union: 2003, 2004, 2005

Middlesex: 2006, 2007, 2008

All 16 MVPs - 2 were chosen in 2005 - have come from different schools:

MIDDLESEX COUNTY MVPS

Monroe: Khamisi Jackson

South Brunswick: Kenny Rogers

Dunellen: Luke Cianello

Perth Amboy: Jeff LeSeur

Zack Earvin: South River

East Brunswick: Matt Mariano

Sayreville: Herbert Nieves

New Brunswick: Aireil Adams

Piscataway: James White

UNION COUNTY MVPS

Summit: Jamie Allen

Rahway: Louis Campbell

Elizabeth: Billy Gilbert

Linden: Brandon Bracey

Johnson: Mike Vicci

Westfield: Jan Cocozziello

Cranford: Chris Drechsel

Where game has been played:

Union: Middlesex is 3-1

Sayreville: Union is 1-0

East Brunswick: Union is 4-2

Kean University in Union: Middlesex is 2-1

South Brunswick: Middlesex is 1-0

Roselle to face Watchung Hills in Monday's championship game

RAHWAY - How hot was it outside today at Veterans Field?

Well, it was so hot that even my computer is sweating and I’m presently typing indoors!

A big round of applause goes to all of the players, coaches and umpires for battling with today’s 95 degree heat that felt more like 195. Fans tried to position themselves in whatever shade was provided up on the hill beyond the right field fence.

Union County Junior American Legion playoff director Jim Caffrey allowed me to sit under his tent and provided me with plenty of cold water, for which I am grateful.

On Monday at Veterans Field it will be third-seeded Roselle facing top-seeded and regular season champion Watchung Hills in the championship game at 5 p.m.

Here’s a look at the playoff seeding and scores and today’s semifinal lineups:

UNION COUNTY JUNIOR AMERICAN LEGION PLAYOFFS

SEEDING:

1-Watchung Hills. 2-Cranford. 3-Roselle. 4-Roselle Park.

5-Rahway. 6-Berkeley Heights. 7-Scotch Plains. 8-Union Catholic.

9-Rutgers Prep. 10-Westfield. 11-Celtics. 12-New Providence.

13-Jersey City. 14-Summit. 15-Union. 16-Hillside.

FIRST ROUND:

Tuesday, July 15

Roselle Park advanced over Jersey City

Watchung Hills 7, Hillside 1

Roselle 10, Summit 5

Union 6, Cranford 5

Wednesday, July 16

Rahway 9, New Providence 7

Union Catholic 8, Rutgers Prep 5

Berkeley Heights 10, Celtics 9

Scotch Plains 14, Westfield 4

QUARTERFINALS:

Saturday, July 19 at Rahway

Rahway 12, Roselle Park 2

Watchung Hills 14, Union Catholic 2

Roselle 4, Berkeley Heights 3 (10 inn.)

Scotch Plains 7, Union 5

SEMIFINALS:

Sunday, July 20 at Rahway

Watchung Hills 7, Rahway 2

Roselle 8, Scotch Plains 5

FINAL:

Monday, July 21 at Rahway

3-Roselle vs. 1-Watchung Hills, 5 p.m.

PAST CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES

2007: Roselle over Vikings

2006: Roselle over Scotch Plains

2005: Roselle Park over Cranford

2004: Vikings over Roselle

2003: Roselle over Scotch Plains

SEMIFINAL STARTING LINEUPS AND RESERVES:

5-RAHWAY

4-Eric Dumey, shortstop

1-Octavio Bent, center fielder

5-Taylor Jamieson, second baseman

13-Isaiah Ruiz, third baseman

23-Anthony Arace, pitcher

9-Jimmy Heim, left fielder

22-Austin DeSavino, first baseman

20 Rob Daileda, catcher

6-Joe Romeo, right fielder

Reserves:

24-Grant Brown

16-Danny Guinta

7- Chris Cawley

Head coach: Lou Romeo

1-WATCHUNG HILLS

24-Zach Zareva, first baseman

10-Kyle Kurland, second baseman

8-Mike McDonough, designated hitter

23-Dalton Fischer, shortstop

21-Chris Berry, catcher

22-Richard Hunt, pitcher

6-Zach Raibley, right fielder

16-Nick Rivera, third baseman

12-Connor Kleisser, left fielder

17-Anthony Wilson, center fielder

Reserves:

7-Jeff Torrisi

3-Matt Gildenberg

5-George Eder

9-Luke Monetti

18-Dylan D’Amito

15-Matt Harding

Head coach: Joe Ascolese

7-SCOTCH PLAINS

4-Brian Dempsey, shortstop

8-Doug Dluguz, right fielder

13-Ryan Haggerty, third baseman

26-Mitch McNamara, first baseman

25-Sean Reilly, pitcher

2-Noel Whitehouse, second baseman

21-Tim Bonacum, left fielder

10-Pat Dougher, center fielder

17-Kyle Berwick, catcher

Reserves:

9-Mike Spaeth

42-Mike Perez

31-Jordan Bayroff

20-John Howarth

7-Travis Whitney

Head coach: Greg Kilmer

3-ROSELLE

11-Nick Telle, shortstop

6-Justin Dziedzik, center fielder

9-Kevin Mack, first baseman

1-Steven Freitas, third baseman

14-Matt Henne, pitcher

15-Nick Ramierez, left fielder

10-Luke Stinson, catcher

21-Joe Condura, designated hitter

18-Charlie Garcia, right fielder

5-Brenden Cross, second baseman

Reserves:

7-Jim Colgan

1-Joe Mucha

10-Gabe Reyes

12-Andrew Bellusio

Head coach: John Schmitt