BASEBALL - STAYIN' ALIVE: MARLBORO 9, RARITAN 5

By Scott Stump - Senior Editor


     MARLBORO - It has been taking up such prominent space in their minds all season that they have done everything short of wearing flannel shirts to school while listening to Alice in Chains and Nirvana to remind themselves how long it has been since a Marlboro baseball team has qualified for the state tournament.
     "We've been saying it all year - '1991,'''' said Marlboro senior Jeff Pizzi. "We knew coming into this season that we were going to be tough, and I don't think anybody believed us. The program has turned around.''
     The Mustangs took another big step in that turnaround on Wednesday when they knocked off a Raritan team that was equally desperate for a win for its state playoff hopes with a 9-5 nondivisional victory that put Marlboro at 10-10 heading into a scheduled Monmouth County Tournament Round-of-16 game against Christian Brothers Academy on Thursday that it needs to win to qualify. CBA has beaten Marlboro twice this season in Class A North, but Mother Nature may do the Mustangs a huge favor with a possible rainout before Friday's cutoff date, in which teams must have at least a .500 record to qualify for the NJSIAA Tournament.
     Raritan, meanwhile, is hoping for no rainouts, as the Rockets (8-9) had their four-game winning streak halted and need a win over Barnegat on Thursday to qualify for the postseason.
     Marlboro certainly approached the game with urgency given that the first George Bush was the President the last time the Mustangs tangled with an opponent in the state playoffs.
     "This game was big,'' said senior catcher Tony Roegiers, who had two hits. "We came into the game all pumped up.''
     It showed, as the Mustangs pushed across four runs in the bottom of the first and never trailed the rest of the way to fend off a Rockets team that entered with a full head of steam.
     "I'd rather play somebody that's 11-1 than 8-8 because they might take a breather on us,'' joked first-year Marlboro coach Paul Sessa. "We were tough in the beginning, then we came back with some key double plays and timely hitting.''
     Outfielder Jason Ortiz led off the game for Marlboro with the first of two doubles on the day, and then a small-ball attack put Raritan on its heels. Pizzi and pitcher Matt Weckerle laid down bunt singles to load the bases with no outs, and then Roegiers drew a walk to force home one run before shortstop Craig Bodziner ripped an RBI single for the first of two hits on the day to make it 2-0.
     First baseman Brandon Sarna then made it 3-0 by drawing another bases-loaded walk, and finally, with one out, more small ball came into play as Craig Helfgott dropped down a squeeze bunt for another run and a 4-0 advantage. The Mustangs actually tried another squeeze bunt after that, but it was unsuccessful after the batter missed the pitch and the runner coming home was tagged out, but it showed that they were willing to continue to apply the pressure right from the outset.
     "Anything we could do to put the pressure on the defense was real important,'' said Pizzi, who went 3-for-4 with three runs scored. "Laying down bunts - whatever we have to do. We're not the type of team to hit the home run every time.''
     "Putting pressure on the pitcher and keeping him uncomfortable and off balance is something we've been trying to do all year,'' Roegiers said.
     Marlboro made it 5-0 in the second inning when Pizzi singled with one out, advanced to second on a passed ball, went to third on a groundout and then scored on a two-out, RBI single to left field by Roegiers.
     From there, Raritan starter Ed Martin (2-5) started to settle down and the Rockets started to chip away at the lead. They got on the scoreboard in the third inning when outfielder Anthony Bizien and leadoff man Joe Doerrer drew consecutive walks, then turned a double steal to put runners at second and third. Bizien scored on an RBI sacrifice fly by first baseman Tom Evancho, and then Doerrer came home on an error to cut the margin to 5-2.
     In the fifth inning, Marlboro's defense made a pivotal play to halt some of Raritan's momentum long enough for the Mustangs to respond on offense. Doerrer led off with a bunt single and then Evancho smoked a grounder that Marlboro turned into a 4-6-3 double play. That turned out to be huge in minimizing the damage when Raritan slugger Charlie Rivera, a Seton Hall recruit, stepped to the plate after Evancho and launched a solo homer over the fence in left center field to cut it to 5-3.
     Marlboro then showed how this program has changed this season, as the players mentioned that last season they watched as several leads slipped away late in the game. On Wednesday, the Mustangs closed it out like a team on a mission.
     "This year we're looking to finish the game, and finish it hard,'' Roegiers said.
     A single by Michael McLaughlin kicked off a four-run sixth inning for Marlboro that could have been more had Rivera not thrown McLaughlin out at the plate on a double by Ortiz. Pizzi followed Ortiz's double with his third hit of the day and then Weckerle ripped an RBI double for a 6-3 lead. Following an intentional walk to Roegiers to load the bases, Bodziner drew a bases-loaded, RBI walk from reliever Matt Facendo for a four-run lead.
     An RBI groundout by Sarna and then an error broke the game open, giving Marlboro a 9-3 lead while only needing three outs to wrap up the win.
     "The momentum was going their way, and we just came back,'' Pizzi said. "It was important to get those runs late because it put a lot more pressure on them.''
     The Rockets scored twice in the seventh, as Doerrer reached base for the third time in the game with a double, and then a walk by Evancho and a single by Rivera loaded the bases. However, Marlboro limited the damage by turning a double play while Doerrer scored, and then senior outfielder Devin Noonan smacked an RBI single. Reliever Mike Dietrich then sealed the win with a strikeout looking to keep Marlboro's improbable march to the postseason alive.
     The Mustangs have persevered in the rugged Class A North under Sessa, a first-year coach who was the interim coach at the nation's current No. 1 team, Don Bosco Prep, last season before coming to Marlboro.
     "You come in and show them that you have faith in them, you prepare them well and elevate their confidence,'' Sessa said. "Attitudes needed to change, and now you see the fruits of their labor.''
     "This year everybody wants it,'' Roegiers said. "Everybody wants to be out there.''
     If everything goes according to plan, the Mustangs will be out there later in the season than they have been since the days when gas was $1.12 a gallon and Arnold Schwarzenegger was still The Terminator.

E-mail: stump@digitalsports.com

Box score
Marlboro 9, Raritan 5

Raritan (8-9)       0 0 2 0 1 0 2 - 5 10 1
Marlboro (10-10) 4 1 0 0 0 4 x - 9 11 1

Doubles: (M) Ortiz 2, Weckerle; (R) Doerrer, Noonan, Martin; Home runs: (R) Rivera. WP: Dietrich (2-4); LP: Martin (2-5).