COLTS NECK DUO SIGNS LETTERS OF INTENT

By Scott Stump - Senior Editor

    
     COLTS NECK - It was a special day for a pair of Colts Neck seniors on Wednesday as pitcher Anthony DeSclafani, one of the top seniors in the state, signed his National Letter of Intent to continue his career at Florida, while Aurelie Pluijmakers became the first Division I recruit in the short history of the girls lacrosse program by signing her letter to attend Sacred Heart.
     DeSclafani was one of the most highly sought-after seniors in the state after helping lead the Cougars to their first Shore Conference Tournament title in school history this past spring. DeSclafani, a righty, throws in the high 80s and went 8-2 with a 1.73 ERA with 84 strikeouts in 60 2/3 innings in the spring and has a school-record 18 career wins and the school record for career ERA (1.46) and strikeouts (222). He was the only junior selected to the first team of the DigitalSports All-Stars in the spring.
     He said he chose Florida from a pool of national baseball powers including Clemson, Virginia Tech, North Carolina and Vanderbilt. New Gators head coach Kevin Sullivan was recruiting DeSclafani while serving as an assistant at Clemson, and continued to recruit him after being named the new head coach at Florida.
     "I really like the head coach,'' DeSclafani said about Sullivan. "I just like the way he teaches. He really gets the most out of you, and I'm really excited to play for him.''
     DeSclafani verbally committed at the end of a summer that included trips to North Carolina, Ohio, California, Arizona and Florida in which he showcased his skills. There also is a chance that he could be among those selected in this June's Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.
     "That's a bridge I'll cross when I come to it,'' he said. "I'm really happy that I just got college out of the way.''
     DeSclafani's signing comes one year after the Cougars sent a pair of players to Division I-A programs as shortstop A.J. Rusbarsky is now at Seton Hall and center fielder Dom Hayes is at the New Jersey Institute of Technology.
     "SEC baseball, that's pretty exciting for us,'' Cougars coach Mike Yorke said. "It's going to help in the spring, too, because we anticipate some pro teams coming out. Also, I know college coaches when they came to see Anthony, they've spoken to me about other kids. Now it's just snowballing.''
     DeSclafani is one of a handful of Shore baseball players who have committed to Division I-A schools, as Red Bank Catholic first baseman Kyle O'Neill and second baseman Tom Higgins signed letters committing to University of Pacific and Wagner, respectively, and Raritan third baseman Charlie Rivera is expected to sign his letter of intent to Seton Hall on Thursday.
     As for Pluijmakers, three years ago, she had never picked up a lacrosse stick. Now she will be continuing her career at Sacred Heart while also helping to put the Cougars' young program, which is entering its fourth season, on the radar for college coaches.
     "I started when I was a freshman, and it was something new so I just figured I would try it,'' she said. "I just really have a passion for the sport now. I couldn't even catch a ball (as a freshman). I never thought I would get this far.
    "I definitely think it will open some more doors here. They (the younger players) can look up and see that there is a chance that they can play at a D-I school.''

E-mail: stump@digitalsports.com