by Erin Fitzpatrick
The defending Union County Champion boys baseball team breezed by the first round of the Union County Tournament by beating Roselle Catholic 9–2 last Saturday morning.
The team started out strong with a double by junior Tyler Bowman that brought in three runs.
After an error by Roselle Catholic that led senior Tri-Captain Jake Greenberg to score and a right field single by senior Tri-Captain Quinn Dursee that brought in two more runs, Westfield closed out the inning leading 6–0.
Said Greenberg, “After a solid six run first inning…it wasn’t that difficult to keep a lead.”
Senior Tri-Captain Kevin Galasso struck out two Roselle Catholic hitters in the top of the second, defending the lead for Westfield.
Galasso said, “[Our] hitters helped take the pressure off of me with some earlier runs which allowed me to relax and pitch my game.”
Roselle Catholic brought in two runs in the third inning, bringing the score to 6–2.
In the bottom of the fourth, a single and a sacrifice fly by Westfield boosted the score to 8–2.
The excitement picked up in the bottom of the fifth when junior Matt Storks hit a long ball into the outfield. As he was about to settle for a triple, Roselle Catholic overthrew the ball, allowing him to score Westfield’s ninth and final run.
Said Storks, “When I got up at bat, I just looked for a pitch I could hit well and got it.”
After two scoreless innings, the game ended, and Westfield advanced to the second round of the tournament.
Storks said, “Overall we played a solid game with few errors in the field which was good…and as a team, we showed some signs of improvement.”
Said Greenberg: “As a team, going forward, we definitely expect to get to the finals.”
Galasso said: “We won the game, but we still have much to improve. With the first round out of the way, we are one step closer to the championship, and we hope to defend our title.”
After an error by Roselle Catholic that led senior Tri-Captain Jake Greenberg to score and a right field single by senior Tri-Captain Quinn Dursee that brought in two more runs, Westfield closed out the inning leading 6–0.
Said Greenberg, “After a solid six run first inning…it wasn’t that difficult to keep a lead.”
Senior Tri-Captain Kevin Galasso struck out two Roselle Catholic hitters in the top of the second, defending the lead for Westfield.
Galasso said, “[Our] hitters helped take the pressure off of me with some earlier runs which allowed me to relax and pitch my game.”
Roselle Catholic brought in two runs in the third inning, bringing the score to 6–2.
In the bottom of the fourth, a single and a sacrifice fly by Westfield boosted the score to 8–2.
The excitement picked up in the bottom of the fifth when junior Matt Storks hit a long ball into the outfield. As he was about to settle for a triple, Roselle Catholic overthrew the ball, allowing him to score Westfield’s ninth and final run.
Said Storks, “When I got up at bat, I just looked for a pitch I could hit well and got it.”
After two scoreless innings, the game ended, and Westfield advanced to the second round of the tournament.
Storks said, “Overall we played a solid game with few errors in the field which was good…and as a team, we showed some signs of improvement.”
Said Greenberg: “As a team, going forward, we definitely expect to get to the finals.”
Galasso said: “We won the game, but we still have much to improve. With the first round out of the way, we are one step closer to the championship, and we hope to defend our title.”