South Jersey Softball Review
The Colonial Conference and Tri-County Conference came up big when it came to winning South Jersey high school softball titles.
There were five champions from the seven-county South Jersey area, and the Colonial Conference and the Tri-County Conference each had two representatives. The Colonial’s champions, Audubon in Group 1 and Gloucester in Group 2, came from the same division, the Colonial Liberty.
The Tri-County’s two sectional champions were Delsea in Group 3 and Kingsway, the consensus top team in South Jersey, in Group 4.
The fifth South Jersey champion is St. Joseph Hammonton of the Cape Atlantic League, which captured the South Jersey Non-Public B title.
Here is a look at each team’s path:
Audubon
The Green Wave beat rival Haddon Township, 9-5 to win the South Jersey Group 1 crown and avenge last year’s 5-2 championship loss to the Hawks.Article continues below
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Beating Haddon Township was a total team effort with six players having at least one RBI. Winning pitcher Kylie Cannaday was the winning pitcher, allowing three runs and striking out 10 in 4.1 innings.
Audubon got hot at the right time. The title win over Haddon Township was the 12th in a row, including a 9-3 victory over Kingsway just prior to the tournament.
The Green Wave beat rival Haddon Township, 9-5 to win the South Jersey Group 1 crown and avenge last year’s 5-2 championship loss to the Hawks.
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Beating Haddon Township was a total team effort with six players having at least one RBI. Winning pitcher Kylie Cannaday was the winning pitcher, allowing three runs and striking out 10 in 4.1 innings.
Audubon got hot at the right time. The title win over Haddon Township was the 12th in a row, including a 9-3 victory over Kingsway just prior to the tournament.
Gloucester
The defending Group 2 state champions also won the Colonial Liberty this year—no small feat in a division that included Audubon, Haddon Township and Haddon Heights.
The ability to win close games has been key for the Lions. Gloucester defeated Cinnaminson, 5-4 in the South Jersey Group 2 championship. That was Gloucester’s ninth consecutive win and four of them were by one run and another three were by two runs.
Bailey Schoenfelt and Rylie Zearfoss each had two hits and two RBIs in the championship win.
The defending Group 2 state champions also won the Colonial Liberty this year—no small feat in a division that included Audubon, Haddon Township and Haddon Heights.
The ability to win close games has been key for the Lions. Gloucester defeated Cinnaminson, 5-4 in the South Jersey Group 2 championship. That was Gloucester’s ninth consecutive win and four of them were by one run and another three were by two runs.
Bailey Schoenfelt and Rylie Zearfoss each had two hits and two RBIs in the championship win.
Delsea
The Crusaders improved to 25-1 with a 4-3 win in nine innings over fellow Tri-County foe Clearview in the South Jersey Group 3 championship. Delsea’s lone loss to that point was 7-5 to Pennsville, yet another Tri-County team.
The dramatic win over Clearview occurred when Delsea’s Laney Vecchio hit a game-winning single in the ninth inning. To top it off, that was her 100th career hit.
The victory extended Delsea’s winning streak to five games.
The Crusaders improved to 25-1 with a 4-3 win in nine innings over fellow Tri-County foe Clearview in the South Jersey Group 3 championship. Delsea’s lone loss to that point was 7-5 to Pennsville, yet another Tri-County team.
The dramatic win over Clearview occurred when Delsea’s Laney Vecchio hit a game-winning single in the ninth inning. To top it off, that was her 100th career hit.
The victory extended Delsea’s winning streak to five games.
Kingsway
The Dragons improved to 24-2 with an 8-2 victory over Rancocas Valley in the South Jersey Group 4 championship game. Of the four local public school champions, nobody did it in a more dominant fashion than Kingsway, which won its four playoff games by an average of 8.2 runs per game. The two losses were to sectional champions, Audubon and South Jersey Non-Public A champ Donovan Catholic.
Reese Whitzell had a game for the ages in leading the championship effort. Against Rancocas Valley, she was 4-for-4 with a double, home run, three RBIs and three runs scored.
Jiessa Pieters earned the complete-game win, striking out four and walking none.
The Dragons improved to 24-2 with an 8-2 victory over Rancocas Valley in the South Jersey Group 4 championship game. Of the four local public school champions, nobody did it in a more dominant fashion than Kingsway, which won its four playoff games by an average of 8.2 runs per game. The two losses were to sectional champions, Audubon and South Jersey Non-Public A champ Donovan Catholic.
Reese Whitzell had a game for the ages in leading the championship effort. Against Rancocas Valley, she was 4-for-4 with a double, home run, three RBIs and three runs scored.
Jiessa Pieters earned the complete-game win, striking out four and walking none.
St. Joseph
The Wildcats earned their accustomed spot as South Jersey champion with a 5-0 win over Holy Cross Prep. In three playoff wins, St. Joseph outscored its opponents, 18-0.
It was the sixth consecutive South Jersey title for St. Joseph.
Junior Elaina Portalatin pitched all three shutouts for the Wildcats and threw a no-hitter in the title game over Holy Cross Prep, striking out nine.
The Wildcats earned their accustomed spot as South Jersey champion with a 5-0 win over Holy Cross Prep. In three playoff wins, St. Joseph outscored its opponents, 18-0.
It was the sixth consecutive South Jersey title for St. Joseph.
Junior Elaina Portalatin pitched all three shutouts for the Wildcats and threw a no-hitter in the title game over Holy Cross Prep, striking out nine.
Photo / Courtesy Kingsway Softball
Author: Marc Narducci
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