Baseball – VOTE: Ocean County Sports Medicine Week 6 Pitcher of the Week
Each week during the 2022 high school baseball season, Shore Sports Network will recognize the top pitchers in each Shore Conference division and give fans a chance to pick the overall winner of the Shore Sports Network Baseball Pitcher of the Week. The nominees include a Pitcher of the Week from each of the six Shore Conference divisions, plus two wild cards who are worthy of consideration as well.
Check out this week's group of nominees and vote for the one you think stands out in the poll at the bottom of the post. Voting will carry into Friday afternoon, with the polls closing at noon. The winner will receive a Player of the Week shirt courtesy of Ocean County Sports Medicine.
Class A North Pitcher of the Week
Colin Dowlen, Middletown North
Last week, Dowlen pitched the second perfect game of the Shore Conference season (the first to go past five innings) and although it was only a six-inning perfect game, it was Dowlen’s bat that ended the chance for the seven-inning variety. The Seton Hall commit struck out 10 Freehold Boro batters while retiring all 18 batters he faced and as he was preparing for the seventh, he stepped to the plate and hit a game-ending home run to seal a 10-0 win and his second career no-hitter.
Class A North Honorable Mention: Tyler Kane, Manalapan; Nick Gomes, Howell; Ben Schild, Middletown South; Mason Christopher, Middletown South
Class A Central Pitcher of the Week
Declan Leary, Red Bank Catholic
Rumson-Fair Haven had already wrapped up the Class A Central championship when it took on Red Bank Catholic for a second time, but the Bulldogs were still protecting their perfect record. Leary ended Rumson’s run of perfection with a sparkling performance on the mound on May 10. The sophomore right-hander pitched a four-hit shutout with 10 strikeouts and no walks against the Shore’s No. 1 team, handing the Bulldogs their first loss.
Class A Central Honorable Mention: Elliot Chun, Holmdel; Alex Stanyek, Red Bank Catholic; Christian Zito, Monmouth; John Molnar, Raritan
Class A South Pitcher of the Week
Kyle Knowsley, Brick
The Green Dragons completed a sweep of Toms River North last week and Knowsley nailed down the second win with a career-best pitching performance. The junior fired a complete game, allowing one run on six hits and one walk while striking out nine in a 3-1 Brick win.
Class A South Honorable Mention: Zach Crotchfelt, Jackson Memorial; Brandon Safoschnik, Toms River East; Brady Leach, Brick Memorial; Shane Sajewicz, Central; Cam Leiter, Central; Brenden Lavallee, Toms River North; Nate Obeng, Toms River North
Class B North Pitcher of the Week
Anthony Gubitosi, Colts Neck
Gubitosi continued his rampage through Class B North lineups last week with a 16-strikeout no-hitter in a division-championship-clinching, 3-0 win over Freehold Boro. The senior left-hander returned to the mound on Saturday, when he pitched five innings of scoreless relief in a 5-3 win over Point Beach in the SCT opening round.
Class B North Honorable Mention: James Cosgrove, Manasquan; Cullen Condon, Manasquan; Matt Johnson, Wall; Aiden Cody, St. John Vianney; Kevin O’Neil, Neptune; Brandon Falco, Matawan; Andrew Gendi, Matawan; Nick Gandolfo, Red Bank
Class B Central Pitcher of the Week
James Larsen, Point Beach
The Garnet Gulls showed plenty of fight last week, even if there were some tough losses to swallow. Larsen held up his end with 6 2/3 innings of work in what turned out to be a 5-3 loss to rival Point Boro. While four runs crossed the plate on Larsen’s account, only one was earned and the junior also struck out nine, walked only one and surrendered just four hits in taking the hard-luck loss.
Class B Central Honorable Mention: Nick Coniglio, Ranney; Marcello Mastroianni, Ranney
Class B South Pitcher of the Week
Shaun O’Keefe, Donovan Catholic
O’Keefe had not pitched since April 25 when he took the mound against Jackson Liberty in the Ocean County Tournament opening round on May 10. The senior left-hander showed no rust, pitching a one-hit shutout with 11 strikeouts and four walks to lead the Griffins to a rubber-match win over the Lions, with whom Donovan Catholic split the regular-season series.
Class B South Honorable Mention: P.J. Craig, Barnegat; Patrick Quinn, Barnegat; Joe Sclama, Manchester; Stephen DeMilio, Pinelands; Chris Mitchell, Pinelands
Wild Cards
Aiden Cody, St. John Vianney
The Lancers closed out their Class B North schedule with a 1-0 win over Manasquan and a gem of a performance by Cody. The junior right-hander pitched a one-hit shutout and allowed just one walk while striking out 14 Warriors to outduel Manasquan sophomore ace Cullen Condon.
Ben Schild, Middletown South
Schild locked up in a memorable pitchers’ duel with Red Bank Catholic right-hander Alex Stanyek and pitched into the ninth inning without allowing a run. Schild handed the ball over to teammate Evan Wood for the last two outs of the top of the ninth and his Eagles won the MCT semifinal showdown in the bottom of the inning to give Schild a chance to pitch his team to an MCT championship on Wednesday.
Correction: This post has been updated to reflect that Colin Dowlen's perfect game was the second perfect game in the Shore Conference this year, not the first. Howell's Dan Furlong threw a five-inning perfect game against Long Branch.