A first-inning grand slam by Mikey Ferro sent the Unstoppable Patriots on a trajectory to defeat Phillipsburg May 5th and advance North Warren to the quarterfinals of the 2023
Hunterdon/Warren/Sussex Baseball Tournament. The Stateliners didn’t make it easy for the Patriots in their 5-4 win, chipping away with one run in the third inning and three in the fourth. The Pats scored their eventual winning run when Cooper Mantz scored on a bases-loaded walk to Dominic Buonavolonta.
“We’ve been doing fine in one run games all season,” Head Coach J.P. Palmer said. “The kids are real competitors and are guys who don’t get scared, and they don’t back down.”
Both teams pulled themselves out of bases-loaded situations. In the first inning, the Patriots got out of their jam with a heads-up play by third-baseman Jared Van Valkenburg who fielded a hard-hit grounder and threw to catcher Cooper Mantz at home for the first out. Mantz then threw to first for the force for the third out.
The Stateliners, with one out and based loaded, sent freshman Nick Yaccarino to the mound, who then dispatched the Patriots with three strike-outs delivered on 10 pitches.
Corry Sherrer had four hits on the day, followed by Mantz with two.
Winning pitcher was Owen Philhower.
North Warren will face Hunterdon Central in the quarterfinals May 10th, with a 4 p.m. home
game. The also play Delaware Valley at home on May 8th and Morris Tech away May 9th in non-tournament games.
Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer
Joe was lured out of retirement by the opportunity to be a part of The Ridgeview Echo. During a decades-long career in publishing and journalism, he has covered government on many levels from local school boards to the United States Supreme Court.
Along the way, Joe has worked at American Lawyer Magazine, The National Law Journal and The Record among other publications, and as the Press Officer of Columbia Law School. His work has been recognized with several first place awards from the Society of Professional Journalists and the New Jersey Press Association.
Being part of the Ridgeview Echo brings Joe back to his roots and the kind of news coverage he loves: Telling the stories of people and local communities as well as keeping an eye on how their money is spent by their government officials.
Joe lives in Blairstown with his wife Rose, the founder of Quilting for a Cause, and their two wiener dogs. He is an artist in his spare time.
