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Sports

Gov. Livingston Baseball rallies for victory in UCT quarterfinals

Highlanders post 9-3 decision over Roselle Catholic.

One of the characteristics of a successful baseball team is to pounce when mistakes are made by an opponent.

On Thursday, in the midst of a Union County Tournament quarterfinal against Roselle Catholic, Gov. Livingston did just that, scoring three times on errant pitches as it rallied for a 9-3 victory in Berkeley Heights.

Gov. Livingston, the second seed for the UCT, will meet third-seeded Westfield in a county semifinal on Saturday. May 7 at Williams Field in Elizabeth at 4:30 p.m.

Roselle Catholic, seeded seventh, was seeking its first county title since it won in 2005. Gov. Livingston has never won the UCT.

In the top of the first inning, Roselle Catholic wasted no time in getting on the scoreboard as leadoff hitter Matt Ramirez beat out an infield single and the next hitter, Fernando Cortes, launched a two-run home run to left against Highlander starter Mike Cranston.

Cranston however, after allowing two more singles in the first, settled down, allowing just four more hits over the next five innings.

And that gave the Gov. Livingston a chance against hard-throwing Roselle Catholic starter Matt Hennie.

Hennie, a senior right-hander bound for St. John’s, struck out eight, walked two and allowed just three hits in five innings of work.

But Gov. Livingston was able to break through in the second as Ryan Place reached after being hit by a pitch with two out. Ryan Jennings and Billy Worswick then reached on infield errors to load the bases. Place then scampered home on a wild pitch with Tyler Martis at the plate to cut the Highlander’s deficit to 2-1.

Gov. Livingston took the lead for good in the bottom of the fifth.

Martis led off with a single, took second when Hennie’s pickoff throw went wide, and went to third two batters later when Keith Skinner reached on a fielder’s choice.

Martis then scored on a passed ball to knot the score, 2-2.

“Our job is to be aware of whats going on and we were looking for pitches that were going to get away from the catcher,” said Martis. “I saw the ball bounce away and just ran as fast as I could.”

Skinner, who had moved up to third on the previous passed ball, then came homer with the go-ahead run when Hennie’s offering to Joey Graziano bounced away.

After ending the inning with a strikeout, Hennie (3-2) exited the game after throwing his 98th pitch.

Gov. Livingston made Cranston’s job infinitely easier as the they scored for six runs in the bottom of the sixth to extend to a 9-2 lead.

The Highlanders sent 10 batters to the plate and were keyed by Skinner, who had a two-run single, Graziano, who had an RBI double and John Jennings, who brought in a run with a deep fly to centerfield.

Cranston allowed one run on two hits and a walk in the seventh, but went the distance to improve to 4-0.

“I was able to regroup after the first,” said Cranston, a senior right-hander. “My curve was working the best for me today and we were able to comeback against one of the best pitchers in the county. It’s a big win for us.”

Cranston scattered 10 hits, three walks and struck out eight in totaling 122 pitches.

“We all talked about how Hennie’s curveball has a sharp break and it can bounce,” said Gov. Livingston coach Chris Roof. “We were able to take advantage of the ones that got away.”

Gov. Livingston will now face Westfield, a team it defeated 6-4 on April 15 at home with a trip to the UCT finals hanging in the balance.

“I think we’re playing well right now,” said Skinner, who was 2-for-4. “This kind of win definitely gives us confidence.

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