Baseball: New Providence Wins, 3-2, Over Ridge in Somerset Patriots Ballpark

BRIDGEWATER, NJ -- Four runs crossed the plate for Ridge on Saturday, but two of those ended up being taken off the board, and that was the difference in a baseball game New Providence won, 3-2, over the Red Devils on Senior Day for both teams at TD Bank Park.

For New Providence (4-8), the result reversed a trend of frustrating, close losses to quality opponents in which the Pioneers played well but kept falling just short.

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Good pitching, timely fielding plays, alert baserunning and a bench alert to a lineup discrepancy added up to a much-needed victory for New Providence.

For Ridge (8-5), the loss interrupted the momentum of a seven-game winning streak, though the superb pitching Ridge had received during that streak continued on Saturday night, as right-handed starter Brady Wilson took a no-hitter into the fourth inning and ended up with six strikeouts and one walk allowed in 3 1/3 innings. Wilson gave up two hits and one run.

Senior Andrew Kowantz, normally New Providence's starting center fielder, got the start on the mound and matched zeroes with Wilson for the first three innings before Ridge scored three runs in the top of the fourth -- only to have two of them taken off the board after New Providence called to the umpires' attention a discrepancy between the lineup card that Ridge presented before the game, and the order in which its batters came to the plate during the game.

Ezra Sadowsky and Nick Rossi each had hits in the top of the fourth preceding an apparent two-run single by Zack Kucerka and a wild pitch that brought Kieran Callanan in from third base. But two of those runs were ruled not to have counted after the Red Devils were called for batting out of order. So Ridge's 3-0 lead became a 1-0 lead, and New Providence tied the game in the bottom of the fourth.

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Kowantz and Jake Monaco started the Pioneer fourth inning with singles. With one out and the bases loaded, Sean Reilly's groundout to third after reliever Matt Faltas had come on brought Kowantz in from third to tie the game, 1-1.

Pinch-singles by Matt Martine and Kevin Taylor (on a bunt) started the top of the fifth for Ridge. Nick Sellitti then reached on a bunt single to load the bases with none out. Andrew Reynolds' groundout brought in a run. Then, with two out and the bases loaded, Callanan's deep fly down the right field line was tracked down by New Providence RF Luca Vitale with a spectacular sliding catch as he crossed into foul territory and approached the wall, ending the inning.

New Providence took the lead with two runs in the bottom of the fifth. Vitale's RBI single up the middle tied the game, 2-2. On the throw home, Vitale took second, and as he was doing so, the Ridge catcher threw down to second to try to catch Vitale, and that enabled Kowantz, who was on first when the play began, to alertly come home with what proved to be the winning run.

Nick Santacross allowed a run in two innings of relief and got the win for New Providence. Robby Roth pitched a 1-2-3 seventh for the save.

Andrew Reynolds pitched a perfect sixth inning for Ridge to keep the game close and give the Red Devils a chance when they came up for their last at-bat in the seventh.

This was the second time in less than a year that Ridge came out on the short end of a protest that cost the team runs and a victory over a Union County opponent. The Red Devils' 8-1 victory over Westfield in the 2023 NJSIAA Section 2, Group 4 quarterfinals was overturned when Westfield lodged a protest over how many pitches Ridge's starting pitcher, Connor Byrne, was allowed to throw when he was approaching his pitch limit in the middle of a Westfield player's at bat.

The rule that Ridge was decreed to have violated has been stricken from the NJSIAA's books going forward.

New Providence seniors: Vin Bisaccia, Ryan Kessler, Andrew Kowantz, Jake Monaco, Sean Reilly, Robby Roth, Ben Screnci, Luca Vitale.

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