June
24, 2006
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| Ramapo's Morgan Hoffman has won the Tournament of Champions twice and still has two years of eligibilty left. |
Male
Athlete Of The Season:
Morgan Hoffmann, Ramapo
The Tournament of Champions is where golfers make their mark, for better or worse. Ramapo’s Morgan Hoffmann burst onto the scene last year with the first-ever victory by a freshman in the T of C.
The repeat would be just as, if not more difficult. Hoffman had an 11 hour drive from a junior tournament the day before the T of C and did not even get a walk through at Rumson Country Club before taking the course.
How did he respond with a slew of good golfers trying to knock him off of his perch?
How about an eagle on the 463-yard Par 5 17th hole on which he sunk a 10-foot putt on the way to round of 69, good enough for a one stroke win and unprecedented second straight T of C title.
Hoffmann, who qualified for match play at the U.S. Amateur last year as a 15-year old, also won the NBIL league title and the Group 3 championship on his way to becoming one of the best high school golfers ever in the state of New Jersey with two years still left to pad his resume.
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| Eric Katzman was 11-0 and led the state with a 0.30 ERA as a senior for Old Tappan. |
RUNNER-UP:
Eric Katzman, Northern Valley Old/Tappan Baseball
Northern Valley/Old Tappan was the top team in the state for most of this year and that was largely because of its stellar pitching staff. Leading the way at the top of the rotation, as he has for the past three years, is senior left-hander Eric Katzman.
A fastball consistently in the high 80s is usually all a pitcher needs on the high school level. But mix that with a nasty slider and a solid change-up and Katzman was nearly unhittable at times over the past three years, with this is senior year being his best.
Katzman was simply lights out every time he took the mound. He finished with an unblemished record of 11-0 with a state leading ERA of 0.30. He totaled 91 strikeouts against just 21 walks in 70 innings of work.
He will move on to pitch in the Big Ten at the University of Michigan. It is unsure whether he will be a starter or a closer, but it is fairly certain that he will step in and be a big part of the Wolverines’ success from his freshman year.
Honorable
Mention:
Rob
Segedin, Northern Valley/Old Tappan Baseball
Steve Erickson, Emerson Tennis
Chris Hogan, Ramapo Lacrosse
Bryan Gambuzza, DePaul Catholic Baseball
Will Portfolio, Ridgewood Golf
Elvis Cabrera, Clifton Volleyball
Nick Vallillo, Northern Valley/Old Tappan Baseball
Vlad Livshits, Fair Lawn Volleyball
Alex Meyer, Don Bosco Baseball
Paul Park, Wayne Valley Golf
James Muliawan, Ramapo Tennis
John Slootmaker, Lakeland Baseball
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| Brittany Baiunco struck out 363 hitters in leading Ramapo to the Group 3 state championship and the No. 1 state ranking. |
Girls’
Athlete Of The Season:
Brittany Baiunco, Ramapo Softball
In softball a good pitcher can take you a long way. While Ramapo had a rock solid defense and capable bats in the lineup, they would not have finished as the state’s top team without the dominance of sophomore right-hander Brittany Baiunco.
Although just her first year in the circle as the full-time starter, Baiunco showed that she not only belonged there every game, but also that she was the most overpowering pitcher in the state. As spectacular as she was during the regular season, she was even better in the Bergen County Tournament, and saved her best stuff for the Group 3 state tournament.
She allowed just one run in the Bergen County Tournament as Ramapo won the title. In the state tournament, she put on one of the most masterful displays of power pitching in the history of North Jersey.
In five state tournament games and 35 innings of work, Baiunco constantly kept hitters off-balance with an overpowering fastball, a riser, and a nasty change-up. She allowed just one earned run, 11 hits and four walks, striking out 59 batters during the states to lead Ramapo to its first state championship since 1978.
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| Jackie Tyler hit .543 and stole 39 bases in her senior season at Ridgewood. |
RUNNER-UP:
Jackie Tyler, Ridgewood Softball
Without question, there was no better leadoff batter than Jackie Tyler. With her bat control, keen eye at the plate, and blazing speed there was no player more dangerous offensively than Tyler.
While not necessarily a homerun threat, she nearly turned every single into a triple by stealing both second and third base. But along with her speed, she was capable of hitting with some power and also provided outstanding defense in center field.
The Amherst College-bound senior batted .543 with 47 runs scored and 39 stolen bases in leading Ridgewood to the North 1 Group 4 state title.
Honorable Mention:
Amy Beideman, Pascack Valley Softball
Jaci Rahey, DePaul Catholic Softball
Suzanne Cannon, Northern Highlands Lacrosse
Cassandra Chenet, North Bergen Softball
Esther Park, River Dell Golf
Julia Jacobs, Ridgewood Softball
Katie Donnelly, Eastern Christian Softball
Marina Alex, Wayne Hills Golf
Casey Sierra, Lakeland Softball
Lyndsey Buehler, Pascack Valley Softball
Samantha McKillip, Ridgewood Lacrosse
Cory Roesing, Secaucus Softball
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| The Ridgwood lacrosse team came back from a slow start to win Group 3 state championship and reach the T of C semifinals. |
Boys’
Team of the Season:
Ridgewood Lacrosse
Ridgewood has been the standard in Bergen County boys’ lacrosse over the past two decades. In fact, they had not lost to a Bergen County opponent in 15 years. That was until this year when both Don Bosco and Ramapo bested the Maroons in close games to end their streak and Ridgewood found itself with an uncharacteristic 7-8 record midway through the season.
The Maroons could have either packed it in or used their struggles as motivation. They decided to do the latter and finished as one of the top 5 teams in the state. They rallied to win seven of their final nine games.
Included in that season-ending run was a thrilling 9-8 victory over top-seeded Ridge in Group 3 state semifinals, which was followed by a convincing 9-3 win over Randolph in the Group 3 state title game. The Maroons then exacted revenge on archrival Ramapo by beating the Group 2 champion Raiders in the first-round of the Tournament of Champions.
Although they lost 11-6 to eventual T of C champ Delbarton in the semis, the Maroons had a successful season, despite a very young cast of players.
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| Old Tappan's Nick Vallillo formed one half of the 1-2 pitching punch that was the best in the state. |
RUNNER-UP:
Northern Valley/Old Tappan Baseball
This was supposed to be ‘the year’ for Northern Valley/Old Tappan baseball. For most of the season, the Knights did more than live up to their lofty expectations by ripping through the regular season and winning their first 28 games.
NVOT had the best 1-2 pitching combination in the state starring the aforementioned Katzman and Nick Vallillo. They also had some big bats in the lineup with the Segedin brothers -- Rob and Tom -- Nick Pulsonetti, and a host of others.
The longest single season winning streak in Bergen County history came to an end with a loss to Westwood in the Bergen County semifinals, but the Golden Knights bounced back to win the North 1, Group 3 section title before losing to Morristown in the Group 3 state semifinals.
Old Tappan was ranked No. 1 in the state for most of the season and finished in the Top 10.
Honorable Mention:
Tenafly Tennis
Ridgewood Golf
Hoboken Baseball
Ramapo Golf
Clifton Volleyball
Pascack Hills Tennis
Westwood Baseball
Ramapo Lacrosse
Kearny Baseball
Fair Lawn Volleyball
Memorial (W.N.Y.) Baseball
Bergen Tech Tennis
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Ramapo
softball was the State's No. 1 team. |
Girls’
Team Of The Season:
Ramapo Softball
It is safe to say when a team is the best in the state, then it is also the best in the NJS.com area. Ramapo came in to the season with dreams of a ‘triple crown’, which consists of winning the NBIL Division 1 title, the Bergen County championship and Group 3 state titles. They achieved all three and did it all convincingly.
Baiunco and Lehigh University-bound shortstop Amy Piccinich garnered first-team all-state honors, but they were not the only weapons. Samantha Depken and Jess Brennan came up huge at the plate in both the county and state tournaments.
For all of Baiunco’s efforts, her success was also attributed to a stellar defense behind her. Kelly Schwerzler was as good as there was defensively at third base. Piccinich, second baseman Taylor Ramsey, and outfielders Amanda Joachim, Kaitlin Taranto, and Janie Palmieri were also solid as Ramapo consistently steamrolled its opponents.
They finished as the state’s top team with a sparkling 29-2 record. While Piccinich and Schwerzler will be difficult to replace next season, a core of experienced players return next year and they will once again be the team to beat, both in the county and in Group 3.
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Pascack
Valley won a sectional title and reached the Group 2 state final. |
RUNNER-UP:
Pascack Valley Softball
To make it through the perennially-tough NBIL league schedule, you need a power pitcher and some timely hitting to be consistently successful. While the expectations were not extremely high for Pascack Valley coming into the season, they proved to be as strong as any team in the area.
The battery of pitcher Lyndsey Buehler and Amy Beideman was among the best in the state. Buehler used a heavy fastball and a riser to blow away the opposition. Beideman was Bergen County’s top power threat, with 11 homeruns and 38 RBI’s.
The Indians turned some heads midway through the season when they handed Ramapo its first loss of the season. Although they fell to them in the Bergen County quarterfinals, 2-1, they were right there until the last out. Included in that game was Beideman’s 300-foot homerun off Baiunco, the only homerun Baiunco has ever allowed.
Pascack Valley peaked at the right time. Coming in as the No. 6 seed in the North 1, Group 2 state sectional tournament, they breezed through the section to the Group 2 final. In their five consecutive state tournament wins, they outscored the opposition by a whopping 24-1 margin.
Honorable Mention:
Ridgewood Softball
Secaucus Softball
Ridgewood Golf
Hoboken Softball
Tenafly Softball
Ridgewood Lacrosse
High Tech Softball
Northern Highlands Lacrosse
IHA Softball
Wayne Hills Golf
Wayne Valley Softball
Hawthorne Softball
West Milford Softball
Wallington Softball
Passaic Valley Softball
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