Washington Township upsets Cherry Hill West in Group 4 baseball
Rich Racobaldo is starting to feel better. Not coincidentally, so is the Washington Township baseball team. "Perfect timing," Racobaldo said after leading the Minutemen to their second consecutive upset victory in the South Jersey Group 4 tournament.
Rich Racobaldo is starting to feel better.
Not coincidentally, so is the Washington Township baseball team.
"Perfect timing," Racobaldo said after leading the Minutemen to their second consecutive upset victory in the South Jersey Group 4 tournament.
Racobaldo, a junior righthander, allowed two hits in four scoreless innings, and 11th-seeded Washington Township sent 12 batters to the plate in an eight-run fourth inning Thursday en route to a 13-1 victory over third-seeded Cherry Hill West.
"I was talking to our catcher Alex [Gattinelli] between innings, and I'm like, 'Is this really happening?' " said Washington Township junior shortstop Ryan Swift, who rapped two hits, drove in two runs, and played a strong defensive game.
Junior first baseman Joe Stoever and freshman third baseman Luke Kaschak each delivered a two-run single, and sophomore centerfielder Lorenzo Morello had three hits and scored three runs for Washington Township (12-12), which advanced to face seventh-seeded Millville in the sectional semifinals Tuesday.
Millville advanced with a 13-6 victory over second-seeded Lenape.
"We're finally healthy," Washington Township coach Bill Alvaro Jr. said. "We finally have a set lineup, really for the first time all year."
Injuries, illness, and inconsistency hampered the Minutemen during the regular season as they finished out of the running for the Olympic Conference American Division title and lost twice, by a combined score of 12-2, to Cherry Hill West.
Washington Township has won four of its last five. The Minutemen shut down sixth-seeded Kingsway, 4-0, in the playoff opener Monday as senior Nick Evangelista and Racobaldo combined for a six-hit shutout.
The duo were back in action Thursday but got plenty of support as Washington Township generated 11 hits and took advantage of four walks and three hit batters.
"We didn't do the job on the field, and we didn't do the job in the field," Cherry Hill West coach Dan McMaster said after his team dropped to 16-6 in advance of a Diamond Classic matchup Saturday with Eastern. "We had beaten them twice handily with our ace [junior John Stankiewicz], but you have to have pitching depth, and you have to play clean games in the field."
Racobaldo, a St. John's recruit, missed much of the season with a variety of ailments: tendinitis in his elbow, a sprained knee, and the flu.
He's been rounding into shape in recent weeks and declared himself to be "100 percent" after four scoreless innings on a warm, sunny afternoon.
"He's getting better and better," Alvaro said.
Washington Twp. 230 80- - - 13 11 0
Cherry Hill West 000 01- - - 1 5 2
WP: Rich Racobaldo. LP: Adam Sachs.
2B-WT-Ryan Swift, Tim Seagraves. CHW-Jake Campbell.
@PhilAnastasia