Cole Vanderslice pitches St. Augustine past Gloucester Catholic, 3-0

Cole Vanderslice pitched six strong innings, generated two hits and scored two runs in St. Augustine’s 3-0 victory over Gloucester Catholic on Sunday in a clash of reigning state champions.

For his efforts in the showcase game of a three-day Coaches vs. Cancer tournament at Mainland High School, Vanderslice earned an autographed Mike Trout baseball as player of the game.

“Pretty sweet,” Vanderslice said of baseball. “I have to find a good spot for this.”

But the glass-enclosed keepsake was only the second-best reward for Vanderslice on a cool, overcast afternoon on Mainland’s field off Route 9 in Linwood, Atlantic County.

“As good as this is, winning this game was better,” Vanderslice said.

It was a redemptive day for the senior right-hander and his team.

By his own admission, the hero of last year’s Non-Public A title game -- when he outdueled likely first-round draft pick Jack Leiter of Delbarton in a 1-0 victory for St. Augustine -- wasn’t at his best through the first three-plus weeks of the season.

Vanderslice spent most of the last week fretting over an 8-5 loss to rival Bishop Eustace on Tuesday, a game in which he allowed five runs in two innings.

“I had a chip on my shoulder,” Vanderslice said of Sunday’ outing against Gloucester Catholic, which has won the last two Non-Public B state titles.

St. Augustine coach Mike Bylone said the the Hermits’ team approach mirrored the outlook of their starting pitcher.

“I told the guys, ‘We have to re-establish ourselves in South Jersey,’” Bylone said.

The victory was an emphatic statement by Vanderslice and the Hermits, especially since Gloucester Catholic was coming off an 18-run explosion in an imposing victory over state-ranked Bergen Catholic on Saturday.

Mixing a live fastball with his signature sharp slider, Vanderslice allowed just three hits. He struck out five but also walked five and hit a pair of batters.

“Cole did a great job,” Gloucester Catholic coach Adam Tussey said. “We tip our hat. We had a lot of chances, but it seemed like we always were a swing away.”

St. Augustine (11-2), the No. 2 team in the Inquirer Top 25, backed Vanderslice with solid defense. Centerfielder Kevin Foreman made a running catch in deep right-center to end a threat in the third, and shortstop Kenny Levari fielded a hot grounder to start a double play and squelch another potential rally in the fifth.

“I can pitch to contact knowing the guys make plays like that behind me,” Vanderslice said.

A Villanova recruit, Vanderslice also contributed at the plate. He singled and scored on a delayed steal of home in the first, and doubled and scored on Jason Hoopes’ RBI single in the third.

Gloucester Catholic (8-2), the No. 5 team in the rankings, wasn’t able to come through with the big hit to support sophomore left-hander Anthony Solometo, who struck out nine and retired the final 10 batters he faced.

“He was excellent,” Tussey said of Solometo.

Levari earned the save with strong work on the mound in the seventh, showing a fastball that touched 90 mph on radar guns behind home plate.

“This is a huge win for us,” Vanderslice said. “I wanted to prove something to myself and I feel like I did a pretty good job of that.”

St. Augustine 103 000 0 – 3 7 1

Gloucester Catholic 000 000 0 – 0 3 0

WP: Cole Vanderslice. LP: Anthony Solometo.

2B: SA-Vanderslice.