Here is the sports schedule for Salem County teams for the week of April 1-6; all games 4 p.m. unless noted
MONDAY
BASEBALL Schalick at Woodstown SOFTBALL Schalick at Woodstown GOLF Delsea girls vs. Schalick, Centerton CC, 3:30 p.m. BOYS LACROSSE Gloucester Catholic at Woodstown
TUESDAY
BASEBALL Pennsville at Clayton Penns Grove at Glassboro, 10 a.m. Salem vs. Pitman, Alcyon Park SOFTBALL Glassboro at Penns Grove, 10 a.m. Clearview at Woodstown OLMA at Schalick Pennsville at Clayton Pitman at Salem COLLEGE BASEBALL Salem CC at Mercer County CC, 3 p.m. COLLEGE SOFTBALL Salem CC at Mercer County CC (2), 3 p.m. GOLF Washington Twp. girls at Schalick, 3:30 p.m. Schalick boys vs. West Deptford, River Winds GC Gloucester Catholic vs. Salem Tech, Sakima CC BOYS TENNIS Cunberland at Woodstown
WEDNESDAY
BASEBALL Schalick at Millville SOFTBALL Ocean City at Woodstown Penns Grove at Cumberland Schalick at Clearview TRACK Pennsville at Glassboro Penns Grove at Overbrook GOLF Pennsville vs. Gloucester Catholic, Westwood GC, 3:30 p.m. BOYS LACROSSE Woodstown at Paul VI, 3:45 p.m. GIRLS LACROSSE Clearview at Woodstown BOYS TENNIS Middle Twp. at Pennsville
THURSDAY
BASEBALL Salem at Pennsville Penns Grove at Woodstown Pitman at Schalick SOFTBALL Pennsville at Salem Woodstown at Penns Grove COLLEGE SOFTBALL RCSJ-Cumberland at Salem CC (2), 3:30 p.m. GOLF Schalick boya vs. Overbrook, Kresson GC Clearview vs. Woodstown, Town & Country GL, 3:30 p.m. Pennsville vs. West Deptford, Riverwinds GC, 3:30 p.m. TRACK Schalick at Woodstown BOYS TENNIS Schalick at Pennsville, 3:45 p.m. Middle Twp. at Woodstown
FRIDAY
BASEBALL Pennsville at Penns Grove Schalick at Woodstown SOFTBALL Paulsboro at Salem Penns Grove at Pennsville Schalick at Woodstown COLLEGE BASEBALL RCSJ-Cumberland at Salem CC, 3:30 p.m. GOLF Pennsville vs. Penns Grove, Sakima GC, 3:30 p.m. BOYS TENNIS Delsea at Pennsville, 3:45 p.m. Woodstown at Kingsway, 3:45 p.m. Schalick at Haddon Heights GIRLS LACROSSE Woodstown at Paul VI TRACK Schalick at Woodstown
SATURDAY
BASEBALL Salem, Schalick, Clayton at Gloucester City, 10 a.m. Woodstown at Cedar Creek, 11 a.m. SOFTBALL Camden Catholic at Woodstown, 10 a.m. COLLEGE BASEBALL Salem CC at RCSJ-Cumberland (2), noon COLLEGE SOFTBALL Raritan Valley at Salem CC (2), noon TRACK Pennsville, Salem, Schalick at Deptford Relays, 9 a.m. BOYS LACROSSE Washington Twp. at Woodstown, 10 a.m.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the second in a series of in depth interviews with athletes in Salem County. Coaches, if there is a player in your program with an interesting background or backstory the community would be interested in “Getting To Know …”, forward details in an email to Riverview Sports News at al.muskewitz@gmail.com
WOODSTOWN – If teams got to pick a player’s walk-up music as they came to the plate the undisputed choice for Woodstown shortstop Tulana Mingin would be the Black Eyed Peas’ “Let’s Get It Started.”
MINGIN
From her spot in the lineup, the senior gets the Wolverines going and is usually right in the middle of any rally they put together. When this season is over, she will have collected 100 career hits and leave as the program’s all-time hits leader.
Mingin is all about softball, but when she’s not leading the Wolverines on the field you will usually find her taking a nice stroll in the park or dropping a hook in the water to wait on the next big fish to bite.
With the pressure of making a college choice behind her – she signed with East Stroudsburg in November – her mission for her senior season is simply to go out and have fun while doing all she can to ensure retiring coach Dave Wildermuth goes out with a bang.
RIVERVIEW SPORTS NEWS: When did you first fall in love with softball. I’m sure you played a bunch of sports growing up, but what was it about softball that did it for you?
TULANA MINGIN: I started to really like it when I started playing travel ball; the more I played it, the more I would enjoy it. I really started to love it a few years ago, like sophomore year, when I was playing travel because I saw just a complete different level of competition and seeing all the other good players it just made me want to be great.
RSN: What are some of the experiences softball has afforded you that you might not have had otherwise?
TM: Aside from making my best friends, I got to travel all across the East Coast. We even went to Colorado this past summer. I got to stay there for a week. It’s really cool to see the different parts of the U.S. I’ve never been that West before and I wouldn’t go there unless I was playing softball.
I got to see a lot of mountains in Colorado. In Massachusetts I got to see seals an stuff, so I know there’s probably a Great White (shark) somewhere in there.
RSN: You’re in line for a couple milestones this year. You need three hits for 100 – maybe Monday? – and will probably set the program’s career hits record. What do those things mean to you?
TM: It is important to me because I put a lot of time into this so it’s nice to see when it pays off. To see you’re the all-time leader for something is just crazy to think about for a whole program.
(Getting 100 hits) was something I thought about when I started playing high school softball, that was my first goal, to try to get 100 hits in my whole career. If I get it I’ll be really happy.
RSN: You’re known as a slap hitter. How does that style fit into the way the game is played?
TM: I think it’s important to have some slappers in the lineup because it creates chaos on the defense and there are multiple things you can do – you can play small ball, you can bunt, soft slap, hard slap. You’re just trying to direct the ball; you look at the field and see where everybody’s positioned and try to hit it where they’re not.
RSN: You’ve been a 2-hole hitter in the lineup, but Coach Wildermuth told me a while back he might put you at leadoff (she batted first in Saturday’s scrimmage with Sterling). If that does happen what does it do for your style of play; does it alter your approach at all? I guess, really, you’re only leadoff in the first inning.
TM: When I’m in the 2-hole, if someone’s on in front of me, it takes away a slap to the shortstop or second baseman because they can get the force at second. When I have nobody on base, it expands what I can do. I come in with a different approach depending on the situation, but I’m usually just reading the defense and seeing where I should place the ball.
I’ve been leadoff my whole life, not every single time but I’m used to it. When I was younger I would always bat leadoff, even before I was lefthanded, so I’m kind of used to being the first batter and just having that mindset and not being nervous about it.
RSN: Wait. What? Before you were left-handed?
TM: Yes, I was a right-handed batter until my freshman year. I switched over the winter of my freshman year right before the high school season. I was a good hitter before, but decided to switch because I wasn’t a power hitter and I knew my speed would be more beneficial for recruiting if I was a slapper. I just went completely lefty instead of being a switch hitter so I could just focus on getting good at that.
RSN: They tell me you eat it up defensively at short, too. What do you think about your defensive skills. Shortstop traditionally is like the best athlete on a team.
TM: I really like taking ground balls at practice. Just getting different ground balls at practice really helps me. Just getting reps in outside of team practice.
RSN: Tell me a little about your recruiting. I know you signed with East Stroudsburg in November. What separated them from whoever else you were considering and how did signing fulfill a lifelong dream from you?
TM: I loved it when I toured there. It felt like someplace I could live and be happy with. I really like the softball program. I really like the coach. And all the girls on the team were nice. Going to their camps and seeing how they run practices made me want to be a part of that.
I was kind of looking at a lot of D-I, D-II schools local because I don’t want to go too far. So I was looking at FDU (Teaneck), Wilmington, Georgian Court, West Chester, Bloomfield.
RSN: Here’s the fun stuff. What do you like to do away from the field; how do you decompress?
TM: I like to be outside, so I like to go on walks. Watch movies. I like to fish when it’s nice out, so after softball I’ll go fishing with my friends. I catch a lot of fish; I get pretty lucky with that. It’s fun. It’s really relaxing. It’s a time for me to think about stuff.
The biggest fish I caught? I don’t know how many pounds, but I’ve got a picture of it. It’s like this big (holding her hands about 12 inches apart). I threw it back. I’ll get a bigger one.
RSN: Have you ever considered being a Phillies ball girl down the foul line at Citizens Bank Park?
TM: I’ve thought about that before. That sounds really fun and to continue working with sports would be really fun. One of the girls who graduated from ESU softball does that (MacKenzie Lewis was a Phillies ball girl in 2023). I haven’t thought about it that much, but it would be something fun to do. I don’t know what I want to do when I grow up yet.
RSN: Back to the serious stuff to finish up. The last two years you had some hard-luck losses to Audubon that knocked you out of the playoffs. How much has that stuck with you and drive you this year?
TM: This year I want it more than anything, especially with two losses by one run in such close games. Audubon’s a really good team so I know it’s not going to be easy, so that just pushes me to want it more. Everybody wants to beat Audubon after the past two years because we know we can do it.
RSN: And lastly, Coach Wildermuth is retiring at the end of the school year. What was that like when he told the girls of his plan, what’s he meant to you and your career and what will that dynamic mean for the season that starts Monday at home against Schalick?
TM: Obviously we’re going to want to have a really good season for him for his last year. Our all seniors, he’s leaving with us, so it’s our last season, too, and it means a lot.
Everybody was sad when he said that. They knew it was coming because he’s, like, retired before. I’m sure there will be crying whenever the last game is. No tears were shed yet, but it’s definitely something sad when you think about it, but we still have a whole season ahead of us; we’re not thinking about that yet. We want him to have the best last season.
Salem CC softball extends winning streak to 14 with Good Friday doubleheader sweep of Sussex County CC
By Riverview Sports News
NEWTON – When you’re hot, you’re hot.
Haylee Pickrell and Courtney Hoggard both homered in the first game, Karyn Trice hit a pair of triples in the second and Salem CC softball extended its winning streak to 14 games with a 7-1, 14-2 sweep of its Good Friday doubleheader at Sussex County CC.
The Oaks (16-4) were held hitless for 3 1/3 innings of the opener when Pickrell came to the plate in the fourth in a scoreless game. She fouled off five straight pitches, then homered to left field to break the ice.
It stayed that way until the sixth when the Oaks’ first three batters reached base and Hoggard blasted their second homer of the game to left to break open the game.
They added two runs in the seventh on Vaye Savage’s RBI double and a run-scoring error.
Morgan Mecham shut out Sussex for six innings before Sussex’ Elise Cantu hit a leadoff homer in the seventh. Mecham struck out 10 in the victory.
The Oaks wasted no time jumping on the Skylanders in the nightcap, scoring twice in the first inning. Trice led off the game with a triple and scored on Faith Penn’s single. Savaged doubled home Ella Hayes later in the inning.
The broke it open with nine runs in the fourth and fifth innings.
Trice’s bases-loaded triple highlighted a four-run fourth that gave them a 9-2 lead. Trice went 3-for-3 with four RBIs. Callie Rozak also went 3-for-3 and Hayes and Savage drove in three runs apiece.
Caitlin LaGreca pitched a two-hitter in the nightcap – a solo homer in the second and a double in the seventh.
With 26 games left on the schedule, the Oaks’ magic number to clinch a playoff spot is seven.
GAME 1 SALEM CC 7, SUSSEX COUNTY CC 1
Salem CC (15-4)
000 104 2 –
7 7 1
Sussex (2-9)
000 000 1 –
1 5 2
MORGAN MECHAM (WP) and Vaye Savage; SYDNEY GRIFONE (LP) and Natalie Armstrong. 2B: Vaye Savage (Sa). HR: Haylee Pickrell (Sa), Courtney Hoggard (Sa), Elise Cantu (Su).
GAME 2 SALEM CC 14, SUSSEX COUNTY CC 2
Salem CC (16-4)
221 45 –
14 15 2
Sussex (2-10)
110 00 –
2 2 1
CAITLIN LaGRECA (WP) and Callie Rozak, Vaye Savage; EMMA BABCOCK (LP) and Elisa Cantu. 2B: Callie Rozak (Sa), Vaye Savage (Sa), Mackenzie Shea (Su). 3B: Karyn Trice (Sa). HR: Natalie Armstrong (Su).
Cover photo: Ella Hayes slides in with Salem CC’s second run of the first inning in the nightcap of their doubleheader at Sussex County CC Friday.
Luke Wood has played a lot of sports growing up as the son of a high school coach, but make no mistake, he’s a baseball player. When Pennsville coach Matt Karr pencils Wood in the lineup card as his starting pitcher, he does so with the confidence the junior left-hander gives the Eagles every chance to win the game.
WOOD
That’s why he gets the ball in the biggest games and against the biggest teams.
Fittingly on Opening Day of the MLB season, a day many consider a national holiday, Wood sat down with the Riverview Sports News to talk about his love for the sport, the influences on his game, his plans for the future and what he does away from the field.
It’s a deeper dive into the life of an athlete in Salem County, the first of what is planned to be a regular feature in the Riverview Sports News this spring and beyond.
As he sat through the interview, Wood had another Opening Day on his mind. He is the scheduled starting pitcher in the Eagles’ 2024 season-opener Tuesday at Clayton.
RIVERVIEW SPORTS NEWS: You’ve played multiple sports growing up, but it seems like you’ve settled on baseball. Why?
LUKE WOOD: I think growing up pitching was always one of my favorite things to do. I’ve always loved throwing. I was born with a great arm, I was very lucky to have that, and as I got older and trying to figure out what I wanted to do with sports and what I wanted to focus on, baseball, getting on the mound and competing and going after hitters, I don’t know if there’s anything like that. That competitiveness that I can feel on the mound, I don’t feel anywhere else.
RSN: Will you go back to other sports going forward? I think one of your goals is to be Pennsville’s all-time leading scorer in boys basketball. (Wood has 1198 career points, third on the school’s all-time boys list behind Zach Manorowitz’ 1679 and Dan Feruck’s 1284).
LW: I didn’t play any football in the high school. I stopped playing when I was really little. Football wasn’t my thing. My dad (Ryan Wood) is a big football coach, won a state championship first year, did really good, but football wasn’t really ever my sport. I was more of a soccer kid growing up. I don’t play anything in the fall, I just take the fall off, although I might play soccer next year. It’s up in the air.
I would love for next year to go out and break Zach Manorowitz’ record for all-time points for the boys. I think that’s one of the coolest feelings you could probably have, especially since then I could come back here for my entire life and see my name up on that banner. I just think it’s a really cool deal.
RSN: What did reaching 1,000 career points in basketball mean to you and how neat will it be to have three members of the family on that 1,000-point banner when Marley does it maybe as early as next winter? (Older sister Ryane Wood finished with 1224 points in 2022. Marley currently has 720).
LW: I think it was one of the coolest feelings just because not a lot of people score 1,000 points and do something my dad never got the chance to do and then to do something my sister did that I got to watch, it was just a really good feeling to go out and score 1,000 points in three years.
Seeing Ryane scoring over 1,000 points was one of the coolest moments of my life and to be able to see my little sister score 1,000 is going to be even cooler, especially since our banner is going to have Wood-Wood-Wood going straight down it.
RSN: What’s your earliest favorite memory in baseball that put you on this path?
LW: Growing up with my dad and seeing his love for the game and just his competitiveness about the game is what put it in me. I didn’t really choose what I wanted to do until I got to high school. I was still playing AAU basketball, still trying to figure out what I wanted to do. I think it’s because my natural talent in baseball is better than it is in basketball, but it’s also the atmosphere of baseball. There’s nothing like going out and throwing a game.
RSN: We’re talking today on what is the day of the MLB Opening Day. As a baseball player does it give you an extra charge when it’s Opening Day. (He will draw the start for Pennsville on the Eagles’ Opening Day Tuesday against Clayton).
LW: It’s always a good feeling when it gets to be baseball season because that means warm weather, you get to go outside a whole bunch, watch some baseball, get to play some baseball.
RSN: Any other memorable baseball experience you care to share that shaped you?
LW: I’ve gotten really lucky. I’ve gotten to go to a good amount of some good events where there have been some good people. I went to the PBR Futures Games the last two years (in Georgia). I got to pitch on the Wake Forest field for a camp, which I thought was really cool; I threw really well there, too. I threw on the Maryland field. I threw against the top 100 team in the state, had a good game.
The Carpenter Cup was one of the coolest things, too, just to get my name selected to be on the team as a sophomore. When they played at Citizens Bank I was down in Alabama for a travel ball tournament, so I didn’t get to go to that. I only ended up going to the first two games.
RSN: You sprained the ankle on your push-off foot during the basketball season. I know you came back from it, but how much did you worry about it impacting your baseball future? Teammate Chase Burchfield hurt his shoulder early in the basketball season and shut it down for baseball. You didn’t have any of those thoughts, did you?
LW: This isn’t the first time I’d hurt my ankle. I hurt it last year during baseball season. I hurt it last year during the summer really bad. I think I’ve gotten over the fear of hurting it again and even worrying about that. Once I hurt it, I made sure I did a lot of rehab on it to strengthen the muscles so it didn’t happen again. It’s not really a problem.
RSN: We came on the scene late last year, but what I learned is that even as a sophomore you get the ball against the better teams/bigger games. How much do you like that role and what do those games do for your energy?
LW: I think a lot of it is just going out and knowing I have to compete not just for myself but for my team. The competitiveness in me wanting to win really bad is why I want the big games, it’s why I throw the big games. I want to go play and throw against the best players so that it gives our team the best chance to win.
RSN: Your dad’s a coach. Probably coached you in a bunch of sports. What’s it like playing for your dad and what’s been his influence on your development and sports path?
LW: My dad has always been very focused on me and my career within any sport. Any time I need to go hit, throw, get shots up or anything, he texts back within five minutes and he’s right there, ready to do it right away. My dad just wants to see me succeed and will literally do anything for me in order to make that happen.
My dad, when he was going into his sophomore year of high school, had a really bad accident with his Achilles and it knocked him out for his sophomore year of basketball. I think he ended up playing his sophomore year of baseball in high-top sneakers. Knowing that happened to my dad and knowing he went out and made a Carpenter Cup team, scored 500 points as a senior, it’s something that makes me want to work harder knowing that he worked through all that adversity to get to where he’s at.
RSN: What do you do to switch gears emotionally and physically going from one spot to the next? Unlike where I came from (Alabama), the state gives you time in between seasons and there’s not much overlap.
LW: I really just get super geared up for baseball. I go out and hit every day, make sure I throw every day, make sure I’m tunnel-visioned focused on just baseball for that month. Not having the whole winter to train like some people do, that month is very crucial and important for me to get better for the season.
RSN: What do you do away from the field, like what do you do for fun on your downtime?
LW: I love doing LEGOs; I’m a LEGO guy. I love Harry Potter LEGOs. I build them and we don’t have anywhere in my house to put them so they just kind of get left around until I figure out what to do with them. There are probably like four in my kitchen right now. There’s a train in there.
I love Harry Potter. I love the movies, I love the books. Every time I go to the LEGO store, Walmart, I just look for the Harry Potter ones.
RSN: Are you working on anything now?
LW: I’m actually midway through building the Taj Mahal.
RSN: OK, let’s wrap it up by talking about the future. I know you’re currently uncommitted to a college baseball program. Where do things stand with your recruiting, summer plans, life plans? What are you looking for in a college program?
LW: Ever since I got to be a freshman I was getting recruiting, but I’ve always just never really wanted to do it; I always felt like it was too early. I’ve always just wanted to wait just so I know where I’m at. Where I’m at now is completely different from where I thought I would be in two years. I don’t want to make a decision and then have that decision in two years not even be worth it because I rushed it.
For me, college has never been about where it is, what the school’s name is, it’s always been about trying to find somewhere where I would want to go, where I would feel at home for the next four years of my life. I’ve really gotten away from the whole recruiting lately, but I’m hoping to pick it back up in the summer when travel ball starts.
After college I would love to go play MLB baseball if I could, if I got the opportunity and ended up being good enough to. If not, I would love to go to law school, be a lawyer like my mom is. I would love to be a prosecutor or something like that. I would love to get into the corporate lawyer business because they make a ton of money.
NEXT UP: Woodstown softball player Tulana Mingin.
Coaches, if there is a player in your program with an interesting background or backstory that should be considered for a “Getting To Know …” feature, send the details in an email to Riverview Sports News at al.muskewitz@gmail.com
Lehigh Carbon scores twice in the seventh after Salem rallies to tie, hands Mighty Oaks third straight loss in late innings
By Riverview Sports News
CARNEYS POINT – The bad luck that has shadowed the Salem CC baseball team in recent games continued Wednesday when the Oaks gave up two runs in the seventh inning after tying it an inning earlier in an 11-9 Region XIX loss to Lehigh Carbon at the Carneys Point Rec Complex.
The second game of the scheduled doubleheader was postponed by the rain that started falling right before the final out of the opener.
The Oaks (7-12) have lost seven of their last eight. Since walking off No. 3 Brookdale in the opening game of that series last week, they have lost four straight. They were blown out by the Blues in Game 2, blew an eight-run lead to them in the rubber game, lost in the bottom of the 10th to Lehigh Carbon Tuesday after tying the game in the ninth and then Wednesday happened.
The Oaks answered Lehigh Carbon’s opening salvo with five in the home first, but continued giving up runs and fell behind 9-7 after three innings. They tied the game in the sixth on back-to-back RBI doubles by Angel Velez and J.D. Wilson.
Matt Decker threw 3 2/3 innings of shutout relief to keep the Oaks in the game into the seventh, but then Cougars (5-6) reached him.
It started when Decker hit Ethan Kauffman with one out. Kauffman stole second and scored the go-ahead run on Hunter Rothrock’s single up the middle. Rothrock stole second, went to third on the throw to first on a dropped third strike and scored the insurance run on winning relief pitcher Robbie Behrens’ RBI single.
Yen Rodriguez gave Salem life in the seventh when Kauffman misplayed his fly to left into a three-base error. But Behrens doused the threat with two infield pops and a grounder to first.
The Oaks had seven hits in the game, five of them doubles. Rodriguez had two of them. Wilson also had two hits.
Lehigh Carbon (5-6)
342
000
2–
11
11
5
Salem CC (7-12)
511
002
0–
9
7
0
Connor Kuster, Owen Ondrejca (1), ROBBIE BEHRENS (6, W 1-0) and Joey McNamara. John McAllister, MATT DECKER (3, L 0-1) and Angel Velez. 2B: Joey McNamara (LC), Noah Rush (LC), Yen Rodriguez 2 (S), Demetrius DeRamus (S), Angel Velez (S), J.D. Wilson (S). 3B: Kain Smith (LC).
Softball
VINELAND – The Mighty Oaks and RCSJ-Cumberland were scheduled to play a doubleheader, but the game were postponed by the Dukes for internal reasons. The teams are looking for a suitable date to reschedule.
Salem CC softball outfielder Beukman gives the Mighty Oaks some international flavor with her arrival from South Africa
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
PENNSVILLE – It’s hardly unusual for a college team to have players from places far from its campus footprint. In fact, it’s sort of expected. That’s why they call it recruiting.
BEUKMAN
Of course, most of those players come from within the United States, but even some those are from some far-flung locales invariably sparking a query of how they got here.
That question is even more poignant when it comes to Salem CC outfielder KiKi Beukman. While many of the Mighty Oaks have come halfway across the country to join the team, Beukman came from halfway around the world.
Ask her how in the world she got here and her answer is quick and to the point.
“By the plane, you know,” she said and laughed.
Actually, two of them. From her home in Pretoria, South Africa, there’s an eight-hour flight to Doha, Qatar, and then a 16-hour jaunt to Philadelphia. That would be 10,661 miles door-to-door, 10 total time zones. Leave there Tuesday night, get here Wednesday afternoon.
When Beukman started this journey she had never been to the United States before and didn’t know Salem County, N.J., from Salem, Mass., or Salem, Ore. She just knew she wanted to come to the States to study aerospace engineering, which isn’t offered in her country, and continue playing softball while doing it.
She put together a professional-looking prospect package and shopped it to numerous schools. She drew interest from five schools and spoke seriously with three – Salem, NAIA Avila (Mo.) University and JUCO Morton (Ill.) College – but felt most comfortable after her interaction with Oaks coach Angel Rodriguez.
She’s the first international player Rodriguez has ever had on any level. Most of the other international students on the Carneys Point campus are on the soccer team.
No, he didn’t get all the way to South Africa to recruit her. A lot of videos, e-mails, text messages and zoom meetings replaced the traditional on-site scouting, face-to-face contact and in-home visits.
He said the process of recruiting an international prospect was “fun to go through,” educational and a little self-reflective.
“We get a couple different e-mails each month and this one just kind came across and the most important thing that stuck out was the video was definitely personalized,” Rodriguez said. “Her and her family did some research … so the fact they were very proactive with it showed she was definitely interested and all in.
“I definitely think we got lucky with a really good one and I couldn’t be happier.”
The Oaks have a truly All-America softball team as it is with players from 11 different states – from New Jersey and Delaware, of course, to Utah and Idaho and everywhere in between (Texas, Indiana, Wisconsin, Colorado, Maryland, North Carolina and Missouri) – so Beukman fit right in with this merry band of travelers.
They took a bunch of players to the airport to greet her when she first arrived. By the time they left the baggage carousel they were connecting as if they’d known each other the last three months.
It’s no gimmick she’s here. Beukman was a decorated school and club utility infielder back in South Africa and had tools Rodriguez could work with. She made several provincial teams that are the U.S. equivalent to all-state and even made a national team slated for international competition before COVID intervened.
She’s played in 12 games for the Oaks so far, mostly in the outfield, with a .350 batting average, seven hits and three RBIs. She went 3-for-4 with a triple and two RBIs in the Oaks’ 11-10 win over Northampton last Sunday.
There are some parts of American life she finds fascinating. Like the open front yards that welcome an approach to the front door and the self-checkout line at Walmart or the way restaurants spread table assignments among their servers. In her neighborhood, all the yards are fenced, there is no self-checkout in stores and a savvy waiter or waitress can scarf up all the tables if they’re quick enough to greet the diners at the door.
“The self-checkout thing, I love it, I absolutely love it; mind-boggling,” she said. “This is easy, why don’t we have that?
“Another thing I found very different is how restaurants work. Waiters or waitresses get scheduled tables. Where I’m from, I actually work in the industry. We used to stand by the door and if someone comes in and you say ‘hi’ first that’s your waiter. You can have all the tables in there and everyone else doesn’t have anything. You need to fight for some customers.”
She hasn’t been to Atlantic City, any of the shore points or New York City since she’s been here. But she has been to Boston and drove through Washington and Baltimore on the team’s season-opening trip to the Carolinas.
Being so far away has made it difficult to get back home, but the players with their shared experience of living away have helped lessen the load. She spent the Christmas holidays with roommate Jill Robinson’s family in Colorado, where she saw snow for the first time, and has a trip to California planned before heading home in May.
It’s been an eye-opening experience for her American teammates, too, especially when it comes to her food choices. Regulations won’t let Buekman bring food with her from home and she admits she misses it “a lot.” Buying it from Amazon is too expensive, so she improvises where she can. The apricot jam and cheese sandwiches have gotten her teammates’ attention and grabbed their taste buds.
By the same token, she has yet to partake in those Philly-area staples like a cheese steak or hoagie, but admits she’d like to try them sometime soon.
“It’s so funny,” shortstop Emma Hayes said. “A lot of the stuff around here she doesn’t have back home, so we spent like three hours at Walmart. Everything she had to stop and look at because she doesn’t have it. That was neat and kind of eye-opening, too, like not everyone has everything we do and vice versa. She just cracks us up. She’s hilarious about everything.”
“I think us Americans fit right in with her,” added third baseman Courtney Hoggard. “She’s part of the team, part of the whole. She’s a great mix into our team.”
Beukman may be the first international player in the program, but she likely won’t be the last. The Oaks are in with an infielder from Australia who could be here next season following the same process they went through to land Beukman.
“We’ll see how it goes,” Rodriguez said. “It’s a case by case basis. If we feel like it’s a good fit, we’re getting good emails and they’re interested in us, we need to see it. We like what we’re seeing, the fact they’re keeping up with us and they’re emailing and texting us throughout the week that’s a good sign.”
Hayes, Salem CC softball have another big day at the plate, slam season-high four homers, put up 18 runs, win 11th in a row; second game later ruled forfeit win for Oaks
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
PENNSVILLE – Salem CC softball coach Angel Rodriguez says shortstop Ella Hayes can play anywhere in the country. He just feels lucky she’s playing here.
HAYES
Hayes, a freshman from Kansas City, had her eye on a couple East Coast Division I schools when she was being recruited out of high school and eventually chose the Mighty Oaks.
It couldn’t have worked out better for either party. Hayes is the hottest hitter on one of the hottest teams in the country. On Tuesday, she went 3-for-3 with a pair homers, a double, two intentional walks and five RBIs as the Oaks outscored Middlesex College 18-11 at Watson Field to extend their winning streak to 11 games.
“I’ll definitely be the first one to say it on our team, we couldn’t have ended up being luckier with a player,” Rodriguez said. “A lot of people as we get going always ask how’d you get this one, how’d you get that one and, truthfully, we’re honest, we’re up front and we’re here to give them the best experience they can get.
“She’s a good player. She’s a natural-born player. I would say we definitely got lucky. Whatever we did or whatever attracted her I hope she stays. I don’t know how in depth her recruiting was, but I know she liked the East Coast and maybe we’re just one of those schools that gave her shot. I think she can play anywhere in the country. Right now, we’re lucky enough that she’s playing for us.”
Hayes got into the recruiting process late in high school because at the time she didn’t think she was good enough to play at a program with pedigree. There was a Division II school close to home that was interested, but she wanted to play on the East Coast and turned it down. She was talking with Binghamton (N.Y.) and would like to go to Rutgers, but the JUCO route would help her development and now she’s Division I material.
Over the last week she’s been virtually unstoppable at the plate. She’s 13-for-16 with five homers and 18 RBIs during the Oaks’ current five-game home stand, raising her batting average to .571. She’s working on a seven-game hitting streak (16-of-24) and has driven in at least one run in 10 of the last 12 games she’s played.
“That’s my way to pick up my team since I can’t produce as much as I should at short, so I need to be better on offense,” Hayes said. “Going up to bat I tend to let everything go and I’m very confident up to bat and if I do end up getting out my team will pick me up. It’s just really easy to relax up at the plate.”
The offensive eruption has left the Oaks (13-4) with 147 runs in 17 games. They banged out 15 hits and a season-high four homers against the Colts. They scored in every inning but fifth and bounced back from that by putting the game away with six runs in the sixth.
When a team hits like that it can overcome – but not overlook – one of what Rodriguez called “those funky defensive games we’ve just gotta clean up” that led to eight errors that produced eight unearned runs.
Karyn Trice got it started with a leadoff inside-the-park homer and went 3-for-4 to raise her average to a team-leading (.588). Hayes hit a solo homer in the first and a grand slam in the second. Callie Rozak went 3-for-4 with a two-run homer in the third and four RBIs. The Oaks now have 14 homers this season, one more than they had in twice as many games a year ago.
Hayes credited the roll on the players picking each other up throughout the lineup throughout the game. It reminds her of the club team she played on the summer before her junior year in high school, which she called her favorite year of club ball.
“They keep getting it done,” Rodriguez said. “No matter what the situation is … they just keep making adjustments. The more they keep doing that and keep seeing the softball and make the adjustments that are necessary they’re going to keep rolling.
“As a coach we try not to do a lot with stats and I’m not a big stats guru. I do look at it, I think what we’re doing is great, but at some point you’ve got to take appreciation at what we’re doing and it is good to see. I try not to rely heavily on that because I want to see the consistency in everything, but, yeah, we’re doing what we’re supposed to be doing. What we’re doing, the numbers speak for themselves. We’re playing well.”
The Oaks have the potential for the winning streak to hit 12 in a row if Region XIX rules a forfeit in their favor since the Colts declined to play the second game of the scheduled doubleheader.
“I’ve never seen anything like it in college,” Rodriguez said. “I don’t see why we wouldn’t be able to qualify for one (a forfeit win). We’re gonna push for it, I think we deserve it, but ultimately the decision will come from the region and what they decide. We’ll see.”
UPDATE
On Thursday, Region XIX ruled the second game a 7-0 forfeit win for the Mighty Oaks, extending their winning streak to 12 in row.
‘I think the ruling is justified,’ Rodriguez said. ‘Game 2 should’ve been played from the beginning and I’m glad our team gets the credit they deserve; they were ready to go. All in all, it’s in the past and we’re gearing up for a doubleheader (at Sussex County CC) tomorrow.’
SALEM CC 18, MIDDLESEX 11
Middlesex (3-2)
042
211
0–
11
6
1
Salem CC (13-4)
252
306
x–
18
15
8
CAITLIN LAGRECA (W 5-3), Morgan Mecham (5) and Callie Rozak, Vaye Savage (5); Madison Rackett, SUMMER RAMIREZ (4, L 2-1) and Sarah Ohnmeiss. 2B: Marissa Lugo (M), Ella Hayes (S), Haylee Pickrell (S). 3B: Kaylin Nepton (M), Kalila Pace (S). HR: Ella Hayes 2 (S), Callie Rozak (S), Karyn Trice (S).
Mighty Oaks softball team comes from behind in both games to sweep Northampton, winning streak at 10; baseball loses eight-run lead in loss to No. 3 team in country
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
PENNSVILLE – The one thing the Salem CC softball team hasn’t faced since returning from its season-opening trip to the Carolinas is adversity.
The Mighty Oaks had, as they say in the South, a mean mess of it Sunday and came through it like a team that hasn’t lost in two weeks.
The Oaks trailed three times in their doubleheader with Northampton at Watson Field and rallied every time to score an 11-10, 10-2 sweep to run their current winning streak to 10 games and remain undefeated in their new home. It was the first time they trailed at any point in any game since returning from the Carolinas.
In the opener they trailed 6-3 in the third inning and 8-7 in the fifth. They fell behind 2-0 after two innings of the nightcap before Ella Hayes blasted a three-run homer in the third to give the Oaks (12-4) the lead for good.
They pounded out 20 hits in the opener. Hayes went 5-for-5 with four RBIs and Karyn Trice went 4-for-4. Kiki Beukman and KC Garcia both went 3-for-4. But for all the offense they produced, they still needed ace Morgan Mecham to come out of the bullpen to get through a harrowing seventh inning.
They walked off the nightcap on Courtney Hoggard’s bases-loaded double in the fifth that got through a charging outfielder and cleared the bases although only two runs were needed for the run-rule margin. Hoggard went 4-for-4 in the game after being the only Salem player to go hitless in the opener.
“Seeing it for the first time we put into perspective that if we’re behind or we’ve got to battle back and forth we’re able to do it, but most importantly they’ve got to keep playing for each other and you saw it there,” Oaks coach Angel Rodriguez said. “That’s key right there, just backing up your pitcher on defense, trying to make the next play, if someone’s a little down just picking them up and running from there.
“You definitely start turning to some of the returners or some key people who are going to come up in big moments and see how they’re going to do and they handled it well. They came and took it one pitch at a time and just kept it rolling. They didn’t panic, they just kept going and let the game come to them and it was good.”
With the lineup Rodriguez has at his disposal, the Mighty Oaks really aren’t out of any game. They’ve outscored their opponents 106-19 during the 10-game winning streak and are batting a torrid .515 as a team.
“One thing we learned from the Carolinas that we kept consistent is when we have big moments or we need something going we always tend to find ourselves right around the beginning or middle of the lineup,” Rodriguez said. “If we can keep doing that, it’s going to be just great for us.”
The Oaks led the opener 3-0, but the Spartans wiped it out with a six-run third on the strength of back-to-back homers by Hannah Karc and Shana Guliandolo to open inning and Chelsea Melkowits’ three-run shot three batters later.
Salem retook the lead with four in the bottom of the inning, but Northampton grabbed it right back with two in the fourth. The Oaks took the lead for good in the fifth on Hayes’ game-tying double, a go-ahead RBI single by Haylee Pickrell and an RBI double by Callie Rozak.
The teams traded runs in the sixth. The Spartans loaded the bases against Mecham in the seventh and made it 11-10 with one out, only the second run on the Oaks ace’s ledger since the team returned from the Carolinas. They still had the bases loaded, but Mecham got the final two outs on strikeout and pop to short.
“I think we did a very good job keeping our energy up,” Hoggard said. “When we got down, we stayed up (emotionally). When people were struggling, they picked them up. I know I was struggling for a while (3-for-13 in her previous four games), but they picked me up and I came out in the second game and did really good.
“Our coaches this year have told us you get down you’ve got to keep your foot on the gas pedal no matter what. We can’t look back. You’ve got to keep moving forward.”
The Oaks never wavered when they fell behind 2-0 in the nightcap. Hayes put them back on top with her third homer in four games and they continued to pour it on. They pushed across three in the fourth and walked it off in the fifth.
“I was never worried about it,” Hayes said. “Even in practice there will be times where there’s adversity and we come back and are fully prepared. I think we all just really wanted it, too.
“I love being on a winning streak. There is pressure, you don’t want that to end, it’s also fun. I think we’re having a lot of fun and that’s why we’re continuing the streak instead of feeling the pressure.”
Softball
GAME 1 SALEM CC 11, NORTHAMPTON CC 10
Northampton CC (0-1)
006
201
1-
10
17
0
Salem CC (11-4)
124
031
x-
11
20
1
Theresa Luongo, SYDNEY HARPER (3, L0-1), Kamryn Tokar (6) and Chelsea Melkowits; Caitlin LaGreca, KARYN TRICE (W 1-0), Morgan Mecham and Callie Rozak. 2B: Callie Rozak (S), Ella Hayes (S), Haylee Pickrell (S). 3B: Kiki Beukman (S). HR: Chelsea Melkowits (N), Hannah Karc (N), Shana Gugliandolo (N).
SALEM CC 10, NORTHAMPTON CC 2
Northampton CC (0-2)
110
00-
2
7
1
Salem CC (12-4)
004
33-
10
12
1
TAYLOR NEUMANN (L 0-1), Theresa Luongo (3) and Morgan Rissmiller; MORGAN MECHAM (W 7-2) and Vaye Savage. 2B: Chelsea Melkowits (N), Hannah Karc (N), Courtney Hoggard (S), Vaye Savage (S). HR: Ella Hayes (S)
Baseball
LINCROFT — The Mighty Oaks led the No. 3 team in the country by eight runs in the fourth inning, but couldn’t hold it and fell to Brookdale 14-10 in the rubber game of their three-game series.
The Oaks won the series opener 7-6 on a walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth and appeared headed for an even easier win in the getaway game, but it got away from them under a hail of walks and errors.
“It was just a rough day,” Salem coach John Bolt said. “We didn’t play our best baseball.”
BROOKDALE CC 14, SALEM CC 10
Salem CC (7-10)
007
300
000-
10
Brookdale CC (18-1)
200
800
22x-
14
Cover photo: Salem CC’s Courtney Hoggard prepares to connect with her walk-off hit in the bottom of the fifth inning of Sunday’s second game with Northampton CC. The Mighty Oaks won both games to extend their winning streak to 10 games.
Here is this week’s Salem County sports schedule for the week of March 24-30; all games 4 p.m. unless noted, x-scrimmage
Sunday
COLLEGE BASEBALL Salem CC at Brookdale, 1 p.m. COLLEGE SOFTBALL Northampton at Salem CC (2), noon
Monday
BASEBALL x-Cumberland at Woodstown x-GCIT at Pennsville x-LEAP at Penns Grove x-Millville at Schalick SOFTBALL x-Pennsauken Tech at Penns Grove x-Pennsville at GCIT x-Salem at Winslow GOLF Woodstown vs. Burlington City, Burlington CC BOYS TENNIS x-Pennsville at Gateway, 3:45 p.m. x-St. Augustine at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m. GIRLS LACROSSE x-Woodstown at OLMA BOYS LACROSSE x-Millville at Woodstown
Tuesday
BASEBALL x-West Deptford at Pennsville SOFTBALL x-Salem at Lindenwold BOYS TENNIS Schalick at Gateway x-Woodstown at Millville TRACK x-Camden Co. Tech at Pennsville COLLEGE BASEBALL Salem CC at Lehigh Carbon CC, 3 p.m. COLLEGE SOFTBALL Middlesex at Salem CC (2), 3:30 p.m.
Wednesday
BASEBALL x-Cumberland at Schalick x-Deptford at Woodstown x-LEAP at Salem x-Penns Grove at Bridgeton SOFTBALL x-Cumberland at Schalick x-Deptford at Woodstown x-Paulsboro at Pennsville GOLF Pennsville vs. Gloucester Catholic, Westwood GC, 3:30 p.m. BOYS TENNIS x-Pennsville at Delsea, 3:45 p.m. x-Woodstown at Millville COLLEGE BASEBALL Lehigh Carbon CC at Salem CC (2), noon
Thursday
BASEBALL x-Clayton at Penns Grove x-Gloucester at Salem SOFTBALL x-LEAP at Salem x-Millville at Pennsville x-Penns Grove at Clayton x-Sterling at Woodstown GOLF Schalick vs. Woodstown, Town & Country GL TRACK x-Penns Grove, Bridgeton at Salem
Friday
BASEBALL x-Paulsboro at Schalick, 11 a.m. SOFTBALL Millville at Pennsville COLLEGE SOFTBALL Salem CC at Sussex (2), 1 p.m. GOLF Woodstown at Delran, Golden Pheasant GC
Saturday
GIRLS LACROSSE x-Washington Twp. at Woodstown, 10 a.m. BOYS LACROSSE x-Woodstown at Absegami, 10 a.m. COLLEGE BASEBALL Salem CC at Keystone College JV, noon
Velez rewards Salem CC with walk-off single against national No. 3 Brookdale in first game of doubleheader; Blues win nightcap for split
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
CARNEYS POINT – Angel Velez was ever so thankful when Salem CC coach John Holt gave him a chance to play college baseball after two previous college experiences didn’t work out. He paid the Mighty Oaks back for that confidence they showed in him Friday with the game-winning hit in their biggest win of the season one day before his own special day.
VELEZ
Velez delivered a bases-loaded single with one out in the bottom of the ninth to propel the Oaks past Brookdale CC 7-6 in the first game of their Region XIX doubleheader, handing the third-ranked Jersey Blues their first loss of the season. Brookdale bounced back to win the nightcap 15-1 and gain a split.
“Make a statement, make some noise in this conference,” Velez said between games. “Everybody tries to write Salem off. We’re a good ballclub. When we play together, it shows.”
For a long time it didn’t look like college baseball would be in Velez’ future; he hadn’t played in two years. He went to Northampton CC out of Reading High School and worked with the baseball team in the fall, but “it didn’t work out.” The experience was similar when he went to CCBC Essex, so he took the next 18 months off and worked in his family’s landscaping business.
He connected with Holt and the Oaks after playing on a summer team with former SCC outfielder Nick Toms.
“He had to grow up a little bit and he did,” Holt said. “He’s kind of figured it out a little bit.”
Coming into the game there weren’t a lot of outsiders who would’ve given the Oaks (7-9) much of a chance. The Blues won their first 16 games by an average of 10-plus runs and Salem was coming off losing three straight to No. 6 Northampton.
But the Oaks had what Holt called a “really good” week of practice in which they emphasized specific skills and functionality and demonstrated what they learned in winning the first game. Velez dove into it head first.
Brookdale hadn’t given up more than five runs in any game this season, but the Oaks scored six in the fifth inning to take a 6-4 lead before the Blues rallied to tie it in the sixth.
“If felt all along if we could play a clean game, like I said to the team at the beginning of the day, play to our standard, which is just make routine plays and throw the ball over the plate I think we’ll be OK,” Holt said, “and in the first game for the most part we did that.
“That’s the kind of the team we can be when we lock in and play up to our capabilities. I still feel like we haven’t played our best baseball yet; our best baseball is still ahead of us. We’re looking to get better each and every time out. If we play to our standard I think we’re going to be OK.”
Oaks left-fielder Nick Ciesielka saved his team in the ninth when he went above the fence to steal a leadoff homer from Brookdale’s Rocko Brzezniak. He ran down another long ball from the next hitter as well. All three Salem outfielders made spectacular catches during the course of the game.
“At first I took a left step and was like, ‘Oh, shoot, this ball might be out,’” Ciesielka said. “I turned to my right, felt my knee hit the wall, stuck my glove up and took it back.”
Ciesielka got the Oaks’ winning rally started with a single on the first pitch. Demetrius DaRamus followed with a single and they both advanced on a perfectly executed sacrifice bunt by cleanup hitter Matt Murphy.
The Blues intentionally walked Lee Rodriguez to load the bases and Velez, who delivered a two-run go-ahead single earlier in the game, followed by pulling the first pitch he saw inside the first-base bag for the game-winner. Once the ball went through, the players poured out of the dugout and eventually mobbed the freshman catcher around second base.
It was an early birthday present for a player whose 22nd birthday is Saturday.
“I can’t explain it; I can’t put it into words that feeling, man,” Velez said. “Coach always talks about playing to a standard, playing to our standard, we did that today. They walked the (batter) in front of me. I believe he wasn’t trying to pitch around me, so I saw the first pitch, put a barrel on it and it worked out.
“I was ready. I was ready since the eighth inning.”
It also made a winning pitcher of J.D. Wilson. The hard-throwing righthander from Pennsville pitched the last three innings, retiring all nine batters he faced with heat that consistently ran from upper 80s-low 90s on the 43-degree day. His strikeout pitch to end the seventh checked in at 92.
“It’s a little cold, I didn’t have my max velo, but it felt good, the team had my back,” Wilson said. “I kind of go out there and let it fly. I challenge everybody the same. I was giving a lot of fastballs … but it was working so I just kept rolling with it.”
Cover photo: Players pour out of the Salem CC dugout after the Mighty Oaks scored the winning run in the bottom of the ninth to hand third-ranked Brookdale its first loss of the season.
Riverview Sports News 