Julia Thiel recorded the 100th hit of her career as she went 2-for-4 with two RBI to lead seventh-seeded East Brunswick to a 10-0 win over 10th-seeded Sayreville in the first round of the Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament in East Brunswick.
It was East Brunswick’s (15-5) first win in the GMC Tournament since 2016, when it reached the semifinals that year. It advanced to Saturday’s quarterfinals, where it will take on second-seeded Metuchen.
Thiel reached the milestone in the fifth inning with a two-out RBI single. Jocelyn Nazario went 3-for-4 with a double and two RBI, while Nicole Motusesky went 3-for-3 with a double and three runs scored. Caitlin Gay pitched a five-inning two-hitter with two strikeouts and one walk.
Sayreville fell to 9-6 with the loss.
No. 10 St. Thomas Aquinas 19, Perth Amboy 2
Hailey Krainski went 3-for-3 with two home runs and eight RBI to lead top-seeded St. Thomas Aquinas, No. 10 in the NJ.com Top 20, to a 19-2 win over Perth Amboy in the first round of the Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament in Edison.
Krainski, a freshman who only had three at-bats to her name prior to Wednesday, connected on her first two career home runs in this one. It helped St. Thomas Aquinas (17-2) earn a quarterfinal berth, where it will take on ninth-seeded Woodbridge on Saturday. It also earned its eighth-consecutive win.
Mary-Kate Murray went 2-for-3 with two home runs and four RBI. Elizabeth Negron went 3-for-4 with a home run and an RBI, while Sophia Colucci homered and drove in two runs. Hayley Wieczerzak gave up one run on one hit, struck out eight, and walked one over three innings.
Perth Amboy fell to 9-10 with the loss.
Woodbridge 10, Old Bridge 7
Vanessa Morales went 4-for-5 to lift ninth-seeded Woodbridge to a 10-7 win over eighth-seeded Old Bridge in the first round of the Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament in Old Bridge.
Samirrah Ortiz doubled and drove in two runs for Woodbridge (9-7), which broke a 7-7 tie with three runs in the top of the seventh inning. It advanced to the quarterfinals on Saturday, where it will face top-seeded St. Thomas Aquinas.
Madison Rackett also singled and drove in two runs as Woodbridge picked up its third-straight victory.
Dimitra Milonopoulos went 3-for-4 with an RBI for Old Bridge (6-14).
Colonia 2, J.P. Stevens 1
Mariella Spina went 2-for-3 with an RBI to lead 12th-seeded Colonia to a 2-1 win over fifth-seeded J.P. Stevens in the first round of the Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament in Edison.
Megan DaCunha gave up one run on six hits in a complete-game effort for Colonia (11-9), which advanced to play fourth-seeded South Plainfield in Saturday’s quarterfinals. Myiah Sutton went 1-for-3 and was involved in 10 putouts on defense in the game.
Faith Fiumaro singled and drove in a run for J.P. Stevens (8-11). Vanessa Yim gave up two unearned runs on five hits, struck out five, and walked three in the loss.
Metuchen 11, East Brunswick Magnet 1
Kylie Flaherty went 3-for-3 with two doubles and three RBI to lead second-seeded Metuchen to an 11-1 win over 15th-seeded East Brunswick Magnet in Metuchen.
Leslie Flaherty went 2-for-3 with two RBI for Metuchen (14-3), which will host seventh-seeded East Brunswick in the quarterfinals on Saturday. Brianna De La Fuente singled and drove in two runs, while Kiara Guzman went 3-for-4 with a triple and an RBI in the win.
Alicia Montalbano gave up one run on one hit over five innings, with nine strikeouts and one walk.
Nicolena Giddis had an RBI for East Brunswick Magnet (15-1).
South Plainfield 10, North Brunswick 0
Hailey Fonti and Nicole Sikora each went 3-for-4 with two RBI to lift fourth-seeded South Plainfield to a 10-0 win over 13th-seeded North Brunswick in the first round of the Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament in South Plainfield.
Sara McNelly went 2-for-4 with a triple and two runs scored for South Plainfield (15-5). Sophia Alvarez hit a solo home run, while Erin Townley dominated in the circle as she tossed a six-inning, four-hitter with 12 strikeouts and no walks.
South Plainfield will face 12th-seeded Colonia in Saturday’s quarterfinals.
North Brunswick dropped to 12-6 with the loss.
Spotswood 15, Iselin Kennedy 2
Alex Diaz homered and drove in three runs to lead third-seeded Spotswood to a 15-2 win over 14th-seeded Iselin Kennedy in the first round of the Greater Middlesex Conference tournament in Spotswood.
The home run was Diaz’s second of the season.
Jenna Dumanski and Alice Melvin each had two hits, including a double for Spotswood (18-2), which won its eighth-consecutive game. Ava Mormile gave up two unearned runs on three hits, struck out seven, and walked two over five innings while also going 1-for-1 with two RBI at the plate.
Spotswood is set to take on sixth-seeded South Brunswick in the quarterfinals on Saturday.
Marialys Ricourt went 2-for-3 for Iselin Kennedy (4-12).
Monroe 17, South Brunswick 13
Monroe, seeded 11th, took down sixth-seeded South Brunswick 17-13 in nine innings in the first round of the GMC Tournament in South Brunswick.
South Brunswick (6-11) led, 13-8 after only three innings of play, but by the fifth inning Monroe had tied it up at 13. There was no scoring the rest of the way until Monroe (4-13) struck for four runs to break the deadlock in the top of the ninth inning.
Monroe advanced to Saturday’s quarterfinals where it will face third-seeded Spotswood.
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