Falcons looking every bit like a contender

BY RICHARD JEROME
Staff Writer

MIGUEL JUAREZ staff Garrett Beyer and the Monroe Falcons are off to a blazing start on the baseball diamond this spring, and are quickly emerging as one of the top teams in the Greater Middlesex Conference. Despite suffering its first loss of the season, a 6-5 decision to North Brunswick on Tuesday, the 6-1 Monroe High School baseball team has burst from the gate with nothing less than an explosion of power.

In their first six games of the season, the Falcons averaged more than 12 runs a game. Consider these scores (defeated in parentheses): 12-2 (South Plainfield), 8-3 (Sayreville), 14-8 (Woodbridge), 14-2 (New Brunswick), 14-0 (Highland Park) and 13-1 (Carteret).

"Yes, it's a very good start," said head coach Greg Beyer. "We're hitting over .400 as a team, and one of our pitchers, Ryan Cushman, pitched a no-hitter against Highland Park. Right now, the offense, pitching and defense are all working well for us."

Last year's Monroe club finished at 14-14, but displayed steady progress over the course of the campaign.

"We came on toward the end of the season," Beyer said. "And we had a big upset in the states. Now we have almost everybody back, including an all-state player [catcher Jarred Jiminez] and two all-division players."

Jiminez, a senior heading to Rutgers on a baseball scholarship, led the county in home runs last year with 12 and holds 14 school records. This year he has a .535 batting average and seven doubles, vowing to break Monroe's single-season record of 10.

"Of course, they're not really pitching to him," said Beyer. "He has nine walks, and I bat him leadoff because that's where he stands the best chance of seeing some good pitches. He's also a top base-stealer, so he's great from the leadoff spot."

Jiminez handles pitches from a staff led by Marc Pavloski (3-0 and one save), who tops the conference in victories and also leads the team in RBIs with 14, while playing second base when he's not taking the hill. Junior Cushman, (1-1) the Falcon football quarterback, struck out seven Owls in his no-hitter.

"He played varsity ball as a freshman, then had to undergo elbow surgery last year," Beyer said. "Ryan had a rough preseason this year and was getting hit hard - then threw the no-hitter in his first start in two years."

Also on the mound are senior Mike Doros, 1-0, winner of the Sayreville game, who also holds down the hot corner, and slugged a pair of circuit clouts against Highland Park. Larry Bergen, a sophomore, will see some pitching time this season, as well, though he's more prominent as an excellent defensive left fielder. Bergen smacked a homer against New Brunswick.

Junior Matt Kalbach, who plays first base when he's not pitching, has a .400 batting average and 11 RBIs at the plate, while senior lefty Chris Faraoni, a talented soccer player during the fall sports season, is a solid gloveman in right field.

As for the rest of the lineup, sophomore shortstop Marc Magliaro is returning after having started as a freshman, and is hitting at a .400 clip, including three base knocks in a losing cause against North Brunswick.

"He's a good fielder and a very heady player," said Beyer.

The Falcons have plenty of firepower in the outfield, with center fielder Nick Alberino, a returning all-division pick, leading the team with a blistering .636 average, boosted by his 4-for-4 performance against Carteret. And in right field, junior Richie Feldham is batting over .500 with 12 RBIs so far, including a grand slam in his first at-bat of the campaign. Feldham is extremely versatile, penciled in so far at first, third and designated hitter, as well as in the outfield.

Monroe has plenty of depth off the bench thus spring. Senior Mike Lezzo plays catcher and DH, and Eddie Klecan comes back to fill in in the outfield. Second baseman Adam Liebross is back again as well, while sophomore Garrett Beyer (no relation to the coach) subs at second base. Andrew Primiano does some pitching, and John Ciarkowski should see some time at first base.

Assisting Beyer this year are Scott Wall, jayvee coach Gary Snyder, and Ron Herrick, who leads the freshmen. Tony Pepe and Eric Namowicz handle the eighth-grade squad.

Beyer, whose club faced tough Edison yesterday and meets New Egypt on Saturday, attributes the Falcons' success to plain hard work.

"This is a great bunch of kids," he said. "They really worked on their conditioning, some of them with trainers, and refined their hitting and fielding during the off-season, during the summer and playing fall ball. And when you put that kind of work in, things fall into place."