WEST ORANGE- Whenever Seton Hall Prep sends ace right-hander Marcelo Harsch to the mound it is a pretty good bet that the Pirates will be difficult to score on that afternoon.
And when the lineup is putting together high-quality at bats like it has lately, SHP can be a very formidable obstacle for anyone on the 2025 New Jersey high school baseball landscape with its full package of premium pitching, solid hitting and stellar defense.
Harsch (4-0) was his usual stellar self as he tossed a 2-hitter, and top-seeded SHP (16-1) also rode a potent 11-hit attack highlighted by junior slugger Jordan Burwell’s three hits, including a second-inning, 2-run home run, along with 5 RBI on the way to a 10-0 win in 5 innings vs. fourth-seeded Millburn (10-10) in the semifinals of the 92nd Greater Newark Tournament on a sunny and very windy Saturday afternoon at Porcello Field.
In the second GNT semifinals, second-seeded Livingston battled from behind, scoring two runs in the bottom of the seventh to tie third-seeded West Essex, 2-2, and send the contest into extra innings where Ben Lubetsky’s sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 10th inning provided the Lancers with a 3-2 victory over the Knights.
The Pirates, who defeated Livingston, 6-0, in last year’s GNT final with Harsch tossing the shutout, will meet the Lancers once again this time for the 2025 title at noon next Saturday afternoon at Doc Goeltz Field in Verona.
Harsch, who was once again under the scrutiny of several major league scouts in attendance for Saturday’s semifinals at Porcello Field, was very economical vs. Millburn, needing just 57 pitches to record 15 outs while walking one, hitting a batter and striking out six.
The strong winds which created a bit of a chill in the air but that did not hinder the effectiveness of the Pirates’ outstanding senior hurler.
“Being from the Northeast you see everything, and I’ve pitched through wind and 30 degrees, so today wasn’t bad out there,” said Harsch. “The weather we have here in New Jersey makes us all pretty resilient.
“Most of all, I was able to throw strikes and limit the number of pitches I needed to get outs, plus I know that I always have a great defense behind me.”
The tone of the contest was established early on as Harsch had a quick 5-minute, 15-pitch top of the first inning while allowing just a Peter Lawrence single and striking out the side.
Then, the Pirates’ deep lineup went to work making it a much more strenuous bottom of the first for the Millers.
SHP certainly made Millburn’s outstanding sophomore left-hander Leo Dalton work hard to get through the inning. The young southpaw, who entered the contest as the Millers’ best pitcher on the season with a 0.75 ERA in 28 innings, wound up needing 30 pitches to get through the 15-minute-long frame while allowing two runs, including an RBI single by Burwell.
And that deep Pirates lineup was instrumental in making Dalton (2 IP, 6 HA, 5 R, 5 ER, 3 BB, 1 K) and the Millers stay out on the field sending eight men to the plate with pitch-count-building at bats of five or more pitches by SHP’s No. 6 through 8 hitters, including a bases-loaded, RBI walk by No. 7 hitter Santino Czarecki, and a hard lineout to center by No. 8 hitter Devin Aiken for the third out of the frame.
SHP then took a commanding lead with three runs in the bottom of the second inning with singles by Kaden Frei and Henry Ayers (2-for-2 with 2 walks), with Frei then coming home on a 2-base error by the Millburn outfield, and followed by Burwell’s booming 2-run homer over the right field fence for a 5-0 lead.
“I just try and stay competitive and positive at the plate and try not to lose myself up there,” said the West Virginia commit. (3-for-3 with 2 runs and the 5 RBI) “We have such a deep lineup and it’s so much fun every day learning from each and every one of our guys which makes me a better player and person.”
SHP sent eight men to the plate and added three more runs in the third inning helped along by another Millers error and then Burwell greeted Millburn’s third pitcher, Jake Roesler (1 1/3 IP, 5 HA, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 1 HBP), with a hard shot to deep center field for a 2-run double to make it 8-0.
Roesler had relieved Alex Faust (2/3 IP, 0 HA, 3 R 0 ER) who entered the contest in the top of the third after Dalton threw 50 pitches in the first two frames.
The Pirates created the 10-run cushion to end the game in the bottom of the fifth on an RBI single by Will Mahala (2-for-3 with a double).
“I’m very happy with the way we’re swinging the bats, barreling up a lot and even our outs are tough outs,” said SHP’s longtime coach Mike Sheppard, Jr. “I think a couple of balls would have been out if it wasn’t so windy, but all told, things worked out in our favor.
“Marcelo had a low pitch count, our hitters had good at bats, and our defense made the plays.
“We’re playing some good baseball, getting better and it looks like we’re on the rise at the right time with the tournaments here.”
NOTES- Harsch said that he effectively utilized what he calls ‘a small slider’ combined with his ‘big slider’ and a sinker…As far as being under the watchful eye on major league scouts every time that he takes the mound this season, the Pirates’ Wake Forest commit said, “When I’m up there on the mound I don’t even realize that they’re there and I’m just focused on pitching.”…SHP will be without standout junior pitcher Patrick Cassels for the remainder of the season as he deals with an arm injury. Senior Roman Baldwin, who has had superb recent starts vs. both the Hun School and Ridge, will assume the role as the Pirates’ No. 3 starter behind Harsch and the outstanding Boston College senior commit JJ Drennan, who was at third base in Saturday’s GNT semis alongside senior shortstop Michael Bravette who provide lockdown defense on the left side of the infield for SHP.
92nd Greater Newark Tournament semifinals, Saturday, May 10, at Porcello Field
(4) MILLBURN (10-10) 000 00 - 0 R 2 H 3 E
(1) SETON HALL PREP (16-1) 232 12 -10 R 11 H 0 E
2B- SHP- Jordan Burwell, Santino Czarecki, Will Mahala HR- SHP-Burwell
WP- Marcelo Harsch (4-0) LP- Leo Dalton
Follow Steve Tober on 'X' @Chattermeister
GREATER NEWARK TOURNAMENT CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES:
2024: Seton Hall Prep 6 Livingston 0
2023: Millburn 3 Seton Hall Prep 0
2022: Seton Hall Prep 15 Bloomfield 0 (in 5 inn.)
2021: Millburn 6 Seton Hall Prep 5 (in 11 inn.)
2020: No tournament due to covid-19
2019: Montclair 10 Seton Hall Prep 0
2018: Livingston 8 Nutley 3
2017: Seton Hall Prep 4 Millburn 2
2016: Seton Hall Prep 11, Nutley 1
2015: Seton Hall Prep 12, Millburn 6
2014: Seton Hall Prep 7, Cedar Grove 6
2013: Seton Hall Prep 4, Montclair 2
2012: Montclair 2, Nutley 1
2011: Seton Hall Prep 8, Millburn 2
2010: West Essex 5, Columbia 4
2009: Livingston 5, Nutley 4
2008: Seton Hall Prep 8, Millburn 7 (8 inn.)
2007: Seton Hall Prep 5, Newark East Side 1
2006: West Essex 5, Seton Hall Prep 2
2005: Seton Hall Prep 11, Nutley 0
2004: Nutley 3, Seton Hall Prep 2
2003: Seton Hall Prep 3, Nutley 0
2002: Nutley 6, Seton Hall Prep 2
2001: Nutley 5, Seton Hall Prep 3
2000: Seton Hall Prep 3, Livingston 1
1999: Seton Hall Prep 4, Columbia 3
1998: Seton Hall Prep 6, Essex Catholic 4
1997: Seton Hall Prep 5, Bloomfield 2
1996: Bloomfield 3, Livingston 0
1995: Columbia 1, Belleville 0
1994: East Side 4, Glen Ridge 3
1993: Nutley 10, West Essex 3
1992: East Side 5, Seton Hall Prep 2
1991: Livingston 7, Cedar Grove 6
1990: Seton Hall Prep 13, Columbia 0
1989: Glen Ridge 7, Livingston 0
1988: Cedar Grove 5, Livingston 3
1987: Glen Ridge 3, Irvington 0
1986: Columbia 9, Belleville 8 (8 inn.)
1985: Cedar Grove 2, Caldwell 1 (8 inn.)
1984: Millburn 4, Nutley 3
1983: Seton Hall Prep 3, Glen Ridge 1
1982: Caldwell 4, Glen Ridge 1
1981: Belleville 10, Glen Ridge 4
1980: Livingston 8, Belleville 6
1979: Columbia 5, Livingston 4
1978: Columbia 3, Our Lady of the Valley 2
1977: Livingston 9, Seton Hall Prep 1
1976: Livingston 6, Essex Catholic 4
1975: Essex Catholic 5, Irvington 1
1974: Livingston 5, Verona 1
1973: Our Lady of the Valley 3, Bloomfield 1
GNT has been Essex County teams only since 1973.
GNT also included teams from outside Essex County from 1933-1972.
1972: Ewing 7, Bloomfield 3
1971: Seton Hall Prep 7, Haddonfield 2
1970: Union 5, Ewing 1
1969: Morristown 12, Montclair 3
1968: Morristown 2, Piscataway 1
1967: Morristown 5, Roselle Catholic 4
1966: Union 2, Parsippany 1
1965: Parsippany 5, Westfield 3
1964: St. Benedict’s Prep 6, Montclair 5
1963: Montclair 6, St. Benedict’s 3
1962: Garfield 6, Nutley 0
1961: South River 5, Linden 3
1960: New Brinswick 3, East Side 0
1959: Bayonne 14, Verona 8
1958: St. Peter’s Prep 3, Hanover Park 1
1957: Rahway 3, Irvington 2
1956: New Brunswick 11, Barringer 0
1955: Jefferson 7, Montclair 6
1954: Montclair 8, Englewood 0
1953: Englewood 9, Irvington 4
1952: Bloomfield 3, Nutley 0
1951: Linden 8, Jefferson 3
1950: Rahway 9, East Side 7
1949: Bayonne 3, Montclair 2
1948: Montclair 1, Irvington 0
1947: Irvington 6, Columbia 0
1946: East Side 4, Roselle Park 2
1945: Bloomfield 5, Columbia 0
1944: Caldwell 9, Bloomfield 0
1943: Kearny 6, Hillside 3
1942: Montclair 3, Irvington 2
1941: Hillside 9, Kearny 5
1940: Irvington 2, Trenton 0
1939: Irvington 4, Woodbridge 3
1938: Irvington 6, South River 1
1937: Hillside 8, Bloomfield 4
1936: Hillside 11, Nutley 2
1935: Bloomfield 4, Hillside 3
1934: Hillside 5, Barringer 1
1933: Irvington 1, Kearny 0
*GNT historical information from Jeff Goldberg
