Highlanders Fall to Cranford in UCT Baseball Final

Being the top seed in the Union County Tournament, the Cranford Cougars would be right to come into the finals with some expectation of winning it.  

Having won the tournament in 2010, there is a certain pressure to repeat the team’s winning ways.

“We knew we had to hit the ball hard and stay ahead of them,” said Cougar left fielder Mark Osofsky after Cranford downed the Governor Livingston Highlanders 14-1 at Kean University’s Jim Hynes Stadium on Saturday. “Every bat was able to help out today.”  

They did not waste time in that effort.

In the first inning the Cougars got on the board first thanks to  Osofsky’s two-run triple. At this point in the game, the Highlander fans who came out to the stadium were hoping that  pitcher Joey Graziano was still working out the kinks.

Graziano is a  good pitcher,” cougars coach Dennis McCaffery said. “He plays us tough.”

The UCT final, however, was not to be used as a chance to prove pitching prowess; a pitcher either has his mojo or he doesn’t and on this day, the baseball gods must have conspired against him as Graziano was rocked for eight runs and eight hits in a disastrous second inning for the Highlanders.

“Graziano was just not on today,” Highlander coach Chris Roof. “His stuff was hanging high over the plate.”

The Cougars’ Eric Garguilo kicked off the second inning with a double, followed by another single by Ryan Williamson and a successful bunt by Chris Folinusz. The team then batted through the rest of the lineup picking up seven runs, including a two-run homer by Osofsky, who went 2-for-3 with four RBI, before  Garguilo, Williamson and Folinusz returned to the plate for a second time that inning. 

“Our bats just found the holes and we filled them.” McCaffery said. “We took good swings and filled holes.”

With 10 runs under their belts after second inning, the Cougars exploded again in the fifth, with a two-run RBI double by Andrew DeFrancesco and picked up another run on a bases-loaded walk.

The Highlanders' run came when Jennings reached third on a poorly played pop fly. He scored on Skinner's groundout.

Governor Livingston, who was the tournament’s second seed, entered the contest looking for their first county championship in three tries.

"We just lost,” Roof said. “Everyone over there (Cougars) came out swinging. I have to give it to all of them.”

When asked how it felt to win the UCT two years in a row, McCaffery said: “We just give each game our all and take it one at a time.”

Cranford has now won 7 of the last 13 UCT crowns under McCaffery's guidance.

Meanwhile, The Highlanders (17-5) will set their sights on a Group 2 state championship, where this talented team remains a favorite.