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Pope John senior catcher Andrew Pami (6) holds up the NJSIAA trophy after coach James Manco showed the coveted hardware to his Lions as the Sussex County team defeated MKA, 5-1, Friday, to win Non-Public, North B state sectional title in the contest which include both rain and a 50-minute lightning delay in seventh inning. (Sideline Chatter photos)
MONTCLAIR- Pope John senior catcher and clean-up hitter Andrew Pami didn’t mind too much having to sit through a 50-minute lightning delay before his batterymate Jack Portman could record the final two outs to seal the deal on the Lions’ NJSIAA Non-Public B, North state sectional title.
And after play resumed, Portman quickly recorded a pair of strikeouts and the Sussex County school had its championship with a 5-1 victory over top-seeded Montclair Kimberley Academy at Barrett Field.
The sixth-seeded Lions (13-13) jumped on top early in the contest while batting around in the top of the first inning, scoring three runs helped along by three MKA errors plus Portman’s hard-hit solo home run that sailed over the right-center field fence.
Then, it was a matter of following up freshman starting pitcher Beckett Weeks’ solid five innings of work and then a strong two innings of relief by Portman to close the door on any hopes of a comeback by top-seeded MKA (18-7)
“This is worth the wait, especially with the way we’ve all battled back this season to play some of our best baseball in the state tournament,” said Pami, who was 2-for-4 and delivered a big 2-run single in the sixth inning to provide some breathing room for the Lions. “We have a close-knit team which just keeps working hard and we’ve paid our dues along the way against a really strong schedule.
“It’s fun back there catching both Beckett and Jack and they both did their jobs today.”
Weeks (4-1) got out of a bases-loaded, 1-out situation in the second inning by inducing a 6-4-3 double play to end the threat, and although he allowed two baserunners in both the third and fourth innings the only damage came when MKA’s Brooks Barrett raced home after trying to steal third and Pami’s throw sailed into left field.
In finishing his five innings of work, Weeks threw 73 pitches while allowing three hits and one run (unearned) while walking four and striking out two.
Portman, a senior, who entered the contest with a 0.88 ERA in 24 innings pitched, closed the door on MKA with two innings of hitless relief while walking one and striking out four, including the side in the bottom of the seventh, albeit with two of them coming after the nearly 1-hour lightning delay.
“Beckett is a young pitcher who just keeps getting better,” said Pope John coach James Manco. “After he threw a bunch of pitches (18) in the fourth when MKA put two runners on and scored their only run, he then bounced right back with a quick 1-2-3 and efficient (9 pitch) inning in the fifth before we decided to bring Jack in, and he has a real nice slider and cutter which kept the MKA batters off balance.”
Pope John (13-13) reached the .500 mark with the win over the Cougars (18-7) and will next face South B champ and No. 6 ranked Gloucester Catholic (23-3) in Wednesday’s 4 p.m. Non-Public B state final at Veterans Park in Hamilton.
Gloucester Catholic, which defeated state-ranked Bishop Eustace, 5-1, in the South B final, also on Friday afternoon, will be seeking its third straight overall Non-Public B state championship and record 23rd state title when it takes on the Lions on Wednesday.
“We know what we’re up against in the state final,” continued Pami. “But we’ve been facing really good teams all season long and while we’ve taken some lumps along the way, it’s also made us stronger.”
Pope John, which went 6-6 in the tough Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference’s American Division, faced solid Morris County programs this season including two games against state powers Delbarton and Morris Knolls along with Mendham which reached a North 2, Group 2 state sectional final and Roxbury.
Among the other formidable opponents in independent contests were Non-Public North A champion Don Bosco Prep and runner-up DePaul, along with St. Joseph of Montvale and Bergen Catholic.
MKA, which shared a Super Essex Conference-Colonial Division championship with Cedar Grove, had a strong overall season under second-year head coach Mike Sasso, who will bid adieu to solid seniors such as quad captains Quinn Carlesimo (4-year starting infielder set to play at Williams College), Alessandro Rizio (team’s standout No. 1 starter on the mound who pitched very well in beating both Newark Academy and St. Thomas Aquinas in the quarterfinals and semis in Non-Public, North B), Jake Rendino (4-year starting outfielder) and Brooks Barrett (valuable pitcher and infielder).
However, the Cougars will return some strong, young talents including freshman pitcher Mason Ewing, who relieved Barrett in the second inning and had one of his top outings of the season throwing 81 pitches while working five strong innings allowing four hits and two runs while walking one and striking out four.
Other young pitchers such as freshman Henry Court and sophomore Wes Narucki are also set to return next year along with sophomore starting catcher Lucas Barbetta and sophomore first baseman-pitcher Shea Ievers.
“We lose some tremendous seniors, but we also have some really talented underclassmen coming back,” said Sasso. “It was a strong season this spring and the kids really worked hard to make this a very successful season!”
NON-PUBLIC NORTH B STATE SECTIONAL FINAL AT MKA
(6) POPE JOHN (13-13) 300 002 0 -5 R 7 H 1 E
(1) MKA (18-7) 000 100 0 -1 R 3 H 4 E
2B- PJ- Brody O’Hara HR- Jack Portman
WP- Beckett Weeks LP- Brooks Barrett Save- Portman
Follow Steve Tober on 'X' @Chattermeister 
MKA's senior center fielder Jake Rendino hugs coach Mike Sasso as he prepares to leave the field after playing his final high school game as the Cougars fell to Pope John, 5-1, in the June 6 Non-Public, North B final.
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