STEM Civics joins suburban teams this spring
Five Trentonian-area Burlington County Scholastic League baseball teams are ready to jump into action Monday when the 2023 New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletics Association season gets underway.
Hamilton-based Trenton Catholic Preparatory Academy, which for a second year in a row did not have numbers, won’t be one of those squads, but Ewing-based STEM Civics will be. The Purple Lightning rise to varsity for the first time after playing a junior varsity schedule in 2022.
“This season is mainly about growing the program and getting the kids to learn the right way to play,” said STEM Civics head coach Jim Becker, who was with the team a year ago when it finished above .500 at JV. “The boys really bonded last year. We want to keep that positive atmosphere going.”
Though their school is in the old Incarnation-St. James Parish building on Pennington Road, the Purple Lightning will play their home games at Trenton’s Babe Ruth League field.
With its lone senior, first baseman Ariel Cardenas-Hernandes, providing leadership, STEM Civics will compete in the BCSL’s Independence Division, along with Westampton Tech, Medford Tech, Doane Academy and Willingboro.
Northern Burlington figures to be one of the best teams in the BCSL’s Liberty Division again this season. Second-year head coach Gene Darling returns 11 players from a team which went 17-9 last spring.
Although the Greyhounds may not have quite the firepower they had a year ago (with the graduation of home run hitters like Drew Wyers and C.J. Fredericks), they still have plenty of talent in returning seniors Franklin Peters (catcher), Matteo Mannino (outfield/right-handed pitcher), Ryan Caloiaro (first base/outfield/righthanded pitcher), Braden Dromboski (shortstop) and Ryan Kochie (outfield).
“What we lost is irreplaceable,” Darling said. “Different guys will have to step up.”
Northern will be joined in the Liberty by Burlington Township, plus former Patriot Division teams Delran (division champion), Cinnaminson and Bordentown.
Twelfth-year head coach Chris Glenn’s scrappy Scotties are led by a handful of seniors after going 13-11 in 2022. John Bassett (outfielder/right-handed pitcher/ catcher), Matt Nemes (catcher/ right-handed pitcher), Jack Runner (third baseman/right-handed pitcher) and newcomer Will Sikorski (outfielder) will be leaders for an otherwise young B’town squad.
“We’re pretty battle-tested with the guys who will be our everyday players,” Glenn said. “We’re hoping that, come playoff time, we’ll be ready.”.
New Egypt and Florence were in the Freedom Division last season. This year, they climb to the Patriot Division, where they will compete with defending Freedom champ Maple Shade, defending Independence Division champ Burlington City and Pennsauken, formerly of the Liberty Division.
The Warriors will have a new head coach in former assistant Mike Kibildis, but will also have five upperclassmen back from a New Egypt team which went 15-7 overall last spring.
Seniors Connor Stillwell (outfielder/right-handed pitcher), Zach Jenkins (catcher), Shaun Dessel (first baseman/righthanded pitcher), plus Jesse Fernandez and Mike Cucci (both outfielders/right-handed pitchers) figure to keep an otherwise young lineup grounded.
“To start, we’re telling the guys, ‘Win the week.’ We’re hoping to be playing our best ball in May,” Kibildis said. “Our pitching and defense have looked good so far, which is helpful because we’re hoping to compete in our new division.”
The Flashes have a similar hope after going 10-7 overall and 4-4 in the Freedom last year. Seventh-year head coach Kyle Ballay’s
Florence club will have six seniors leading the way with infielders/right-handed pitchers Jake Fajgier and Artie Piotrowski, outfielder Chris Krall, left-handed pitcher/first baseman Ryan Slater, right-handed pitcher/all-purpose player Ryan Olaff and catcher/infielder Jon Reyes.
“We have a young, yet veteran group,” Ballay said. “Our starting pitchers should be O.K. We can move a lot of guys around, and we have a lot of guys who can hit.”
That sounds like the mix every high school baseball team would like as it heads into its varsity campaign.