BY JOSH LASHLEY
WEST MILFORD — This past season was full of excitement, victorious moments and great memories for the West Milford High School baseball program. The Highlanders finished with double digit wins - 11 - and they advanced the NJSIAA North 1 Group 3 Sectional Tournament where they were defeated by River Dell.
Even when they fell short, often times it was very close as West Milford lost seven games by just one run.
“Our win over top seeded Clifton in the Passaic County quarterfinals stood out because Clifton was the unanimous No. 1 seed in the county tournament and we got an incredible pitching performance from senior Zack Licursi who threw a one-hit shutout to send us to the semifinals for the second straight year where we would later lose to Passaic Tech in nine innings on a very controversial ending,” West Milford head coach Joe Jordan said.
“We also had some really great moments on our home field. We hosted the second ‘Rivals U-Night’ benefit on April 21 and beat previously undefeated Lakeland, 4-1, while raising money for scholarships for both programs while honoring those who have been lost from both programs especially our own, Ben Jurgensen and Chris Boes, who meant so much to our program.
“Our 6-5, 11-inning win over Wayne Hills on May 1 also was really memorable as we were down 5-1 in the seventh inning and scored four runs with two outs and three batters were down to their final strike. Senior captain Nick Szuszkowski got the winning RBI single in the 11th inning which was his fourth hit of the game. It was a testament to our kids and their heart for never giving up. We also hosted our first ever Little League/Senior Night on May 19 versus DePaul which we won, 3-0. It was a great community event that combined the present and future of West Milford baseball. We had a great turnout of little league players and families, and honored Ray Kilgallen and his family who our field is named after.”
Upperclassmen helped propel the Highlanders in a positive and inspiring direction this spring.
“Our senior captains Zack Licursi, JD Panicucci and Nick Szuszkowski really showed their leadership this season, all in their own ways, whether it be a big performance or play when we needed it, or just leading by example in the everyday functions of the team,” Jordan said. “All three young men are great role models for their peers. Zack Licursi was really a big part of our success this season. He pitched in every big game and when we needed him to come up big he did. He was voted First Team All-County and First Team All-Conference.
“Senior second baseman James Morrell led our team in hits, doubles and runs scored. James really worked hard to have a great senior season and he was rewarded being voted First Team All-Conference. Senior first baseman Jimmy Rauth had another great season, he was second on the team in hits and led the team in RBIs and gave us great defense at first base. He was voted Second Team All-County and Second Team All-Conference. Senior Cal Egan, although sidelined for most of the season on the mound as one of our top pitchers, was a presence for us at the plate as a big bat in the middle of our order. John Jacobs, junior shortstop, really emerged as an impact player for our team this season. John led our team with a .375 average and we will look to him to continue to make an impact in 2018.”
Speaking of 2018, Jordan is very much encouraged about his squads prospects for next season.
“We are losing eight seniors from our team that meant so much to our progress and success over the last two seasons, but at the same time had so many younger players gain valuable experience,” Jordan said. “Sophomore Zack Milko had 25 hits and was Second Team All-County and Second Team All-Conference. We had a sophomore catcher, Aidan McDaniel, who had a real solid season as a first year starter.
“Sophomore Chris Gomez who is a great utility player, and sophomores Mike Wis, Joey Hubinger and Brandon Licursi are all returning. There were times where we had five sophomores in our starting lineup and that will only help us next season. There are many variables to a season you cannot control like weather, injuries, slumps, but we are confident the returning group of players will continue to develop and keep our team in contention.”