Beau Hall pitched a one-hitter over four innings and Ocean City defeated Woodrow Wilson, 10-1, in the opening round of the NJSIAA Group 3 Tournament. The game was played at Hammonton Lake Park because of wet conditions in Ocean City.

Hall struck out six and walked just one while gaining his seventh win of the season. Justin Healey and Christian Candeloro each had a double and a single as the Raiders overcame their five errors. OCHS will now play the winner of Wednesday’s game between Moorestown and Winslow Township.

The complete OCHS spring sports schedule, plus results, is here.

Brent Bean isn’t satisfied with the startling improvement his Atlantic City High School baseball team has made this spring. The Vikings’ second-year head coach has his squad headed to South Jersey Group IV playoff tournament for the first time in 12 years but knows successful high school programs must always have an eye on the future.

It’s a necessity considering the fact that every athletic team routinely loses about a quarter of its roster every June, as students graduate and move on. That’s why developing a strong youth baseball presence in Atlantic City’s sending districts, including Brigantine, Longport, Margate and Ventnor, is so important to Coach Bean.

He hoped to make strides in that department last weekend, when his Vikings teamed up to host a youth clinic with Atlantic City’s softball program. The training session took place on the morning of Saturday, May 12, offering free lessons for players ages 7-14. Add a comment

LINWOOD – Meagan Gatley always wanted to compete in a long-distance road race. Although that desire never wavered, she struggled to find the necessary spark required to commit to such an arduous training regimen.

That changed last winter.

Gatley, a 20-year-old Linwood resident, returned home for break following the 2011 fall semester and her mind began to stir.

Just a month earlier, she lost her beloved grandfather, Jim Lane, to Leukemia. The same devastating disease also took away her uncle, Mark Lane, in November 2010.

Komo, center, was joined at the Holy Cross Hall of Fame ceremony by his wife Karen, left, and daughter Katharine.

WORCESTER, Mass. – The College of the Holy Cross Varsity Club inducted former baseball standout and Absecon resident Ken Komodzinski (Komo), into the school’s Athletic Hall of Fame on Saturday, May 5.  The Class of 1960 graduate was honored with a celebration of his playing career as a Crusader.

A plaque adorned with Komo’s name was unveiled in the Hart Recreation Center on the Varsity Club Hall of Fame Board. Honorees were formally inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame at a special dinner held at the Hogan Campus Center. 

Komo was a third baseman and center fielder for the Holy Cross baseball team from 1958-1960, helping lead the team to an overall record of 40-17 during his collegiate career. He led the Crusaders in batting average (.340) and hits (33) as a sophomore in 1958, while ranking second on the squad in runs batted in (17).

Komo led the team to an exciting College World Series appearance in 1958, hitting 9-for-18 in Omaha, Neb. as Holy Cross posted victories over Southern California and Clemson.

LINWOOD – Melanie Malcolm might be the area’s most dominant middle school girls basketball player. Now she’s ready to prove she can make a similar impact against Cape-Atlantic League competition.

The eighth-grade student at Belhaven Middle School shattered multiple records during her career as a member of the Lady Falcons basketball program. This past winter, the 5-foot-8 forward averaged 14 points per contest in 28 games, leading the team to a 20-9 record under head coach Brian Coyle.

As a rebounder, she was perhaps even more impressive. Malcolm pulled down approximately 10 rebounds per game, with more than half of her total rebounds coming on the offensive glass.

Rutgers University, the state university of New Jersey, hosted the first intercollegiate football game in history when it defeated Princeton in 1869. Nearly a century and a half later, the school still maintains a historic tradition in the sport and its gridiron lineage has included many athletes from our region.

The Scarlet Knights current roster includes Absegami graduate Ben Martin, Egg Harbor Township alum Tejay Johnson and Glassboro native Paul James. Last week, Lower Cape May Regional senior wide receiver Vance Matthews announced his intentions to join the program this summer as a preferred walk-on player.

Recently, Rutgers’ roster included former South Jersey standouts Jack Corcoran (St. Joe’s) and George Johnson (Glassboro High School), who each used their careers as Scarlet Knights to springboard onto rosters in the National Football League.

For the past eleven years, the man maintaining the bridge between Rutgers’ home base in Piscataway and the southern portion of the state was head coach Greg Schiano. The veteran play caller approached iconic status in New Jersey just a few years ago, when he led a long-suffering Scarlet Knights program to national prominence and coached up current NFL starters like Ray Rice, Devin McCourty, Kenny Britt and Anthony Davis along the way

Schiano is no longer the face of the program, as he departed this January to accept the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ head coaching position.

His replacement – longtime Rutgers assistant Kyle Flood – recently joined me for a discussion on The South Jersey Sports Report on 97.3 ESPN FM. Coach Flood spoke about Rutgers’ current direction and how he plans to maintain the team’s strong ties with South Jersey’s high school football programs.

MAYS LANDING – Egg Harbor Township High School’s boys lacrosse program is in the midst of a successful season, ranked among elites atop the Cape-Atlantic League standings. Fueled by consistent scoring and motivated defensive play, the Eagles have emerged as a legitimate league title contender this spring.

Coach Brett Hoffecker’s squad stayed hot on Monday, May 7 with a sterling performance at Oakcrest High School. EHT jumped out to an early lead on the road and continued to extend its advantage as the game progressed, earning an impressive 10-0 victory.

The Eagles tallied five goals in the first quarter to seize control of the contest. A concerted defensive effort took care of the rest, as EHT kept the host Falcons’ scoring attack in a stranglehold throughout the afternoon.

These EHT seniors were all smiles after signing with their respective colleges.

EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP – While scanning the media room at Egg Harbor Township High School on Monday afternoon, it was hard not to pick up the positive vibes. There were smiles all around and an overwhelming sense of school pride quickly became apparent.

Parents, coaches, administrators and student-athletes gathered to celebrate the culmination of eight impressive high school sports careers. With athletic director Michael Pellegrino playing the role of master of ceremonies, eight Eagles signed on to attend schools of their choice, where each will compete in the athletic spectrum.

“It’s an amazing accomplishment that came as the result of countless hours of hard work and dedication,” Pellegrino said. “This is a proud moment for any high school athletic department.” Add a comment

Talented guard Justin Knight will play in Italy this summer.

AMBLER, Pa. – Frank Champion and Justin Knight are no strangers to a wide variety of competition. Each athlete excelled on the basketball court against Cape-Atlantic League opponents during their high school careers.

Champion, a 2009 Mainland Regional graduate, was a dominant low-post player and ranked among the region’s top rebounders as a Mustang. Knight averaged nearly 16 points per game and emerged as one of the region’s most versatile scorers as a senior at Oakcrest in 2011.

Both have embarked on collegiate basketball careers that have proven to be successful endeavors. They have flourished together as members of Gwynedd-Mercy College’s basketball program.

Champion, a junior, continues to develop into a team leader and consistent starter, while Knight enjoyed a sensational freshman season this past winter.

Later this month, their respective hoops journeys will continue to cross paths and take the duo to unfamiliar territory. The pair of South Jersey standouts are prepared to take their talents across the pond for a 10-day tour of Italy, where opportunities for growth await on and off the court.

UFC fighter Gray Maynard spoke to EHT students.

EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP— It’s always a unique experience returning to the high school from which you graduated.

Dave Sholler, the Director of Communications for Ultimate Fighting Championship and 2002 Egg Harbor Township High School graduate, returned to the halls of his alma mater on Wednesday, April 18.

He brought UFC competitor Gray Maynard to share his thoughts with students. Subjects discussed ranged from being a professional athlete, nutrition, and exuding confidence.

The duo was in the area promoting a June 22 fight between Maynard and Clay Guida at Revel.

Maynard has one of the fastest knock outs in UFC history (nine seconds). Sholler addressed the room filled with wrestlers, football players, baseball players and track and field competitors.

“To be an athlete or to work in athletics, sports is a 365-day job,” Sholler said. “You can’t cut corners.”