Jimmy Mulvaney pitched St. Joseph (Met.) to the Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament title.
It was another truly great season of high school baseball as Don Bosco Prep won its second straight state title to repeat as the No. 1 team in the NJ.com Top 20.
And the New Jersey baseball community saw Morris Knolls win its first-ever NJSIAA group championship when the Golden Eagles grabbed the Group 3 crown.
Jim Maher, the longtime Hamilton West coach, stepped back into a head coaching role at Lawrence and performed his usual sleight of hand, leading the Cardinals to the NJSIAA Central Jersey, Group 3 final. Maher, who has a career record of 450-196, led Lawrence to its first winning season since 1997 and first sectional championship game berth since 1974. Lawrence had won five games in 2022.
While the Maher/Lawrence success was arguably the story of the year, we had plenty to brag about here at Diamond Nation, where our Diamond Jacks players had their own individual success stories.
There were All-Group, All-Area and All-Conference honors bestowed upon our Diamond Jacks for outstanding season-long performances.
The seven All-Group honorees include Eli Foster of Seton Hall Prep, tabbed on the All-Non-Public Second Team, and St. Joseph of Metuchen’s Jimmy Mulvaney and Logan Eilbacher of Notre Dame as Third Team All-Non-Public selections.
Mike Contiliano (2nd Team) of Hunterdon Central and John Donahue (3rd Team) of Montgomery were selected to All-Group 4. The All-Group 3 Second Team boasts excellent two-way talent Ian Kaiser of Montville. And Brett Patten of Manasquan earned his way onto the All-Group 2 First Team.
Contiliano was also named the Hunterdon County Player of the Year and Foster named an All-Essex County First Team honoree.
Hunterdon Central’s Mike Contiliano was named MVP of the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament.
Logan Eilbacher was joined on the Trenton Times All-Area team by his twin brother Lance Eilbacher and Kellen Moore of Lawrenceville. Mulvaney and St. Joe’s and Diamond Jacks teammate Robbie Carvelli also earned All-Greater Middlesex Conference in the big schools’ Red Division.
Kaiser and his Montville and Diamond Jack teammate Logan Force earned First Team All-Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference in the American Division.
Another Diamond Jack in the Union County Conference, Anthony Denora of Gov. Livingston, earned First Team Watchung Division.
The Skyland Conference, which encompasses Hunterdon, Somerset and Warren counties and is always loaded with Diamond Jacks, saw its coaches honor 16 players from the program this season.
Eli Foster of Seton Hall Prep was selected Second Team All-Non Public and All-Essex County.
Contiliano is joined by Immaculata’s Jayson Labrador, Martin Howell of Watchung Hills and Hillsborough’s Matthew Wescott and Graham Ross on the First Team. Contiliano’s Hunterdon Central teammate Jimmy Lundari, Matt Moore of Bridgewater-Raritan and Danny Ferguson of Immaculata earned Second Team Delaware Division honors
Diamond Jacks honored in the Raritan Division are Donahue and Somerville’s Brayden Keller and Chase Koplitz on the First Team and Alex Famolari of North Hunterdon and Somerville’s C.J. Banos and Ryan Ciesla on the Second Team. Jack Reardon of Delaware Valley earned First Team honors in the Mountain Division and Nick Lorenzo was tabbed a First Team selection in the Valley Division.