The Vikings’ Brayden Morrison rocked an RBI double to fuel his team’s five-run first inning.
By Rich Bevensee
The Union Catholic baseball team enjoyed nearly unparalleled success last spring, posting its highest win total in nine years and reaching the Union County Tournament final for the first time since Ronald Reagan lived in the White House.
But the Vikings are not settling for making history. The way you can tell is how they aim to treat every appearance they make in the Diamond Nation High School Fall League.
“I feel like if we continue to do what we’re doing, keep living in the moment, we’re on the right track,” said senior shortstop Greg Viloria, a starter since his freshman season. “We’re taking it day by day. Obviously the goal is to go back to the county chip, but we don’t want a repeat. We want to win it this year, and I think we can.”
Viloria and the starters who remain on the roster from last spring are back to lead this new pack of Vikings by example. In their Fall League season opener, Vikings Baseball broke out with a five-run first inning and rode that lead to a 6-5 victory over Flemington American Legion Post 159 on Tuesday evening at ‘The Nation.’
Junior Brayden Morrison, easily Union Catholic’s offensive MVP last spring, rocked the biggest hit of the game, an RBI double to right center which fueled his team’s five-run first inning.
Ryan Gianchiglia got the Vikings rolling with a leadoff single and eventually scored on a Luigi Sacca grounder. Viloria scored on the same grounder after an errant throw to first. After Morrison’s blow, Brian McCabe shot an RBI single into left and Jay Sporer added a sacrifice fly.
The lead grew to 6-0 in the third when E.J. Onyschak reached on a fielder’s choice, stole second and third, and scored on a wild pitch.
Morrison is the team’s leading candidate to attract Division 1 offers and one of the Vikings’ best examples to inspire the younger ones to elevate their work ethic.
Morrison, a 6-foot, 185-pound catcher, led the Vikings last spring in batting average (.455), hits (35), RBIs (28) and doubles (five). It’s his receiving that he wants to improve in order to lead the Vikings to another historical season and to catch the eye of college scouts.
“My throws have definitely gotten a lot better, a lot stronger. My accuracy, too. And my blocking and receiving has improved a lot,” Morrison said. “The hardest thing to work on was my arm. Throwing heavier balls, footballs, things like that, things I couldn’t do just by lifting. I really want to play D1 and have an opportunity to play as a freshman. I’m trying to let the baseball speak for itself.”
Behind Morrison and Viloria last spring, the Vikings reached the championship game of the Union County Tournament for the first time since 1984, bowing to eventual Group 2 state champ Gov. Livingston. The Vikings finished the season 17-9. It was their best win total since the program went 21-6-1 in 2014, the final high school season for Union Catholic head coach and former Vikings standout Anthony Colletti.
The veteran players believe that, beginning with the Fall League competition, all of their work can result in surpassing that historical campaign.
“I came in as a freshman and I had a big role right away, but the key was I didn’t try to do too much, just contribute,” Viloria said. “The freshmen have to stay true to themselves, don’t get too big, and fill the role properly. We have a great group of guys, and the freshmen are good. They’re going to make an impact.”
One player who contributed a great deal to the Vikings’ success last spring as a freshman was right-hander Chris Tortorella, now a sophomore, who threw two shutout innings against Flemington Post 159. He allowed just one hit, walked none and struck out three.
Another soph, Gio German, also threw a pair of shutout innings and allowed just one hit.
The Vikings very nearly squandered the opportunity to celebrate their league opener, as Flemington Post 159 rallied in the top of the sixth after the game clock expired.
Nick Doyle scored on a passed ball to spoil the Vikings’ shutout bid. L.T. Parillo scored on an infield error on a Brady Sponzo grounder, and Mason Jacquish scored on a throwing error when Sponzo stole second base.
Luke Schenkel made it 6-4 when he smacked an opposite-field RBI single into right, and Michael Parillo got Post 159 within a run when he coaxed a bases-loaded walk.
With the bases still loaded and two out, Vikings reliever Cody Alicea, who entered in the fifth, induced the final out with a groundout.
For Post 159, Michael Parillo threw one inning and allowed five runs (three earned) on three hits and three walks with one strikeout. L.T. Parillo allowed one run in three innings on one hit and one walk with four strikeouts. And Andrew Fisher pitched a scoreless fifth with a walk, a hit batsman and a strikeout.