Top performers from South Jersey baseball from first week of May
Here are some of the top performers on diamonds across our seven-county coverage area in South Jersey.
Which player had the best week? Here's your chance to vote for your choice in the poll at the bottom of the story. Voting will close on Thursday at 4 p.m.
Collingswood's Chase Ladik was last week's winner with 49.1 percent of the 27.2K votes recorded.
Records and stats are through Sunday's games.
More: Top performers from South Jersey baseball from fourth week of regular season
Burlington County Scholastic League
Edward DeJesus, Pennsauken. The senior batted .636 (7-for-11) with five runs scored and three RBIs as Pennsauken picked up three straight wins last week. DeJesus has collected a hit in nine of 11 games this season, leading the club in batting average (.529) and hits (18).
Luca Mannino, Northern Burlington. Despite being a 26th seed in the 50th annual Joe Hartmann Diamond Classic, the Greyhounds won its first two games of the tournament and Mannino played a pivotal role in both victories. He delivered two hits, including a double, RBI and run scored in a 3-1 win over Cherokee and had two hits and three RBIs in an 8-5 win over Pitman.
Timothy Morrell, Cinnaminson. The senior went 2-for-2 with two walks and two runs scored in a win over Northern Burlington on May 1. Two days later, he went 3-for-4 with two runs and three RBIs in a rout over Riverside. He’s batting .341 for the Buccos, who have won five in a row.
Colonial Conference
Anthony Priore, Haddon Heights. The senior started May on a torrid tear, collecting seven hits in 11 at-bats with seven RBIs and three runs scored. He went 4-for-4 and drove in five runs in a 16-1 victory over Haddon Township on May 2.
Joey Slavin, Audubon. The senior drove in seven runs as the Green Wave strung together three wins. Slavin knocked in a career-high four runs in a 12-0 victory over Haddon Township, had a run-scoring hit in a triumph over Bishop Eustace and two more RBIs in a win against Gateway. His 13 RBIs on the season rank second on the club.
Jacob Zearfoss, Gloucester. A three-sport stud has shined on the diamond this spring. Zearfoss has a hit in eight straight games and an RBI in four consecutive contests. He drove in six runs as Gloucester went 3-0 last week. The Rider-bound wrestler with batting .343 with 12 hits, 13 RBIs and 10 runs scored.
Olympic Conference
Grant Fournier, Cherry Hill West. The junior closed out the week with three straight multi-hit games, including a pair in the 50th annual Joe Hartmann Diamond Classic. He drove in five runs and crossed the plate three times. Fournier is hitting .484 for the season with 30 hits, 11 walks and 11 stolen bases. He's also knocked in 25 runs.
Andrew Shank, Lenape. The senior played a key role as Lenape rattled off four straight wins, including a pair of upsets in the Diamond Classic. Shank had a run scored and RBI in Lenape’s 6-2 win over Mainland in its tournament opener and tossed 7 2/3 shutout innings, giving up four hits and striking out eight, in a 5-1 victory over Moorestown in a nine-inning, second-round victory. Shank posted five hits and three RBIs in the other two wins against Cherry Hill East and Camden Catholic.
Logan Shumard, Rancocas Valley. The junior tossed a pair of gems as the Red Devils advanced to the quarterfinal round of the Diamond Classic. Shumard threw five strong innings in a 7-1 win over Pennsville in the opener, allowing two runs and no walks while striking out eight. In the second round, he fired a complete-game three-hitter with seven strikeouts in RV’s 3-2 win over Eastern. Shumard boasts an ERA of 1.58 in 31 innings of work.
Tri-County Conference
Matt DeSimone, Clearview. The Pioneers reeled off four straight wins and DeSimone was in the center of all the action. He batted .733 (11-for-15) with eight runs scored and five RBIs, including a 4-for-5 effort with two runs and two RBIs in an 11-7 win over rival Kingsway. DeSimone is hitting .500 (25-for-50) with seven walks and 19 runs scored for the season.
Jack Fitzpatrick, Washington Township. The senior went 3-for-3 with five RBIs as the Minutemen marched to a 17-5 upset win over St. Augustine in the Diamond Classic. Washington Township, the No. 30 seed, advanced to the quarterfinal with a 7-6 win over Egg Harbor Township. Fitzpatrick had a hit in all of WT’s game last week, raising his season batting average to .360. He had a homer and three RBIs in a 6-5 victory over Williamstown to start the week.
Braeden Lipoff, Gloucester Catholic. The sophomore has shined in the Diamond Classic, hitting .667 (4-for-6) with a triple and four RBIs as the top-seeded Rams advanced in the tournament with wins over Highland and Cedar Creek. Sandwiched in between the Diamond Classic, Lipoff homered and drove in two in an 8-2 win over Washington Township. He’s batting .380 with 19 hits and 11 walks this spring.
Zach Maxwell, Delsea. As the Crusaders extended their winning streak to 12 with an 8-2 win over Audubon in the Diamond Classic, Maxwell had two hits, two runs scored and two stolen bases. The senior hit .500 for the week (4-for-8) with five runs scored and two walks. For the season, Maxwell is batting north of .450 with 19 runs scored and nine stolen bases.
Dylan Rickards, Kingsway. The junior batted .667 with seven RBIs and six runs scored as the Dragons went 2-2 for the week with both wins coming in the Diamond Classic. He closed out the week going 6-for-6, including a 3-RBI performance in a 10-8 victory over Hammonton in the second round of the tournament.
Cape-Atlantic League
Benedetto Andreoli, Vineland. The senior collected three multi-hit games and swiped eight bases as the Fighting Clan went 2-2 for the week, including a split with Ocean City. Andreoli went 4-for-8 with three runs scored in two games against OC. He’s batting .339 with 20 hits, 19 runs scored, seven walks and 17 stolen bases for the season.
Kole Bagnell, Hammonton. The Hammonton hit machine kept churning out the knocks last week, producing 11 more in five games to raise his season average to .448 (26-for-58). Bagnell went 4-for-4 with a stolen base in a 2-1 win over Cedar Creek on May 1. He also went 5-for-7 with three runs scored in Hammonton’s two Diamond Classic games.
Torrance Cooper, Holy Spirit. The senior drove in five runs as the Spartans swept a home-and-home series with Lower Cape May and extended their winning streak to three. He went 2-for-5 with two walks in the series with LCM – both one-run victories for Holy Spirit.
Tom McGurk is a regional sports reporter for the Courier-Post, The Daily Journal and Burlington County Times, covering South Jersey sports for over 30 years. If you have a sports story that needs to be told, contact him at (856) 486-2420 or email tmcgurk@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @McGurkSports. Help support local journalism with a digital subscription.
This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Top performers for baseball in South Jersey for first week of May
