A weekend like this one has been a longtime coming for Paramus Catholic softball.
The Paladins, who not long ago were perennially only a four or five win team, have gradually improved every year under longtime coach Jack Casimiro.
First, there was a 10-win season in 2023, but the Paladins still finished under .500. Then there was a 16-10 campaign last year where they dropped some surprising contests against teams they should have beaten.
But all those results were in the service of a much bigger goal — one that came two big steps closer to being actualized on Sunday.
First, at the Cedar Grove Black and Gold Invitational on Sunday morning, the Paladins scored their first Top 20 win of the season when they beat No. 13 Middletown North and All-State pitcher Madilynn Boyce, 3-2 in extra innings, helped by a homer from freshman star Gabriela Perez.
Then, PC trekked to the northern reaches of Bergen County to Park Ridge for the Coaches vs. Cancer showcase where they took on perennial Bergen County power Old Tappan and cruised to a 9-1 victory in the process as well.
“This year, the girls believe more in who they are and in their talent,” Casimiro said. “They’re having fun, they’re playing well today, and they don’t quit.”
Now 12-2 through their first 14 games, PC’s only losses are to a state ranked Immaculate Heart team and an always tough Albertus Magnus (N.Y.) team. But among their wins are the two on Sunday plus results over a good River Dell team that beat Ramsey, a Wallington team with an All-State pitcher and a DePaul team that won Passaic County last year.
The Paladins likely figure to be a Top 8 seed in this year’s Bergen County Tournament and will get a first round bye as a result as a further proof of concept that what the Paladins have been doing this year has worked.
“Slowly, we’ve built kids around some key pieces and they’ve had faith and been patient,” Casimiro said. “The fact that we can win now with them here makes me so happy that they believed in the program.”
Players like Gianna Presutto, who has 24 hits, 22 runs and 25 RBI while hitting .649 and others have been mainstays of late. But a player like Perez, has shown the future is bright for PC.
She homered twice on Sunday — once against Midd North and once against Old Tappan — and she tossed six strong innings, allowing just one hit and one unearned run with five strikeouts against the Golden Knights.
“She’s a very mature kid and one of the most mature freshmen I’ve ever met,” Casmiro, who also won a section title as the head coach at Ridgefield, said. “She’s a fighter and she’s not easily intimidated.”
Hightstown leaves long trip on a high note
The team that commuted the furthest to Park Ridge on Sunday was CVC power Hightstown, which is in its first year under former Pascack Hills coach Lauren Brown.
Brown, who’s father, Chris is the Park Ridge AD and organized the event, guided her team to a dominant 9-0 win over Mahwah as pitcher Kady Olsen was fantastic, tossing a one-hitter and striking out 15.
Mahwah held Hightstown in check through the first four innings, with the Rams only leading 1-0 up to that point before exploding for eight more runs over the next three innings en route to the win.
“Once we started getting the bats going, all I had to do was command the zone and it was all fun and games because I trusted my defense and knew they’d make the plays,” Olsen said.
Olsen’s rise ball and offspeed pitches were in top form against the Thunderbirds and Brown — who herself was a former pitcher and pitching coach — admitted she didn’t know much about Olsen when she trekked to Mercer County but isn’t surprised the senior is having succcess.
“I always like having pitchers who when I say to be smart with two strikes, having a pitcher who’s able to have that discipline and work with different pitches is really important and has been really cool to see,” Brown said.
The win was Hightstown’s second in a row and they come after a 4-3 loss to GMC powerhouse and perennial Top 20 team St. Thomas Aquinas and a 1-0 loss to perennial power Robbinsville. But, they beat Notre Dame and have a chance for more statement wins with teams like Delran and Bordentown on the schedule.
And the strength of schedule is a much better and different one than Brown faced at Pascack Hills, as she saw by a 9-2 loss to Steinert two games into the season.
“We came out in the beginning of the season kind of shell shocked but we’ve just gotten stronger and stronger with each game and I don’t think we’re at our best yet,” Brown said.
Rams charging full steam ahead
After a surprising 1-2 start to the season that included an 8-7 loss to River Dell, usual state power and last year’s Group 2 finalists Ramsey have rounded into form.
Thanks to a five-inning, 13-2 win over Becton on Sunday, the Rams have now won nine in a row, downing quality Ridgefield Park, Indian Hills, Ridgewood, Mahwah and Rutherford teams in the process.
On Sunday, Ramsey managed to spread the wealth with seven players recording hits and all nine batters getting on base. EJ Mavrides and Lily Kriz both also hit home runs while Bella Baldino and Brooke Donofrio added extra-base hits as well.
And with Bergen County Tournament seeding looming this week as well as a rematch with River Dell plus a Big North crossover game with Ramapo and a divisional meeting with Indian Hills, this next stretch of games is a big one for coach Chris Caserta’s group.
“We’re not firing on all cylinders yet, but we’re trending in that direction,” he said. “We want to play our best softball in May and hopefully June, so we’re still trying to shake out the kinks but this was a good sign.”
Jake Aferiat can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him at @Jake_Aferiat.
The N.J. High School Sports newsletter is now appearing in mailboxes 5 days a week. Sign up now!
Follow us on social: Facebook | Instagram | X (formerly Twitter)