BASEBALL

Baseball: Baroff's bases-clearing walk off double clinches sectional title for Gov. Livingston

Daniel LoGiudice
Courier News and Home News Tribune

BERKELEY HEIGHTS – After enduring perhaps the most deflating and demoralizing inning of its season and with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning, the Gov. Livingston High School baseball team’s season was in dire straits. A season with so much promise and expectation was about to end in disappointment and zero trophies.

But the Highlanders had an ace that was just about to step up to the plate. In the biggest moment of his high school career, senior catcher Dan Baroff delivered.

With his team trailing 5-3 in the bottom of the seventh inning and with the bases loaded and two outs, Baroff ripped a double into center field. There was no doubt the game was tied with Baroff’s double, but could senior shortstop Danny Serretti race around the bases from first base to home for the game-winner?

The question didn’t hang in the balance for long, as Serretti motored around the bases and dove head first into home plate as the top-seeded Highlanders topped second-seeded South Plainfield 6-5 in the Central Group II final on Friday.

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“Being a captain, I didn’t want our season to end like that, no one thought it would, but I wanted to make sure it definitely was not going to end, so it’s a big moment and an amazing feeling to carry my team like that,” Baroff said. “At that point, I’m just really excited and hoping (Serretti) crossed home safely and once he did, I just went crazy and hugged all my teammates. It’s one of the most amazing things to happen to me."

The seventh inning rally started with some unsung heroes. Will Jennings, the eighth hitter in the order, led the inning off with a single, and pinch hitter Jack Pedini followed with another single. After a sacrifice bunt by Tyler McCulloch and an intentional walk to Serretti, designated hitter Stephen Reid popped up to second base for the second out of the inning.

On the second pitch of his at-bat and with the game and season on the line, Baroff absolutely cranked one over the outfielder’s head. 

“That’s why he hits cleanup, he’s a senior, he’s a co-captain, he’s going to play in college and he epitomizes what a GL baseball player is, and if anyone deserves it, he does,” Gov. Livingston coach Chris Roof said. “It was a total team effort. Will leading off and then Jack with the big hit. Danny Serretti busting his tail, if he didn’t run hard, we wouldn’t have scored.”

Trailing 3-2 in the top of the sixth, the top half of the inning almost broke the Highlanders. McCulloch caught a fly ball for the first out of the inning, but dropped the ball on the transfer to his throwing hand, and the umpires ruled the South Plainfield runner safe at second. The Tigers would eventually load the bases and successfully executed two consecutive suicide squeezes to push their lead to 5-2.

After scoring one run in the bottom half of the inning courtesy of an RBI single by senior Nick Cocchia, the Highlanders set the magic number at three runs, and their confidence never wavered.

‘When there’s a game of this magnitude, you try not to let the little things like that affect you because that’s baseball,” Serretti said. “Whether the ump makes a good call or a bad call, it’s baseball, and it happens. We knew we had to focus, and we knew we could put together three runs like a piece of cake.”

The win was particularly special for Serretti, who also ripped an RBI triple in the first inning. The St. John’s University commit missed all of the 2016 season due to surgery on his right elbow. With a grey-camouflage wrap adoring his arm, Serretti flashed the leather, his bat and his wheels on Friday.

“Last year was tough watching and not being able to contribute,” Serretti said. “I’m glad it’s going pretty well for us this year, and it feels good to be back. I’m glad I could contribute in any way possible.”

Staff Writer Daniel LoGiudice can be reached at dlogiudice@gannettnj.com. Follow him on Twitter @danny_logiudice.