By BRIAN TORTELLA
Correspondent
@tortreports on Instagram
WOOLWICH TOWNSHIP — Emotion. Intensity. Electric environment.
The Kingsway Regional High baseball team was rocking all day long.
Heck, even coach Bill Alvaro Jr. gave catcher A.J. Ward a chest bump after the Dragons executed a clean double play to end the fourth inning on Thursday.
Eastern Regional had no answer for the fire-breathing Dragons on prom day.
Top-seeded Kingsway rolled to a 12-2 triumph over second-seeded Eastern in the South Jersey Group 4 final to capture the program’s first South Jersey title since 1992 — back when the Gloucester County school played in Group 2.
“It means a lot,” Alvaro said. “Not only that, but it’s our first one in Group 4. When you win a South Jersey title in Group 4, that’s a statement. This program’s here, man. We made it jump.”
Facing a 1-0 deficit early, Nate Bott delivered a two-run home run in the second inning to give the Dragons a lead they would never look back on. Kingsway recorded a five-run third inning to take an 8-2 lead behind a Brayden Bell RBI single and Brayden Thorp’s three-run double.
“I love how our team didn’t really care about the one run in the first,” Bott said. “We just kept hitting. This win feels amazing, especially with this group of guys. We talked about it at the very beginning — we only had one goal: to win South Jersey Group 4. To be able to do it and look forward to even more wins, two more games with this team, is amazing.”
The Dragons will host Central Jersey Group 4 champion Hunterdon Central on Monday in the state semifinal, with the winner meeting either Ridgewood or Ridge in the state championship game on Sunday, June 14 at Rutgers University.
Kingsway (23-5, 6-3 Tri-County Royal) collected 10 hits from seven different players as Eastern (21-9, 5-5 Olympic American) used four pitchers. It was the sixth consecutive victory for the Dragons, who have now outscored playoff contenders 28-5 across four games.
Austin Schmidt ended the game in 5 1/2 innings with a walk-off three-run triple. The senior finished his day 2-for-4 with four RBIs.
“We knew since Day One what we needed to do,” Schmidt said. “Just to be here on this field holding that trophy up, it’s a dream come true.”
Senior pitcher Tyler Rodgers went the distance, scattering four hits and recording nine strikeouts for the Dragons.
“This has been a four-year process with these seniors,” Alvaro added. “They’ve been building up to this for four years. We knew we had the team to do this. To see them actually come through to succeed and do it, and live up to all expectations, it’s unbelievable.”
Kingsway will now be able to celebrate prom night in style. And the blue trophy made its way to the DoubleTree by Hilton in Cherry Hill for the dance.
But the job is not finished.
“We knew all week what day prom was on,” Schmidt said. “We need to stay locked in for baseball — baseball comes first. I wouldn’t even have words if we win the next two games, but that is our goal. That’s been our goal.”
The sectional title win also marked the first during coach Bill Alvaro’s seven-year tenure at Kingsway. Alvaro is in his 28th season coaching baseball in South Jersey, with previous stops at Williamstown and Washington Township. He won his 500th game earlier this spring.
“Listen, it means I’ve been around for a long time,” he said. “I’ve had a lot of great players and a lot of great groups. Everyone is special.”
