Forsyth, Saporito top All-District Softball Team
By tim morris
Staff Writer

Ashley Forsyth

Freehold Borough’s rise from also-rans to champion was the story of the 2003 softball campaign in the Freehold district.

Freshman Ashley Forsyth provided the missing ingredient for a veteran team that had been slowly improving. Behind her lights-out pitching, the Colonials won the school’s first-ever championships: Central Jersey Group II and Shore Conference A Central Division.

A string of early season extra-inning wins gave Jerilyn Acevedo’s Colonials confidence and momentum and they were able to ride that to a co-championship in A Central. The championship bus continued to roll to the state sectional. Making only their second appearance ever in the Central Jersey tournament, the Colonials beat Raritan and Allentown to advance to the sectional final where a veteran, two-time defending champion Carteret team awaited them. The final went into extra innings before Freehold scratched a run across the plate in the bottom on the ninth to win 3-2 and claim the CJ II title.

Freehold finished the season 20-6 and earned everyone’s respect. With all but one starter returning, the Colonials aren’t gong to be your one-year wonder.

The 2003 season was a big one for John DiVincenzo’s Freehold Township Patriots. They were looking to maintain the standard of excellence that the brilliant class of 2002 had established. They had made the Patriots champions and put the program on the state map. The few holdovers, including Julie Saporito and some underclassmen enabled the Pats to fulfill their goal. They were 15-5-2 on the season. Despite beating A North champion Ocean twice, the Pats lost the chance to repeat as the division champions because of a pair of ties.

It was a big year for Howell as well. Laura Savage’s Rebels returned to the state playoffs. Howell (9-11) used a combination of senior leadership and the injection of freshman talent to get to the Central Jersey playoffs.

Manalapan’s bid for the state playoffs was thwarted by Howell, but the Braves still bounced back to have a winning season, 10-9-2.

Marlboro, under first-year coach Kerryn Lynch, showed signs of bouncing back and becoming a competitive program again.

Forsyth and Saporito, two of the finest players in the Shore, head the News Transcript’s 2003 All-Freehold Regional District Girls’ Softball Team.

Joining them on the team are Jen Towers, Nicole Gagliardi and Mia Fabiano, Freehold Borough; Carolyn Teufel, Pam Zaranka and Lauren Ceravolo, Freehold Township; Cherise Maltais, Erin Silk and Laura Lamboy, Manalapan; Christie Novatin, Howell; Brooke Sutter, Colts Neck; and Christie Kastner and Sarah Clarfield, Marlboro.

Saporito enjoyed a tremendous four-year career with the Patriots. She graduates as the school’s all-time leader in hits (124), runs scored (74) and earned run average (0.57), and shares the mark for doubles (21). She batted a team-high .453 this spring and established single-season records for doubles (10), slugging (.766) and on-base percentage (.613). She had three triples and two home runs, as well as 15 RBIs and 16 runs scored.

In her first year as the No. 1 starter, Saporito went 9-5 with a 0.33 earned run average. She had 135 strikeouts in 105 in­nings pitched.

No freshman ever made an impact on a team like Forsyth this year, and it wasn’t just her talent. The Colonials became Forsyth’s team because of her leadership and the confidence she brought to every­one. The Colonials had a reason to be con­fident when Forsyth was on the mound, because they knew they had a chance to win every time.

Forsyth, who had played at the Eisenhower School and on traveling teams before high school, more than lived up to expectations. She was 20-6 with an ERA of just 0.20. She authored six no-hitters, in­cluding two perfect games, and had 15 shutouts. It was a career wrapped into one season.

Forsyth’s pitching overshadowed what was an outstanding offensive year. She would have been all-district on that alone. She was the catalyst at the top of the order, batting .514 and leading the team with 38 hits and 22 runs scored.

If this is just the start of Forsyth’s ca­reer, the record books are in for a complete revision.

Towers, Gagliardi and Fabiano, a trio of juniors, have been the cornerstone of the Colonials’ program the last three years. With the addition of Forsyth and outstand­ing seasons from them once again, the Colonials took off.

Towers, batted a team-high .525 in ’03 with 32 hits in 61 at-bats. She led the team with 17 RBIs and had four doubles, two triples and scored 11 times. Towers was again masterful with the glove. Her de­fense at shortstop is every bit as important as her gaudy offensive numbers.

Gagliardi batted .433 this season and came up with a number of clutch hits. She had 12 RBIs, and of her 26 hits, four were doubles and one a triple. The second base­man made the Colonials one of the strongest defensive teams up the middle.

Catcher Fabiano fortified the team’s solid infield defense and worked well with Forsyth. She kept the freshmen focused whenever trouble loomed. As if that weren’t enough, the backstop batted .375 with 11 RBIs.

The district had two of the best catchers in the Shore in Teufel and Fabiano. Teufel would get on the all-district team on de­fense alone. She took away the opposi­tion’s running game with her quick, on-target throws. She threw out 10 of the 16 baserunners who challenged her. She called a great game behind the plate.

Offensively, Teufel batted .382 with 10 RBIs and 13 runs scored.

Zaranka, the other holdover from last year’s 26-3 team, did a little bit of every­thing for the Pats. She was stellar at second base again and, offensively, was second to Saporito in runs scored (14) while batting .265. On a team that struggled to score runs, she did have nine RBIs. Zaranka dis­played her versatility by going 3-0 on the mound with a fine 0.41 ERA in 17 innings of work.

Ceravolo was one of the underclassmen who came along and provided the team with a badly needed spark offensively. The sophomore outfielder batted .298, but had 15 RBIs (tying Saporito for team high) and scored 12 runs.

Maltais, Silk and Lamboy were all members of the Braves team that won the Shore Conference Tournament two years ago. They enjoyed a fine run during their four years and went out with big seasons.

Maltais was one of the most productive hitters in the Shore. She batted .377 for Manalapan, but slugged .541. Of her 23 hits, seven were doubles and one a home run. She led Manalapan with 21 RBIs and also scored 14 runs.

She also did the job well on the mound. Her pitching kept the Braves a competitive team. She was 8-8, but had an ERA of 2.02. In 118 innings of work, the senior struck out 142. She graduates as one of the Braves’ all-time best players.

Silk was just that, silky smooth in cen­ter field. She was a security blanket for the Braves’ pitchers with her range. Many a would-be extra-base hit landed in her glove. The senior had a big year at the plate batting .409. She led the team in hits (27) and runs (17).

Lamboy anchored the infield defense at shortstop. She batted .303 this year, but was second in RBIs (11) and runs scored (18), and second in doubles (5).

Maltais, Silk and Lamboy have left big shoes to fill.

Novatin was another freshman who had a big impact in 2003. Her impact was on the offensive end where she was one of the Shore’s top power hitters. She led the Rebels in batting average (.380), hits (25), doubles (five), triples (two), home runs (four) and RBIs (15). It was quite a debut for Novatin, who could potentially become one of the district’s finest hitters.

Sutter established a new Colts Neck single-season batting average record this spring with her .373 average. Her 19 hits were among the best in the Shore as the senior, a fixture at shortstop the last three years, made her last year her best.

Kastner and Clarfield have provided some hope for Marlboro’s future. The ’Stangs have struggled big time offensively and these underclassmen provided it. Clarfield, a sophomore who is the starting pitcher, batted .467 with 28 hits, among them nine doubles. Kastner, a junior who has been a starter since her freshman year, had another solid campaign for the Mus­tangs batting .371 on 23 base hits.

Those earning honorable mention for 2003 are Kristin Johns, Colts Neck; Dana Braff, Freehold Borough; Diana Anastasio, Freehold Township; Jillian Callanan, Tracy Mormino, Kerilyn Schultz and Kristin Loriot, Howell; and Kelly Kwiatkowski, Aimee Prinzo and Tarin Peterson, Manal­a­pan.