Baseball surprises rest of NJAC

There are very few things in life more rewarding than exceeding expectations, especially in the sports world. This year, the Profs baseball team has been able to do just that, as they sit as one of the top teams in the New Jersey Athletic Conference — a spot no one thought they would be in before the season began.

Head coach Juan Ranero certainly agrees that the team has really beat the odds this year.

“No one saw us as a contender. We had nine seniors last year and 11 the year before, so we’ve lost 24 players in last two years,” Ranero said. “So this may be an inexperienced team but you know we managed to play well together and we learned how to play the game and it will be big for our program moving forward.”

“Our biggest accomplishment this season is putting ourselves in a position to move onto the NJAC playoffs,” said junior infielder Mike Scott. The Profs right now are 11-4 in the conference and can control their own destiny as to whether they will be a number one or two seed in postseason play.

The development of young players along with a strong core of leaders has made this team into legitimate contenders late point in the season. As far as their chances in the playoffs, Scott believes this team will fare well.

“Our chances are very good. For the playoffs, you need a healthy pitching staff and our pitchers are all ready, and the team as a whole is doing a better job executing what needs to be done to win like we did in the beginning of the season,” Scott said.

The young group of players have proven to be contenders. Sophomore catcher Nick Turano and sophomore infielder Marc Magliaro are just two of the young players that have made huge contributions this season. But many of the players have plenty of baseball left to play in a Profs uniform over the next two years.

Young arms have been what coach Ranero feels is the Profs biggest asset. “We have a dominant pitching staff. Young guys like Kyle Brown and Steven Melchiorre have really stepped in and made big contributions for us this season,” Ranero said.

So with the playoffs right around the corner, the Profs will certainly be a team to watch. Perhaps more importantly though, they will be a team to watch next year as this young group of players continue to improve.