In May it did not look like it would be a very special baseball season at Toms River North but it certainly ended up that way. 

Toms River North baseball team after winning Shore Conterence tournement
Toms River North baseball team after winning Shore Conterence tournement (Townsquare Media NJ)
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The Mariners swept the Ocean County and Shore Conference Tournaments for the first time in school history and finish as the top-ranked team in the shore and were 8th in the Star Ledger’s final New Jersey Top 20.  Class A South champion Jackson Memorial and Class B South kings Jackson Liberty were second and third in our final top ten which you can view at shoresportsnetwork.com

A pair of former North pitchers are about to begin pro careers.  Brian Gilbert was a 7th round pick of the Twins and was in Minnesota this week to meet with team officials.  The former Seton Hall hurler is likely headed for workouts in Florida and will then report to the Twins short-season team in Elizabethtown, Tennessee.

Meanwhile Mark Leiter Jr. could become the first Shore Conference player to wear the uniform of the Lakewood BlueClaws.  A month after completing his college career at NJIT, “Little Light” was a 22nd round pick of the Phillies last weekend and is in Clearwater, Florida with other prospects this week.  Leiter Jr. is likely to begin in the Gulf Coast League with that rookie league beginning play next week.

Mark Leiter Jr.
Mark Leiter Jr. (Twitter)
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His father Mark is a former major league pitcher who spent a couple of years with the Phillies and of course his uncle Al had a distinguished big league career and is now a broadcaster.

Many of the area’s top baseball players are scheduled to play in tonight’s Shore Baseball Coaches Association All-Star Classic at FirstEnergy Park.  However the weather forecast makes the game very doubtful for tonight and I’m told officials will try and re-schedule the game which was to include a Home Run Derby with the top two finishers to earn spots in Monday’s Celebrity Hitting Challenge as part of the BlueClaws All-Star game festivities.

Rutgers University wrestling Coach Scott Goodale is one of 9 finalists for the Elite Sports Marketing/National Wrestling Coaches Association Social Media Coach of the Year.  The program is aimed at rewarding coaches who use social media, especially twitter to market their programs and sport.  Goodale is a Toms River resident who wrestled and later coached at Jackson Memorial before taking over the Scarlet Knights program.  You can vote for him online at elitesportmarketing.com.  Final results will be announced June 19th.

 

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