Devil of a Top 10

I am officially concerned about Hunterdon Central.

There has been one constant since I began covering softball in 1999 -- Hunterdon Central has always been among the class in the area.

The Red Devils won a state Group IV title that season and every year since was right up there, winning in the neighborhood of 20 games.

Wednesday, for the first time in over a decade, Hunterdon Central will not appear in the Courier News Softball Top 10.

The Red Devils are 6-6. And thought the first five of those losses were to powerhouses like Sparta, Notre Dame, Immaculata, Montgomery and J.F.K, Central fell 8-4 to Warren Hills on Tuesday, and coach Pete Fick cannot even remember the last time that happened.

What is going on?

Jenna Carmon and Jamie Ericson may not be superstars, but they're solid pitchers. And thought the Red Devils did graduate several key hitters, Hunterdon Central has reloaded year after year in the past. Why is this year different?

It just doesn't feel right not having the Red Devils in the Top 10.

Speaking of teams dropping out of the Top 10, South Plainfield has lost three straight and four of its last six, causing the Tigers to fall out of the Top 10 as well, something I'm not used to doing to Don Panzarella's team.

In South Plainfield's defense, however, the GMC White is stacked this year with Monroe, JFK, Sayreville, etc. Some might even say the division is tougher than the Red Division, which is made up of Group IV schools.

The Tigers' problems right now stem from shoddy defense, as they committed three errors in a loss to Monroe on Saturday, and three more Tuesday in falling to JFK after right-hander Jen Little pitched five innings of shutout softball.

I think it's just a matter of time before South Plainfield gets it together and resumes its winning ways, but I honestly cannot say the same about Hunterdon Central.

I, for one, though I am supposed to be a neutral and objective journalist, am rooting for Central. It might be weird not to have the Red Devils in the Top 10, but right now they're in danger of not even qualifying for the state tournament, and that would just be insanity.


COURIER NEWS SOFTBALL TOP 10 as of Wednesday 4/25)
(last week's rank in parenthesis)
1. Governor Livingston, 7-0 (2)
2. Montgomery, 11-1 (4)
3. Bridgewater-Raritan, 9-2 (7)
4. North Hunterdon, 10-1 (1)
5. Immaculata, 4-1 (3)
6. Mount St. Mary, 8-0 (9)
7. Westfield, 8-1 (10)
8. Watchung Hills, 2-4 (NR)
9. Hillsborough, 5-4 (8)
10. New Providence, 7-0 (NR)
Dropped out: Hunterdon Central (5), South Plainfield (6)

Don't forget to check out the latest notebook in Wednesday's Courier News. It can also be accessed online at www.c-n.com.

Also, the Week 3 podcast is up. Check that out at http://www.c-n.com/specialsections/multimedia/index.htm