Approximately 24 hours after earning one of the biggest wins in program history, the Vikings were back on the field facing a good opponent with its ace on the mound.
Undaunted, Vernon regrouped from a shaky start and had the go-ahead runs on base in the seventh, but came up short in a 3-2 loss to Morris Hills in a Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference American Division clash at Vernon Township High School.
Vernon (11-9 overall, 5-7 division) saw its four-game win streak snapped with the loss, which by all accounts was relatively meaningless in the grand scheme of things. Coach Scott Berge's Vikings were still riding high from Monday's 3-1 win in eight innings against North Hunterdon in the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex semifinals -- vaulting them into the county championship game for the first time in school history.
"We knew what we were up against today," said Berge, whose team is just the third Sussex County program to play for the HWS title in the tourney's four-year history. "We got down early, but we didn't panic. I'll put my nine guys against anyone else's nine guys."
After a 2-6 start, the Vikings have won nine of 12 seven of their last nine. As a No. 6 seed in the county tournament, not many figured Vernon to make a championship run.
"Our bats really came around and we started to string hits together," said senior catcher/pitcher Kevin Berge, who is nursing an injured right knee and did not play on Tuesday. "We have a lot of confidence. We started to believe we can beat any team."
Morris Hills (13-9-2, 4-5-2) sent its No. 1 pitcher, Colton Fergus, to the hill and the right-hander didn't disappoint. Fergus worked seven strong innings, scattering eight hits and allowing two runs with two walks and seven strikeouts. Not a hard thrower by any means, but Fergus had all four of his pitches working and retired seven in a row until running into a jam in the bottom of the seventh.
Freshman right fielder Zac Moen and junior shortstop Mike Harboy delivered back-to-back singles with one out to put the Vikings in business. That brought No. 3 hitter Kevin Ufferfilge to the plate with Moen representing the potential tying run at second. Ufferfilge, who had struck out twice in three previous at-bats, hit a screaming liner to second, but it landed right into the glove of Morris Hills' Bryan Healy, who alertly tagged second base to double off Moen and end the game.
"Two feet to the left and we score a run there," Scott Berge said.
Right-hander Anthony Germinario gave Vernon a solid effort in the loss. After being tagged for three runs on four hits in the first two innings, Germinario, the Vikes' No. 3 starter, settled down nicely and allowed only four hits -- one in each of the next four innings -- the rest of the way. He struck out seven and walked two.
With games against Montville (Wednesday) and Newark Tech (Friday) on tap, saving available arms was a plus for the Vikes.
Morris Hills struck for two runs in the first, thanks in part to a Vernon error. A leadoff walk to Fergus and a double by Adam Katz put runners on second and third. Fergus scored on the error, while Katz crossed as Vernon turned a 6-4-3 double play. Two more singles for the Knights went for naught, as Germinario got left fielder Bryan Mulligan to line out to second for the final out.
In the second, Fergus crushed a fastball over the left-field fence for a solo homer and a 3-0 lead.
After managing just two hits through three innings, Vernon broke through for its runs in the fourth. Ryan Duvall led off with a single, followed by a groundout and strikeout. That left Germinario to help himself, as he singled through the left side to plate Duvall. An error on the throw home allowed Germinario to move up 90 feet, and he came around on Keenan's single to the left-center-field gap.
Moen kept the rally going with a single -- the first of his two hits -- to put runners at first and second. But Fergus got Harboy to hit into a fielder's choice to end the threat. Vernon also squandered a leadoff walk in the third and had two runners on with two outs in the second. Harboy, who also had two hits for the Vikings, doubled with one out in the first and moved to third on a wild pitch, but was left stranded as Ufferfilge and Chris Pontus -- the Nos. 3 and 4 hitters -- struck out and grounded out.
"We had a bunch of scoring opportunities, but you tip your hat to [Fergus]," Scott Berge said. "He's a very good pitcher. He was throwing his fastball for strikes. He put his slider over and he had a 12 to 6 curveball. He's the total package."
Duvall, who went 1-for-3 with a run scored, agreed with his coach's assessment of Fergus.
"He's a really good pitcher," said Duvall, Vernon's No. 1 pitcher and starting second baseman. "We weren't stringing hits and he had a nice changeup behind in the count, too."
Vernon could help out a fellow Sussex County team with a win over Montville, which is battling Sparta for the American Division title. The Spartans dropped to 9-3-1 in the division with Tuesday's 5-2 loss at home to Montville, which is 9-3 in the division.
Sparta closes its league slate at Morris Knolls on Wednesday, while Montville finishes up against Vernon and Morris Knolls on May 22.
MORRIS HILLS (ab-r-h-rbi) -- Fergus p 2-1-1-1, Gaeb cr 0-1-0-0, Katz 1b 4-1-1-0, Deluccia dh/Hopkins rf 4-0-0-1, Walls ss 3-0-2-0, Valerio c 3-0-1-0, Trinidad cr 0-0-0-0, Healy 2b 3-0-1-0, Mulligan lf 3-0-1-0, Toohey cf 3-0-0-0, Gribbons 3b 3-0-1-0. Totals: 28-3-8-2.
VERNON (ab-r-h-rbi) -- Moen rf 3-0-2-0, Harboy ss 4-0-2-0, Ufferfilge lf 4-0-0-0, Pontus cf 3-0-0-0, Duvall 2b 3-1-1-0, Lipari 3b 3-0-0-0, Baxter 1b 3-0-1-0, Germinario p 2-0-1-1, Vitellaro cr 0-1-0-0, Keenan c 3-0-1-1. Totals: 28-2-8-2.
Morris Hills (13-9-2, 4-5-2) 210 000 -- 3 8 1
Vernon (11-9, 5-7) 000 200 -- 2 8 2
E -- Fergus; Lipari 2. DP -- Morris Hills 1 (Healy, 7th inning); Vernon 1 (Harboy-Duvall-Baxter, 1st inning). LOB -- Morris Hills 6; Vernon 7. 2B -- Katz, Walls; Harboy. 3B -- Walls. HR -- Fergus (2nd inning off Germinario, none on, 2 out). SB -- Mulligan, Valerio. CS -- Walls, Gribbons.
Fergus and Valerio. Germinario and Keenan. W -- Fergus (4-3). L -- Germinario (2-2). SO-BB -- Fergus 7-2; Germinario 7-2. WP -- Fergus.
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