UNION COUNTY, NJ — The Jonathan Dayton High School Bulldogs captured their first-ever Union County Tournament championship last year in a Union County softball season full of surprises.
Sparked by the outstanding play of returning varsity starters junior Angela Gatto at shortstop and sophomore Lila Carroll at pitcher, the Bulldogs were to open their 2025 campaign at home against Cranford High School on Tuesday, April 1 in a battle of the last two UCT champions.
Jonathan Dayton was next scheduled to play on Thursday, April 1, at Arthur L. Johnson High School.
Kent Place and Abraham Clark high schools began their seasons last week, with Kent Place, 1-1, and Abraham Clark, 1-0, as of Monday, March 31. The rest of the Union County teams had their opening days scheduled for this week.
The Union County Conference went back to three divisions this year, eliminating the Sky.
Looking back on the 2024 season, there were three 20-win teams, two sectional champions for the first time in a long time and one new, first-time-ever county champion among the highlights of a highly memorable and unique Union County softball campaign.
High schools such as Jonathan Dayton, Arthur L. Johnson and David Brearley don’t often win championships. Recent times have seen the likes of high schools such as Cranford, Westfield, Governor Livingston and Roselle Park win their share of titles, when it came to the county tournament and sectional state tournament play.
However, that was not the case last spring.
Jonathan Dayton won the Union County Tournament for the first time.
David Brearley and Arthur L. Johnson won sectional titles for the first time in a while. David Brearley captured a sectional crown for the first time since 2005. Arthur L. Johnson last won consecutive sectional titles in 1995 and 1996 en route to the Group 2 state championship game both of those years.
Three of the six teams in the Union County Conference’s upper Watchung Division won 20 games, those schools being division champion Governor Livingston at 20-8 overall, Jonathan Dayton at 22-7 and Arthur L. Johnson at 20-12. The other three all finished .500 or better overall to show how challenging the division proved to be.
Scotch Plains–Fanwood High School, which eliminated top-seeded Governor Livingston in the UCT by a 5-0 score in quarterfinal-round play in Berkeley Heights, came close to winning 20 games, finishing 18-9 overall and third in the Mountain Division at 4-3.
Jonathan Dayton, which led Union County with its 22 wins, reached the UCT semifinals in 2023, but was humbled by eventual three-peat winner Cranford.
“That opened up some eyes,” Jonathan Dayton head coach Dave Rennie said last year. “We wanted to get back and felt we had a better chance to win it this year.”
Jonathan Dayton was led on the mound by Carroll and at the plate by 100-hit plus senior standouts Natalie Mignone, Alyssa Santangelo and Kate Buckley.
Jonathan Dayton, the second seed, defeated eighth-seeded Scotch Plains–Fanwood, 6-5, in the UCT final at Kean University’s Cougar Field in Union.
Gatto, who in 2023 tore her ACL 17 games into her sophomore campaign, blasted two solo home runs, the second one proving to be the game-winning hit in the bottom of the seventh to snap a 5-5 tie with two outs and Gatto down 0-2 in the pitcher’s count.
The Raiders, who have won the UCT just once in 1977, tied the game with three runs in the top of the seventh. After cutting the deficit to 5-3, sophomore standout Emily Roof slugged a two-run homer with two outs to tie the contest.
“Both teams hit the ball really hard and had some really big hits,” Rennie said. “Scotch Plains just happened to hit more right at our players.”
Jonathan Dayton has improved its record the last four years, going 6-12 overall in 2021, 10-11 in 2022, 18-10 in 2023 and 22-7 in 2024. The Bulldogs were edged at home by Rutherford High School, 4-3, in the North 2, Group 2 playoffs.
In 2023, Jonathan Dayton won the Mountain Division perfect at 8-0 and moved up to the Watchung Division for 2024. The Watchung Division was highly competitive in 2024, with winner Governor Livingston going 20-8 and winning the division at 8-2; Jonathan Dayton, 22-7, and second at 7-3; Cranford, 16-12, and third at 6-4; Arthur L. Johnson, 20-12, and fourth at 4-6; Westfield, 14-11, and fifth at 3-7; and Elizabeth, 12-12, and sixth at 2-8.
“Respect everyone and fear no one has been our mantra all year long,” Rennie said, after his Bulldogs captured the UCT championship for the first time last year.
Both David Brearley and Arthur L. Johnson scored their winning runs in their final at-bats to capture their sectional state championships on the same day.
In the North 2, Group 1 final at two-time defending champion Weehawken High School, David Brearley scored two runs in the top of the eighth and then held on for a 5-3 extra inning triumph.
The Bears received two hits from junior Valentina Capra, freshman Gia Pirozzi and sophomore Amber Zawacki. Francesca Licata, a senior, scored twice, while Capra, senior Leah Sims and Zawacki scored once.
Pirozzi was exceptional on the mound, scattering nine hits, while striking out four and walking none.
In the Central Jersey, Group 2 final at Arthur L. Johnson High School in Clark, the host Crusaders scored the game’s final three runs in the bottom of the seventh to stun Delran, 4-3.
Arthur L. Johnson sophomore Elizabeth Fitzharris provided the game-winning RBI that sent the Crusaders to their championship.
Banging out two hits each for Arthur L. Johnson were seniors Krista Labianca and Lacy Vill and one each were Fitzharris, freshman Cassie Conforti and senior Shannon Lancelotti. Scoring the runs were Lancelotti twice and Labianca and Vill.
Conforti also excelled on the mound, tossing a three-hitter that included eight strikeouts and three walks.
David Brearley fell at eventual champion Cedar Grove High School in the Group 1 semifinals, while Arthur L. Johnson was downed at home by Gloucester City High School in the Group 2 semis.
David Brearley also captured the UCC’s Mountain Division crown at 7-1.
Oak Knoll and New Providence high schools, which split against each other, shared the Valley Division title, both of them going 7-1 in division play. Oak Knoll went 15-9 overall and New Providence, 12-8.
Abraham Clark High School was Union County’s only perfect division champion in 2024, with the Rams going 8-0 to capture the Sky Division crown. Abraham Clark finished 10-8 overall.
Union County Conference softball alignment for 2025 season
Watchung Division
David Brearley
Cranford
Jonathan Dayton
Elizabeth
Governor Livingston
Arthur L. Johnson
Scotch Plains–Fanwood
Westfield
Mountain Division
Kent Place
New Providence
Oak Knoll
Roselle Park
Summit
Union
Union Catholic
Valley Division
Abraham Clark
Hillside
Linden
Plainfield
Rahway
Roselle Catholic
2024 UCC division champions
Watchung: Governor Livingston (8-2)
Mountain: David Brearley (7-1)
Valley: New Providence (7-1) and Oak Knoll (7-1)
Sky: Abraham Clark (8-0)
Union County schools that finished .500 or better in 2024:
Jonathan Dayton (22-7), Governor Livingston (20-8), Arthur L. Johnson (20-12), Scotch Plains–Fanwood (18-9), David Brearley (16-12), Oak Knoll (15-9), Roselle Park (15-12), Westfield (14-11), New Providence (12-8), Elizabeth (12-12), Abraham Clark (10-8), Linden (9-9).
Union County Tournament Champions: Jonathan Dayton Bulldogs (22-7)
– first time
North 2, Group 1 Sectional State Champions: David Brearley Bears (16-12)
Central Jersey, Group 2 Sectional State Champions: Arthur L. Johnson Crusaders (20-12)