Brearley head softball coach Amy Efchak, in her 16th season at the helm of the Bears, won her 200th game Monday when seventh-seeded Brearley defeated visiting 10th-seeded Benedictine 15-1 in a first round Union County Tournament contest in Kenilworth.
Efchak took over as head coach in 2003 and has done an outstanding job in keeping Brearley softball highly-competitive for more than 15 years.
Efchak guided Brearley to its lone Union County Tournament championship in 2005 and later that season the Bears also captured the North 2, Group 1 state championship.
That 2005 team was led by sophomore pitcher Jenna Vitale, a 2007 Brearley graduate who is Efchak’s assistant coach.
Brearley improved to 9-3 overall with Monday’s win and on Wednesday the Bears are scheduled to play at econd-seeded Gov. Livingston in a UCT quarterfinal.
Roselle Park was defeated for the first time Monday when the Panthers were shut out at Somerset County school Watchung Hills 1-0. Watchung Hills improved to 10-1. Watchung Hills scored the game’s lone run in the bottom of
the third. The Warriors outhit the Panthers 5-4.
Roselle Park was two outs away from getting shut out 1-0 at home by Brearley last Thursday before coming back to beat the Bears 2-1 with two outs in the bottom of the seventh.
Roselle Park is 13-1 overall heading into Tuesday’s scheduled Union County Conference-crossover game at Union.
The Panthers began the week leading the UCC’s Mountain Division at 7-0.
Roselle Park is scheduled to play two more UCC-crossover games this week – Thursday at Governor Livingston (Watchung) and Friday at home vs. Linden (Valley).
If Roselle Park wins Wednesday in its home UCT quarterfinal against Union Catholic, then the Panthers will be playing Saturday in the UCT semifinals at Kean. If Roselle Park then wins Saturday, the Panthers will play in Sunday’s UCT final at Kean.