New Egypt

Hello there Jill and Doug both grew up in Hamilton Township, N.J. They attended the same middle and high schools. They simultaneously worked in Manhattan and likely rode the same trains. But it took the persistence of a self-appointed matchmaker to bring them together. When Jill was very young, a couple her parents' age moved into the house across the street. Jill was especially fond of Janet, who loved to bake and befriended everyone in the neighborhood. Jill even wrote an elementary school essay about her. Janet became the head of the "Hi, New Neighbor Club," which sponsored community game nights and dances.

New Egypt's express train made an impressive run, but fell one stop short of completing a dream season. The Warriors yielded two penalty-stroke goals in the first half and couldn't recover as the Pingry School notched a 2-1 victory in the NJSIAA state Group 1 field hockey championship yesterday at the College of New Jersey. New Egypt finished at 15-1-3 in the program's third year. "It's been a whirlwind of a season," New Egypt coach Patti Nicholson said. "I'm so proud of this group.

The Willingboro wrestling team had one starter out of the lineup, and New Egypt took complete advantage of the situation. After both teams beat Burlington City to start yesterday's tri-match, the host Warriors cooled the Chimeras by taking a tense 37-29 victory in Plumstead Township. The loss, which dropped Willingboro to 19-4 in duals this season, should not affect the Chimeras' chances of earning their first playoff berth, but coach Marc Cuniglio is taking nothing for granted.

While rain soaked the area's racetracks during the weekend, the management at Bridgeport and New Egypt speedways made some key moves. Bridgeport promoter Norman Foss announced a new sponsorship deal that will allow one of the track's marquee events to pay a hefty $10,000 to the winner. Carquest Auto Parts will provide financial support to the Logan Township, N.J., dirt track for the remainder of the 1998 season. The firm, which has 3,500 stores across the country, will become the title sponsor of the George I. Wingate Fall Classic, a 50-lap modified event set for July 22. "With the race paying a high purse, the Carquest/Wingate Classic will be a premier event in modified racing," Foss said.

New Egypt used a second-half surge to beat host Bordentown, 3-2, in a boys' soccer match on Monday afternoon. Scoreless at the break, the half began at a quick pace with four goals in the first 22 minutes. Vinny Masitti netted a pair of tying goals for New Egypt before the game returned slowed down. Kenny Johnston finally found the net with 7 seconds left for the winning score. Johnston made a sharp cut inside the box and beat Bordentown's Andrew Morris high to the near side.

Little siestas are not uncommon for members of the New Egypt softball team as they pass time on long road trips from their Ocean County campus. "They take naps and we usually wake them up about 15 minutes before we get there," Warriors coach Carolyn Eckhardt said. The power naps must be working, especially for the pitchers, who have put opposing hitters to sleep this season. New Egypt (14-2) has surrendered just 11 runs and boasts 11 shutouts in 16 games. Heading into yesterday's contest at Riverside, the Warriors pitching staff had tossed six straight shutouts - including three straight no-hitters at one point - in their last six games.

New Egypt coach Patti Nicholson crafted a program from nothing into a competitive Group 1 team capable of threatening teams from much larger schools. Nicholson started building the program from scratch in 1999 when the school first opened. Two years later, the Warriors fielded their first varsity team. Flash-forward to the 2004 season. The Warriors have appeared in the state tournament twice in the last two years, only to lose to Pingry both times. New Egypt's only losses going into the state tournament this season were against undefeated schools that won a state championship: Collingswood and Eastern.

Bishop Eustace's offense did its job on Saturday, and Devin Smeltzer made it impossible for the opponent's lineup to do the same. Smeltzer pitched all seven innings, allowing one earned run and striking out 12, and the Crusaders downed New Egypt, 8-2, in the first round of the Joe Hartmann Diamond Classic at Washington Township. Smeltzer had full control of his repertoire, walking just one. Sam Steele and Dan Marano each registered three hits for Bishop Eustace. Zac Gallen had two doubles, scored a run, and added an RBI. In other Diamond Classic action: Eric Schorr scored from second on an errant throw from a Delsea infielder, and Audubon won a 6-5, eight-inning nail-biter at Maple Shade.

When New Egypt boys' soccer coach Sam Palumbo gathered his players in the locker room after Monday's 2-0 loss to South River in the Central Jersey Group 1 Final, he told them to hold their heads high because it had been an amazing season. He wasn't kidding. The top-seeded Warriors won a school-record 19 games and advanced to the sectional final for the first time in school history, winning a league title and going unbeaten in the county on the way. Still, Palumbo knew it would take a nearly perfect effort to beat No. 3 South River.

Emily Bauscher put on a dazzling pitching performance Saturday at the Hammonton Invitational Softball tournament. The New Egypt junior struck out 10 batters and no-hit Kingsway as the Warriors (13-2) rolled to a 2-0 victory in the championship game. Bauscher, regarded as one of the best pitchers in South Jersey, allowed only one hit to Hammonton in a semifinal, which New Egypt won, 5-0. In previous seasons, teams that have won the tournament have been considered the unofficial softball champions of South Jersey.

Audubon trailed Haddonfield for most of the game Friday before pulling out a 4-3 home win in a Colonial Conference baseball matchup. Haddonfield led by 2-0 after one inning and 3-2 entering the bottom of the seventh. But then, Eric Shorr led off with a triple and Justin Jannetti singled him in to tie the game. Jannetti moved to third on a sacrifice and a wild pitch. Jack Welscher, the winning pitcher, then hit a walk-off single. Nonleague. Designated hitter Joe Gatto stroked a go-ahead single in the top of the eighth inning to send St. Augustine, ranked fifth in South Jersey by The Inquirer, to a 4-2 win at No. 3 Gloucester Catholic.

Bishop Eustace's offense did its job on Saturday, and Devin Smeltzer made it impossible for the opponent's lineup to do the same. Smeltzer pitched all seven innings, allowing one earned run and striking out 12, and the Crusaders downed New Egypt, 8-2, in the first round of the Joe Hartmann Diamond Classic at Washington Township. Smeltzer had full control of his repertoire, walking just one. Sam Steele and Dan Marano each registered three hits for Bishop Eustace. Zac Gallen had two doubles, scored a run, and added an RBI. In other Diamond Classic action: Eric Schorr scored from second on an errant throw from a Delsea infielder, and Audubon won a 6-5, eight-inning nail-biter at Maple Shade.

Sam Steele says the key to Bishop Eustace's resurgent baseball season is that "everybody is doing their role. " For Steele, that was a little bit of everything last week. As the Crusaders went 4-0 and allowed just two runs, Steele made contributions at the plate as well as behind it. The senior catcher helped guide senior Zac Gallen, junior Devin Smeltzer, and sophomore Justin Hagenman through one of the most dominating weeks of the season for any pitching staff in South Jersey.

Baseball JOE HARTMANN DIAMOND CLASSIC QUARTERFINALS Cherry Hill West 11, Buena 0 Audubon 6, Delsea 5 Bishop Eustace 8, New Egypt 2 Washington Township 8, Gloucester Catholic 1 Vineland 12, Northern Burlington 5 Camden Catholic 5, Williamstown 3 Eastern 10, St. Augustine 4 NONLEAGUE Gloucester Catholic 14, Germantown Friends 1 Softball BURLINGTON COUNTY LIBERTY Northern Burlington 2, New Egypt 1...

Pat Welsh is used to recording saves from the mound, but on Thursday afternoon he used his arm and his bat to seal an extra-inning win for the Northern Burlington baseball team. With the score knotted at 7-7, Welsh crushed a double to score Tyler O'Dell in the top of the eighth inning, and the Greyhounds edged host Maple Shade, 9-7, in a Burlington County League game. The junior righthander, who starts at second base, survived a scare in the bottom of the eighth. After giving up a hit and two walks to load the bases with just one out, Welsh fanned the final two batters to earn the win. Northern Burlington trailed by a run entering the seventh inning and was down to its last out when Nick Wright ripped an 0-2 pitch to even the score, getting his second double of the game.

Shaine Hughes capped a five-run second inning with a bases-clearing double in the second inning Tuesday and Washington Township won an Olympic Conference American Division baseball showdown with Shawnee, 6-5. Washington Township is ranked fifth by The Inquirer and Shawnee is ranked eighth. Tom Hildebrand also went 2 for 3 with a double and an RBI for Washington Township. Cape-Atlantic American. Chris Oakley gave up one hit over 52/3 shutout innings and St. Augustine blanked host Millville, 2-0. Oakley also fanned seven for The Inquirer's second-ranked team.

For six innings Monday afternoon, the Eastern bats did nothing. That was about to change in a big way. Catcher Ally Schmus hit a go-ahead grand slam to cap a six-run seventh inning and lift Eastern to a 6-2 win at Shawnee in a Olympic Conference American softball. Shawnee's Jackie Pezzato took a perfect game into the seventh. She struck out 10. Eastern had five straight hits to tie the game at 2 before Schmus' big blow Jess Heaton allowed three hits and struck out five to earn the win.   Girls' Lacrosse Alex Hlesciak scored her 200th career goal in Rancocas Valley's 19-6 defeat of visiting New Egypt in Burlington County Liberty play.

GCIT's Erynn Sobieski outdueled Williamstown's Tiarra Sanabria on Thursday to earn a 1-0 win in a Tri-County Royal softball game. Sobieski went the distance, giving up two hits and a walk in seven innings. She struck out 11. Taylor Favinger crushed a first-inning home run for the game's only run. Sanabria, a University of Louisville recruit, gave up only three hits and struck out 13 in seven innings. Olympic American. Michelle Sachais tossed seven strong innings, allowing three runs on four hits with six strikeouts, to lead Cherry Hill East to a 5-3 victory against visiting Cherokee.