By Ross Vocaturo ’25
RAMSEY, NJ – The 2024 Don Bosco Ironmen Baseball campaign is in the books. And while the season didn’t end in ideal fashion, it was still a pivotal season in the direction of the program. Coach Mike Rooney returned for his 12th season overseeing the ball club, a roster that included the following graduating Seniors: Eric Petrie, Charles DellaVolpe, A.J. Carey, Gabe Cushner, Anthony Iazzetti, Lucas Van Gendt, Ryan Calvario, and Luke Eitner. Despite all these Seniors playing out their final years at the high school level, the number of graduating players felt much lower compared to recent seasons.
The Ironmen kicked their season off with a 7-1 final against nearby rival St. Joseph’s Montvale. Sophomore Junzen Sara led the way in the lineup with a homer and 3 RBIs, along with Junior Jason Kuhn’s 7-strikeout gem across 4 innings of 1-hit ball. A couple days later, Bosco made quick work of Old Bridge in a 14-1 onslaught that ended in a mercy rule following a 9-run top of the 5th inning. Bosco would go on to win its next 5 games to begin the season 7-0, building on its best start to a season since 2021 (8-0).
Their first loss came at the hands of DePaul on April 15. While the Ironmen put up 4 runs in the 1st inning, DePaul answered with 6 of its own in the 5th, en route to a 10-6 final. Bosco got another crack at the Spartans two days later, this time at their home park in Ramsey. After going scoreless through the first 3 frames, Bosco exploded for 6 runs in the bottom half of the 4th to set the tone, then added 5 more across the 5th and 6th innings. Junior Jason Kuhn lit up the scoreboard with 11 strikeouts on the day, and 11-3 would be the final in Bosco’s revenge spot against the team who ended their perfect season. The win against DePaul kickstarted another lengthy winning streak, this time one that would reach 8 games. This streak was even more dominant than the first, with Bosco seeing a collective +72 run differential across the 8 wins. After a rare hiccup against Donovan Catholic, Bosco followed it up with 3 straight “mercy rules,” against Wayne Valley, Dwight-Englewood (in the first round of the Bergen County Tournament), and Paterson Eastside. Their win against Dwight-Englewood advanced them to play Hackensack in the county quarterfinals, which they won 7-1. Their run came to an end at the hands of St Joe’s Montvale, but sights were still set on the North Jersey title.
A 6-4 victory over Bergen Catholic led Bosco up to the start of the NJSIAA North Jersey Non Public A Tournament; Bosco was set to face Pope John. Senior Ryan Calvario threw a gem, and junior Dylan Espinal brought home the game’s lone runner on a 6th-inning double to knock off Pope John, 1-0. Two days later came Seton Hall Prep; and after a shaky first inning that led to Seton Hall taking a 1-0 lead, Jason Kuhn stepped up with 6 scoreless innings and 7 strikeouts; and after Junzen Sarza tied the game up with a base hit in the 7th, it was junior Nick Becker who sealed it on a walk off single to shallow left field to cap off the extra-inning thriller. It would be Bosco and Delbarton in the North Jersey championship.
Bosco tacked on early, putting up 3 and 4 runs in the 1st and 2nd innings, respectively. However after trailing 7-4 going into the 3rd inning, Delbarton scored 6 unanswered across the rest of the game and eventually took the regional title, 10-7. Bosco’s great season came to a crashing end.
Despite not securing North Jersey, there were numerous players who had notable seasons. Virginia commit Nick Becker led the way with a .456 batting average and a .671 slugging percentage; he also led the team with 32 stolen bases. Sophomore Junzen Sarza was batting .442 with 40 RBIs on the season. Fellow sophomore Michael Hanna had a slugging percentage north of 6 and a .446 average as well. As far as pitchers go, junior Jason Kuhn stole the stat sheet with an improbable 0.32 ERA and 62 strikeouts through 43.1 innings. Highly touted sophomore Ethan Lee had a 2.57 ERA through 32.2 innings. Junior Evan Stavrou held a 1.02 ERA through numerous relief appearances.
While the season didn’t end the way Bosco wanted it to, there is still a lot of promise in the core of the club. The number of graduating seniors isn’t as high as numerous years, so while certain key players are already out the door, the majority of the team is remaining intact. It wasn’t meant to be this year, but one of the greatest programs in the state of New Jersey isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
