Wallkill Valley athletes earn runner-up finishes at sectional championships

Lore Hicks placed second in the 100-meter hurdles win a time of 15.74, Lorenzo Flores DeBenedictis took second in the 100-meter dash in 10.99 and second in the 200-meter dash in 22.29 and Joshua Saltzman was second in the pole vault with an effort of 12-6 to pace the Wallkill Valley girls and boys outdoor tack and field teams at the NJSIAA North Jersey, Section 1, Group 1 championships on May 15-16 at Livingston High in Livingston.

The Wallkill Valley boys finished fifth overall in the team standings with the Lady Rangers placing 13th.

Other top six place-winners for the girls included Bailey Cook (sixth in 400-meter dash in 1:02.59), Haley Murphy (sixth in 3200-meter run in 12:18.41) and the 4x100 meter relay team of Hicks, Isabella Velasco, Jordyn Trinkleback and Paris Germain (fourth in 52.87).

The remainder of the boys top six place-winners included Jordan Ebelle (fourth in 100-meter dash in 11.08; third in 200-meter dash in 22.36), Emmanuel Oti (sixth in pole vault, 11-0) and Dylan Hutchinson (sixth in javelin, 139-2).

The overall Group 1 championships will be held May 29-30 at Franklin High in Somerset.

Baseball

The Rangers are the top seed for the NJSIAA North Jersey, Section 1, Group 1 tournament and were scheduled to play host to 16th-seeded Hawthorne in a first round game on May 27 at 3 p.m.

If Wallkill Valley prevailed it would host either eighth-seeded Indian Hills or ninth-seeded Saddle Brook in a sectional quarterfinal on Friday, May 29.

The sectional semifinals are slated for June 3 with the championship game set for June 5.

On Wednesday, May 20, the Rangers improved to 19-6 with a 10-0 victory at Wallington.

Tyler Haberstroh pitched a five-inning three-hitter with 11 strikeouts and no walks and also went 2-for-4 with a double, two stolen bases and three runs.

Jack Tucker was 2-for-3 with a triple, four RBI and a run and Alex Opilla was 2-for-2 with a walk and a run and Ryan Miller singled, was hit by two pitches and scored three times.

Softball

Cassie Pallay went 2-for-4 with a double, two RBIs and two runs, Madison Molta was 3-for-3 with two stolen bases, a run and a walk, Tara Anderson doubled, walked and drove in two runs and Jacinda DeSino singled three times, stole a base and drove in a run as Wallkill Valley struck for five runs in the top of the seventh to rally for an 8-4 victory over Lakeland on May 18 in Lakeland.

The Lady Rangers (15-6) were seeded 15th for the NJSIAA North Jersey, Section 1, Group 1 tournament and were slated to play at second-seeded Midland Park in a first round game on May 26.