Good news for the the high school baseball program: The Greater Newark Tournament semi-final will be held in Verona after all.
Earlier this year the Essex County Athletic Directors Association (ECADA), the governing body for the prestigious tournament, voted to move the double-header, usually held in Verona on a Saturday in the spring, to a weeknight. Because the high school’s Doc Goeltz baseball field is unlighted, that effectively removed Verona from contention as a venue. That, in turn, would mean losing the profits from the concession stand, which is run by the Verona Baseball Parents (VBP) and used for upkeep of the high school varsity and junior varsity fields.
Thanks to the intercession of VHS Athletic Director Gary Farishian and baseball coach Lou Racioppe, however, the ECADA agreed to take a re-vote. The tally was 21-4 in favor of keeping the semi-final game as a day game in Verona. The date for play in Verona is now slated for Saturday, May 8. Though the seeding will not be determined until shortly beforehand, the competitors will be high school baseball teams from Essex County.
“This is great news,” says Verona councilman Jay Sniatkowski, a volunteer with the VBP. “This means so much to our program. Doc Goeltz is the best venue in Essex County for high school baseball.”
