Shore Softball Says Goodbye to Seniors After Banner Year

Shore High School’s Softball team has just finished its best year in the ‘A Central’ division with Coach Rich Santangelo and a record of 6-16, a vast improvement on last year’s 2-17 record.   

Santangelo has been the head coach of the Shore Softball team for that last three years and has been with the team since 1993. 

“This has been the most enjoyable softball season I have had the pleasure to coach. From my first day of practice to the last huddle after the states game, I enjoyed every moment. The improvement the girls showed as a team was remarkable” enthused Coach Santangelo. 

With the end of the school year comes the sad departure of the seniors on the team.  The coach and players paid tribute to the six departing members at the last game with flowers and applause.  The Blue Devils were competitive in every single game this year, and it is due in large part to the performance of the seniors. 

Captain Kristen Kuhlthau was excellent all season at the plate and in the field. She was the catalyst for the offense and led the team in most offensive categories. She finished the year with a .364 batting average; lead the team with 28 hits and 23 RBI.

Captain Christina Musantry had a solid season at the plate and in the field. Her batting average was .317, up 15 points from last year, she was among the Shore Conference leaders for doubles all year, and finished with nine. She has started many rallies and often drove in the first run of the game.

“Kristen Kuhlthau was my best offensive player and Christina Musantry was my best defensive player” said Santangelo.  Both girls were selected as senior all-stars and played in the Shore Conference Senior All Star game for the South Team on June 16th, at Wall High School.

Senior Kristi Irace did not start, but she made the most of her chances to play. She never complained and was always ready to help the team. She ended the season with a .313 batting average, had five hits and five runs batted in. Her best game was against Long Branch. In that game, she was 3 for 4 at the plate and drove in 4 runs.

Vicky Iacovone emerged as the starting right fielder and was a solid contributor all season long. She finished with a .267 batting average and was tied for second on the team in runs scored with 11. Her biggest moment was the Henry Hudson game. With one out, runners on 2nd and 3rd, and Shore trailing 7-6 in the 9th inning, Vicky lined a hard single up the middle to drive in 2 runs, winning the game for Shore 8-7.

Katherine Peluso was not a starter, but made the most of her time when she got the chance to play. Her biggest moment was the first Monmouth game, where she scored the go ahead run in the 5th inning with a head first slide into home plate. That run made the score 3-2, in a game Shore ultimately lost 6-5, in 8 innings.

Jane Farrell returned to her starting position in left field and had a solid season both offensively and defensively. She was the leader of the outfielders all season, raised her batting average over 80 points from last season to .273 and doubled her hit total.  Jane's biggest hit of the year came in the top of the ninth at Freehold Boro.  With the score tied at six, and a runner on third, with 2 outs, Jane ripped a single past the third baseman to drive in what ended up being the winning run, 7-6.

Coach Santangelo’s favorite game of the year was their biggest win against Matawan. Their come from behind victory was especially sweet as this was a team that had beaten them 7 times previously.  After being down 2 runs in the 2nd inning, Shore rallied to take the game in a 7-2 victory.

Another highlight was qualifying for the State Tournament.  The Blue Devils entered the tournament as underdogs, where they were the 13th seed.  They drew 4th seeded A.L. Johnson High School of Clark and played their best game of the entire season, finally losing in the bottom of the 7th inning 3-2.

“After the season ended, I gathered the girls one last time and told them that we have the start of something here, that thanks to our seniors, we had built a solid foundation for Shore. Now it is time for the underclassmen to step up and build upon what our seniors have created,” said Santangelo.