2025 Greater Middlesex Conference Final Preview 5-St. Joseph (Met.) (14-6) vs. 11-Edison (15-9) Saturday, May 24 at East Brunswick Magnet, 2pm Championship History St. Joseph (Met.) Titles: 8 (2004, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2014, 2017, 2021, 2023) Titles: 8 (1990, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2001) How They Got Here St. Joseph (Met.) Play-In Round: Bye1st Round: 1-0W over 12-SayrevilleQuarterfinal: 1-0W over 13-MetuchenSemifinal: 4-3W over 8-Spotswood Play-In Round: Bye1st Round: 2-1W over 6-Old BridgeQuarterfinal: 9-1W over 3-St. Thomas AquinasSemifinal: 3-0W over 10-Middlesex Earlier Matchups 4/28/25 - Edison 5, St. Joseph (Met.) 05/1/25 - St. Joseph (Met.) 3, Edison 1 Players to Watch St. Joseph (Met.) Richard Zangara: 47 2/3 IP, 44 K, 1.32 ERALuke Palermo: 26 H, 20 RBI, 15 R, .413 AVGJP Zayle: 23 H, 21 RBI, .411 AVG, 17 RBobby Christensen: 26 H, 17 RBI, 20 R, .400 AVGJoseph Barca: 42 2/3 IP, 44K, 1.97 ERA, 16 H, .271 AVG Connor Murphy: 54 IP, 1.04 ERA, 69 K, 19 H, 19 RBI, .257 AVGRobert Roma: 25 H, 18 RBI, 23 BB, 18 R, .385 AVGDaren Tirado: 29 H, 8 RBI, 15 R, .345 AVGDom Innocenti: 27 H, 20 RBI, 3 HR, 16 R, .409 AVGAnthony Calantoni: 27 H, 24 R, 10 SB, .325 AVG What to Expect The winner of this game will have the most titles in this tournament’s history. It’s been a long wait for Edison to get back here, doing so for the first time since its last championship in 2021. Connor Murphy is having a legendary run with only one run allowed in his last 40 innings. He twirled a two-hit shutout against Middlesex in the semifinal and supplied the go-ahead, two-run double in the fifth inning to break it open. There’s also a pretty strong team behind him. Anthony Calantoni, Dom Innocenti, Robert Roma and Daren Tirado all have over 25 hits. If Murphy gets in trouble on the mound, Edison can easily give the ball to one of the two Roma brothers. Robert and Braydon have allowed a combined 29 earned runs in 76 total innings with 76 strikeouts. Murphy tossed a three-hit shutout with six strikeouts in his start against St. Joseph (Met.) on April 28. Richard Zangara got the start for St. Joseph in the rematch on May 1 and allowed one run on four innings across seven innings with five strikeouts. This promises to be another great pitching matchup. Zangara has thrown shutouts in two of his last three starts, one of which required eight innings against Sayreville. In all, he has 27 strikeouts in his last 27 innings and has allowed just three earned runs in that span. There’s a good amount of balance across this lineup with eight players having at least 12 hits. Bobby Christensen and Luke Palermo are leading the way with 26 apiece and they’ve combined for 37 RBIs. Both teams are on a roll, as well, with St. Joseph riding an eight-game winning streak and Edison having won nine in a row. Edison 2, St. Joseph (Met.) 1 Brian Bobal may be reached at bbobal@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on X at @BrianBobal. The N.J. High School Sports newsletter now appears in mailboxes 5 days a week. Sign up now! Follow us on social: Facebook | Instagram | X (formerly Twitter)