A new era of Bridgewater-Raritan High School softball was launched with a bang at Summit High School on Monday, March 30.
The conclusion of the Panthers’ previous chapter can best be described by a three-word mantra that carried them to the state sectional semifinals.
One last ride.
Fittingly, spectators could spot those words on the back of a T-shirt during every game of last year’s postseason run by longtime head coach Sandy Baranowski. After serving as a health and physical education teacher since 1993 at Bridgewater-Raritan High School, where she led the Panthers’ softball team for 28 years, Baranowski retired at the conclusion of last season.
Over her storied career, Baranowski amassed 365 victories, which is the second most in Somerset County history behind former Bound Brook High School head coach Steve Kania.
For the first time this century, Bridgewater-Raritan therefore played a game with a new skipper in charge, as Katie Winchock made her highly-anticipated debut as the Panthers’ head coach – ironically, while wearing the same T-shirt her predecessor wore on the day of her final game just under 10 months ago.
Perhaps her debut can be best summarized by a new trio of words.
One emphatic beginning.
Freshman catcher Quinn Levash (2-4, four RBIs) smacked a three-run double in her first career at-bat for Bridgewater-Raritan (1-0), which erupted for a three-run lead in the top of the first inning. Junior starting pitcher Charlotte Yarnall (2-3, two RBIs, two runs, one walk) then launched two of her team’s four home runs for Summit (0-1), which scored four runs in the bottom of the first inning alone and took a two-run lead after three innings.
The Panthers then rallied for five straight runs of their own, including four in the top of the fifth inning, to set the stage for a thrilling finish.
Although the Hilltoppers got to within one run after six innings, Bridgewater-Raritan junior Brynn Hawley (6.1 innings pitched, five hits, three runs, four walks, five strikeouts, one hit batter) and the Panthers’ defense held on for an 8-7 victory at Soldiers Memorial Field in Summit.
“It means a lot, because we’ve been practicing and working really hard,” said Winchock afterwards. “We’ve been really focusing on our approach to the plate and our two-strike approach. In some of our scrimmages, we have not been hitting until towards the middle-end of the game, but we have been battling back.”
“Today, we came out right away, so that was huge for us.”
That was especially huge against last year’s North 2, Group 3 runner-up in Summit, which lost last season’s sectional title matchup on a perfect game by Class of 2025 graduate Nicole Swatko of South Plainfield High School, 2-0.
This ended a 20-9 campaign for the Hilltoppers, but for the first time since being on the losing end of that perfect game, Yarnall took the circle for Summit again on Monday evening.
Bridgewater-Raritan wasted no time in its debut.
In the first inning, when the Panthers sent their first seven batters to the plate, all four of their baserunners reached with two strikes in their counts. Freshman outfielder Reese Paxson (1-2, two runs, two walks) worked a six-pitch, leadoff walk before sophomore catcher Chloe Jacobson (2-4, one RBI, one run) caught a popped-up bunt near her plate for Summit to help give the Hilltoppers two outs to work with. After Senior Bri Cacchio (4-4, two RBIs, two runs) then put the Panthers in scoring position with a two-out single, Yarnall battled back from a three-ball count against junior infielder Jess Pastorick (1-3, two runs, one walk).
However, Pastorick walked on seven pitches to load the bases for Bridgewater-Raritan.
Then stepping to the plate was Levash, whose name was very fresh to the Bridgewater-Raritan faithful in attendance given the Panthers’ success in the winter.
Along with junior Matt McCann, Quinn’s brother and Matt’s classmate: Trent, collected a medal to give Bridgewater-Raritan a pair of state placers at the NJSIAA Wrestling Individual Tournament just over two weeks earlier at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. Fittingly, Quinn Levash smacked the seventh pitch of her first at-bat for Bridgewater-Raritan into the gap at center to clear the bases.
This gave the Panthers a 3-0 lead before Summit even stepped to the plate.
“Going up to bat with the bases loaded was really exciting, and I was just really excited to play with this team,” Levash said of her big first at-bat.
“I trusted myself and had a lot of confidence that I could hit the ball.”
However, the Hilltoppers responded against Bridgewater-Raritan sophomore starter Rachael Eng, who stepped up valiantly as a freshman after losing Hawley due to injury last season.
In the month of May alone, the Panthers won six of their eight games Eng appeared in, including an epic 7-6 walk-off victory over Bayonne High School in the state sectional quarterfinals to cap it off in Baranowski’s final home game as Bridgewater-Raritan’s coach.
Sandwiched in between two outs was a home-run by sophomore infielder Kate Shin (1-3, two runs, one walk), who ironically played against Bridgewater-Raritan in basketball with Yarnall and freshman Riley Dagner in the winter to the tune of a 43-26 victory for Summit.
Yarnall finished with a 19-point, 11-rebound double-double in that game back in December, and in her first at-bat of the spring for the Hilltoppers, her home run to dead center with two outs cut Bridgewater-Raritan’s lead to 3-2.
Senior infielder Ilana Friedman (one run) then blooped the potential final out in front of the plate, but Eng was unable to complete the running catch towards the plate. Junior Lily Harness (2-3, two RBIs, one run) capitalized with a go-ahead, two-run homer to the same spot before Hawley then took over for Eng in relief for Bridgewater-Raritan.
She was able to strike out Dagner on her first at-bat, but the damage was done, as Summit took a 4-3 lead after one inning.
Yarnall and Hawley both collected a pair of strikeouts each as part of a scoreless second inning, which saw sophomore outfielder Penny Nemeth (one walk) work an eight-pitch walk for Bridgewater-Raritan and sophomore outfielder Sarah Barber (1-3) tally a single for Summit. That inning ended with key defensive plays on both sides, as Chloe Jacobson completed a pick-off play from the plate for Summit.
However, Bridgewater-Raritan sophomore outfielder Sydney Votapek caught a first-pitch line drive by Shin at center field to keep Summit’s advantage at 4-3 after two innings.
In the third inning, Cacchio was tagged out advancing to second on a single for Bridgewater-Raritan. With one out for Summit, Yarnall launched her second home run of the game to extend the Hilltoppers’ lead to 5-3. Horness then delivered a two-out double to give Summit another runner in scoring position, but on the ensuing bunt attempt by senior Brythe Hellings (one RBI, two walks), Hawley made a running catch on the ensuing pop-up to keep her team’s deficit at two runs to end the third inning.
Pastorick then led off the fourth inning with a double for Bridgewater-Raritan, which got to within 5-4 after Levash put a ball in play that was bobbled at first base. Yarnall responded with back-to-back strikeouts and helped strand Levash at second base, but Hawley sent down the Hilltoppers in order to keep it a one-run game after four innings.
With the top of its order due up in the fifth inning, Bridgewater-Raritan completed its comeback bid.
Paxson opened the inning with a single, and on the ensuing bunt by Votapek, the throw sailed past first base to give the Panthers runners on the corners with nobody out. Sophomore infield Amanda Ciser (1-4, one RBI, one run), who took over at shortstop for Bridgewater-Raritan for Class of 2025 graduate, basketball teammate, and Saint Peter’s University softball signee Angela Tremarco, then knocked in the game-tying single on just the second pitch of her at-bat.
With two runners aboard, this brought up her other basketball teammate in Cacchio, who was the lone senior in the Panthers' 2025-26 girls’ basketball campaign and is bound for Rowan University softball after graduation from Bridgewater-Raritan High School.
On Monday evening, she was also the lone senior in the Panthers’ starting softball lineup. It was only fitting that her mom: Panthers’ varsity assistant coach Kristin Cacchio, had a front-row seat to her daughter’s go-ahead, two-run double with nobody out.
“This was an exciting start to the season, especially with Bri being a part of it and having those go-ahead runs,” said Coach Cacchio, who is stationed at first base with Winchock at third base while Bridgewater-Raritan plays on offense.
“We have a young and fun group, and it’s going to be enjoyable.”
This concluded Yarnall’s evening on seven hits, six earned runs, and three walks allowed to go with four strikeouts in four innings pitched.
Sophomore infielder Hannah Jacobson, who took the circle after opening the evening at third base, then took over for Summit over the final three innings to the tune of six strikeouts plus one walk and two hits allowed. With two outs, Levash: Jacobson’s second batter, brought home a key insurance run in Cacchio after delivering a single and reaching base safely for the third time in as many at-bats.
Given Hannah Jacobson settled in and allowed two base runners the rest of the evening, this proved to be another timely at-bat for Bridgewater-Raritan’s freshman catcher.
“Our team really has trust in each other, so I’m really proud of all of us for that,” Levash went on to say of the difference for Bridgewater-Raritan during its successful rally. “We pick each other up, even when we are down.”
“That’s what helps us stay composed.”
Jacobson’s back-to-back strikeouts ended the Panthers’ threat in the fifth inning, but Bridgewater-Raritan took an 8-5 lead it never relinquished.
“It really means a lot to do this in our first game,” reflected Bri Cacchio. “The adrenaline and that feeling is always great, especially with a lot of new players. We started strong against a pretty decent team.”
“I think this really sets a high standard and expectation going forward.”
Especially given Bridgewater-Raritan had already shown its capability of completing a comeback while also achieving another key milestone under pressure.
Holding off its opponent.
With one out and Summit trailing 8-5 in the bottom of the fifth inning, Chloe Jacobson delivered a double to put the Hilltoppers in scoring position. Yarnall did not even see a pitch in her third at-bat after homering twice previously, as she was intentionally walked to set up a potential double-play ball. Summit was able to avoid the double-play on Friedman’s ensuing fielder’s choice ground ball, and Horness walked on six pitches to load the bases for the Hilltoppers.
Although Hellings walked in a run on a bases-loaded walk to make it an 8-6 game, Dagner’s rip to center field was caught by Votapek to keep Bridgewater-Raritan’s two-run cushion intact.
After Shin collected a two-out walk in the bottom of the sixth inning, Chloe Jacobson’s line-drive single was just over the glove of Ciser, and Shin’s resulting run got Summit to within 8-7. With the tying run in scoring position and Yarnall at the plate, Hawley was able to force a line drive into the glove of Ciser to end the inning with Bridgewater-Raritan’s one-run lead intact.
While Bri Cacchio was able to get on base for the fourth time on a leadoff single in the seventh inning, Hannah Jacobson responded with three straight strikeouts to put Summit in position for a walk-off victory in the bottom of the seventh inning. Fly balls to Nemeth and Pastorick at left field and second base, respectively, on just three pitches set Hawley up with one out to go and nobody on base for Summit.
A seven-pitch walk by Hellings put the tying run aboard for Summit, and Dagner worked a fill count for Summit with the game on the line. A ground ball to second base to Pastorick, who completed the play to junior Lia Mobus at first base, instead ended the game and sealed Bridgewater-Raritan's thrilling season-opening victory.
“I thought it was very stressful – and I am still stressed out,” Hawley revealed of being the winning pitcher after her 6.1 innings of relief. “But it was really fun after we won.”
“Doing this and being with all of our new players is so exciting.”
As part of a four-game slate over Spring Break, Summit (0-1), which plays in the Mountain Division of the Union County Conference, will now get another Skyland Conference Delaware Division opponent in Pingry School (0-0).
The Hilltoppers and Big Blue will square off at 4 p.m. Tuesday, March 31, at Soldiers Memorial Field in Summit.
Summit will then travel to Elizabeth High School (0-0) at 11 a.m. Wednesday, April 1, before taking on crosstown rival Kent Place School (2-0) for a 4 p.m. first pitch, Thursday, April 2, in Summit.
To begin Winchock’s first season in charge, Bridgewater-Raritan (1-0) will try to remain undefeated over Spring Break next at Bernards High School (0-0) at 4 p.m. Tuesday, March 31, in Bernardsville. The Panthers will then travel to Delaware Valley Regional High School (0-0) at 4 p.m. Wednesday, April 1, before closing out their opening stretch at Warren Hills Regional High School (1-0) at 4 p.m. Thursday, April 2.
“Today shows that we can fight, dig deep, and get a win if we work for it,” concluded Winchock.