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METUCHEN — The St. Thomas Aquinas High School softball team, ranked atop the Greater Middlesex Conference, could be excused if it celebrated Thursday’s four-inning, 15-0 dismissal of Metuchen with a little extra gusto.
After all, the victory was the 300th for coach Missy Collazo, in her 17th season.
But restraint was one of the many positive qualities the Trojans exhibited on yet another chilly afternoon -- at least until they got back to the bus and feted their coach properly.
“A lot of great players have come through the program,” was Collazo’s initial response, when asked about the milestone. “A lot of great teams and my assistant Mark (Fiore), who’s been here all 17 years, so it’s a tribute to him and a tribute to all of the kids that came to play here. We’ve had a lot of good players.”
More: Softball roundup: Daily results and links for Skyland Conference, GMC, area Union County
The influence the Colonia native has had on those players is formidable.
“I’ve known Missy since I was 6-years old, and I just see her as more than a coach, I see her as family,” said pitcher Liz Negron, whose older sister also played for the North Edison school. “She’s a role model to me and she holds herself to high standards and she keeps everyone else the same way as players.
“I think that’s what makes us such a strong team, no matter what year it is. Old people leave, new people come in and she’s always able to make us mesh well and keep us to a high standard every time.”
Negron once again was on point in the circle for St. Thomas (4-1), striking out six in her three hitless innings, fanning five of the last six batters she faced. St. Thomas struck for five runs without a hit in the first inning, capitalizing on six walks. The Trojans tacked on eight more runs on just two hits in the second, removing any suspense from Collazo’s date with destiny.
“A win is a win, we did what we had to do,” stated Collazo. “It’s a division game, it counts, an important game. I’m okay with it.”
Collazo graduated from St. Thomas – known then as Bishop Ahr -- in 2001, and won two GMC titles and a sectional crown as a shortstop. She has added six more titles as coach, including five in a row prior before coming up short last season.
“I’ve been here a long time,” smiled Collazo, whose record now stands at 300-89, a winning percentage of .771 playing in the GMC’s elite division and taking on a gauntlet of a non-conference schedule perennially.
For Negron, who has assumed the role as the squad’s No. 1 pitcher, Collazo’s influence has been instrumental to her ascension to one of the GMC’s top hurlers.
“She made me feel very comfortable,” Negron began. “I was a little nervous going in, pitching every game, doing something I hadn’t really done before. She made me feel very comfortable and it’s been going well ever since.”
The same could be said for the entire St. Thomas program.
“We have a good team this year. We’ve got good pitching, a lot of senior leadership and we are hitting the ball really well right now,” Collazo said. “We just have to stay focused and keep playing as well as we are right now.”
If they don’t, their coach will no doubt get them back on track, as she has done for the last 17 campaigns.
This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: NJ Softball: Collazo secures 300th coaching win as St. Thomas rolls
Continue reading...
After all, the victory was the 300th for coach Missy Collazo, in her 17th season.
But restraint was one of the many positive qualities the Trojans exhibited on yet another chilly afternoon -- at least until they got back to the bus and feted their coach properly.
“A lot of great players have come through the program,” was Collazo’s initial response, when asked about the milestone. “A lot of great teams and my assistant Mark (Fiore), who’s been here all 17 years, so it’s a tribute to him and a tribute to all of the kids that came to play here. We’ve had a lot of good players.”
More: Softball roundup: Daily results and links for Skyland Conference, GMC, area Union County
The influence the Colonia native has had on those players is formidable.
“I’ve known Missy since I was 6-years old, and I just see her as more than a coach, I see her as family,” said pitcher Liz Negron, whose older sister also played for the North Edison school. “She’s a role model to me and she holds herself to high standards and she keeps everyone else the same way as players.
“I think that’s what makes us such a strong team, no matter what year it is. Old people leave, new people come in and she’s always able to make us mesh well and keep us to a high standard every time.”
Negron once again was on point in the circle for St. Thomas (4-1), striking out six in her three hitless innings, fanning five of the last six batters she faced. St. Thomas struck for five runs without a hit in the first inning, capitalizing on six walks. The Trojans tacked on eight more runs on just two hits in the second, removing any suspense from Collazo’s date with destiny.
“A win is a win, we did what we had to do,” stated Collazo. “It’s a division game, it counts, an important game. I’m okay with it.”
Collazo graduated from St. Thomas – known then as Bishop Ahr -- in 2001, and won two GMC titles and a sectional crown as a shortstop. She has added six more titles as coach, including five in a row prior before coming up short last season.
“I’ve been here a long time,” smiled Collazo, whose record now stands at 300-89, a winning percentage of .771 playing in the GMC’s elite division and taking on a gauntlet of a non-conference schedule perennially.
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For Negron, who has assumed the role as the squad’s No. 1 pitcher, Collazo’s influence has been instrumental to her ascension to one of the GMC’s top hurlers.
“She made me feel very comfortable,” Negron began. “I was a little nervous going in, pitching every game, doing something I hadn’t really done before. She made me feel very comfortable and it’s been going well ever since.”
The same could be said for the entire St. Thomas program.
“We have a good team this year. We’ve got good pitching, a lot of senior leadership and we are hitting the ball really well right now,” Collazo said. “We just have to stay focused and keep playing as well as we are right now.”
If they don’t, their coach will no doubt get them back on track, as she has done for the last 17 campaigns.
This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: NJ Softball: Collazo secures 300th coaching win as St. Thomas rolls
Continue reading...
