Scoops on Softball: Predicting North Jersey's division and county champions in 2024
Seeing how we have some time until we play more softball in North Jersey this spring, I am bringing back an old favorite: my predictions on who will win everything, everywhere, all at once.
We don’t spend nearly enough time talking about the division races. Remember, the Big North is a conference, the NJIC is a conference, inside each are divisions. There are no conference champions, just division champs. Those division races are honestly the main things the majority of teams want to win.
And of course, we also have the county championships. IHA is the two-time defending champion in Bergen County. Pompton Lakes is the champion from 2023 after butterflies and things happened for the Cardinals.
I will make the point again that, since 2000 in Bergen County, the last 23 titles have been won by the same nine schools (Old Tappan, Paramus, Paramus Catholic, Ramapo, IHA, Indian Hills, Ramsey and Ridgewood). Odds are one of those nine will win it again in 2024. IHA has a shot at winning it for a third time in a row. Has any team ever won four? No.
This will be the 50th anniversary of the Bergen County softball tournament and I have begun the task of selecting the 50 greatest players from Bergen County.
Let’s start with the NJIC.
NORTH JERSEY INTERSCHOLASTIC CONFERENCE
Colonial Division
I spent my opening day in Glen Rock at Coleman Field, which is gorgeous now by the way. The Panthers fell to Rutherford and Giana Yaniero, 6-2, in a game that was actually closer than that. The contenders here are Hawthorne, Glen Rock and maybe Pompton Lakes.
My pick is the Bears. And I think they win it outright (the other big thing about league races is a lot of times teams tie and are co-champs). I like Hawthorne’s bats. I’m putting pressure on the Bears, but I think this is their year.
Meadowlands Division
Wow, this is cheating, but already we had some interesting results on Day 1. There’s no clear cut favorite here. Becton, Hasbrouck Heights, Wallington and Wood-Ridge should all be competitive. You also know Lodi will be playing so hard this season for former coach Rob Terhune. Remember, this division lost Immaculate Conception.
Before I started this, I was thinking about Becton being the pick. But the Wildcats got whipped by Weehawken, 10-0, on Opening Day. That’s understandable. Weehawken is a state contender. I see a big group of teams at the top. I’ll go with Wood-Ridge and Becton to share the title.
Liberty Division
I made my best pick of the year here last year when I went with my gut and Ridgefield. The Royals bring a lot of pieces back. They edged Leonia by a game for the league title. I know Leonia thinks it should have been them.
Ridgefield and Leonia are the two best teams in this division again. While I’m tempted to declare a tie, that’s a cop-out. I think Leonia will get it done, motivated by losing the division title last year. Keep an eye on Saddle Brook, though. The Falcons may - may - have the best pitcher in the division.
National Division
Weehawken is the defending sectional champ and No. 3 in my North Jersey Top 25 rankings. They have the McHale sisters and stud catcher Envy Duran. They went unbeaten in this division last year, winning the title outright. But Rutherford is no slouch, and we have to see how St. Mary looks with the bulk of girls transferring in from Immaculate Conception after that school closed.
Even though I was very impressed with Rutherford on Monday - if they get production from the bottom of their line-up, watch out - you can’t pick against Weehawken, and I won’t. St. Mary is intriguing though.
Patriot Division
Every coach likes to talk about how tough their division is, when in reality some schools get an automatic 4-8 wins just because. This division is really one of the most balanced, brutal ones out there. It’s vintage small school Bergen County softball. Emerson went undefeated in division play last year, which is quite a feat.
I could go way dark horse here and say Cresskill, but I don’t have the guts to quite pull that off. Emerson graduated so much. Park Ridge still has potential and good vibes off of the winter. New Milford is intriguing. But I am going to cast a shaky vote for a big tie between Waldwick, Park Ridge and Emerson to each go like 8-4 in the league and beat up on each other.
BIG NORTH CONFERENCE
American Division
Dumont was the dominant team in this division for years, but the tide has turned now to Ridgefield Park. Honestly, this division is too small. The Scarlets were 24-5 last year and bring everyone back.
Ridgefield Park is the clear favorite to win this division, and likely won’t lose a league game. That’s an easy prediction.
Freedom Division
Ridgewood had the big win on Opening Day, taking down Old Tappan on Monday. I think I said this in the preview: Ridgewood is good in every other spring sport, why not softball? Honestly, Ridgewood was good in softball for a long time. Ramapo is defending division champ. This division may not be as strong as it was the last couple of years.
Ramapo is the easy pick by a couple of games over Northern Highlands, but my antennae is up on Ridgewood. Ramapo just has too much talent not to win a lot of games this spring.
Independence Division
Passaic Valley ran the table in 2024, going unbeaten in league play. I kind of wish the Hornets played in more of these showcase/invitational events on the weekends. They’re good. More people should get a chance to see them.
West Milford is my sleeper team for 2024. I just think the Highlanders could blossom and be a problem. Lakeland is getting a boost from the new Kinnelon co-op. Wayne Valley and Fair Lawn are both good. There are no easy games in this division. Here’s what I see: I think it’s still Passaic Valley’s division, and the Hornets will win it, but I don’t think they'll run the table and go undefeated.
Liberty Division
This is the division with five Passaic County schools and Bergen Tech. The Knights cruised to a division title last year, going undefeated in league play. Is this really the best division for Bergen Tech? Well, maybe, maybe not. But as a school with open enrollment (even with a big academic foundation), the Knights have to be in with big schools.
This is again a two-team race between Passaic Tech and Bergen Tech. Even though the Knights lost a lot to graduation, I think they are the team to beat. They are my pick to win it.
National Division
Bergenfield and Old Tappan tied for the division title last year, splitting head-to-head games. This, my dear friends, really is a very good softball division. You have the two powers on top, and then three other quality programs in Pascack Valley, Teaneck and Tenafly. There are no easy Ws here.
Even after a loss to Ridgewood on Opening Day, I like Old Tappan this year to win the division outright. The Golden Knights are just so consistent and always put so much pressure on teams with their approach.
Patriot Division
This is it. This is the best division in North Jersey softball. While really only two teams can probably win the league title − Ramsey or Indian Hills − the other four teams here could possibly win a division if they were in a different league. Westwood has an amazing offense. Mahwah and Pascack Hills can beat anyone and River Dell is always tough.
Ramsey went 10-0 in division play last year, and they’re probably still just a tick above Indian Hills. I think they win the league, but I don’t think they go undefeated. I bet Mahwah picks them off once with Jordan Nista having a big day. Every game in this league is worth watching.
United Division
Here, we have the four non-public teams: IHA, DePaul, Holy Angels and Paramus Catholic. I don’t know when the last time any team other than IHA won this division. I want to say there was a year DePaul was maybe in the running, but it’s been a while.
IHA should have no issue winning the division title again.
And now, the fun stuff. County time.
Passaic County Tournament
Whereas Bergen County has a lot of big schools and non-public schools, Passaic County is smaller, and (shhh) better balanced. Group 2 schools can and have won the last two Passaic County titles, Lakeland in 2022 and Pompton Lakes in 2023. Yes, DePaul had a run a decade ago, and Passaic Tech can always flex some muscle and get there.
This year, I like Passaic Valley. The Hornets lost in the final in 2022 and 2023, but they are the most complete team in Passaic County this year. They have the bats, and enough hitting and speed. Hawthorne is my dark horse. I really do think it’s wide open.
Bergen County
The seeding will be important in Bergen County. It always is. I mean, we can already probably project the top four seeds: IHA, Ramsey, Ramapo, then the winner of Bergenfield/Old Tappan. But which one of the four draws another tough contender in their bracket, like, who gets Ridgewood? Who gets Ridgefield Park? Highlands? St. Mary? Fair Lawn? Those are not teams you want to see in the second round or quarterfinals, but someone has to.
Last year, I made a big deal over the fact that ,for all their successes, Ramsey and IHA hadn’t played in the county final since 1994. Then it happened. IHA won 1-0 in an old-school ,quick, softball game. IHA has 12 county titles. Ramsey has seven. I think we get a rematch and this time Ramsey is the winner.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NJ softball: Predicting North Jersey's division and county champs
