It was the final full week of the regular season and there was plenty at stake for softball teams around New Jersey - county tournament championships, seeding in the state tournament and division titles on the line.
Below we reveal the players of the week in all 15 conferences for the week of May 19-24.
Big North Conference
Deana Finkelstein, Demarest, So.
The Norsemen got back to .500 with three wins last week, and Finkelstein was heavily involved in all three. She went 6-for-8 on the week with 10 runs scored, nine RBI and most notably her first career homer in a 20-0 win over Bergenfield. She also tossed 11 innings, striking out 18 and walking just two, allowing one earned run as well.
Maya Showfety, Fair Lawn, Fr.
Showfety returned to the Cutters’ lineup for the first time in over a month last week and as Fair Lawn went 3-0 on the week, Showfety was a big contributor in two of those wins. She went 2-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored in a 10-7 win against Westwood and went 3-for-3 with two runs and two RBI in a 10-0 win over Elmwood Park.
Burlington County Scholastic League
Bella Adams, Maple Shade, So.
Adams went 5-for-6 with a double, four runs scored and five RBI in two games last week.
Dakota Gidney, Westampton Tech, Sr.
Gidney went 5-for-6 with three extra-base hits, three runs and two RBI including going 2-for-3 with 2 doubles, a run and RBI in a 10-9 win over New Egypt.
Cape-Atlantic League
Annbella Cullcan, Cape May Tech, So.
Cullcan was 4-for-10 with two doubles, three runs scored and four RBI last week. She also walked three times and stole a base.
Gabriella Jacquet, Millville, Sr.
Jacquet went 2-for-4 with a run scored and two RBI as the Thunderbolts upset rival Vineland.
Sami Szabo (7) of Haddon Heights smiles as she rounds the bases after hitting a home run during a softball game against Collingswood at Collingswood High School, Friday, May 23, 2025. Joe Warner | For NJ Advance Media
Colonial Conference
Angelina Eckert, Audubon, Sr.
Eckert reached base all four times, including hitting a home run, as the Green Wave stunned No. 2 Kingsway, 9-3.
Sami Szabo, Haddon Heights, Sr.
The senior went 4-for-11 with two home runs, three runs scored and six RBI last week. She knocked in two runs in a 5-3 win over West Deptford and hit one of the home runs in a 3-0 victory over Collingswood.
Colonial Valley Conference
Zoey Hartman, Lawrence, Fr.
Hartman went 4-for-6 with two runs scored and four RBI in a pair of wins over North Brunswick and South Brunswick. She was 2-for-3 with a double, two runs scored and three RBI in the win over North Brunswick.
Olivia Pignatello, Hightstown, Sr.
Pignatello went 3-for-8 in the Colonial Valley Conference semfinal and final as the Rams defeated Steinert and Notre Dame to capture the tournament title for the first time. She led off the ninth inning with a single in the championship game and scored the eventual winning run.
Greater Middlesex Conference
Liz Negron, St. Thomas Aquinas, Sr.
Negron pitched well in St. Thomas Aquinas’ two biggest games of the season last week. In the GMC Tournament semifinal, a 2-0 win against Monroe, she tossed a three-hitter, striking out 14 and walking one. In the GMC final, a 5-1 win over South Plainfield, Negron scattered six hits and three walks, striking out eight while driving in two runs at the dish with an RBI double.
Zoha Shaikh, Woodbridge Magnet, So.
The Hornets are the No. 3 seed in the upcoming Central, Group 1 tournament and they got a big showing from Shaikh right before the postseason. She went 5-for-6 at the plate with seven RBI and five extra-base hits. She homered twice and drove in four runs against Mother Seton and drove in three against Somerset Tech. She also pitched 10 innings, striking out 17 and giving up just three hits, three walks and no earned runs.
Hudson County Interscholastic Athletic League
Sophia Diaz, Bayonne, Jr.
The Gray Bees only played once last week, but they picked up a 9-0 win over Verona in a game where Diaz was a big contributor. She went 2-for-4 with two homers and four RBI, her second multi-homer game of the season so far.
Zoe Mays, Union City, Sr.
It was an historic week for the North Carolina A&T commit, as she went 2-for-5 on the week with two hits against Fort Lee for the 100th of her career. She went deep and walked twice, stealing a base and driving in three runs as well.
North Jersey Interscholastic Conference
Erin Croker, Butler, So.
Croker was involved in all four of Butler’s wins last week. She had two multi-hit games, including a 2-for-2 day with an RBI and two runs scored in a big 5-4 divisional win over Glen Rock. She finished the week with five hits, three walks, eight runs scored and five RBI, including three RBI against Manchester Regional.
Mackenzie Riordan, Hasbrouck Heights, Sr.
The Florida Atlantic commit is Bergen County’s hits leader this season as she reached 50 on the year last week. She went 5-for-12 with a homer against Wallington and two hits apiece against Becton and Wood-Ridge. She also had four RBI and stole six bases.
Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference
Meg McNally, West Morris, Sr.
The Rhode Island commit was a big part of West Morris’ 9-8 win over a Top 10 Morris Knolls team, going 3-for-3 with two runs and an RBI and in a 3-0 win against Warren Hills, she went 2-for-3 with two RBI as well. Her five-hit week now give her 175 for her career, one of the highest active totals in the state.
Arianna Zajac, Parsippany, So.
Zajac was strong in the circle in the Red Hawks’ two wins last week. She struck out 11 and gave up just four hits in a 3-2 win over Morristown-Beard and in a 5-4 win over a former Top 20 Jefferson team, she gave up 12 hits and walked one, K’ing two, but kept Parsippany in the game as they went on to win the day. She also picked up two hits and scored two runs.
Olympic Conference
Aly Ludwick, Bishop Eustace, Sr.
Ludwick went 11-for-13 with six runs scored as Eustace won its first three games of the season.
Lila Gray, Cherry Hill West
Gray went 5-for-8 with two home runs, four runs scored and seven RBI in two games. She was 4-for-4 with three runs scored, two home runs and six RBI in a 12-10 win over Seneca and also had a hit, walk, run scored and RBI in a 6-5 victory over Moorestown.
Grace Lombardi (3) and Nicole Knox (12) of Red Bank Catholic celebrate after Knox tied the game 1-1 in the first during the Shore Conference Tournament softball final between Red Bank Catholic and Colts Neck at Count Basie Park in Red Bank, NJ on 5/19/25.Scott Faytok | NJ Advance Media
Shore Conference
Nicole Knox, Red Bank Catholic, Sr.
Knox went 2-for-3 with two doubles, three runs scored and three RBI as Red Bank Catholic defeated Colts Neck, 9-1, in the Shore Conference final to win the tournament for the first time since 2010.
Isabelle Wiemer, Matawan, Sr.
Wiemer was 7-for-11 with three extra-base hits, four runs and seven RBI in three games, including wins over Middletown North and Shore.
Skyland Conference
Maddie Falvey, Immaculata, Fr.
Falvey’s second time taking home this honor in as many weeks, the freshman ace once again won some big games for Immaculata. She struck out nine and walked none, surrendering just three hits in a 7-1 win over Ridge. Then she followed that up with an eight-strikeout perfect game against Delaware Valley in a 1-0 win and she capped off the week with a strong showing, scattering four hits and three walks, giving up just one unearned run in a 6-1 win over a Top 20 Pope John team. She also had two hits and two RBI apiece against Pope John and Ridge.
Casey McKeon, Pingry, Sr.
The Hofstra commit got the ball in two big games for Pingry last week, pitching five innings and striking out four in a 5-4 win over a then-Top 20 Morris Catholic squad where she drove in a run as well. In a 6-3 win over Union County finalists Summit, she tossed seven innings with nine strikeouts and three walks as well. She also went 3-for-3 with a homer and two RBI against Summit.
Super Essex Conference
Liv Healey, Montclair Kimberley, So.
MKA won the Prep B title last week and in the final against Gill St. Bernard’s, Healey went 3-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored while striking out seven and walking just two in the 5-3 win. In a 5-4 win against West Orange, she gave up six hits, two walks and two earned runs while also striking out seven. She also scored a run and stole a base against the Mountaineers.
Deanna Skikus, Caldwell, Fr.
The rookie for the Chiefs had three big games as Caldwell went 2-1. In a win over Kearny, she went 4-for-5 with two runs, five RBI and a home run. In an 8-2 win over Payne Tech, she again had multiple hits, with a 2-for-2 game where she scored and drove in a run and stole two bases and in a 5-4 loss to Ridge, she capped off her week with her third straight multi-hit game, going 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored. She also pitched five innings against Ridge, giving up three hits and five walks while striking out seven.
Tri-County Conference
Joselyn Bermudez, Timer Creek, Fr.
Bermudez got it done in the circle and the plate. She went 4-for-6 with three RBI and also struck out 29 in 16 innings.
Grailynn Weber, Pennsville, So.
Weber went 5-for-9 with five runs scored and six RBI in three games including reaching base three times, scoring a run and knocking one in as the Eagles upset Delsea.
Union County Conference
Jiselle Mateo, New Providence, Jr.
Mateo had two multi-hit games for the Pioneers last week. In a 6-4 loss to Bernards, she went 2-for-4 with a run scored and a double and in a 10-0 win against Glen Ridge, she went 3-for-4 with three runs, two RBI, two doubles and a stolen base.
Emily Roof, Scotch Plains-Fanwood, Jr.
Scotch Plains only played one game last week, but it was a big one as the Raiders won their first county title since 1977 behind a big two-run homer by Roof. It was her only hit of the game as she’s now tied for the Union County lead in homers thanks to that blast.
Jake Aferiat can be reached at jaferiat@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him at @Jake_Aferiat.
Bill Evans can be reached at bevans@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him at @bybillevans.
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