Baseball: Madison and Verona meet in North 2, Group 2 final

COMPLETE FINALS PREVIEW
NORTH 1: GR. 1 | GR. 2 | GR. 3 | GR. 4
NORTH 2: GR. 1 | GR. 2 | GR. 3 | GR. 4
CENTRAL: GR. 1 | GR. 2 | GR. 3 | GR. 4
SOUTH: GR. 1 | GR. 2 | GR. 3 | GR. 4
N-P: NORTH A | NORTH B | SOUTH A | SOUTH B

NORTH 2, GROUP 2 | BRACKET

4-Madison (23-7) at 2-Verona (17-9), 4

How they got here: Madison: 13-McNair 16-1, 5-Hackettstown 6-0, 1-Rutherford 5-1; Verona: 15-Ridgefield Park 5-4, 7-Caldwell 7-6, 6-Lyndhurst 3-0.

Who's hot for Madison: Madison - the defending sectional champion - is playing great baseball and has won nine of its last 10 games. It has been dominant in the state tournament and is outscoring opponents 27-2. It made a major statement in the sectional semis when it knocked off a Group 2 front-runner in Rutherford. Madison's offensive explosion in states has been keyed by Vincent Costa (3-for-8 with 3 runs and 5 RBI), Will Hart (3-for-10 with 3 runs and 2 RBI), Walter Brownlee (3-for-7 with 4 runs) and A.J. Gupta (2-for-7 with 1 run and 4 RBI). Hart hurled six innings in the semifinal win over Rutherford so Michael Maybaum will likely get the start Friday.

Who's hot for Verona: Verona has scratched and clawed its way to the final after rattling off one-run wins over Ridgefield Park and Caldwell in the first two rounds. It had lost three straight heading into the state tournament. It is outscoring opponents 15-10 in the state tournament. In states, the offense has been keyed by Jake Milmoe (3-for-9 with 6 RBI), Anthony Zamloot (5-for-10 with 5 runs and 2 RBI) and Nick Kozachuck (3-for-8 with 3 runs and 1 RBI). Kyle McCaffrey hurled 108 pitches in the semifinal win over Lyndhurst so Pierce Coppola will likely be heading to the mound in the sectional final.

Prediction: Madison over Verona

Richard Greco covers baseball for NJ.com and may be reached at rgreco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @Richard_V_Greco. Find NJ.com on Facebook.