Consolidation and mergers….it’s a clear sign of the times. In just the last couple of days OceanFirst Bank announces it will merge with Central Jersey Bank with OceanFirst to become an even bigger banking force in the shore area. Most of their 23 branches are in Ocean County while 12 of Central Jersey’s 13 branches are in Monmouth County. Then comes news Meridian Health is going forward with plans to merge with Southern Ocean Health System in Manahawkin. Meridian already owns Jersey Shore University Medical Center, Ocean Medical Center in Brick, Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank and K. Hovnanian Children’s Hospital in Neptune. And at the same time struggling high-end toy retailer FAO Schwartz has been bought and bailed out by Toys R Us. Like I said….a sign of the times.
The Monmouth University baseball team opens play tonight in the NCAA Division 1 Championships against the University of Mississippi, the #8 ranked team in the nation. The Hawks, who won the Northeast Conference Championship last week are in Oxford, Mississippi for the game against the Rebels. The 64-team tournament opens at 16 sites around the country with Monmouth and Ole Miss being joined by Missouri and Western Kentucky. Junior Brad Brach will start tonight for Monmouth with another junior Ryan Buch to pitch tomorrow in the double-elimination tournament.
The Jackson Memorial High School Athletic Department will hold their Spring Sports Awards Night on Monday at 6:30pm in the Fine Arts Auditorium. The evening will include the induction of Greg Archer into the school’s Athletic Hall of Fame. A 1971 graduate, Archer was a standout in both basketball and baseball, earning 4 varsity letters in each sport. He led the basketball team to a division title as a senior where he was a 2nd team All-Shore selection. In the spring he was named the Ocean County Coaches Baseball Player of the Year. After playing basketball and tennis at-then Glassboro State College, Archer returned to Jackson Memorial as a teacher and coach until retiring five years ago.
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