BY MARK J. CZERWINSKI
STAFF WRITER | THE RECORD
Donnie Merritts remembers the first time he saw Ohjiro Motoki play baseball.
“I went to watch a middle-school game last year,” said Merritts, the new Cresskill coach. “He was playing shortstop and he hit a ball 300 feet, which isn’t bad for an eighth-grader. Then he came in to pitch the last three innings, and all I could think was, ‘Hopefully, he’s coming to Cresskill.’
“Well, he did, and he’s like a gift right now.”
And the gift already has proved valuable. Motoki made his varsity debut Saturday against North Arlington, striking out eight and walking two in six innings to lead the Cougars to a 2-1 win.
The freshman right-hander acknowleged he had some debut jitters, but he overcame them by maintaining his focus. Motoki even felt comfortable enough to do a little experimenting on the mound.
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