When they started practice for spring sports in early March, the ultimate goal for every team was to play the first weekend of June.  Reaching the season's final day wouldn't be an easy road.  But out of 40 baseball, softball and lacrosse teams in the Jersey Sports Now area, remarkably, three squads will play in this weekend's final games.   Here's a preview for each team:

Softball - Pequannock:

Of all the teams in the JSN area, the Panthers have been the most impressive over the course of the spring season.  With only two close losses against 26 wins, Pequannock ascended to its current position in the state's top ten.  The Panthers scored 60 runs in a recent five-game stretch that included the Morris County final and three state games.  Then Coach Maryann Goodwin's squad won a classic 1-0 game over Indian Hills in the sectional final, followed by a 5-1 win over Caldwell in the state Group II semifinal.

In the Group II state final (postponed to Sunday at 1:00 at Toms River North), the Panthers take on a traditional softball power, Cranford.  While the Panthers have faced only one truly tough game in the states so far, the Cougars have played close contests throughout.  Their sectional final win and their state semifinal triumph were both 1-0 extra-inning affairs.  Pitcher Kelly Hardman has been throwing well and Cranford has one of the state's most-feared hitters in Kat VanBenschoten.

No matter what happens Saturday, this has been a season to remember for Pequannock.  But a state title would be a fitting end for a Panthers team that endured so many near-misses over the years.

Baseball - Pequannock:

The amazing pitching post-season continued for the Panthers in their Group II semifinal against West Essex.  Wriggling out of several jams, Jordan Tabakman fired a shutout, the third straight for a Pequannock pitcher.  Coach Bill Arata's hurlers have allowed just one earned run in four state games, and it's a good thing:  Pequannock's offense has struggled, scoring a total of 10 runs in those games.  George Chrencik's solo homer provided the only run in the 1-0 victory over West Essex.

Now the Panthers face an upstart Shore Regional team in the Group II state championship game (postponed to Sunday at 4:00 at Toms River North).  The Blue Devils were just a sixth seed in their section and have played much more high-scoring games in the state tourney so far, although their semifinal win over Haddon Township was a more typical 4-1 contest.

Pequannock will almost surely need another top-notch pitching effort to win.  The Panthers have Tabakman available, and if he needs help, Sal DeVito is well rested after throwing a two-hit shutout in the sectional final last Friday.

Girls' Lacrosse - Mountain Lakes:

A Mountain Lakes lacrosse team reaching the Tournament of Champions final is nothing new.  But it's usually the Laker boys team that's playing in early June.  For the girls' program, this is the first time reaching such heights, and it ranks as a major surprise to just about everyone in the New Jersey lacrosse community.

Coach Jen Munday's team was mightily impressive in an 18-9 rout of West Essex in the Tournament of Champions semifinal.  They'll need to play even better to win the ToC final on Saturday, at 1:00 at Rutgers University.  The Lakers take on Moorestown, a South Jersey school that has 209 straight wins against in-state competition and has won every ToC since it came into existence.

It would seem an impossible task, but there is a glimmer of hope:  the Quakers' last two games were closer than many expected, especially its 17-12 win over Bridgewater-Raritan in the ToC semifinals.  Can the Lakers end a decade-long dynasty?  It would be the ultimate fairytale ending on the spring sports season's final day.  -- Paul Mencher for Jersey Sports Now