West Baseball Snares Diamond Classic Berth

A nine-game winning streak hasn’t just turned the fortunes of Cherry Hill West’s baseball team—it’s also put the Lions back in the 40th annual Joe Hartmann Diamond Classic.

West scored the No. 3 at-large bid, a slightly better slot than head coach Dan McMaster predicted last week after the Lions took down Shawnee for their 10th victory of the season.

They’ll face Buena, which earned the Cape-American League National Division entry, on Saturday at 10:30 a.m. at Deptford in the tournament’s opening round.

Last year, West advanced to the Diamond Classic semifinals, and despite the loss of 10 seniors and seven starters, coach Dan McMaster said they still had the tournament circled from the start.

“It’s one of our goals that we always aim for,” he said after the Lions beat Camden Catholic Wednesday. “You can just take care of the games on the field and hope things work out in your favor.”

The winning streak—which now has West ranked in multiple South Jersey polls—was no doubt a factor in the team’s Diamond Classic bid.

“These guys have been able to string everything together,” McMaster said. “After you put a string like this together, the South Jersey baseball community starts to realize what you have.”

West already has a full schedule this week—the team travels to Winslow Monday, takes on Bishop Eustace Tuesday and has a showdown with cross-town rival Cherry Hill East on the road Thursday.