Staff Report
Need an update on the Joe Hartmann Diamond Classic and where things stand as of right now?
You got it!
As we head into Wednesday afternoon there are still a couple of “Play-In” round games that need to be played in order to set the field for the traditional first round, which will be played either Friday or Saturday at the site of the higher seed. Normally this tournament features 16 teams but this year it was expanded to 24, meaning the top eight seeds got byes into the first round and the other 16 teams had to fight it out in the play-in round in order to fill the last eight slots.
Normally, a league like the Cape-Atlantic would get about three bids to this tournament, but this year it got eight, six of which are still alive.
Here’s a look at the play-in round:
Who’s already advanced: No. 17 Cherry Hill West took down No. 16 Lenape, 5-4, as Jaxson Casdia had nine strikeouts in four innings and Brendan McCargar went 2-for-3 with three RBIs. Cedar Creek, the No. 13 seed, got past No. 20 Mainland, 5-4, by rallying for nine runs in the final three innings. No. 11 Haddon Heights — last year’s South Jersey Group 2 champion — shut out No. 22 Pennsville 4-0. No. 10 Cherokee bested No. 23 Lower Cape May, 9-3.
Who still has to play today: No. 24 Holy Cross Prep at No. 9 Audubon; No. 21 Collingswood at No. 12 Delsea Regional; No. 19 Cinnaminson at No. 14 Cherry Hill East; No. 18 Ocean City at No. 15 Paul VI.
Here’s a look at the first-round matchups:
Friday
No. 13 Cedar Creek at No. 4 Egg Harbor Township
Saturday
No. 17 Cherry Hill West at No. 1 Shawnee
Holy Cross/Audubon winner at No. 8 Buena
Collingswood/Delsea winner at No. 5 Kingsway
Cinnaminson/Cherry Hill East winner at No. 3 St. Augustine Prep
No. 11 Haddon Heights at No. 6 Bishop Eustace
No. 10 Cherokee at No. 7 Vineland
Ocean City/Paul VI winner at No. 2 Gloucester Catholic
The quarterfinals are set for Wednesday, May 10 with the semifinals on Saturday, May 13 at Deptford. The championship game is Wednesday, May 17 at Alcyon Park in Pitman.
