Dom DeAngelo picked up the win on what was a special afternoon

Less than 48 hours after reaching a high point by capturing the 40^th annual Joe Hartmann Diamond Classic and a major low with a first-round exit for the South Jersey Group 4 playoffs, Washington Township took a step back and enjoyed a special afternoon Tuesday.

The Minutemen held a “Pink Day” and played Winslow Township in memory of Donna DeAngelo.

DeAngelo, who passed away from cancer on June 30, 2010, is the mother of junior Dom DeAngelo. The left-hander got the start and picked up the decision in a 14-4 win.

“It was great for our kids and Dom threw a great game,” coach Bill Alvaro Jr. said. “Dom is part of our team, so it’s important to all of us.

“It’s just another life lesson. With all that we’ve gone through - they’ve gone through the highs and the lows - this was about understanding there are bigger things than baseball.”

DeAngelo knew Sunday night that he would be the starting pitcher on this special day.

“It helped a lot. We’re all a big family,” he said. “I had to take on a lot more responsibilities since she passed. … She’s my best friend. It’s been different, tough.”

Washington Township wore pink t-shirts in place of their regular jerseys. Pink balloons were scattered throughout the complex, while t-shirts and pink lemonade were available.

Said senior third baseman Tom Hildebrand: “Dom is part of our baseball family. The things he went through in the past, it was nice to do something for him and his family. We definitely enjoyed doing this.”

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Mike McLaughlin of Haddonfield scores, beating the tag of Collingswood catcher Paul Lunney in Monday's playoff game.

HADDONFIELD - It's a new season and Haddonfield was eager to kick it off in grand style.

After a disappointing 9-15 regular season, the Bulldawgs started fresh in the opening round of the South Jersey Group 2 playoffs against Colonial Conference rival Collingswood. They pounded out 15 hits - scoring eight runs in the fourth inning - and advanced with a decisive 13-5 victory.

They will face top-seeded Buena on Friday.

Carter Fichter picked up the win

Michael DeFeo went 3-for-3 with two runs scored, Mark Ostbye was 3-fo-4 with two RBIs and two runs scored. Mike McLaughlin went 2-for-3 with an RBI double and a fourth-inning single gave the junior an even 100 for his three-year career.

Jake Thorndike and Matt Cassell also had two hits. Carter Fichter was the winner.

Check out Tuesday's editon for more on how the Bulldawgs turned things around.

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Group 4: Rancocas Valley is the third seed. The Red Devils have been playing well without Nick Cieri. If the Maryland recruit can come back and produce, look for the Devils to make a run.

Group 3: Northern Burlington is the top seed and is having a sensational season. The Greyhounds don’t have to get on a bus, which is going to prove huge as they make a run for the title. Got this gut feeling they may get a piece of hardware for the trophy case.

Group 2: Bordetown is the top seed and Delran is the sixth. Have to honestly say I don’t have a feel for this group. It would obviously be great for traditional South Jersey baseball to see these two make an impact.

Group 1: New Egypt is the two seed, Florence is seventh and Burlington City is No. 13. Again, without knowing many of the teams in the field, it’s hard to make a knowledgeable pick. Maybe one of the three can make a deep run.

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Top seed: St. Rose

Favorite: St. Rose

Darkhorse: ??

The pick: St. Rose has been here time and time again. While Moorestown Friends has enjoyed a banner year and should be extremely proud of its efforts, this group belongs to the Purple Roses.

Opening round: (10) Sacred Heart vs. (7) St. Gill Bernard’s; (11) Doane Academy vs. (6) Wardlaw-Hartridge; (12) Wildwood Catholic vs. (5) Rutgers Prep; (9) Roselle Catholic at (8) St. Joseph Hammonton; (4) Mater Dei, bye; (3) Marist, bye; (2) Moorestown Friends, bye; (1) St. Rose, bye.

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Top seed: Gloucester Catholic

Favorite: St. Augustine

Darkhorse: Camden Catholic

The pick: This is an extremely tough group to pick. On one hand, Gloucester Catholic has so much tradition and pitching that if the Rams can scratch out a couple runs it may be enough to win. Then you’ve got St. Augustine, a team that just beat GC and has some decent pitching itself. If you were to weigh the bats, St. Augustine has the advantage. Then there’s Bishop Eustace, which is nearly unbeatable when Devin Smeltzer is on the hill. Zac Gallen is better than good as well. And throw CC into the mix after knocking off BE and reaching the Diamond Classic final.

While I’m leaning toward St. Augustine, I can’t count out GC or BE. So, yes, I’m going to bail out and wait to pick a winner when the final rolls around.

Opening round: (16) Bishop Ahr at (1) Gloucester Catholic; (15) Pingry at (2) St. Augustine; (14) Monsignor Donovan at (3) Bishop Eustace; (13) Paul VI at (4) Red Bank Catholic; (12) St. John Vianney at (5) at Immaculata; (11) Camden Catholic at (6) CBA; (10) Holy Cross at (7) Holy Spirit; (9) St. Joseph Metuchen at (8) Notre Dame

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Top seed: Pennsville

Favorite: Audubon

Darkhorse: Pitman

The pick: Winners of back-to-back titles, Audubon is always in the conversation. The Green Wave play a gritty, determined style of baseball and should get back to the final. Some team is going to have to knock them down before I go against the Wave in a title game. That said, I would not be surprised if Pitman slipped into that title game against Pennsville. Will it happen?

Opening round: (16) Gateway at (1) Pennsville; (15) Palmyra at (2) Audubon; (14) Gloucester at (3) Pitman; (13) Salem at (4) Haddon Twp.; (12) Paulsboro at (5) Haddon Heights; (11) Riverside at (6) Maple Shade; (10) Penns Grove at (7) Glassboro; (9) Schalick at (8) Woodbury

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Top seed: Buena

Favorite: Sterling

Darkhorse: West Deptford

The pick: We like Sterling in this spot, especially if Donovan Casey continues to have command on the hill. The Silver Knights own two victories over West Deptford in rather convincing fashion. While Buena is the top seed, I just have a gut feeling about the Chiefs this season.

Opening round: (16) Atlantic Tech at (1) Buena; (15) Pemberton at (2) Sterling; (14) Overbrook at (3) West Deptford; (13) Barnegat at (4) Cinnaminson; (12) Lower Cape May at (5) Middle Twp.; (11) Deptford at (6) Woodstown.; (10) Cedar Creek at (7) Manchester Twp.; (9) Collingswood at (8) Haddonfield

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Top seed: Delsea

Favorite: Delsea

Darkhorse: Ocean City

The pick: With the way the Crusaders have been playing all season, Delsea gets the nod. They can play small ball with the best of them and have been getting solid pitching. If Nick Freijomil and Bryan Dobzanski are productive at the plate, they can certainly win it all. Look for Moorestown, Ocean City and Burlington Township to creep into the picture if Delsea falters along the way.

Opening round: (16) Timber Creek at (1) Delsea; (15) Woodrow Wilson at (2) Moorestown; (14) Camden County Tech at (3) Ocean City; (13) Winslow Twp. at (4) Cumberland; (12) Oakcrest at (5) Burlington Twp.; (11) Seneca at (6) Hammonton; (10) Central at (7) GCIT; (9) Kingsway at (8) Highland

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Top seed: Eastern

Favorite: Washington Twp.

Darkhorse: Williamstown

The pick: Washington Township is playing some of the best baseball in the entire state. Fresh off winning the Joe Hartmann Diamond Classic, the Minutemen have a great mix of everything. They remember what it felt like to be bounced in the second round last year and get no-hit by Cherry Hill East two years ago in the opening round. This team is clearly on a mission.

Opening round: (16) Millville at (1) Eastern; (15) Atlantic City at (2) Vineland; (14) TR South at (3) Washington Twp.; (13) Absegami at (4) Williamstown; (12) TR East at (5) CH West; (11) Clearview at (6) Shawnee; (10) Egg Harbor Twp. at (7) Lenape; (9) Cherokee at (8) TR North

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The Minutemen (21-5) have yet to lose this month - winners of 12 straight. They put on an awesome display this weekend en route to winning the 40th annual Joe Hartmann Diamond Classic.

There's some movement this week, especially coming off play in the Diamond Classic - where Bishop Eustace stopped Eastern, Vineland edged Cherry Hill West and Camden Catholic reached the final with wins over Pitman and rival Bishop Eustace.

Add in a nice win for St. Augustine over Gloucester Catholic on Friday and we've got all kinds of teams jumping around.

Anyway, the playoffs start Monday afternoon so I'm sure things will get shaken up again at some point.

1. Washington Twp. 21-5 (Last week: 1)

2. St. Augustine 16-6 (5)

3. Bishop Eustace 19-7 (4)

4. Eastern 22-3 (2)

5. Gloucester Catholic 22-5 (3)

6. Audubon 17-4 (9)

7. Vineland 20-5 (6)

8. Northern Burlington 18-3 (8)

9. Camden Catholic 17-9 (unranked)

10. Cherry Hill West 14-7 (7)

Under consideration: Delsea (19-6); Ocean City (18-3); Pennsville (18-3), Rancocas Valley (15-3)

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