Editor’s note: For regular readers, there will be no Roundup this week because of the holiday.
Last week, the West Chester University Baseball Club boarded a bus to Alton, IL on their way to the National Club Baseball Association Division II World Series. Yesterday, they boarded again National Champions. A feat impressive in its own right, even more so when you learn it’s only the club’s first full year in existence.
“Once we saw every other team actually play ball, it was obvious to us that we were the best team there,” said club head coach Joe Cook.
“I am incredibly proud of our squad from the top to the bottom of our roster, unbelievably humbled by the amount of parents that made the trip with us to Alton, IL and stayed throughout the long week, and shocked at the amount of fans that we had come out to each games watch parties at Barnaby’s, Penns Table, Ryans Pub and Saloon 151.”
Club vs. Intermural vs. Varsity
Club sports land somewhere on the college athletic spectrum between varsity and intramurals. While they are not the school’s official representatives, the student-run teams are coached, practice regularly, and compete against other schools in a division. Similar to NCAA athletics, NCBA is divided into three divisions – I, II, and III. Big schools like Ohio State and Penn State may field more than one club team. While the first team will play DI, traditional DII schools like WCU can find themselves matched up against the second squad of a top-tier school. (No intimidation factor here: WCU beat big-name programs like Villanova and Georgetown in the regular season. They took down PSU in the regional finals, and #1 seed Ohio State in the World Series.)
Most of the players are former student-athletes that for one reason or another decided not to pursue athletics at the collegiate level. They are here because they want to be.
“It’s really people playing for the love of the game,” said Joe.
Making a Run
The WCU Baseball Club was formed last year by then-WCU senior Justen Lucas. Even with only a partial season to prove themselves, WCU found themselves in contention for the final at-large bid in the Regional Tournament. This year they left no doubt, winning their Division with an overall record of 24 and 6 and sweeping the regional playoffs.
It’s only year two, but this could already be their year.
“We knew we had a good team when we started playing in the fall,” said Joe. “We knew we had talent but would they all come together? That takes work,” he said
Now it seems that work has paid off. “There’s a NATIONAL CHAMPION in town, West Chester, and it’s the WCU Club Baseball Team!!!” said Joe.
Originally published on May 17, 2024
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