Diamond Bar PONY Baseball Catches a Snag at Regionals

WEST COVINA - The road to the PONY Super Regionals hit a bump on Sunday evening for the Diamond Bar Pony 14 All-Stars.

Diamond Bar had its 15-game winning streak snapped against West Covina Orangewood during semi-final competition at the PONY Regionals in a 7-5 loss.

A win would have assured Diamond Bar a spot in this upcoming week's Super Regionals. Now, they face a must-win game against Covina at 6 p.m. Monday at Walmerado Park for an automatic spot into the Super Regionals and chance for the tournament title.

The two teams met in the regional opener on July 22, with Diamond Bar taking an 11-4 victory.

Despite Sunday's setback, it still has been an impressive stretch of baseball for Diamond Bar. They have posted an impressive 37-5 record in two months of action, including a dominating showing at the PONY Sectionals in West Covina a week ago.

They went 4-0 in the tournament, outscoring the opposition 46-13. Among those victories were two against the very same Orangewood team they lost to on Sunday.

"We've been together for about the last eight weeks and we've had a 20-game winning streak and a 15-game winning streak," head coach John Tweedie said.

Against Walnut on Saturday, the power of Diamond Bar was on full display in a 19-5 mercy-rule victory.

Catcher Coby Myers was just one of many to have a big hitting day, going 2-for-2 with two walks, a double, four runs scored, two RBIs and a massive home run to lead off the fifth inning. The solo shot just went over right-center field fence, traveling 275 feet at the very least.

Jake Cooke (3-for-4, four runs scored, one RBI), Ryan Huey (3-for-4, three runs scored, three RBIs) and Robert Salcido (2-for-3, three runs scored) also had big days for a Diamond Bar offense that totaled 18 hits, including seven for extra bases.

But after averaging 15 runs in its first two regional games, Diamond Bar was held to five runs on Sunday. Now, the pressure is on if they want to keep playing another week.

"Our goal is to move on," Tweedie said. "We made Super Regionals last season and just missed Zone by one game. We just have to take one game at a time."

If Diamond Bar defeats Covina, they will face Orangewood at 5 p.m. on Tuesday. They would need to defeat Orangewood twice to win the PONY banner.

Through the competition, coach Tweedie said the team is growing closer.

"The kids love playing together," Tweedie said. "When we have a practice, not one kid shows up alone, they all come together."

The winner of the tournament will go to the Super Regional in Whittier beginning on July 28., while the runner-up would head to Camarillo for the Super Regionals beginning on July 30.