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Greater Miami Conference championship. Check.

District title. Check.

Next on the agenda for Lakota West High's baseball team is a regional crown.

Standing in the way of the Firebirds is GMC nemesis Hamilton, which swept the season series. The two teams hook up in a Division I regional semifinal at 5 p.m. today at the University of Cincinnati.

"I know we are really excited for this game," West coach Bill Dreisbach said. "Our goals coming into the season we've met to this point. The next step is regionals.

"Hamilton is a very good team and they're well-coached. We need to be ready because they'll be ready. It's going to be a good game," he said.

Big Blue right-hander Zach Murphy tossed a complete-game shutout in an 8-0 victory over the Firebirds April 9. Righty Justin Schultheiss was the winner in a 10-8 contest May 1 that saw West nearly come back from a 10-1 deficit.

"Obviously, when you play a game — win or lose — you take the positive and the negative from that game and apply it to future games," Dreisbach said. "We're not too concerned about the results from those games. It was way back in the beginning and middle of the season. All that matters right now for us is this one game."

Dreisbach believes Schultheiss (4-3, 3.11 ERA), who has won the last two postseason games, will get the nod. Murphy is 5-1 with an 0.91 earned run average.

"Schultheiss has had the hot hand recently, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Murphy. Either way, they're quality pitchers, and Hamilton's playing with a lot of confidence right now," Dreisbach said.

The Big Blue (22-8) has won 11 of its last 12 games, while West (24-5) — the state's fourth-ranked club — is riding a six-game winning streak.

Firebirds' senior left-hander Collin Taylor, who did not pitch against Hamilton in the regular season, will take the mound.

"We're ready to take on Hamilton," Taylor said. "We're 0-2, but they haven't faced me yet. We'll see what happens."

Taylor has won eight straight since losing the season opener to Oak Hills.

"He is our ace," Dreisbach said. "When we put Collin out there, he is the best advantage for us.

"He's answered the call. He is our senior. He's been through the battles, and we're going to call on him to get us a win (today)."

West, which has tied the program high for wins in a season, seeks to make its third regional final appearance ('01, '02) in school history.

The winner will play St. Xavier (22-7) or Moeller (27-3) at 2 p.m. Friday at UC.

Contact this reporter at (513) 755-5113 or smatthews@coxohio.com.