Strip club claims trigger resignations from NJ high school team

⚾ Mainland baseball coach quits just one game into season

⚾ A student told NBC Philadelphia an adult during a team trip visited a strip club

⚾ School says no students part of the investigation

LINWOOD — A trip to a strip club may have led to the resignation of the head baseball coach and the removal of a volunteer coach.

Mainland schools Superintendent Mark Marrone confirmed the resignation of Mainland High School baseball coach Joe Smith for “personal reasons" on Saturday, according to NJ.com. An adult volunteer coach was also removed from the coaching staff.

Unnamed sources said the decision came following an unspecified incident during a team trip to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Former coach and current athletic director Billy Kern will take over as interim coach.

"Our athletes deserve to be in an environment where they are safe, respected, and supported to achieve both on and off the field. When concerns are brought to our attention, we take them seriously and respond," Marrone said in a statement to Fox Philadelphia.

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Multiple resignations shake Mainland High School baseball staff

A student told NBC Philadelphia that an adult traveling with the team went to a strip club. Marrone suggested to Breaking AC that more than one coach went to the club, leading to "concerns" about supervision on the trip.

During a meeting with parents before Monday's game, Marrone would not get into specifics about the incident except to say that adults made "bad decisions" on the trip. He also said that two more coaches resigned from the team. He said that no students are the target of the investigation.

Kern says the team's goal is to focus on the season. Mainland defeated Hammonton 12-5.

"I think everybody is shocked. Everybody is a little bit surprised, but as I told the kids, we're we're focused on moving forward. We're not going to dwell in it. We're not going to point fingers. We're just going to move forward," he told reporters at Monday's game.

About 1,150 students from Linwood, Northfield and Somers Point attend Mainland Regional High School.

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