Box Score
A.I.I. CHAMPIONSHIP PHOTO (high-res JPG)
Cal State San Marcos baseball has won the 2011 A.I.I. Conference Championship, earning an automatic bid to the NAIA National Championship Opening Round.
Playing in the A.I.I. Championship Game in Thomasville, GA on Friday, top-seeded CSUSM defeated second seed University of Houston-Victoria 10-3 to take home the title.
After winning the first two games with brute force in rather ugly fashion (10-8 and 21-13), Friday looked much more like the kind of game you'd expect these Cougars to play, thanks in large part to Adam Bileckyj. The lefty starting pitcher was absolutely fantastic in the biggest game of his brief Cougar career, going the full 9 innings to secure the victory. It is the first 9-inning complete game by any Cougar pitcher this season, and after the team burned through its bullpen in the first two contests, it couldn't have come at a better time. Bileckyj allowed 3 runs, none of them earned, on just 5 hits. He threw 120 pitches to get through the game, walking no batters and striking out 6 batters.
For his efforts, Bileckyj was named the A.I.I. Tournament MVP following the game.
Of course, the team's offense showed up once again, reaching double-digits for the third consecutive post-season game and proving it has come on at exactly the right time. CSUSM gave Bileckyj plenty of early support, scoring 2 runs in both the first and second innings to go up 4-0. The Cougars made it 7-0 with a 3-run fifth, and then 10-1 in the sixth.
Third baseman Austin Coleman led the charge, going 2-for-4 with a home run and 3 RBI. Kevin Silvett added 3 RBI of his own, with Marco Arellano and Kyle Secciani adding a pair of hits each. Shortstop Johnny Omahen finished the tournament batting over .500 as well.
It's a triumphant day for Cougar baseball, who for four seasons played home games at local high schools and came so close to qualifying for Nationals, particularly in 2009. This year, Coach Dennis Pugh's squad has a true home field on campus, and has now secured its first-ever appearance at Nationals. The match-up will be set on Sunday.
