SAN MARCOS, Calif. – The Cal State San Marcos baseball team tallied more postseason honors as redshirt senior Zech Samayoa was named the 2026 NCAA Division II West Region Player of the Year by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) and joined freshman Canon King on the All-Region first team, the association announced on Friday.
 
Samayoa just concluded a historic season for CSUSM, setting single-season records for home runs (23), RBIs (78), total bases (151) and slugging percentage (.868) as the team's designated hitter. The Cerritos native led the Cougars with a .362 batting average, 53 runs, 63 hits, 17 doubles and a 1.297 OPS as he earned CCAA Player and Newcomer of the Year honors. He was twice named the NCBWA West Region Player of the Week and CCAA Player of the Week and was named to the CCAA All-Tournament Team. Samayoa is the program's first NCBWA West Region Player of the Year.

King had one of the best freshman seasons on record at CSUSM as he batted .339 with 49 runs, 58 hits, 12 doubles, three triples, 14 home runs, 58 RBIs, a .690 slugging percentage, a .472 on-base percentage and a 1.162 OPS. King's RBI total for the year ranked second in team history, only behind Samayoa. He was named to the All-CCAA first team and was once named the CCAA Player of the Week, becoming the first freshman in program history to earn both honors.
 
This is the first time CSUSM has placed two student-athletes on the NCBWA All-Region first team.
 
With their selections to the first team, Samayoa and King will now be up for NCBWA All-America consideration.