MOUNT PLEASANT, Texas – The nation’s top-ranked team was on top of its game on one of the most important days of the season, Tuesday. The San Jacinto College (SJC) baseball team downed conference rival Blinn College 6-2 to claim the Region XIV championship and earn a berth in the Alpine Bank JUCO World Series, to be played May 29 through June 5 in Grand Junction, Colo. San Jac, the top seed from Region XIV South, emerged as the undefeated conference champions, winning four straight games in four straight days, while outscoring opponents 36-11. In the regional championship game, played at Northeast Texas Community College, pitcher Miguel Peña (Palm View / La Joya High School) qualified for the win, hurling six innings, allowing 1 run on 5 hits. Mark Herrera (Houston / Cuero High School) and Clay Schrader (Humble / Atascocita) provided three innings of solid relief pitching to seal the victory for San Jac. Clutch hitting came from catcher Ryan Hornback (Sweeny / Sweeny High School), who smashed an RBI double off the center field wall in the third inning, and from second baseman Zachry Benson (Bay city / Bay City High School), who blistered a single to left field in the sixth inning and scored the sixth and final run when a double steal caused an errant throw from Blinn’s catcher. Head Coach Tom Arrington was extremely pleased with the team’s hustle and focus throughout the regional tournament, and particularly with the consistent offensive production. "When the regular season ended, the guys spent a lot of extra time in the batting cages, working in the cages until midnight and later on some nights," he commented. "They put in a lot of extra work to prepare for the tournament, and the extra work really paid off." Arrington is in his 10th season at the helm of the San Jac program, and will make his seventh appearance in the Alpine Bank JUCO World Series. San Jac (48-10) will face State College of Florida (SCF) in the first round of the 2010 Alpine Bank JUCO World Series on Saturday, May 29 at 12 p.m. SCF won the Region VIII championship and finished the regular season ranked fifth in the nation with a 37-13 overall record. This is the third Region XIV title in the last four seasons for San Jac, and marks the school’s 21st appearance in the JUCO World Series. San Jac has won five national titles, been national runner up on six occasions, and has made an appearance in 11 national championship games. All of San Jac’s World Series games can be heard live online at
www.tsrnsports.com. Information about the 2010 Alpine Bank JUCO World Series can be found at www.jucogj.org. For more information about San Jac baseball, visit www.sanjacsports.com.
