2005 CCAA Championship Tournament
May 12-14 • Nettleton Stadium
Chico, California

Tournament Participants
1. Chico State
2. Cal Poly Pomona
3. UC San Diego
4. Cal State San Bernardino

Tournament schedule:
Thursday, May 12
Game 1 - (2) Cal Poly Pomona 6, (3) UC San Diego 4
7PM Game 2 - (1) Chico State 7, (4) Cal State San Bernardino 1

Friday, May 13
11AM Game 3 - (3) UC San Diego 3,. (4) Cal State San Bernardino 1 (Cal State San Bernardino eliminated)
3PM Game 4 - (1) Chico State 6, (2) Cal Poly Pomona 2
7PM Game 5 - (3) UC Dan Diego 8, (2) Cal Poly Pomona 5 (Cal Poly Pomona eliminated)

Saturday, May 14
12 Noon Game 6 - (3) UC San Diego 5, (1) Chico State 4 (11 innings)
TBD Game 7 - (3) UC San Diego 7, (1) Chico State 6 (12 innings) UC San Diego wins title

05/14/05
UC San Diego wins two epic games to claim first CCAA Championship Tournament crown
Tritons force Game Seven with 11-inning win; Gascone drives in winning run in 12th for title
Game 6 boxscore
Game 7 boxscore

CHICO, Calif. – Alex Gascon lined a single off the tip of first baseman Ryan Martin's glove for a base hit to plate Daian Fante and give UC San Diego an epic 7-6 victory and the 2005 CCAA Championship Tournament title in 12 innings Saturday night at Nettleton Stadium. The Tritons beat the host Wildcats 5-4 in 11 innings on Matt Lawson's RBI-double to force the seventh and final game. The first game lasted four hours and 16 minutes. The second game lasted four hours and 45 minutes.

It is the first CCAA title for UC San Diego and the Tritons did it the hard way, dropping their first game of the tournament before rattling off four wins in less than 36 hours. Nevertheless, Saturday's thrilling sweep of 9th-ranked Chico State will make up the majority of their memories, none of which will beat Gascon's hard liner that set off a huge celebration on the infield and in the bleachers on the first base line where most of their faithful fans had waited patiently for almost 10 hours. UC San Diego, which wasn't even assured a spot among the conference's top four teams until the final week of the regular season, improved to 37-20. Chico State fell to 39-14-1 with the loss.

That UC San Diego was posing a threat in the 12th was no surprise. The Tritons had runners in scoring position in all but one inning in the finale. But this time, they loaded the bases with none out. Fante was hit by a pitch to start the inning and he moved to when Matt Lawson reached on a fielder's choice. David Morehead's bloop single loaded the bases, and Gascon hammered Reid Horton's offering for the game-winner. It was Gascon's third RBI of the day.

Chico State trailed for much of the game until Cody Smith sparked a three-run rally in the sixth with a two-run double, giving the Wildcats a 5-4 advantage. UC San Diego answered with two runs in the bottom-half of the inning thanks to RBI-singles by Joel Clark and Fante. The Tritons held that 6-5 lead until the eighth when Chico State tied the game on Jeff Mayberry's pinch-hit RBI-single. At that point, the game became a showdown between hurlers Nick Burger of Chico State and Jose Navarro of UC San Diego. Burger kept UC San Diego scoreless for four-plus innings thanks to seven strikouts, many of which came with runners in scoring position thanks to his surrendering of four hits, four walks, and a hit batter. Navarro, on the other hand, cruised through four-and-a-third frames, allowing just two hits. He eventually earned the win to improve to 5-4.

The contrast in styles became an issue when Burger's pitch count got too high and Lindsay Meggs was forced to go to his bullpen again. Horton, who has been nearly unhittable in relief all season, took the loss to fall to 3-2.

Gascon, Morehead, and Keith Hernandez notched three hits apiece to pace the Tritons offense. Smith went 3-for-5 with three runs and two RBI to lead Chico.

Lawson, the Tournament MVP, led the Tritons to victory in the opener with three doubles and three RBI. Reliever Ryan Leake also came up big in a spot start, surrendering just three runs, only two of which were earned, in seven innings of work. Matt Sweany (3-0) was the eventual winner thanks to three-and-two-thirds of scoreless relief.

The Wildcats actually trailed 4-0 entering the eighth inning before Chad Williams' run-scoring single and Nelson's three-run double knotted the score 4-4. Chico State actually had a golden opportunity to take control of the game later in that inning, but Jeff Walker, the school's career hit leader, grounded into an inning-ending double play.

UC San Diego won the game in the 11th when Fante singled and then scored on Lawson's hit-and-run double to left-center field off Horton. Sweany followed with a 1-2-3 bottom-half of the inning to clinch the victory and force a second game. Gascon and Brad Beltz each drove in a run for the Tritons. Nelson led Chico State with three hits and three RBI.

2005 CCAA Championship Tournament All-Tournament Team
MVP - Matt Lawson, UC San Diego
P - Logan Boutilier, UC San Diego
P - Tim Thompson, Chico State
C - David Morehead - UC San Diego
INF - Brian Robinson, UC San Diego
INF - Alex Gascon, UC San Diego
INF - Joseph Ramos, Chico State
INF - Chad Nelson, Chico State
OF - Matt Lawson, UC San Diego
OF - Greg Gonzalez, Chico State
OF - Jarrod Allen, Cal Poly Pomona
DH - Joel Clark, UC San Diego
At-large - Ryan Leake, P, UC San Diego

05/13/05
UC San Diego eliminates Cal Poly Pomona 8-5
O'Brien collects 200th career victory as Tritons advance to face Chico State Saturday
Game 5 boxscore

CHICO, Calif. – Seven different UC San Diego players drove in a run and Byron Grubman tossed seven-plus solid innings as the Tritons held on to beat Cal Poly Pomona 8-5 in a 2005 CCAA Baseball Championship Tournament semifinal game Friday night. The win was UC San Diego coach Dan O'Brien's 200th and propelled the Tritons into a showdown with Chico State Saturday at noon with the tournament title on the line. UC San Diego must beat Chico State, which has not lost in the tournament, twice in order to claim the title.

Grubman went seven and-a-third innings for UC San Diego to earn the win and improve to 6-3. He allowed nine hits and five runs, only four of which were earned. He struck out two and walked three. Matt Sweany got the final five outs for his third save. UC San Diego improved to 35-20 with the victory. Starter Luis Carreras (6-6) took the loss for Cal Poly Pomona, which fell to 30-23. He lasted just three innings and allowed five runs – four of them earned – on seven hits.

Already leading 3-1 thanks to run-scoring hits from David Morehead and Matt Lawson, UC San Diego took a comfortable lead with a three-run fourth inning. Brian Robinson opened the floodgates with a solo home run to right field. Ricky Pinocchio followed with a double, and that was the end of Carreras' day. Unfortunately for Cal Poly Pomona, reliever John Lee also struggled. Brad Beltz greeted Lee with an RBI-single and came around to score when Joel Clark doubled down the left field line to make it 6-1.

The lead grew to 8-1 in the seventh when Pinocchio and Keith Hernandez drove home a run apiece with consecutive singles up the middle. But Cal Poly Pomona was not about to go down without a fight. Buoyed by Jarrod Allen's two-run single, the Broncos scored four times in the eighth to close the gap to 8-5. The inning had even bigger possibilities, but Sweany came on with runners on the corners and one out and allowed only one run to score. He then got the Broncos in order in the ninth.

Clark went 3-for-5 with two runs and an RBI for UC San Diego. Robinson was 2-for-4 with a pair of runs and an RBI. Alex Gascon went 3-for-4. Pinocchio finished 2-for-4 with a run and an RBI, while Lawson, Morehead. Hernandez, and Beltz added an RBI.

Allen led Cal Poly Pomona's offense with a 2-for-4 effort and a pair of RBI. Marc Evans, Kevin Falls, and Chris Janowicz also tallied two hits each.

05/13/05
Bryant makes birthday wishes come true as Chico State advances to title game
Sophomore goes seven-plus strong innings on 20th birthday for 6-2 win against Pomona
Game 4 boxscore

CHICO, Calif. – In the biggest start of his career on one of the biggest stages, Nick Bryant pitched arguably the best game of his career. The sophomore from Durham tossed seven shutout innings before allowing a two-run homer in the eighth as the Wildcats defeated Cal Poly Pomona 5-2 to advance to the title game of the 2005 CCAA Championship Baseball Tournament. All that, and Friday was Bryant's 20th birthday.

Bryant allowed eight hits, struck out six, and did not walk a batter in seven and-a-third innings of work. Reid Horton got the final two outs of the eighth and Nick Burger pitched a scoreless ninth. Chico State will take on Friday night’s Cal Poly Pomona-UC San Diego winner at noon Saturday. If the Wildcats win, the title is theirs. If they lose, they will have another crack at their second straight CCAA championship approximately 30 minutes after the completion of the first game.

Ranked No. 9 in the country and No. 2 in the region entering the weekend, Chico State improved to 39-12-1 with its fifth straight win. Cal Poly Pomona dipped to 30-22. Chad Williams paced the Chico offense with a 4-for-4 effort. He reached base all five times he stepped to the plate. Greg Gonzalez went 3-for-5 with two stolen bases. Jeff Walker and Ryan Simpson notched two hits apiece. And Joseph Ramos went 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI. Jarrod Allen, Greg Denning, and Marc Evans banged out two hits apiece to lead the Broncos. Allen's two-run homer that plated Jake Mendrin accounted for Cal Poly Pomona's only runs of the game.

Chico State plated runs in each of the first three innings to stake Bryant to an early 4-0 lead. Jeff Walker tripled and later scored on Joseph Ramos’ sacrifice fly in the first. Ryan Simpson singled, moved to third on Chad Williams’ double, and eventually scored on Greg Gonzalez’s infield single. In the third, Ryan Martin was hit by a pitch and came around to score on Ramos’ double. Williams then plated Ramos with a double to right-center.

Gonzalez sparked another rally with a leadoff single in the sixth. He moved to second on Walker’s sacrifice bunt and came around to score on Martin’s single to make it 5-0.

The Broncos cut the lead to 5-2 with Allen's blast to right-center off Bryant in the eighth. But the Wildcats added some insurance in the ninth when Williams walked, moved to third on Cody Nelson’s base hit, and scored when Nelson got caught in a rundown between first and second to make it 6-2.

Cal Poly Pomona starter John Cross and relievers Stephen Payte and John Lee limited the Wildcats to just two run over the final six frames. Cross, who fell to 7-3 with the loss, was roughed up for 13 hits but stayed out of the big inning and wound up pitching seven full innings.

05/13/05
Cal State San Bernardino can't shake UC San Diego's Boutilier
Tritons ace fires seven scoreless innings in 3-1 victory
Game 3 boxscore

CHICO, Calif. – Starting pitching continued to lead the story at the 2005 CCAA Baseball Championship Tournament as UC San Diego Starter Logan Boutilier threw seven shutout innings to lead the Tritons to a 3-1 victory over Cal State San Bernardino in an elimination game Friday. Boutilier allowed just six hits and struck out three to improve to 11-2 on the season and propel UC San Diego into Friday night's semifinal game against this afternoon's Chico State-Cal Poly Pomona loser.

Cal State San Bernardino's Kyle Holden, Scott Ratliff, and Kevin Mattox also pitched well, combining to allow only nine hits and three runs. But the Coyotes stranded 10 runners and grounded into two double plays to end scoring threats. Their season ends at 25-23.

Alex Gascon, Brian Robinson, and Ricky Pinocchio banged out two hits apiece for UC San Diego. David Morehead, Keith Hernandez, and Pinocchio knocked in a run apiece. Shlomo Lipetz got the last two outs of the ninth for his seventh save.

Mario Mancha went 3-for-4 to pace the Coyotes offense, while Mark Mancha and Aaron Rice notched two hits apiece.

05/12/05
Thompson pitches Wildcats past San Bernardino 7-1
Team's scoreless innings streak ends at 25 with unearned run
Game 2 boxscore

CHICO, Calif. – Only an unearned run in the ninth inning ended Tim Thompson's complete-game shutout bid. But it didn't threaten Chico State's lead as the Wildcats defeated Cal State San Bernardino 7-1 on the opening day of the CCAA Championship Baseball Tournament. Thompson scattered seven hits and the unearned run over a route-going performance, while Greg Gonzalez and Joseph Ramos drove in two runs apiece and Chad Nelson went 4-for-4 to lead the offense.

Wilding leads Cal Poly Pomona past UC San Diego in opener 6-4
Game 1 boxscore

(May 12) CHICO, Calif. – On the day he was named the California Collegiate Athletic Association Pitcher of the Year, Taylor Wilding affirmed that choice by shutting out UC San Diego through the first seven innings as Cal Poly Pomona defeated UC San Diego 6-4 in the opening game of the 2005 CCAA Championship Baseball Tournament Thursday at Nettleton Stadium.

Wilding improved to 11-3 with the win. But UC San Diego’s David Morehead hit a three-run homer in the eighth to spoil Wilding’s shutout bid. Cal Poly Pomona relievers John Lee and Luis Carreras combined to allow an unearned run in the ninth. Carreras got Morehead to fly out with the tying run on first to earn his fourth save.

Cal Poly Pomona improved to 30-21 with the victory. UC San Diego dropped to 33-20. The Broncos will take on tonight’s Chico State-Cal State San Bernardino winner Friday at 1 p.m. with a spot in the title game on the line. UC San Diego will face the loser in an 11 a.m. elimination game.

Jose Navarro (4-5) took the loss for UC San Diego. He three-hit the Broncos earlier this year, but had no such luck Thursday. The Broncos banged out 12 hits and six runs in Navarro’s seven innings of work. Cal Poly Pomona got three runs in the second thanks to run-scoring hits by Matt Lopez and Matt Stevens. Lopez scored the inning’s third run on a wild pitch. They tacked on three more in the seventh on Kevin Falls’ RBI-single and Jake Mendrin’s two-run double.