Coyotes face long odds

The Community College of Southern Nevada baseball team has had its sights set on winning the national Junior College World Series since it started play last year.

The Coyotes, 45-7 and ranked 16th in the country at press time, will take their first step toward achieving that lofty goal at 11:30 a.m., Thursday, when they open the National Junior College Athletic Association Region I playoffs at Central Arizona.

If the Coyotes win the seven-team, double-elimination tournament -- which continues Friday and Saturday and culminates May 11-12 -- they would host a best-of-three series against the Region 8 champion (Utah, Idaho) for a trip to the Junior College World Series.

The Coyotes, who lost in the first round of the playoffs last year to cap an impressive 47-10 inaugural campaign, will have to overcome big odds just to win their region, head coach Tim Chambers said.

"We're going to have to have a tremendous amount of breaks to get out of there," he said. "They've done everything in their power to make sure we don't get out of there. It provides tremendous incentive for us."

Despite its outstanding record and national ranking, CCSN, the only Nevada school in the tournament, is seeded sixth.

"We could've went 56-0 and we'd still be the sixth seed. They're trying to make it more difficult for us. We should have a higher seed," Chambers said. "Other than South Mountain (Ariz.) and Central Arizona, everyone else will have 15 to 20 losses. Central and us are the only ones in the top 20 (nationally).

"The key is if we win (our first two games), we'd play the (No.) 1 seed after they play the (No.) 4-5 winner. We'd see their No. 2 starter against our No. 3 or 4. The first weekend is crucial. If we can get out of the first weekend, the pitching will be equaled out."

Last year's playoffs were comprised of six teams, with the Coyotes seeded fifth. This year, there will be seven teams, with the top seed earning a first-round bye.

Chambers said until the Coyotes were formed, only Arizona schools played in Region 1. CCSN was denied entry into the Arizona Community College Athletic Conference and now the playoff format has apparently been altered to hurt the Coyotes' chances.

"That's why our athletic director is working so hard to get us in a conference," Chambers said. "We're looking to get into the Utah conference because if you win your conference you automatically get a higher seed."

Despite the apparent politics surrounding the tournament in Arizona, Chambers still likes his team's chances to advance.

"I know we're not going to get any calls. We've just got to go in focused. I think the tougher schedule has prepared us," he said. "The number one key is to throw strikes off the mound. If we throw strikes, keep our composure and deal with the adversity, we'll be fine. If we do those three things, we'll win.

"I think we have a very good team. If we execute our offense and throw strikes, we're gonna win. This is a special group of guys."

Nate Fouts is expected to start the first playoff game for the Coyotes against Glendale (Ariz.). The sophomore co-captain from Bishop Gorman hurled a complete-game shutout against Glendale in last year's playoffs and went 5-2 with a 3.82 ERA this season, scattering 49 hits in 61 1/3 innings, with 78 strikeouts and 27 walks.

Cliff McMachen is the probable starter for the second game. The sophomore transfer played for Arizona Western last year and threw a three-hit, complete-game shutout over Central Arizona in last season's playoffs. The Cheyenne graduate went 7-0 and led the Coyotes with a 2.51 ERA this year. He scattered 49 hits in 57 1/3 innings and had 71 strikeouts and 32 walks.

Jino Gonzales or Richard Kilby could also start. Gonzales, a freshman from Cimarron-Memorial, went 7-0 with a 3.48 ERA this year while Kilby, a sophomore from Durango, went 3-2 with a 4.38 ERA this season.

"This club is very balanced. We have good pitching, very good defense and we can execute our offense in both fashions," Chambers said. "We can score a lot of runs and if we face a dominant pitcher, we can execute and score runs without having to get the big hit.

"My comment before the season was we might not have as good a record this year because our schedule was much tougher than last year, but the team is much better."

Chambers said the Coyotes -- who hit .381 as a team and posted a 4.28 team ERA -- are better this season because all their key returnees have improved, and their newcomers are better as well.

Jon Slack, a sophomore center fielder from Green Valley, led the Coyotes -- who started the season 29-0 -- with a .451 batting average. Slack also led the team in on-base percentage, hits, runs scored and stolen bases.

John DiBetta, a sophomore second baseman from Durango, was second on the squad with a .409 batting average and led the team with 69 RBIs. He also led CCSN in doubles, slugging percentage, total bases and walks and was second in hits, home runs (six) and stolen bases.

Eric Kitchen, a key transfer from the College of Southern Idaho who has played a number of positions, is slated to start at third base in the postseason. The Durango graduate was third on the team in hitting with a .396 batting average and had four homers and 48 RBIs.

Freshmen Tommy Rojas (Silverado) and Johnny Caruso (Chaparral) will split time at catcher, sophomore Ben Quinto (Bishop Gorman) will start at short and Ronnie Burkey (Chaparral) and Joe Wagner will split time at first base.

Rojas hit .394 with four homers and 40 RBIs this season and Caruso hit .488. Quinto hit .336, Burkey hit .400 and Wagner hit .346 with a team-high seven homers.

Jason Habel (Chaparral) will start in right field while Nick Didier (Gorman), Andrew D'Angelo (Las Vegas) and Landon Minear (Utah) are also expected to see action in the outfield.

Habel hit .366 this season, Didier hit .372 with 40 RBIs and D'Angelo hit .341.

Eldorado graduate Brent Tarbett, a designated hitter, was fifth on the team in hitting with a .374 average this year. Fellow Eldorado alum Chris Hansen hit .373 in limited action.

Shane Clatterbuck, team co-captain, has excelled as the Coyotes' closer. The Chaparral grad went 2-0 with a 0.98 ERA in 18 1/3 innings this year and finished with five saves.

Other pitchers expected to contribute include Amad Stephens (San Diego), Josh Kerschen (Kansas) and Jeff Ammer (Canada).