Published: May 12, 2008 12:10 am            

Western slugs its way to Region II tourney championship

What do you call a team that, in three games, hits .390, scores 37 runs and smacks 10 home runs?

Regional champions.

Western Oklahoma State hammered out those lofty offensive numbers en route to three-game sweep at the Region II Tournament.

In Sunday’s finale at David Allen Memorial Ballpark, the Pioneers out-slugged two-time defending champion Redlands Community College 17-12.

“We just hit, hit, hit,’’ said Western coach Kurt Russell. “We hit for three or four hours a night, every night. We don’t ever stop hitting. We have talent, but it’s that hard work ethic that pays off.’’

Western (49-10) will host the three-team Southwest District Tournament this weekend in Altus. The winner of that tournament advances to the NJCAA Division II World Series in Millington, Tenn.

Redlands, ranked No. 3 in the final regular season poll, finishes the year with a 40-10 record.

Fourth-ranked Western goes into the district tournament with a whopping 139 home runs this season. The Pioneers are averaging 11.1 runs per game.

Western swept through the regional tournament without much support from two of its top hitters. Juan Carlos Perez, who entered the tournament with 36 homers and 97 RBI, was just 2-for-11 with one RBI in the tournament. Danny Almonte, the top hitter in NJCAA Division II with a .538 batting average, was 5-for-15 with two RBI for the weekend.

The Pioneers banged out 18 hits, including six home runs, on Sunday against Redlands.

Tournament most valuable player Nate Brown, Western’s nine-hole hitter, went 4-for-5 with two homers, a double, six RBI and four runs scored. For the tournament, Brown went 7-for-12 with nine RBI.

Luis Caraballo had two homers and three RBI, Rob Rodriguez hit a three-run homer, and Wilsisky Baez hit a two-run shot.

Redlands scored seven runs in the bottom of the seventh inning to take a 10-6 lead. Patrick Tolentino had the big hit, a three-run double to left.

But the Pioneers took the lead for good in the top of the seventh with a six-run outburst, highlighted by home runs by Baez and Caraballo.

Russell said the success of Western’s program is due in part to the success of the program at Redlands.

“Matt (Newgent) does an outstanding job with that program,’’ said Russell of the Cougars’ head coach. “Redlands has made our program good. It gives us the motivation to recruit well because we know that Matt is going to recruit well.’’

All-tournament selections were announced on Sunday. Northern Oklahoma College Enid’s Chance Tuttle and Mike Williams earned the honor. Also recognized were Carlos Newman (Murray State), Brandon Hey (Red-lands), Mike McLaughlin (Western), Tom Dicker (Redlands), Jose Cuevas (Western), Jake Forsythe (Redlands), Baez (Western), Caraballo (Western), Chase Phillips (Western), Dan Smith (Redlands), Alex Aycoth (Redlands) and Andy Gonnell (Western).