Despite slow start, Heyer ready to start in playoffs

Wednesday, May 10, 2006 | 7:29 a.m.

Craig Heyer expected to be an ace pitcher for the Community College of Southern Nevada. But when he started this season 1-4, he found himself in the bullpen.

Neither Coyotes coach Tim Chambers nor pitching coach Steve Chatham promised Heyer, a sophomore right-hander from Scottsdale, Ariz., a return to the starting rotation.

"They put some fire under me," Heyer said Monday at practice. "They gave me a weekend to rest, to get my mind straight and hopefully turn my season around. I did. It's not where you start, it's how you finish."

Heyer and the Coyotes (13-43, 11-29) rallied, overcoming a forfeiture of 27 victories along the way to squeeze into the Region 18 playoffs that begin today at Western Nevada in Carson City.

Heyer gets the start at 6 p.m. today against Southern Idaho (37-17, 26-12).

Heyer rediscovered his slider, got back into the rotation a week after that relief stint and has won his last six starts. He's 7-4 with a 2.18 earned-run average, with 71 strikeouts and 20 walks.

Kris Cichoski, a freshman from Durango High School, said he and his CCSN teammates will remember his father during the Region 18 tournament.

Regis Cichoski, 51, worked in the snack industry and delivered sunflower seeds and peanuts to Chambers every Tuesday. Last month, the patriarch of the Cichoski family suffered a fatal heart attack after having visited CCSN earlier in the day.

"He was all about winning," Kris said of his father. "It's what he'd want out of us, to get as far as we can. It's more motivation for me and the whole team. He wasn't just an outsider here.

"He went to all the practices and was close to all of my teammates. If we win, it'll be for me and my dad."

Sophomore infielder Casey Coon was flirting with a .400 batting average this season and finished second in the Scenic West Athletic Conference at .370.

The Silverado High School product shrugged it off, saying many of his teammates did well at the plate during the regular season and consistently produced clutch hits.

It has been a lot different than his freshman season, when injuries limited him to only 20 at-bats in 13 games.

"I didn't expect to have as good a season as I've had," Coon said. "I never would have thought that it would turn out the way it has, but good things happen."

Cans o' corn:

The winner of that district playoff advances to the NJCAA World Series, scheduled to start in Grand Junction, Colo., on May 27.

The number of bases swiped by sophomore outfielder Cameron Johnson (Las Vegas High), who can extend his single-season school record in the playoffs. Andrew D'Angelo stole 33 in 2002.