PORTLAND, Ore. – Rookie third baseman Anthony Cusati (Burnaby, B.C.) was the hero for the UBC Thunderbirds on Friday afternoon, getting three hits, including the game winner in the eighth inning, as his team defeated the Menlo Oaks 5-3 in the first round of the NAIA West Grouping Baseball Championship in Portland, Ore.
 
UBC scored twice in the eighth to secure the victory, which sends the second-seeded Thunderbirds to the semifinals of the double-knockout tournament, hosted at Concordia University's Porter Park. Their opponents will be the host Cavaliers.
 
Third-seeded Menlo will play Corban on Saturday in an elimination game.
 
"I'm really proud of the kids because what you want your team to show at the end of the year, in the biggest game of the year, is some fight and some confidence and I think we did all that today," said UBC head coach Terry McKaig.
 
With the score tied 3-3, centre fielder Bryan Arthur (Abbotsford, B.C.) got things going in the bottom of the eighth with a one-out walk. Then Cusati delivered his biggest hit of the season with a triple to centre field to bring home Arthur and make the score 4-3 for UBC.
 
Right fielder Griff Goyer (Burnaby, B.C.) got hit by a pitch on the next at-bat. Second baseman Justin Orton (Essex, Ont.) then drove in the final Thunderbirds run on a fielder's choice that allowed Cusati to cross home plate from third.
 
"A freshman year in our program is not easy. You overcome a lot of adversity so to see them deliver for us, it puts a smile on your face as a coach," said McKaig of Cusati. "He was all fired up, you could tell, with the slide and he was really emotional.
 
"It doesn't matter who steps up in the playoffs, freshman or senior. Whoever can step up and win us a game, it's all about getting that win."

UBC actually had a golden opportunity to go ahead earlier in the game, in the bottom of the sixth. Two singles and a hit by pitch loaded the bases with just one out but a pop out and a controversial called third strike ended the threat and kept the score at 3-3.
 
Menlo evened the game in the top of the sixth on an RBI single from Alex Tenorio.
 

That came right after the Thunderbirds plated two runs in the bottom of the fifth to claim a 3-2 advantage. Pinch hitter Mackenzie Parlow (Qualicum Beach, B.C.) led off with a single up the middle. Two batters later, left fielder Tyler Enns (Winnipeg) delivered another single to put runners on first and third. Designated hitter Vinny Martin (Pender Island, B.C.) drove in Goyer, who was running for Parlow, with an RBI single. UBC's third straight single came from first baseman Bruce Yari (Waterloo, Ont.), whose hit forced a Menlo pitching change. On the next play, shortstop Kevin Biro (Deep Bay, B.C.) grounded out to third but it was enough to score Enns.
 
Menlo started the game with momentum, going up by two on a Wes Hoskins double down the left field line. The Thunderbirds got one back on an RBI double by Yari.

"Getting that one run back in the bottom of the first is huge and that said a lot about the team," said McKaig.
 
UBC starting pitcher Conor Lillis-White (Toronto) rebounded after the opening inning and finished the game with nine strikeouts and three earned runs against in seven complete.
 
"He really settled down and got us through seven innings," said McKaig of Lillis-White. "That speaks to him. That's his character. He's not going to pout or hang his head. He's just going to keep doing what he does every inning, which is trying to get three outs.
 
"That was big. It meant we didn't have to go into the bullpen early or get way behind, which would have been big trouble."
 
Relief pitcher Curtis Taylor (Port Coquitlam, B.C.) recorded the victory after coming into the game in the eighth.
 
Cusati was 3-for-4 on the day while Yari was 2-for-4.
 
The Thunderbirds will play on Saturday at 1 p.m. in a semifinal matchup against Concordia.