THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. - Marty Slimak has headed the Kingsmen for 19 seasons. Today, Cal Lutheran's 3-1 victory over Whittier in league action was the 500th of his career. A standout pitching performance from his go-to senior, Byron Minnich, clinched the win and the milestone.

Box Score: CLU 3, WC 1 - F

A humble Slimak said after the game, "If you stay around long enough, it is bound to happen."

And happen, it did. Minnich, a four year letter winner threw a complete game, striking out nine as he scattered four hits and allowed no earned runs.

On a windy afternoon at George "Sparky" Anderson Field, the righty was able to keep the Poets off balance, knowing that his teammates were behind him. The defense was nearly flawless, with the exception of one play that ultimately led to the lone WC unearned run in the seventh.

CLU put a crooked number on the board in the second, plating a pair on a double down the line off the bat of John Leal. A perfect relay by the Poets ended a threat for more as he was thrown out trying to stretch the hit into a triple. Nick DeLorenzo singled to center to lead things off before Mike Vineyard reached on a throwing error after laying down a sacrifice bunt. Nicho DellaValle moved the runners up with a sac bunt of his own to set up Leal.

The Kingsmen added another run on a double-steal in the fourth. Vineyard came around to score and Leal moved up to second after reaching on a fielder's choice and walk, respectively. Vineyard also stole second in the inning.

Trevor Koons continued his offensive assault on his opponents, adding three more hits to his repertoire today, including a line drive for a single in the second as well as singles in the third and seventh. DeLorenzo connected for two of the eight Kingsmen hits while Dominick Solley and DellaValle recorded the other two base knocks.

Two of Whittier's four hits came from Alex Mitchell. Ryan Schwenn was tagged with the loss for WC after going 6.0 innings. He allowed seven hits, three runs with only two earned, and struck out six.

Slimak has been at the helm of the Kingsmen for 18 full seasons and is the winningest coach in school history. His squads have earned seven Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) titles during his tenure and have never placed lower than fourth in the league standings.

During that time, CLU has recorded 20+ wins all but one time and he has never had a losing season. The success of the baseball program at Cal Lutheran goes beyond league play as Slimak has guided three of his teams to the Division III College World Series where they were the runner-up in 1996 and third place finishers in 1999. The Kingsmen have played in three West Regionals under his tutelage, with the most recent coming in 2009.

Over the course of his career, he has had the privilege of coaching 11 players who were drafted by Major League Baseball organizations. In 2003, three members of his team were selected with Jason Hirsh going in the second round to the Houston Astros. Two players, Ian Durham (Philadelphia Phillies) and David Iden (LA Dodgers) are currently in the minor league system.

Cal Lutheran (9-4, 5-2 SCIAC) and Whittier (8-6, 4-3 SCIAC) meet again tomorrow for a pair at Memorial Field. First pitch of the double-header is set to begin at 11:00 a.m.