Baseball is a sport where if you fail seven out of 10 times you have had a really good week. So when you are successful over 50 percent of the time in a week you are on an unbelievable streak. But if you get a hit 50 percent of the time for a whole season, there are no words to explain how much of an accomplishment that is. Well, for Lindenwood junior Mike Failoni his first year as a Lion was unreal.

After earning preseason All-American going into his senior year at Edwardsville High School, All-State honors two years in a row, and First Team All-Conference three years in a row, Mike Failoni found himself at Heartland Community College in Normal, Illinois.

It didn't take long for Failoni to make a name for himself as he hit .409, had eight home runs, 70 RBI, and helped lead the team to the NJCAA DII World Series as a freshman. One year later, Mike continued his success hitting .391 with six home runs and 49 RBI, again helping Heartland to a World Series birth.

"Mike's recruiting hitting tape jumped out at us when we received it and his JC coach gave such a great recommendation on Mike's ability as well as his character," said head coach Doug Bletcher. "It just seemed to be a great fit for us."

After two years in junior college Lindenwood would be the next stop for Failoni and just like Bletcher thought, it turned out to be a great fit.

"My biggest thought was how the team was going to accept me as a transfer," Failoni said, "but, they (the team) are a great group of guys and it was easy to get to know them."

Failoni credited the good group of guys as a factor that helped him feel "more relaxed on the field."The junior from Edwardsville, Ill. started the season with just two hits in 12 at bats in his first four games played. But that would be the last time the rest of the season that Failoni would have any issues at the plate.

He then put together at 27-game hitting streak which raised his average almost 400 points. Not only did he have a 27-game streak he had at least one hit in the team's last 41-of-42 games. Even though he was raising his average quickly and piling up the hits he said the streak also involved some luck.

"There were a few games where I had a bloop hit as my only hit of the game," Failoni said. "As the season went on I felt that every pitch thrown was the size of a beach ball. A lot of my success came from my work in pregame and extra hitting on days off."

"Mike's always been a hitter with his ability to go to all fields and constantly being able to make adjustments," said Bletcher. "His hands work with the added skill of staying so centered and balanced."

It didn't take the MIAA long to catch onto to the hitting ability of the newcomer to the Lions lineup.
"It was a challenge every day. I felt like the majority of the year there was a different style of pitcher and I constantly had to change my approach and that is not easy to do for a hitter," said Failoni.

Even though teams were making adjustments to Failoni teams still could not get him out. During a weekend series at the MIAA Champions, Missouri Western, he went seven-for-nine with five doubles, and three RBIs.

"The series for me, without a doubt, against Missouri Western State University cemented that we were dealing with something very special," said Bletcher. "This highly ranked national power, threw everything but the kitchen sink at Mike with quality pitching and Mike was stellar throughout the series."

Mike ended the season with 24 doubles and six home runs. But, however, his biggest accomplishment of the season was going 86-for-172 at the dish to compile a .500 batting average which broke the MIAA single-season record.

The previous batting average record was held by Dan Shy of Southeast Missouri State University in 1989 when he hit .489 for the year. Some of the numbers he put up looked like video game numbers. Failoni had at least two hits in 27 of his 46 games played which included a five hit game and two, four hit games. He scored at least one run in the last 16-of-19 games and had at least one double in 14 of the last 23 games. In a weekend series against Nebraska-Kearney he was 11-for-15 with eight RBIs, and four doubles.

"It means a lot to me knowing that I represented a great athletic school like Lindenwood," said Failoni. "I felt like I was dreaming. I felt like there was no way I could ever accomplish that goal."

For his accomplishments on the field Mike earned MIAA Hitter of the Week twice and Regional Hitter of the Week. Postseason honors rolled in as well earning a spot on the First Team All-MIAA as a unanimous pick. He was also named to the First Team ABCA/Rawlings All-American team and First Team Division II Central Region team.

Bletcher was not only satisfied with Failoni, but the outcome of the first season in the MIAA. "I certainly would say the guys did an admiral job and had we been playoff eligible, we would have qualified for the playoffs," he continued, "For next season and beyond, I expect us to take the next step and contend for more than just an MIAA playoff spot."

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