SEASIDE >> It’s a situation that KW Quilici has practiced numerous times, as well as envisioned — utilizing his 6-foot-5 frame to scale the outfield fence and turn a home run trot into a walk back to the dugout.

So, when the baseball began to soar last week, the Cal State Monterey Bay center fielder had a plan of action, even if it wasn’t his initial thought.

“From the get-go, you go ‘oh no,’” CSUMB baseball coach Walt White said. “You watch your outfielder’s reaction. Usually a second glance at the fence means you’re in trouble.”

This time it meant Quilici was about to launch himself up the outfield fence, with arguably the catch, or robbery, of the year in baseball — at any level.

“When the ball is hit that high in our park, one of two things is going to occur,” Quilici said. “Either it will be a routine catch or the ball will pick up in the wind and push a little bit. As I was running, my brain was kind of calculating it would be a little further than the fence would be.”

Over three million viewers have watched a replay of Quilici climb the Otters’ 10-foot fence like Spiderman, scaling above it to reach up with his glove to take a home run away last week against San Marcos. To watch the video follow (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXhHTZe7ylc)

“I’m not a social media kind of guy,” Quilici said. “Usually when I find something about myself, it’s from someone else. My mom saw it first from our videographer. I went out to dinner that night and people were asking ‘yo are you the guy that made that catch?’”

The play last week put the 225-pound Preseason Division II All-America and the Otters program into the national spotlight as it was seen on ESPN.

“I didn’t sleep well that night,” Quilici said. “It’s surreal.”

Quilici, who was named to the NCBWA All-West Region first team last year, is a polished defensive player, having handled 158 of 161 chances in center field.

Those dynamics were on display last weekend when Quilici read the ball off the bat of a San Marcos player, calmly making his way toward the fence.

“In the video I took my (eye) off the ball three times,” Quilici said. “The first time is an initial read. The second one I’m at the warning track. After the third, I decided to climb. I think I can get there.’’

Rather than watch the ball sail over the fence, the senior hit the warning track in stride before sinking his right cleat into the fence, using his right arm to lift him above it.

For what seemed like an eternity, Quilici held that position before taking his left glove above the 10-foot fence and reaching up to bring the ball back into play.

“As he is going up against the wall, you hear the other dugout say that’s way out of here,” White said. “All of a sudden it’s in his glove.”

Holding his glove in the air a split second longer to show he had it, Quilici leaped down from the fence before running back to a group of teammates, with a larger-than-life grin.

“My Achilles heel is people have felt I’m not the greatest defensive outfielder,” Quilici said. “Usually when you see a 6-5 guy, you’re not thinking he’s a centerfielder. I have so much trust and belief in myself, that I’m best athlete out there.”

At the time of the catch, the Otters actually held a 2-1 lead on the strength of a Quilici home run hit earlier in the game.

“It’s probably the best catch I’ve seen in person,” said White, who has been involved in the sport for three decades and spent time in the Miami Marlins organization as a player. “To get up that high and track it.”

White wasn’t the only individual in the video of the catch. Third baseman Jacob Dressler can be seen putting his hands on his head in disbelief.

“I have practiced that moment for hours,” said Quilici, who took a home run away earlier this at Cal Poly, Pomona. “There are no adjustments once you’re climbing the fence. I just hoped I picked the right spot.”

Hitting in the heart of the order, Quilici, who is from Alameda, has put together a big year at the plate for CSUMB, hitting a team high .394 with 10 homers and 34 runs batted in.

The left-handed swinging Quilici, whose numbers could warrant attention in July’s MLB Amateur Draft, has a team-high 67 hits, while scoring 45 runs for the Otters, who sit a game out of first place in their bid to four-peat as conference champions.

“If baseball were to continue for me after this year, it’s a great way to get my name out there,” said Quilici, a math major who wants to be an engineer. “Right now, I’m just trying to make this season the most magical.”