CAL STATE FULLERTON NOTEBOOK : Not Bad for a Team That Didn’t Have Much

Cal State Fullerton lost nine of its first 12 baseball games and you could hear the rumblings among spectators at Amerige Park. The Titans didn’t have any speed, they said. They didn’t have much power, many proven pitchers or much overall depth, either.

So much for winning the conference. The College World Series? Maybe next year.

The coaches tried not to panic. They thought it would take at least 20 games for the team’s true personality to emerge.

“But we weren’t real encouraged after 20 games either,� said George Horton, associate head coach.

After 56 games, it’s a different story. Fullerton’s record is 31-13 since Feb. 19 and the Titans were 15-6 in the Big West, earning a share of the conference championship with Fresno State and closing the regular season with a 34-22 record.

The Bulldogs gained the conference’s automatic bid to the 48-team NCAA tournament by virtue of their 2-1 record against Fullerton, but the Titans, ranked 15th in the nation by Collegiate Baseball Monday, seem assured of an at-large berth.

Pairings for the eight regionals, to be hosted by USC, Fresno State, Wichita State, Louisiana State, Texas, Florida, Florida State and Maine, will be announced Monday.

“We were real inconsistent the first half of the season,� Horton said. “We’d play two good games, then two bad ones. But this is a good group of kids. They put in the effort and got better every week. They deserve the credit, not us.�

The most obvious improvement has been pitching. Dan Naulty, a submarine-style right-hander who missed most of the fall season because of injuries, has shaken off early season control problems and emerged as the team’s ace. He’s 8-3 with a 3.38 earned-run average and has 72 strikeouts.

Jack Bailey (6-2, 4.46 ERA) has been a solid No. 2 starter, and James Popoff, the ace of last season’s staff whose ERA was above six for much of the season, has thrown well in his last three starts, closing the regular season with a 7-3 record and 4.81 ERA.

Reliever Chris Robinson has nine saves and leads the staff with a 2.82 ERA. “He might be our most valuable player,� Horton said.

The Titans have been balanced offensively. Second baseman Steve Sisco leads the team with a .350 average, and designated hitter Frank Charles has been the most productive power hitter with a .348 average, seven homers, 18 doubles and 64 RBIs.

Shortstop Phil Nevin’s home runs are down, from 14 last season to three, but he has a .335 average, led the conference with 19 doubles and has driven in 46 runs.

Third baseman Jason Moler became eligible in late February and hit .318 with five homers and 31 RBIs, catcher Matt Hattabaugh hit .304 with seven homers and 38 RBIs, and center fielder Frank Herman has added an unexpected punch, with a .300 average, nine homers and 41 RBIs.

“When you have success, it’s not one or two guys,� Horton said. “Someone has been coming through for us every series.�

Frolicking in the snow one hour and faltering on the field the next--that’s the kind of weekend the Titan softball team had.

When Fullerton arrived at Utah State for a Friday doubleheader, the field was under water, so the Titans took a ride into the hills around Logan. They got caught in a snowstorm, had a snow-ball fight and returned to their hotel at 3:30 p.m.

A message awaited: Get to Utah State immediately. The Aggies’ field looked like a Country & Western bar--sawdust everywhere--but they got five innings in before darkness stopped play.

“We weren’t ready to play,� Fullerton Coach Judi Garman said. “We dropped routine fly balls.�

Play resumed Saturday at noon, and the Titans lost, 1-0. The teams completed Friday’s scheduled doubleheader with a 10-inning game, won by Fullerton, 2-1. Problem was, another doubleheader was scheduled for Saturday.

The Aggies and Titans played six more innings Saturday before rain stopped play at 6:30. There were four delays throughout the day, for rain, hail and sleet. The teams resumed the third game Sunday morning and it went 17 innings, with Fullerton winning, 3-2.

The fourth game started at 12:45 p.m. Sunday and ended at 2:35, with Utah State winning, 3-0. The Titans changed, grabbed some fast-food hamburgers, drove 1 1/2 hours to Salt Lake City and arrived at the airport at 5 p.m., barely in time to catch their 5:45 flight home.

“We may have set an NCAA record for the longest time to complete four games,� Garman said. “That last game was the only time the players prayed for rain.�

Titan senior Rob Vasquez wasted no time winning the javelin Saturday at the Big West Conference Track and Field Championships. Vasquez’s first throw went 219 feet 8 inches, and Vasquez spent the rest of the event watching others play catch-up.

No one did, although Fresno State’s Todd Reich came close with a 219-6 on his fourth attempt.

Vasquez’s best throw, an NCAA provisional qualifying mark of 222-6 in March, is the 13th-best javelin mark in the nation this season. If Vasquez remains among the top 16 in the nation, he’ll earn a berth in the NCAA Championships at Eugene, Ore., May 29-June 1.

But the NCAA field won’t be determined for another two weeks. In the meantime, Vasquez plans to compete in at least two more meets in an attempt to improve his mark.

“The next couple of weeks are going to be real intense,� Vasquez said. “It’s a matter of popping another big one or playing the waiting game.�

Titan Notes

Registration is under way for Fullerton Coach Augie Garrido’s summer baseball camps, which are scheduled for July 15-19 at Santa Margarita High School, July 22-26 at Troy High, July 29-Aug. 2 at La Serna High in Whittier and Aug. 5-9 at Tustin High. Tuition is $250 for each session, and those attending the Troy camp have the option of paying $385 and staying overnight in the Pacific Christian College dormitories. Tuition includes a trip to an Angel or Dodger game, daily lunch and a camp T-shirt and cap. For further information and a camp brochure call 645-8766.

One Titan softball player who must be glad Fullerton is playing Cal State Long Beach in the NCAA Regionals this weekend is outfielder Mich DeBree, who is nine for 17 (.529) with a double and triple against the 49ers this season. . . . Shortstop Jill Matyuch, who has a .304 batting average and a 3.71 grade-point average, has been named to the GTE Academic All-American District VIII softball team and is a candidate for the national team, which will be announced in June. . . . Laurie Loforti, a second baseman who attended Oak Grove High in San Jose and West Valley College in Saratoga, Calif., has signed a letter of intent to play softball at Fullerton.