Roses and NCAA Playoffs Await CSUN After Sweep

There was a rose waiting for each Cal State Northridge softball player Saturday afternoon, somebody’s way of saying thanks for a job well done.

The Lady Matadors had just won another California Collegiate Athletic Assn. championship, defeating Cal State Bakersfield twice by 1-0 scores at CSUN.

Northridge, which had won or shared the conference title each of the past five years, only needed a split for at least another tie for the title.

Let’s just say that the roses probably were ordered well in advance.

When the last out of the second game was in the books there was some celebrating, but nothing that could be construed as an outburst of emotion. Coach Gary Torgeson was doused with a large tub of ice water, but even that display of merriment was about as enthusiastic as it was original.

Barbara Jordan, Northridge’s soon-to-be three-time All-American, put the scene and the season in perspective.

“I’m glad it’s over,” she said. “If I had to go through one more year in the CCAA it would be tough. It gets a little boring playing the same people, already knowing you’re better.”

For Jordan and CSUN’s other crusty veterans, the real season is about to begin. In two weeks it will be time for the Division II West Regionals, followed by the national championship tournament in Quincy, Ill.

Northridge (45-6, 18-2 in the CCAA) is ranked No. 1 in the nation and probably will be the host of the regional May 8-9.

The only significance of the CCAA season, according to pitcher Delanee Anderson, was that winning the conference is the only way a team can get an automatic bid to the regionals.

That, she said, was pretty much known almost two months ago.

“After we play everybody once, we can kind of tell where we’re going to be,” she said.

Bakersfield (29-21, 14-6), which finished four games behind Northridge in a tie for second with Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, tried beating CSUN with a former Lady Matador player.

Shannon Oakes, who spent the 1984 and ’85 seasons at Northridge pitching in the formidable shadow cast by All-American Kathy Slaten, came close to beating some of her old teammates in the first game, throwing a two-hitter only to lose on a third-inning error.

“I really wanted it bad,” said Oakes, from Bakersfield. “But they took advantage of our one mistake. They don’t win by much--they don’t hit the ball that good--but when it comes down to errors, they don’t make them. They do whatever it takes to win.”

The closeness of the games was of some consolation to Kathy Welter, Bakersfield’s coach, whose program is only 3 years old. “I’m proud of the way we played,” she said. “At least they were good games.”

That, truly, should be considered a moral victory. Northridge outscored its CCAA opponents, 59-7, this season and the margin would have been greater had UC Riverside not forfeited its last two games against the Lady Matadors.

Torgeson, who has a 278-86 record since becoming coach in 1982, tries to steer his players clear of statistics like these.

“It gets tougher every year,” he said, referring to his job rather than competition within the conference. “There’s a lot of pressure to stay on top. We try to convince the players that they have to work on what’s in front of them. Too many good teams sit on their laurels instead of working even harder.”

To that end, Torgeson had one rather large advantage in preparing the team for this season: the absence of Slaten, a four-time All-American.

“Kat got a lot of publicity and the supporting cast didn’t get much credit,” he said. “There’s no doubt these girls wanted to prove that they could play the game without that dominant pitcher out there.”

Said Jordan: “It’s been fun this year. We’re a real team. Everyone contributes. Instead of having one star, it seems like everyone has been a star for an hour.”

And Jordan has been among the brightest. She’s batting .373 and leads the team with 54 hits and 17 stolen bases. Anderson, Debbie Dickman--winner of the second game--Beth Onestinghel and Priscilla Rouse are other players whose performances have consistently stood out.

Anderson is 13-2 with an 0.44 earned-run average, while Dickman is 15-3 with an 0.63 ERA. Onestinghel is batting .379 with 30 runs batted in, and Rouse is batting .443 with a team-leading 5 triples, 3 home runs and 69 total bases.

Anderson is the only senior of the group. Dickman, arguably the team’s top pitcher, is a freshman. So the question remains: How does one keep this group interested in the regular season? Torgeson had an answer.

“We’re ready right now for the move to Division I,” he said. “We’re ready for the next challenge. We need the next challenge.”