Community College Notebook / Steve Kresal : Golden West Setting Sights on a New Volleyball Title

Golden West College, a perennial women’s volleyball power, is looking to win a championship in a new conference this season.

Golden West, along with Fullerton, moved from the South Coast Conference to the Orange Empire to line up with the other four Orange County teams--Cypress, Saddleback, Rancho Santiago and Orange Coast. Riverside is the other conference member.

The move will make the Orange Empire one of the strongest community college volleyball conferences in the state, with Golden West and Orange Coast expected to lead the title chase.

Golden West was the state’s top-ranked team last season before being upset by Chabot in the semifinals of the state tournament. And despite losing all of last season’s team, Golden West is again expected to be one of the strongest teams in the state.

Golden West was 61-3 and won four conference titles in the South Coast Conference in five seasons under Coach Al Gasparian.

Golden West opened the season Friday by defeating Grossmont, the defending state champion, in four games. The Rustlers play host to a pool-play tournament Friday.

“I really don’t know anything about most of the teams in the new conference,” Gasparian said.

Jackie Cook, a former All-Southern Section player at Fountain Valley High School, is expected to be one of Golden West’s top players.

There is renewed hope at Fullerton because of a new coach and 4 returning players. Julie Ortman, who coached at Fullerton High School for two seasons, moves across the street to take over the Hornets.

Heidi Shikuma, an all-conference setter last season, is back along with outside hitter Terry Shiley and middle blockers Lisa Lanphar and Valerie Thurman. Susan Guest has transferred from Washington State and will start for Fullerton.

“We have 10 quality players,” Ortman said. “I think with our talent, we should do really well.”

Fullerton opened the season by winning the Ventura tournament Thursday but lost in three games to Cerritos Monday in a nonconference match.

Conference play begins Oct. 5.

Strange series: Orange Coast’s defense overcame an amazing series that included 60 yards in penalties on 3 consecutive plays in a 39-14 victory over Rio Hondo Saturday.

Rio Hondo had the ball on its 25 when OCC’s Gunner Wolfe apparently intercepted a pass but was called for pass interference. OCC’s Bill Craft was called for pass interference on the next play, giving Rio Hondo a first down on the OCC 45. Then OCC’s Carlos Barefield had another apparent interception nullified when he was called for pass interference.

Then the OCC coaching staff was called for unsportsmanlike conduct for protesting the calls, and Rio Hondo had a first down at the 15.

But the OCC defense held from there, and Rio Hondo missed a field goal attempt.

Strange but true: In the fourth quarter of the same game, Orange Coast lined up to kick an extra point. The snap was bad, but Mike Crowe managed to pass to Jason McGehee in the end zone. Two points, right?

Not according to the person running the scoreboard at Rio Hondo.

When OCC public information officer Jim Carnett asked about it, he was told that because OCC had lined up for a one-point conversion, that was all the Pirates could get. But after a few moments, the scorer thought it over and gave Orange Coast two points.

Tom Hermstad, athletic director at Golden West, and Keith Calkins, the dean of physical education for Saddleback, are spending the next two weeks at the Olympics in Seoul.

Hermstad is working as a water polo referee, and Calkins is part of of a committee working to get racquetball as a demonstration sport in the 1992 Summer Games.

Community College Notes

Scott Stark, who left the Saddleback football team last week, was reinstrated by Coach Ken Swearingen Monday. Stark, a sophomore quarterback, left Stanford late this summer and transferred to Saddleback. . . . Orange Coast won the men’s and women’s divisions of the Orange Empire Conference Relays Friday at Central Park in Huntington Beach. The OCC seven-member men’s team covered the 3.45-mile course in a total of 2 hours 12 minutes 23 seconds. The women’s seven-member team, the defending state champions, ran 2:15:3 on the 2.7-mile course. . . . Charles Phillips has been named an assistant baseball coach at Saddleback. Phillips, an assistant at OCC the last two seasons, joins Rich Rommel, who also will assist Coach Jim Brideweser.