THE COLLEGES : Notebook : Keister Plays for Coach With Pull

John Keister of Occidental College hoped to get some stiff European competition when he agreed to join Coach Gary Smith and his University of Redlands basketball team for a tour abroad last summer.

But Keister and his teammates got more than they bargained for when they faced Sweden’s Division 1 professional championship team.

“They were a lot taller and stronger than us,” said Keister, a 6-foot, 5-inch forward who was pressed into service as a center. “They beat the hell out of us on the boards.”

And, Keister said, there also were incidents of shoving and finger-pointing. The situation got more and more heated as the mismatch progressed. With 2 minutes remaining, Smith pulled his team from the court, intending to forfeit.

Smith reconsidered and put his team back on the court. Then he pulled them off. Next, he put them back on, but again he took them off. Finally, Smith let them finish.

Afterward, Sweden’s coach questioned Smith.

“Who do you think you are?” he demanded. “Bobby Knight?”

Bronco busters: Santa Clara, which plays host to Cal State Northridge in a Western Football Conference game today, has a pair of former Valley-area high school standouts playing important roles on offense.

Travis Bargeman, a junior from Alemany High, is the Broncos’ starting flanker. He is second on the team with 16 catches for 246 yards and 3 touchdowns. His backup is Chris Hite, a sophomore from Hart. Hite, a reserve tailback last season, has 6 receptions for 42 yards.

Hite (5 feet, 9 inches, 160 pounds) leads the team in kickoff returns with 306 yards on 15 returns. Bargeman (5-8, 155) is second with 8 returns for 120 yards.

Getting his kicks: Joey Kirk, a former All-American soccer player at Cal State Northridge, has signed a 1-year contract with the Wichita Wings of the Major Indoor Soccer League.

Kirk, who scored 30 goals last season for Northridge, originally was selected by the Minnesota Strikers. However, when the Strikers folded, Kirk was the first player selected in a dispersal draft.

Mayhem in the middle: The volleyball season mercifully ends next Saturday for the Occidental women’s team. The Tigers (2-23, 0-7) have endured their worst season in 6 years.

Coach Ivan Taylor said the middle blocker position, particularly, has been a sore spot.

“You don’t want to be named middle blocker on this team because you’re bound to go down,” said Taylor, who has lost 5 middle blockers to injury or ineligibility.

Northridge events: The Cal State Northridge Athletic Assn. has announced plans for homecoming weekend Nov. 4-6.

Northridge will play an exhibition basketball game against Columbia University on Nov. 4 to kick off the festivities.

The following day, the Athletic Assn. and Alumni Assn. will co-host a buffet brunch for alumni from 9:30-11:30 a.m. at the University Club. That will be followed by a homecoming parade at 1 p.m. Northridge plays host to Cal State Sacramento in a Western Football Conference game at 7 p.m.

On Nov. 6, 6 former Northridge athletes will be inducted into the school’s hall of fame during ceremonies at the Airtel Plaza Hotel in Van Nuys.

Steve Brodi (track), Hank Clark (baseball), Dr. Lester Cohn (team orthopedist), Dr. Lennin Glass (former dean, School of Communications and Professional Studies), Jackie Hansen (track) and Jeff Thorton (swimming) are the inductees.

Information: 818-885-3215.

Sam Farmer and staff writers Mike Hiserman and Gary Klein contributed to this notebook.