Christopherson Gives Golden West a Jolt

If it weren’t for a jolt, Saturday would have been the last day of the 1990 season for the Golden West College baseball team.

After four innings at Cerritos College, Golden West, which entered the Southern California Regional baseball playoffs batting .324 and averaging almost nine runs a game, had managed only three hits and a run off San Bernardino Valley’s pitchers.

But Gary Christopherson’s fifth-inning grand slam gave the Rustlers a 5-1 lead and seemed to shake up the offense.

Golden West (29-13) went on to defeat the Indians, 7-3, and advance to the championship game against Los Angeles Harbor today at Cerritos College.

“That kind of gave us a little breathing room,” Golden West Coach Bert Villarreal said.

Because Harbor is undefeated in the tournament--it beat Golden West, 9-4, in the first game Saturday--Golden West must win two games today to advance to the state championships this weekend at UC Irvine.

Winning two from Harbor, the No. 1-ranked community college team in the state, may seem like a daunting task, but Villarreal is confident.

“Anything can happen,” he said. “There’s a reason why we are in the championship game.

“If our offense comes out and hits the way it can, there are not many teams that can stop us.”

Against Harbor, Saturday, that was a big if.

Harbor pitcher Patrick Ahearne (13-1), who has the build, stance and delivery of Orel Hershiser, doesn’t throw especially fast but he stumped the Golden West batters, allowing five hits, while striking out six and walking two.

Even in the second inning, in which Golden West first baseman Josh Bammer hit a three-run home run to left, Ahearne struck out the side. After Bammer, the only Golden West player to get more than one hit off Ahearne, hit the homer, the Rustlers still trailed 5-3. Golden West got only three more hits, including an eighth-inning double by Frank Herman, who scored a run to cut Harbor’s lead to 9-4.

In the second game, Christopherson’s grand slam was only the most notable blow. Christopherson went three for five and drove in five runs and Herman and Mike Willey each went two for three as the Rustlers rounded up 11 hits.

After the four-run fifth inning gave Golden West a 5-1 lead, the Rustlers scored two more in the sixth. First, San Bernardino catcher John Smith dropped a throw to the plate letting Steve McKowen score on a double steal. Then Christopherson drove in a run with an infield single to give Golden West a 7-1 lead.

In the bottom of the sixth, San Bernardino scored two runs on four singles off pitcher James Marquez (5-3), who was replaced by Derek Ogle after loading the bases in the inning. Ogle struck out pinch-hitter Ruben Montano to end the inning.