UC IRVINE NOTEBOOK : Anteater Freshmen Make a Splash in Big West

They are young, UC Irvine’s freshman swimmers, and they are alternately modest and brash.

“I was surprised,” said Chris Mayer, a former Mater Dei High School swimmer who is one of the group of freshmen men that Coach Charlie Schober calls the best class he has ever had. “I thought it would be a lot tougher.”

“ I was surprised,” agreed teammate Kevin Bates.

But listen to Bret Foreman, whose words draw laughter--and some nods.

“We’re a totally dominant force on this team,” he said. “We knew we could come in and take it over.”

It has been a fine first season for them. Several have put their names among the top five in the Big West Conference, which will determine its champions this weekend beginning Thursday at Belmont Plaza pool in Long Beach. Along the way, they have added a few other distinctions--some earrings, and a cosmetic improvement for Foreman, who is from Tacoma, Wash.

“Yeah, I got a tan,” Foreman said, to laughter.

Irvine’s men have been picked third in the Big West, behind UC Santa Barbara and Nevada Las Vegas. The women, led by Lisa Williams, a senior distance freestyler, are picked seventh.

Many of the freshmen men were already accomplished swimmers when they arrived at Irvine. The way Schober sees it, that means that by the time this class leaves, some other swimmers might have joined Irvine’s NCAA club--an elite crowd of one. Up to now, the only Irvine swimmer ever to qualify for the NCAA championships is Brian Pajer, who finished his college career last season.

Erik Walton might have an opportunity this year.

“He has the best shot, in backstroke,” Schober said. “It’s possible. He’s close enough to look at it.”

Walton, from Corona High School, won the Southern Section 2-A title in the 50-yard freestyle last season, setting a 2-A record. His best time this season is fourth best in the Big West. But the surprise has been his performance in the 100 backstroke, an event he didn’t even swim his senior year in high school. His time of 52.40 this season is the best in the Big West.

Walton will be a workhorse at the Big West meet, swimming seven events, three of them individuals--the 100 back, 50 free, and 100 free, in which he has the fourth-best time in the conference.

“I’m gonna be pretty tired,” he said.

Jason Sakamoto, from San Marino High, has tried to fill some of the void left by Pajer in the breaststroke events. Sakamoto, who holds the Southern Section 3-A record in the 100 breaststroke, ranks third in the Big West in the 100 and fifth in the 200.

The list goes on:

Kevin Bates, from Ygnacio Valley High in Concord, is eighth in the 200 breaststroke.

Foreman is fourth in the 200 backstroke and 10th in the 100 backstroke.

Pat Keenan, from Richardson, Tex., ranks second in the Big West in the 500 free, and has his eyes on the school record of 4:27.0, 4.34 seconds faster than his personal best.

“Everybody wants to move up from where they’re ranked,” Foreman said.

Irvine Athletic Director Tom Ford struck a blow at the hopes of any basketball coaching candidates without Division I experience this week, saying Irvine plans to pursue only Division I head coaches and assistants, or candidates from professional ranks, until that category of suitable prospects “is exhausted,” before considering others for the job.

Irvine’s search for a replacement for retiring basketball coach Bill Mulligan is picking up speed, but may be slowed by head coaches’ reluctance to talk or be publicly involved, particularly before the season ends. There is an application deadline of March 19.

Ford said Monday he had sought and received permission to speak to only one Division I head coach: Washington State’s Kelvin Sampson, who has turned around last year’s 7-22 record to a 16-8 mark with four games remaining, all against UCLA or USC.

Sampson, who had not yet spoken to Ford, says he will not consider any jobs until the season is over, is in the third year of a four-year contract that pays $64,200 a year in base salary. Athletic Director Jim Livengood said he plans to seek to renegotiate Sampson’s contract.

Rumor Central: Pat Riley said Tuesday he has been called by UC Irvine about its basketball job--as a reference for another coach.

But did Irvine sneak in an offer to the former Laker coach in the course of the conversation? “That’s not true,” Riley said.

There’s no shortage of assistant coaches interested in the job. Among the latest to apply is Joe Cravens, a Utah assistant who took over the team last season while Coach Rick Majerus was out after multiple-bypass heart surgery.

Cravens, who was an assistant at Washington before joining Majerus’ staff, guided Utah to a 16-14 record last season. With two returning starters and three newcomers in the starting five, Utah is 25-2 this season and ranked ninth in the nation.

Anteater Notes

Irvine’s chances of making the men’s or women’s Big West Conference tournament are apparently nil. Even if the men’s team wins its final two games and finishes in a tie for the final tournament spot, the tiebreaker procedure would eliminate the Anteaters. . . . UC Irvine’s men’s tennis team has upcoming matches against teams expected to be ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in the nation. Irvine plays host to USC on Thursday and UCLA on Saturday. UCLA is expected to be named No. 1. . . . Wendy Kohler, an outside hitter from DeAnza College who was first-team all-state and a third-team junior college All-American, has signed to play for the women’s volleyball team. . . . The men’s volleyball team won its first two matches of the season last weekend, defeating Brigham Young twice. . . . Steve Ott has taken over the batting lead for the 9-9 baseball team, at .348.

Larry Stewart contributed to this story.