Titles Spring Up at Azusa Pacific

It has already been an impressive spring for the athletic program at Azusa Pacific.

The Cougars have won Golden State Athletic Conference titles in men’s and women’s track and field, baseball and women’s softball and finished second in men’s tennis.

The success carried over to the National Assn. of Intercollegiate Athletics District 3 level last Saturday when Azusa Pacific’s Dan Ray and Miikka Keronen won the doubles in men’s tennis and the Cougars took the women’s softball championship. It was the school’s first title in either sport.

Azusa Pacific plays host to the NAIA area playoffs in softball and the NAIA district playoffs in baseball starting today.

After winning the district softball title, the Cougars meet District 29 champion Hawaii-Loa (29-5) and District 7 champion Western New Mexico (23-17) in the double-elimination area playoffs at Northside Park in Azusa.

Azusa Pacific (32-19) defeated three-time defending champion Cal Lutheran, 3-2, Saturday for the district title. The team has been sparked by sophomore pitcher Julie Todd (22-9).

The top-seeded baseball team faces either Cal Baptist or Southern California College in its district opener today. The Master’s was seeded No. 2, followed by Christ College Irvine, Southern California and California Baptist.

Azusa Pacific (29-11), ranked No. 17 in the NAIA last week, is led by All-District 3 second baseman Eric Jeffres, who is batting .373 with nine home runs, and all-district catcher Michael Jordan.

The Cougars have a shot at the men’s NAIA track and field championship May 23-25 at Tarleton State in Stephenville, Tex. Azusa Pacific, which finished second in the nation last year, has one of the top sprinters in the world in Davidson Ezinwa, who has a wind-aided best of 10.08 seconds in the 100 meters.

Cal State Bakersfield (29-16), three-time defending Division II softball champion, was not selected for the playoffs despite being ranked No. 15.

Bakersfield was ranked fifth in the West Region behind No. 1 Portland State, No. 2 Chapman, No. 7 Humboldt State and No. 11 Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

UC Riverside (41-20) also was passed up.

Chapman (46-11), which won its first CCAA title, faces Humboldt State and Portland State plays Cal Poly SLO in the West Regional Saturday in Portland.

Cal Poly Pomona (17-10) led the CCAA baseball race as the week’s play began, with Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (15-11) and UC Riverside (14-11) still in good position to challenge for the title.

The championship could be decided when Pomona, No. 6 in NCAA Division II, plays No. 19 UC Riverside today, Friday and Saturday.

College Division Notes

Cal Poly Pomona won its first NCAA Division II women’s tennis title with a 5-3 victory Sunday over defending champion UC Davis in the final at the Gold River Racquet Club in Rancho Cordova. It was the third national women’s tennis title for the top-seeded Broncos (21-5), who also took AIAW championships in 1980 and ’81. Second-seeded Cal Poly San Luis Obispo got third place with a 6-0 victory over Abilene Christian.

The Cal State San Bernardino baseball team may have wrapped up its second consecutive berth in the NCAA Division III playoffs by splitting four games with UC San Diego last week. The probable opponent for the Coyotes (24-11), who have the best record on the West Coast among Division III teams, is Redlands (20-20), which won the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title. Playoff bids will be announced Sunday. . . . Junior first baseman David Rex of Cal State San Bernardino set a school record with his 16th home run of the season last week. He is batting .398 with 47 runs batted in and a .984 fielding average.

Behind a brilliant performance by junior Nate Kirtman, Pomona-Pitzer gained its first SCIAC men’s track and field championship since 1987. Kirtman won the 100 and 200 meters, the long jump and the triple jump, ran the first leg for the winning 400-meter relay team and finished second in the 110-meter high hurdles as the Sagehens ended Occidental’s three-year reign as SCIAC champion. . . . Occidental’s women continued their domination by winning the title behind sophomore Jacqui Dent, who won the 200 and 400 meters and ran on the winning 400-meter relay team. The Tigers have won every SCIAC title since the women’s division was formed in 1976.