COLLEGE DIVISION : Pomona-Pitzer Women Are Ranked No. 1

It is nothing new for the Pomona-Pitzer women’s tennis team to be playing in the NCAA Division III national tournament.

Since the Division III tournament started in 1982, the Sagehens have been to the tournament every year except 1986 and 1987.

But the Sagehens will be in an unaccustomed position when they compete in the 1991 NCAA Division III Women’s Tennis Championships from Wednesday through May 21 at Emory University in Atlanta.

For the first time in school history, Pomona-Pitzer will enter the tournament as the top-ranked team.

The Sagehens have received a first-round bye in the 12-team tournament, as have second-seed Mary Washington of Virginia, No. 3 UC San Diego and No. 4 Wellesley of Massachusetts. Pomona will meet either Emory or St. Olaf of Minnesota on Thursday in the quarterfinals.

Coach Lisa Beckett thinks the Sagehens, who are 17-3 overall and went 12-0 in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, deserve the top seeding but doesn’t want the team to get too caught up in the rankings.

“I think the team is excited about having the No. 1 national ranking, but I think we have enough maturity and experience to know that means nothing,” she said. “We had a good season, but we have to prove ourselves all over again at nationals. I always tell them that the (ranking) that means the most is the one after the national tournament.”

In their first three seasons under Beckett, the Sagehens finished sixth in 1988 and third in 1989 and 1990.

“The national tournament is just huge if you haven’t been there before,” she said. “Every point is just very important. Before, I think we’ve gone in with the talent, but mentally we just weren’t ready to approach the tournament.”

But she says the team is much more prepared for the tournament this time.

“Mentally, we have the talent that comes with experience and success,” Beckett said. “I think what it comes down to is in terms of physical talent we match up well with the other teams. It’s fairly even, and it comes down to having a team that understands what it takes to play at the national level.”

There is little doubt that the Sagehens have the personnel to compete for the title.

Pomona has been sparked by junior Shelley Keeler, who has a 27-6 record in dual matches this season and is rated No. 2 in Division III. Keeler is teamed with junior Erin Hendricks on a doubles team that is ranked No. 1 in the division with a 22-2 record.

The Sagehens also have another potent doubles team in junior Brenda Peirce and sophomore Caryn Cranston, who are not ranked but have a 12-0 record. The other doubles team consists of senior Karen Tsai and sophomore Debbie Boger and the other singles players are Tsai and senior Mercedes Fitchett.

The Azusa Pacific baseball team will be seeking its first berth in the National Assn. of Intercollegiate Athletics championship tournament since 1984 when it plays host to the four-team Area I playoffs Thursday through Saturday in Azusa.

The Cougars (32-11) have the best record of the four teams in the tournament and are the only one that was listed in the final regular-season top 25, at No. 16. They defeated The Master’s, 15-6, last Saturday to win their first NAIA District 3 title since 1988.

Azusa will meet Whitworth of Washington (21-16) in its playoff opener at 3 p.m. Thursday after Hawaii Pacific (25-15) takes on George Fox of Oregon (24-19) in the first game of the double-elimination tournament.

The Cougars have been sparked by the hitting of second baseman Eric Jeffres and utility player Reuben Granados, each of whom has a .377 batting average. The top pitchers are starter Craig Hale with an 8-3 record and reliever Chris Matkin, who is 4-1 with a 2.05 earned-run average.

It will be a matchup of Inland Empire baseball rivals when Redlands plays host to Cal State San Bernardino in the best-of-five NCAA Division III West Regional Friday through Sunday in Redlands. The teams will play a single game Friday and doubleheaders Saturday and Sunday, if necessary.

San Bernardino first baseman David Rex has 16 home runs, 47 runs batted in and a .398 batting average, and Marc DiCarlo of Redlands has 13 homers, 41 RBIs and a .453 average.

San Bernardino, an independent that is ranked No. 5 in Division III with a 24-11 record, is competing in its last season in the division before moving up to Division II next year. Redlands, which is ranked No. 12 at 20-20, won its first Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title since 1985.

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo has drawn the top seeding for the NCAA Division II West Regional baseball playoffs Friday through Sunday in San Luis Obispo.

The Mustangs, the No. 1 representative from the California Collegiate Athletic Assn., have the worst record of the three teams in the double-elimination tournament at 26-21. The other teams are Northern California Athletic Conference champion Sonoma State (29-11-1) and CCAA runner-up UC Riverside at 32-23-1.

College Division Notes

The Cal Lutheran men’s tennis team, which won the NAIA District 3 title last week, will compete in the NAIA Men’s Tennis Championships Monday through May 25 in Overland Park, Kan. . . . The Cal State San Bernardino men’s golf team will be one of the favorites for the title when it competes in the NCAA Division III championships that start May 21 at Firethorn Golf Course in Lincoln, Neb.