COLLEGE BASEBALL / NCAA WEST II REGIONAL : Northridge Falls an Inning Shy of World Series

There was little talk of 44 wins, nor mention of what the early odds might have been of the Cal State Northridge baseball team coming within three outs of a trip to the College World Series in its first season of Division I baseball.

In fact, there was little talk of anything after the sound of an aluminum bat meeting a baseball and the roar of a largely partisan crowd of 3,752 fans marked the end of Northridge’s season Sunday.

Two errors, a walk and a single just past the outstretched glove of a pitcher throwing his second complete game in three days sent Fresno State to Omaha, site of the College World Series starting next weekend.

The Bulldogs (41-21) scored twice in the bottom of the ninth inning of the West II Regional final to defeat Northridge, 6-5. The Matadors had forced a deciding game by defeating Fresno, 6-2, earlier in the afternoon.

Todd Johnson’s single up the middle off Ken Kendrena was the winning hit. It was, in fact, the only hit of a bizarre final half-inning.

Mike Noel led off the Fresno ninth by hitting a high chopper that Denny Vigo, the Northridge third baseman, lost in the sun for an error. Philip Romero then drew a walk and Jason Wood followed with a bunt that first baseman Scott Sharts fielded cleanly before throwing wide trying to get an out at third base.

Vigo flagged down the throw, but the error left the bases loaded, a situation that Johnson quickly remedied by lining Kendrena’s second pitch up the middle.

“Those are things that make baseball pretty difficult when you’re on this end of it,” Northridge Coach Bill Kernen.

Johnson’s hit made a winner out of Bobby Jones, who improved to 15-1 despite allowing 10 hits, including four home runs.

Jones, who already has been selected national player of the year by one publication, defeated the Matadors for the second time in four days. Northridge handed the junior right-hander his only loss of the season, 5-1, in March.

Scott Richardson had two of Northridge’s home runs, giving him five in five games in the regional. Kyle Washington and Mike Solar had the Matadors’ other home runs--all solo shots.

“We hit four home runs off the best pitcher in college baseball and there was nobody on base,” Kernen said. “If you have that kind of production power-wise, you would hope to get eight runs or seven. . .”

Kendrena, who was pitching with only one off day between starts, allowed 12 hits, including a solo home run to Chris Falco that tied the score, 4-4, in the sixth.

CSUN (44-18-1) regained the advantage in the top of the ninth when Andy Hodgins led off with a double and came around to score on a sacrifice fly by Mike Sims.

In the first game, CSUN strung together five consecutive hits to score four times in the eighth, breaking a 1-1 tie and making a winner of Craig Clayton (14-5), who was pitching on two days rest.