Northridge Heeds Warning Signs and Clobbers San Jose State, 9-6

The alarm that sounded at the Cal State Northridge baseball field Saturday did not wail like a siren or ring like a bell.

It was a clank, the sound of Kraig Constantino’s aluminum bat meeting a baseball--a ball that landed a matter of inches beyond the right-field fence.

Constantino’s home run gave San Jose State an early two-run lead, and it also sent a loud and clear message to Northridge batters.

It was time to retaliate.

Northridge pounded 13 hits--11 in the first three innings--in rallying to defeat the Spartans, 9-6. The Matadors have won three in a row after an 0-4 start. They will meet San Jose in the finale of the three-game series today at 1 p.m.

San Jose (4-3) had taken a 3-0 lead in the opener Friday but lost, 5-4.

“What it is is serving as a wake-up call,” said Northridge’s Greg Shockey, who was two for three with two runs batted in.

“It’s almost like they’re doing us a favor. I hope we get to a point where that doesn’t have to happen, but right now we seem to be responding to that.”

Every Matador starter had reached base by the third inning and all finished the game with at least one hit. Jason Shanahan, a freshman making his second start as designated hitter, was three for four.

Northridge scored four runs on five hits in the first, a run on three hits in the second and four more runs on three hits in the third to stake right-hander Steven Morales (1-1) to a 9-2 lead.

San Jose, which managed only seven hits, scored three unearned runs in the fifth to make a game of it. But Morales, who struck out 13--eight looking--and walked three, allowed only one run on three eighth-inning singles thereafter.

“If my breaking ball was established I probably would have had a lot more,” Morales said of his strikeout total, a season-high for a Northridge pitcher. “It was one of those days when my fastball was the only consistent pitch I had.”

In most cases, Coach Bill Kernen said, the fastball should be enough.

“This was an important step for him to see what will happen if he just goes out and airs it out at the knees,” Kernen said. “He was unhittable at times.”

So too was San Jose reliever Doug Hendrickson, who came on in relief of starter Joey Chavez after the first four Northridge batters in the third inning reached base safely.

Hendrickson allowed only two hits in 5 1/3 innings before being lifted in the eighth after throwing 102 pitches.