Saddleback Gains Faith and Starts Out on Roll

There isn’t a hint of over-confidence around the Saddleback College baseball program, but there are plenty of smiles, thanks to a strong start.

The Gauchos are 4-0 in Orange Empire Conference play and 8-3-1 overall. To understand the significance of the start, consider that Saddleback won eight conference games last season and seven the season before.

But it’s also too early in the 24-game conference season to think about the conference title.

“It’s nice to get off to a good start and let people know that there’s a team in the south county that can compete,” said third-year Saddleback Coach Jack Hodges. “The biggest thing is that our players are learning they can compete.”

Hodges came to Saddleback from Laguna Hills High School in 1990 but got the job late in the summer and had no chance to recruit. His first team went 14-21.

Last season, Saddleback improved to 16-23, but lost eight one-run games.

“Before, we had a few guys who were looking over their shoulders wondering who was going to step up and get it done,” Hodges said. “This season, we have better athletes and there are people willing to go in there and compete.”

One change Hodges has made this season is to use players in different positions instead of going with a more traditional set lineup. Sophomore Tom Waterman is the perfect example.

He’s hitting .333 at second base and is also 2-1 as a pitcher. Ron Kortman leads in victories at 3-1. Rick Brail is hitting a team-high .478, and Mark Wells and Matt Maffei have three home runs each.

Saddleback is scheduled to play host to two-time defending conference champion Rancho Santiago today at 2:30 p.m. The Gauchos then play host to Orange Coast Saturday.

Destructo-dunk: The reason for the long-standing rule of no dunking before a game was made clear Saturday when Los Angeles Harbor’s Dario Del Cid shattered the backboard at Cypress College during warmups. No technical foul was given because neither official was in gym at the time.

Of course, circumstantial evidence should have been enough to convict him alone.

Cypress didn’t have an extra backboard, but the Chargers do have something better--an extra gym. So, after a 45-minute delay to inspect and set up the women’s gym, the game was moved across the hall.

The move had a surprising effect on the Chargers, who were shooting 47% from the field before the game. Cypress shot 59% and made 10 of 17 three-pointers in the women’s gym and won, 91-86.

One footnote: The women’s gym isn’t exactly foreign territory for Cypress, which holds practice there before every road game.

Cypress, which has spent $995 for a new backboard, goes on the road to face College of the Canyons in Wednesday’s second round. Rancho Santiago plays host to El Camino, and Saddleback is at MiraCosta in other second-round games Wednesday.

Women’s basketball: Golden West (27-5), the two-time defending state champions, plays Allan Hancock (28-5) at 4 p.m. Thursday in the first round of the state tournament Thursday at Merritt College in Oakland.

Long Beach (24-6) takes on Siskyous (26-5) at 2 p.m.; LA Harbor (27-6) plays Sequoias (30-6) at 6 p.m., and El Camino (18-13) takes on Lassen (32-1) at 8 p.m. in other first-round games.

The tournament continues Friday, and the title game is Saturday.

High-scoring Hornets: When Fullerton lost to Cerritos, 103-83, in the regional men’s basketball playoffs Saturday, it ended the community college careers of two of the school’s top scorers--forwards Bob Terry and Garry Hunter.

Terry finished with 1,176 points, fourth best in Fullerton College history. He made 151 of 168 free throws to set the single-season record of 89.9%. Hunter ended with 1,077 points, sixth best in school history.

Community College Notes

Defensive lineman Kelly Jackson of Orange Coast has signed to play at Missouri. Jackson was second in tackles (77) and sacks (six) for OCC. Wide receiver Darren Webb of OCC has signed with William & Mary.