NOTEBOOK : Bruins’ Janicki Is Feeling Like an Angel After Baseball Draft

Pitcher Pete Janicki of UCLA was the first player from the Westside to be selected in baseball’s amateur draft Monday.

Janicki was a first-round selection by the California Angels and was the eighth player selected overall.

Other area players who were first-round selections included Pepperdine pitcher Derek Wallace, who was selected by the Chicago Cubs with the 11th pick, and former Culver City High outfielder Todd Steverson, who was picked by the Toronto Blue Jays with the 25th pick. Steverson played at Arizona State.

Michael Moore, a former Beverly Hills High and UCLA center fielder, was chosen by the Dodgers with the 38th pick. The Dodgers also selected first baseman Dan Melendez of Pepperdine with the 49th pick.

Former Crossroads High standout Steve Solomon of Stanford was selected in the seventh round by the Philadelphia Phillies.

Janicki, a junior right-hander, was the Pacific 10 Conference pitcher of the year. He was 9-4 with a 3.53 earned-run average and 150 strikeouts and 150 1/3 innings.

Wallace was 3-2 with a 3.55 ERA and 56 strikeouts in 58 1/3 innings. Wallace was the winning pitcher in the Waves’ 7-0 victory over Texas in the College World Series Monday.

Moore was projected to be a first-round pick until he injured his right shoulder while diving for a ball against California April 10. Moore missed 25 games, including the Southeast Regionals, where the Bruins lost to Oklahoma, 10-0, in the regional championship game.

Melendez, a former St. Bernard High player, has a .352 batting average with 10 home runs and 39 runs batted in entering this week’s College World Series games.

Solomon, who was an All-Pacific 10 first-team selection, batted .357 with 10 home runs, 47 RBIs and seven stolen bases. He led the Cardinal with six assists and made only one error.

Solomon’s older brother, Michael, played one season in the Seattle Mariners organization.

College track: UCLA’s Tony Miller, John Godina, Marty Beck and Dawn Dumble qualified in two events for the NCAA Division I Track and Field Championships this week at Austin, Tex.

Miller, a junior sprinter, qualified by running the 100 meters in 10.18 seconds and the 200 in 20.51. Godina, a redshirt freshman, had a season-best toss of 64 feet 6 3/4 inches in the shotput and 201-10 in the discus. Dumble had season-bests of 56-6 in the shotput and 186-8 in the discus.

Beck, who has been slowed because of shin and calf injuries, qualified by running the 400 hurdles in 49.90. Other men’s qualifiers were Charles Rogers in the triple jump (53.9 wind-aided), David Bunevacz in the javelin (246-10, school record) and Erik Smith in the javelin (237-2).

Beck, Mike Stevenson, Michael Williams and Derrick Baker will form the 1,600 relay team.

Other women qualifiers were Roshanda Glenn in the triple jump (43-5) and Jennifer Whelchel in shotput (49-9).

City Section track: Robin Snowbeck of University will be among the top runners competing in the State meet beginning Friday at Cerritos College.

Snowbeck, who will attend Wisconsin in the fall, ran 5:14.72 to win the 1,600 in the City Section championships last week at Birmingham High. She also qualified in the 800 by running 2:16.24 to place second.

The top four finishers in each event at the City meet qualified for State.

Myron Bernard (Venice) won the boys’ 800 in 1:56.22 and Chris Hunt (Westchester) won the 300 hurdles in 38.75.

David Shumsky (Palisades) placed second in the high jump (6-8) and David Thomas (Westchester) took fourth (6-2). Matt Gruner (Fairfax) ran 9:43.42 to take second in the 3,200.

Tammie Hunter (University) won the triple jump with a leap of 36-6 3/4.

In other girls’ events, Shondell Beaton (Hamilton) finished fourth in the 400 (59.22), Katerina Kerchis (Venice) was third in the 1,600 (5:23.53), Darlene Walker (Hollywood) finished second in the shotput (35-8) and Chita Obasi (Hamilton) was third in the 100 hurdles (15.46).

The University 1,600 relay team ran a 4:01.98 to finish fourth.

Southern Section track: Jesse Stern of Harvard-Westlake and Glory Dolphin of Santa Monica were among State qualifiers from area Southern Section schools.

Stern went 14-1 to win the pole vault in the Masters Meet Friday at Cerritos College.

Dolphin placed fifth in the long jump. She qualified with her last leap of 37 feet 0 1/4 inches.

The St. Bernard 1,600 relay team, featuring sprinter Kamara Mayberry, finished fifth in 3:56.75 to qualify for State.

The top five finishers at the Masters Meet qualified for State.