SPORTS TALK : No Rest for the Victor, Waves’ Coach Learns : Pepperdine’s Andy Lopez Is Busy Basking in the Glow of College Baseball Championship

Andy Lopez never expected the attention he has received for simply fulfilling one of his career goals.

On June 6, to the surprise of many people, Lopez coached his Pepperdine University baseball team to the NCAA Division I championship at the College World Series in Omaha. Lopez, 38, has not had a moment’s rest since.

“I’m really excited to have won the national title,” Lopez said. “But I’ll tell you, I think the phone is stuck to my ear from taking so many calls.”

Upon returning to the Malibu campus and his home in Thousand Oaks, Lopez fielded requests and made appearances on a still-growing list of local television news programs and local and national radio talk shows. Lopez and the team have been honored at Dodger Stadium and by the Los Angeles City Council. He was named Coach of the Year by Baseball America and Collegiate Baseball magazines.

It’s all a little overwhelming for Lopez, who has compiled a record of 167-70-1 at Pepperdine and won college baseball’s most coveted championship in only his fourth season as coach of the Waves.

Pepperdine, led by a talented pitching staff and a lineup that featured junior first baseman Dan Melendez and junior second baseman Steve Rodriguez, went unbeaten at the eight-team College World Series. The Waves defeated Wichita State, and then Texas twice before notching a 3-2 victory over Cal State Fullerton to win their first national championship. Pepperdine finished the season with a record of 48-11-1.

Melendez, who attended St. Bernard High in Playa del Rey, was selected by the Dodgers in the second round of the major league baseball draft June 1. Rodriguez, who grew up in Las Vegas, was selected in the fifth round by the Boston Red Sox and invited to try out for the U.S. Olympic team. Both players were part of Lopez’s first recruiting class at Pepperdine in 1989.

Lopez grew up in San Pedro. His father, Art, and mother, Connie, who are both from Mexico, met while working at the San Pedro fish canneries on Terminal Island.

“They weren’t educated, but they got their citizenship and made a life using common sense and a tremendous work ethic,” Lopez said.

Those characteristics were lost on Lopez until 1970-71, his senior year at San Pedro High. “I was a knucklehead for three years,” he said. “I was ditching classes, running around with the wrong crowd and doing all the things everybody tells you not to do.”

Lopez went to Harbor College for two years and was named all-state as a shortstop his second year. He transferred to UCLA with hopes of being selected by a major league team after his junior season.

Those hopes soured, however, when he was not drafted.

“I got real bitter, but the experience of not being selected helped me get a better perspective on my future,” Lopez said. “I became very goal-oriented in terms of getting my degree and getting into education and coaching.”

Lopez was drafted by the Detroit Tigers after his senior season at UCLA, but he passed up the offer so he could begin his coaching career.

He was an assistant at Harbor for one season, then became a teacher and head coach at Mira Costa High in 1978. He led Mira Costa to the Southern Section 4-A championship game in 1982 and was hired the next year at Cal State Dominguez Hills.

Lopez inherited a Dominguez Hills program that was mired in problems. He could not take his team on the road the first season because of incidents that had occurred the previous year. He carried the team’s equipment in his car because the storage shed at the baseball field was an easy target for thieves.

Lopez, however, built the program’s status. In 1987, the Toros advanced to the Division II World Series. “Dominguez Hills was the greatest training ground I could ever experience in my life,” he said.

Lopez took over as Pepperdine’s coach in the summer of 1988. Without the benefit of a full recruiting period, he guided the Waves to a 41-19 record. In 1989, with a team full of freshmen, Pepperdine finished 37-23. Last season, the Waves were 41-17 and were eliminated in the NCAA regional playoffs.

At the College World Series, Melendez hit two home runs and had five doubles. Rodriguez hit two home runs--including a grand slam against Texas--and also made a game-saving defensive play in the championship game against Fullerton.

“You surround yourself with good people and great things will happen,” Lopez said. “This team has proven that you can set goals and reach them. As for myself, I’m just happy and thankful that my mom and dad’s work ethic rubbed off on me.”