ORANGE COUNTY OLYMPIC NOTEBOOK : Von Heiland’s Badminton Match Short, Bittersweet

Erika von Heiland played in some 25 badminton qualifying tournaments in 23 countries during an 18-month period to earn the right to compete in Barcelona, but her Olympic experience was over in about 25 minutes Tuesday.

Von Heiland lost to Canada’s Denyse Julien, 11-2, 11-0, in a quick first-round women’s match and was knocked out of the single-elimination tournament. But it’s not as if all her efforts to reach the Olympics went for naught.

If Andy Warhol allotted 15 minutes of fame for everyone, Von Heiland figures she got an extra 10 minutes out of the deal.

“I’m disappointed, but I don’t feel that bad because I know what it took for me to get here,” said Von Heiland, of Anaheim. “Everyone knows that to get here, you have to be the best, the cream of the crop.

“My goal was to just make the Olympic team, and when I did that, the hard work was done. In the back of my mind, I knew I might only compete for 20 minutes in Barcelona, but I gave it my best shot. There are no regrets. I’m honored to be here among all the athletes of this caliber.”

When Von Heiland drew Julien in the opening round, she knew immediately that her chances of an extended stay were slim. Julien, the Pan American Games champion last year, is rated 35th in the international rankings. Von Heiland is 85th.

“I played well, but she’s just a lot better,” Von Heiland said. “There were at least 10 people in the (40-player) draw who I could beat, but it’s a blind draw, so I had no control over it.”

Don’t cry for Von Heiland, though. She worked hard to get to Barcelona, and she’s going to take advantage of it.

“I’m going to watch the other events and have a great time here,” Von Heiland said. “This place is incredible. We have our own private beach, and I haven’t done anything because I’ve been training so hard. Now I can splurge and eat right, go to the beach and meet all the other stars. It’s not all that bad.”

Wish you were here: Phil Nevin had another strong game, hitting a home run--his second of the Olympics--to start a five-run eighth inning and help the U.S. baseball team defeat Italy, 10-0.

But Nevin, a Placentia resident and former Cal State Fullerton standout, has had a bit of an empty feeling in Barcelona. His former Titan teammate, Jason Moler, is back in Orange County--preparing for knee surgery this week--instead of in the Team USA dugout. Moler had made the Olympic team but was forced off the roster after injuring his knee in a collision.

“There are a lot of exciting things going on, and I wish he could be part of it,” said Nevin, who spoke to Moler via an NBC television hookup this week. “Everything I do I think of him and how much fun he’d be having here. It’s tough on him, and it’s tough on me.”

Moler can at least take some credit for the brewing U.S.-Cuba rivalry, which comes to a head today when the two undefeated (3-0) teams meet in round-robin play. The last time they met, in an exhibition game this month in Millington, Tenn., Moler almost started a brawl when he headed toward the mound after getting brushed back by a pitch.

“The benches cleared, but nothing really happened,” Nevin said. “A rivalry was created, though. . . . They threw at a couple of our guys, and we threw back at them. It’s part of baseball. You don’t like to see it, but if they’re going to do it, we’re going to do it to them.”

Crowds for Team USA have been relatively small, averaging about 4,000 the first three games, but the 7,000-seat stadium is already sold out for the game against Cuba, the heavy gold-medal favorite. Japan and the United States are considered the top challengers.

The eight teams in the tournament will face each other in round-robin play through Sunday, and the top four teams will advance to the semifinals next week, with the top-seeded team facing No. 4 and the No. 2 playing No. 3.

“This isn’t necessarily a must-win game for us today,” Nevin said. “If we lose and go undefeated the rest of the tournament, we’ll be seeded second or third, and if Cuba is No. 1, we wouldn’t face them in the semifinals. It may not hurt us if we lose.”

Barcelona buzz: Laguna Beach’s Scott Fortune, who helped the United States defeat Canada, 15-12, 15-12, 10-15, 12-15, 16-14, in men’s volleyball, said it was the team’s decision to shave their heads in protest of the International Volleyball Federation’s reversal of their five-set victory over Japan Sunday. But it was really teammate Steve Timmons’ idea.

“He went first, and when his flat-top went, it really fired the team up,” Fortune said of the mass trim, which took place in Timmons’ hotel room. “But the maid was upset because she had to clean up so much hair.”

Fortune, the former Laguna Beach High and Stanford standout, said teammates Brent Hilliard of Dana Point and Jeff Stork were the only holdouts, but they eventually gave in.

“You see Timmons lose his flat-top, and that’s his company, that’s his logo,” Fortune said. “To lose that is a big move on his part and could cost him a lot of money. To see him lose his hair, the others had no excuse.”

HOW THE OTHERS FARED

--Dan Henderson, Apple Valley and Cal State Fullerton, defeated Egypt’s Mohyeldin Ramadan Hussein, 4-0, in a first-round, 82-kilogram (181 pounds) Greco-Roman wrestling match. He then beat France’s Martial Mischler, 7-2, in the second round.

--Janet Evans, Placentia, won the silver medal in 400-meter freestyle swimming with a time of 4 minutes 7.37 seconds, just behind upset gold-medal winner Dagmar Hase of Germany, who finished in 4:07.18. Evans, who hadn’t lost a 400-freestyle race since 1986, won her qualification heat earlier Tuesday in 4:09.38.

--Chip McKibben, Newport Beach, and three rowing teammates placed fourth in their quadruple sculls heat in 5:49.28. His team will compete in today’s repechage.

--Lanee Butler, San Juan Capistrano, was 11th after the first day of competition in women’s windsurfing.

WHO’S COMPETING TODAY

Janet Evans, Placentia, in 800-meter freestyle heats.

Phil Nevin, Placentia, with U.S. baseball team against Cuba.

Michael Chang, Coto de Caza, in singles tennis.

Tammy Liley (Westminster), Elaina Oden (Irvine) and Kim Oden (Irvine), with U.S. women’s volleyball team against Japan.

Mike Lapper (Huntington Beach), Joe Max-Moore (Irvine), with U.S. soccer team against Poland.

Chip McKibben, Newport Beach, in quad sculls repechage.

Greg Springer, Costa Mesa, in double sculls repechage.

Lanee Butler, San Juan Capistrano, in windsurfing.

This report was compiled by Times Staff Writer Mike DiGiovanna.