Calcante’s Fans Think It’s Glove at First Sight

As soon as the ball left the aluminum bat, Cal State Northridge left fielder Beth Calcante thought it was gone--a grand slam headed straight over her head and beyond the fence.

She turned and ran toward the fence, never taking her eyes off the fly ball. Not sure of how close she was to the 5-foot chain-link fence, Calcante feared running smack into it.

“I totally dread running up on the fence and trying to put my foot in it, and then missing and have something happen to like my chin,” Calcante said. “I didn’t have my mouthpiece in or anything.”

Then, an instant before hitting the fence, she heard someone bellow.

“Get up.”

She recognized the voice: It was Chris McGee, a Northridge volleyball player in the stands parallel to the left-field foul line. She understood. “That’s all I heard,” Calcante said. “His voice stood out.”

So Calcante planted her left foot into the fence and leaped to rob Nevada Las Vegas’ Sara Mallett of a grand slam and preserve Northridge’s 2-0 lead against the third-ranked Rebels in the first game of a doubleheader Friday. Northridge went on to sweep UNLV, 3-0 and 4-1.

Coach Gary Torgeson called it a “great catch,” but added that the seventh-ranked Matadors are “for real,” and making spectacular plays is part of being a top softball team.

“People that come out and don’t expect to see (those plays) are in awe,” Torgeson said. “These kids work on that all the time. In fact, we have to stop them from doing it so they don’t kill themselves.”

Apparently, Calcante’s heroic catch--combined with her two home runs in that same game--made instant admirers of some star-struck fans.

“A couple fraternity guys I don’t know were all, ‘I want to marry her,’ ” Calcante said. “And I’m all, ‘OK. My number is. . . .’ ”

CAL STATE NORTHRIDGE

BASEBALL

John Bushart, the only left-hander on the Northridge pitching staff, is a key player this week because the 13th-ranked Matadors play nine games in 12 days.

Bushart started Tuesday against UCLA although it was a nonconference game because Coach Bill Kernen wanted a strong effort against the seventh-ranked Bruins.

Bushart, a junior from Thousand Oaks High, delivered with a complete-game 4-3 victory over UCLA. He gave up 13 hits, struck out five and walked two.

On four days’ rest, instead of the usual six, Bushart (4-0, 2.80 earned-run average) will start today at San Diego State in a key Western Athletic Conference West Division game.

On Feb. 16, he earned the victory in a 5-3 decision over USC and, five days later, defeated Loyola Marymount, 7-2.

“The other two guys (Keven Kempton and Marco Contreras) could do it too,” Kernen said. “The way it came up for John is that he was our Sunday guy.”

Kernen held Bushart out of his usual start last Sunday against Wyoming so he would be rested for double duty this week. Johnny Najar (3-0) got the start against the Cowboys and won, 16-8.

Bushart, 5-2 with a 4.23 ERA last season, made great strides in the off-season as a member of the Humboldt Crabs in the Cape Cod League. He credits much of his success this spring to catcher Mike Sims.

“He may not get a lot of attention, but he is the key,” Bushart said. “If you notice, I never shake him off. No one does a better job of keeping us in gear than Mike. In fact, after (UCLA’s Adam) Melhuse hit that home run, he got in my face. I love throwing to Mike.”

JUNIOR COLLEGES

BASEBALL

How bad has the pitching been in the Western State Conference? Only Canyons (3.73) had an earned-run average under 4.00 entering last week’s games. Teams with ERAs at 5.00 or higher included Moorpark (5.05), Valley (5.10), Santa Barbara (5.18), Ventura (5.34) and Glendale (5.42).

Canyons (.349), Cuesta (.319) and Pierce (.316) led the hit parade. After Thursday’s games, Pierce is averaging 9.1 runs and Canyons 8.3.

Pierce has been involved in 10 games in which at least one team scored 10 or more runs. Oxnard, which gave up 21 runs to Pierce on March 3, has been in nine, Moorpark and Valley eight each, and Ventura in seven. . . .

Glendale first baseman Mickey Moreno started play last week leading WSC hitters in batting with a .513 average. He was tied for third in runs batted in with 12. . . .

Andy Shaw’s three home runs in Canyons’ 12-2 WSC victory over Santa Monica on Thursday tied him with three others for the school’s single-game record. Shaw has a conference-leading seven homers heading into Saturday’s game at Glendale. . . .

Right-hander Willie Rivera of Valley is 2-0 with the conference’s second-best ERA (1.15) after 11 games. Bakersfield’s Matt Torres leads with an 0.80 ERA.

Staff writers Theresa Munoz, Paige A. Leech and Fernando Dominguez contributed to this notebook.

Clockwise from left--CSUN’s Beth Calcante reaches above the fence to rob Nevada Las Vegas’ Sara Mallett of a grand slam Friday. After coming down with the ball, Calcante celebrates with shortstop Vicky Rios (28).

Photos: GEORGE WILHELM / L.A. Times