HIGH SCHOOL NOTEBOOK : Now Scheffels on Easy Street at Simi Valley

No more rush-hour traffic for Bill Scheffels, just an easy, morning stroll. And so far, Scheffels’ season with the Simi Valley baseball team has been a walk in the park.

Scheffels, a hard-throwing junior right-hander, last week reached a lofty plateau by throwing a no-hitter against Pittsburg (Calif.) in the opening round of the High Sierra Classic in Sparks, Nev. Scheffels’ 4-0 victory with 11 strikeouts was the first no-hitter in school history.

“I was a little amazed because I didn’t know,” Scheffels said. “During the game, I’m focused on getting outs. I struck the last guy out and I didn’t know what the guys were talking about.”

Scheffels is used to being the topic of conversation--albeit reluctantly.

Last season, he was ruled ineligible by Southern Section officials for violating change-of-residence rules during an off-season transfer from Alemany. The Pioneers were forced to forfeit two games in which Scheffels played.

A subsequent attempt to regain eligibility through a restraining order in Ventura County Superior Court failed and resulted in more unwanted media attention. Finally, Scheffels was on the outside looking in when the team traveled to Florida to participate in--and win--a national tournament.

“I felt left out,” Scheffels said. “I just put shorts on and a jersey and sat in the dugout and just watched.”

This season, Scheffels is 7-0 and an integral part of a team ranked second nationally by USA Today. Scheffels is one of three aces on a pitching staff that includes Trevor Leppard and Bill Treadway.

“We have three outstanding pitchers and they all have different attributes,” Simi Valley Coach Mike Scyphers said. “Trevor is really quick to the plate, Bill’s got the great curveball and the nice change. Treadway’s got great command of three pitches.”

For Scheffels, among the nicest things about this season is his commute. Attending Alemany in Mission Hills often meant battling morning freeway gridlock from his home in Simi Valley. Scheffels lives across the street from Simi Valley’s campus.

“The traffic on the way to school was unbelievable,” Scheffels said. “Now all I have to do is walk across the street.”

ALPHA LEAGUE

Never underestimate the power of suggestion.

At the start of the seventh inning of L.A. Baptist junior Matt Hernandez’s 4-0, no-hitter against archrival Village Christian, catcher Ryan O’Connell told Hernandez that he had not allowed a hit, just to relieve the pressure.

“I thought he was lying but I wasn’t sure,” Hernandez said.

Hernandez, who said he was throwing terribly in the bullpen before the game, conceded that O’Connell’s ploy was probably a smart move. If he had known he was working on a no-hitter, his nerves might have gotten the best of him.

L.A. Baptist Coach Mark Bates wasn’t surprised that Hernandez could be pitching without knowing he hadn’t allowed a hit.

“That’s his personality,” Bates said “He doesn’t really think about (the hits). He just thinks about his job.”

And he has done quite a job this year. Hernandez is 6-0 with a 1.18 earned-run average. In 41 2/3 innings, he has given up 25 hits, struck out 43 and walked 10. He has pitched five complete games, leading a staff that has a 2.81 ERA. At the plate, he is batting .400 with 15 runs batted in.

FREE-LANCE

BASEBALL

Montclair Prep has become increasingly familiar with the Thomas Bros. guide.

The Mounties’ athletics program last season was voted out of the Alpha League and has been playing as a free-lance team since. That leaves the baseball team scrambling to find games while nearly everyone else is knee-deep in league play.

And because league standings dictate playoff berths, teams are hesitant to use valuable pitching in nonleague games. Consequently, the Mounties can’t find much opposition. Over the weekend, Montclair Prep drove up the coast to Cambria to play a nonleague doubleheader against Coast Union and a nonleague game against Templeton.

Before the doubleheader Friday, Montclair Prep had not played in nine days. The Mounties have not played a home game since March 22.

“We had to drive 200 miles to find a game,” Coach Walt Steele groused.

Because Montclair Prep is not a league member, the Southern Section will decide after the season in which playoff division the Mounties will compete should they qualify for the playoffs. Previously, the team played in the 1-A Division, since changed to Division V.

Montclair Prep outfielder Darrell Dent is 23 for 24 in stolen base attempts. . . . The Mounties’ 31 runs against Templeton on Saturday were not even the team record. Montclair Prep scored 39 against California Christian in 1981.

Staff writers Steve Elling, Jeff Fletcher and Vince Kowalick contributed to this notebook.