Shaw Didn’t Get Cheated on 3 Swings

In College of the Canyons’ 25-9 victory over Moorpark on Tuesday, the Cougars slugged two home runs, including Andy Shaw’s 10th of the season. And although Shaw made it look easy, it took some work to accomplish the task.

With runners at first and second and one out, the left-handed-hitting Shaw came to bat against right-hander John Dickinson and promptly smashed a high drive over the right-field foul pole that Coach Len Mohney and the Cougars thought was fair but the plate umpire ruled foul.

Shaw hit the next pitch over the fence again, this time clearly foul. No problem. Shaw still had a strike left.

After taking a ball on the next pitch, Shaw smacked another fastball from Dickinson and drove it over the right-center-field fence with plenty of room to spare. That’s three swings, three shots over the fence and one relieved umpire. . . .

JUNIOR COLLEGES

BASEBALL

What a way to clinch a title.

Not only did Canyons claim the Western State Conference championship Tuesday, but the Cougars did it overwhelmingly. The 25-9 victory eclipsed their previous single-game run high this season.

Canyons (25-7, 22-3 in conference play) had defeated Valley, 17-9, in a WSC game March 11.

The victory Tuesday gave the Cougars their 16th championship in 23 seasons, split between the old Mountain Valley Conference and the WSC. It was the fifth title for Mohney in seven seasons. Mike Gillespie, now USC coach, won 11 during his 16 seasons at Canyons.

The Cougars head for the Southern California Regionals on May 14-15 looking to advance to the state championships for the first time since 1987. . . .

Add another achievement to the already success-studded season of Valley pitcher Willie Rivera. A sophomore from Burbank High, Rivera won two games in one day for the second time this season when the Monarchs defeated Santa Barbara City, 6-5, in 12 innings and, 4-0, on Saturday.

The right-hander worked the final three innings of the first game, which was the continuation of a March 23 game that was protested by Santa Barbara City with the score tied, 5-5, after nine innings.

Rivera (8-3) threw a five-hit shutout in the regularly scheduled game. He didn’t give up a walk in the 12 innings.

On March 20, Rivera picked up the victory against Moorpark by finishing a suspended game and then beat the Raiders, 11-0, in the regularly scheduled game.

GOLF

Bryant Stover of Canyons won the WSC individual title with a 75.1 average this season and led the Cougars (28-2) to the team championship. Jacob Lusk of third-place Ventura (16-13-1) was fourth with a 77.1 average. Canyons teammates Shane O’Brien and Chad Butler followed at 77.7 and 78.0.

CAL STATE NORTHRIDGE

SOFTBALL

Beth Calcante has a career-high 12-game hitting streak and leads the Matadors with a .370 batting average, 47 hits, six doubles, three triples, 11 home runs, 92 total bases, .739 slugging percentage, .500 batting average with runners in scoring position, 39 runs batted in, 26 runs and 12 sacrifices. . . .

Tamara Ivie has hit in all 12 Western Athletic Conference games. She is batting .455 in conference, .288 overall. She has 10 RBIs in 12 conference games, matching her total in 30 nonconference games. . . .

TRACK & FIELD

Matador Coach Don Strametz expected senior Kim Young to make the transition from the 100- to the 400-meter low hurdles this season, but the chances of that happening probably evaporated in 13.64 seconds Saturday. That’s how long it took Young to finish fifth in the 100 hurdles in the Meet of Champions at Azusa Pacific.

The time exceeded the provisional qualifying standard (13.75) for the NCAA championships in June, and moved Young to fourth on the all-time Matador list behind Jodi Anderson (13.62 in 1979), Jackie Washington (13.63 in ‘80) and Erin Morris (13.63 in ‘92).

Provisional qualifiers will be invited to the NCAA championships if the number of automatic qualifiers is below the desired level. . . .

Dave Rynearson raised the Matador freshman record to 16-0 3/4 to place fourth in the pole vault at the Meet of Champions. It was the third freshman mark of the season for Rynearson, who had a best of 14-7 at El Cajon Valhalla High last year. . . .

VOLLEYBALL

Coley Kyman finished the conference season seventh in hitting percentage (46.7%) and ninth in kill average (5.64) among Mountain Pacific Sports Federation players. Craig Hewitt was tied for seventh in blocking average (1.50), and Peter Piexoto and Axel Hager were tied for fifth in service ace average (.391).

The Matadors’ 34.4% hitting percentage in conference matches was eighth-best in the conference. Northridge has a hitting percentage of .353, which is on pace to break the school record of .340 set in 1991. . . .

Kyman had four solo blocks to help Northridge defeat UC Santa Barbara in five games in the final regular-season match for both teams. Kyman has a school-record 104 solo blocks in his career. The previous record was set by Dave Shaffer, who had 100 from 1982-85. Kyman also holds school records for kills, kill attempts, digs, total blocks and assisted blocks.

GOLF

The Matadors will learn May 9 whether they have qualified for the NCAA Division I West Regional. Northridge was ranked 11th in NCAA District 8 in an April 20 poll. The top 12 teams earn invitations to the regional at the Riverside Country Club in Provo, Utah, May 19-21. . . . Dennis Arnst fired a one-under-par 215 to place sixth at the BYU Cougar Classic last week. It was his first top-10 finish of the season. Northridge finished in a three-way tie for seventh in the team standings. Jeff Sanday shot a 219 to place 14th among individuals. He leads the Matadors with a stroke-per-round average of 73.46.

CAL LUTHERAN

BASEBALL

The Kingsmen, still top-ranked in NCAA Division III, have three games to play and a two-game lead over Redlands in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. Cal Lutheran (26-6, 16-2) can clinch a tie for first place by winning at Occidental on Friday. . . .

Mike Winslow pitched his first complete game of the season, a four-hit shutout over Whittier on Saturday. It was Winslow’s seventh win of the season without a loss and it raised his career record to 16-1. He has won 10 in a row. . . .

Since joining the SCIAC last season, the Kingsmen have never lost a game on Saturday. They are 26-0, sweeeping 13 consecutive conference doubleheaders.

SOFTBALL

The Regals will learn May 9 whether they have qualified for the NCAA Division III regionals, May 14-16. Cal Lutheran is ranked 11th in the nation in this week’s NCAA Division III poll. The Regals (24-8-1, 18-4) have two conference games to play, and trail first-place La Verne by two games. La Verne (25-7) is ranked 17th.

Staff writers Fernando Dominguez, Mike Hiserman and John Ortega contributed to this notebook.