Another Wave : Pitchers Keep Rolling in at Pepperdine, Which Had Enough to Win a Title Last Year and Is Even Better in ’93

Andy Lopez and his wife, Linda, landed on Maui late last summer, planning to enjoy the sun, the ocean and the time away from college baseball recruiting.

Lopez, Pepperdine’s coach, sat on the beach and tried to relax, but he couldn’t help thinking about the future of his program. Almost every important member of the pitching staff that led Pepperdine to its first NCAA baseball championship was negotiating or had recently signed a professional contract. Derek Wallace was a first-round pick of the Chicago Cubs. Reliever Steve Montgomery was a third-round pick of the St. Louis Cardinals, and All-American Patrick Ahearne was a seventh-round pick of the Detroit Tigers.

Lopez looked at the ocean and watched the waves roll in, hoping that incoming freshmen, redshirts and seldom-used holdovers could help senior Steve Duda give the Waves a respectable staff in 1993.

“I went to Hawaii and didn’t want to think about baseball,” Lopez said, “but I knew what everyone else knew: There was no way our pitching could be as good.”

Lopez was wrong.

It’s better.

In 1992, Pepperdine compiled a 3.04 earned-run average. This year’s team has a 2.66 ERA entering today’s game against Minnesota (43-16) in the first round of the West Regional at Tempe, Ariz. The Waves are 40-15 and rank second nationally in pitching behind Kent, which has a 1.97 ERA.

Winners of the eight six-team, double-elimination regionals will advance to the College World Series in Omaha, June 4-12.

Also today, in another West Regional game, Cal State Northridge (34-18) will play St. John’s (25-18). UCLA (35-21) will play Lamar (44-16) in the Central I Regional at College Station, Tex., and Cal State Long Beach (39-17) will play Central Florida (30-29) in the East Regional at Tallahassee, Fla.

In the Central II Regional at Austin, Tex., on Friday, Cal State Fullerton (33-17) will play Maine (33-25) and USC (32-27) will play Kentucky (38-21-1).

Texas, USC and Stanford are the only schools that have won consecutive national championships. Stanford did it most recently in 1987 and 1988.

Pepperdine hopes to join that fraternity with the help of:

--Duda, a right-hander from Whittier who is 11-3 with a 1.76 ERA and is Pepperdine’s all-time leader with 43 victories.

--Greg Gregory, a freshman left-hander from Long Beach who is 7-2 with a 2.58 ERA.

--Jason LeBlanc, a freshman right-hander from Whittier who is 7-3 with a 2.82 ERA and was the freshman of the year in the West Coast Conference.

--Adam Housley, a junior right-hander from Napa who is 4-4 with a 1.93 ERA and four saves.

--Mauricio Estavil, a sophomore left-hander from Culver City who is 5-0 with a 2.20 ERA and five saves. Estavil was a redshirt in 1991 and did not pitch last season.

--Josh Schulz, a junior right-hander from Tacoma, Wash., who is 4-0 with a 2.42 ERA as a reliever. Schulz had pitched only 5 2/3 innings for Pepperdine before this season.

--Chad Nichols, a senior right-hander from Northridge who is 2-0 with a 3.60 ERA and has established himself as a valuable starter and reliever. Nichols transferred to Pepperdine from Loyola Marymount, where he played third base and outfield and pitched in relief.

“We knew Duda was going to be fine, and the freshmen had the talent and confidence to establish themselves early,” Pepperdine catcher Scott Vollmer said. “The biggest surprise has been the relief pitching. I don’t think anyone expected them to step in and do what they have done.”

Pepperdine is 35-3 in games it has led after six innings. The Waves are 29-0 when ahead after eight innings.

“We’ve all kind of taken a cue from each other,” Schulz said. “I think the older guys who have been around awhile helped the freshmen get comfortable in the program. We recognized that they could make an immediate impact.

“And the success of the younger guys gave the rest of us confidence. We saw that they could do well. There was no reason why we couldn’t do the same.”

Pepperdine’s pitchers have benefited from the spaciousness of Eddy D. Field Stadium, where they compiled a 1.57 ERA in 28 home games. They have also had the advantage of throwing to Vollmer, a quiet, experienced receiver who was an all-tournament selection in the regional and World Series last year.

“He (Vollmer) makes you a better pitcher just by being behind the plate,” LeBlanc said. “He calls 90% of the pitches we throw, and there is rarely a reason to disagree with what he wants.”

Shortstop Eric Ekdahl, who leads the team with a .335 batting average, and third baseman Mark Wasikowski (.325) are experienced position players for a team that has a .969 fielding percentage.

Last year, Pepperdine entered the West regional at Tucson seeded fourth. The Waves defeated Fresno State, Southeastern Louisiana, Washington and Hawaii to advance to Omaha.

This year, the Waves are seeded third behind Arizona State (42-18) and Northridge (34-18). Minnesota (43-16) is seeded fourth, with St. John’s (25-18) and George Mason (33-13) fifth and sixth, respectively.

Lopez does not expect an easy road to Omaha. But he no longer doubts that his pitching staff is up to the task.

“The playoffs are different because of the pressure involved,” Lopez said. “But if these guys pitch like they’re capable, who knows? We just might get a shot at making history again in Omaha.”