COLLEGE BASEBALL / GARY KLEIN : No. 1 USC Thinking Big Again

It took almost three years, but USC has finally returned to the top of college baseball’s rankings.

The Trojans, who entered the week 21-6 overall and 8-4 in the Pacific 10 Conference Southern Division, are ranked No. 1 by Baseball America for the first time since May 6, 1991.

Last weekend, USC won two of three Pac-10 games against Stanford, the first time since 1981 that the Trojans won a series at Palo Alto.

USC, which has won 12 of its last 13 games, is in first place in the Pac-10 Southern Division with a half-game lead over California.

“Being ranked No. 1 is not going to bother us because teams are always out to get us anyway,” said senior infielder Lionel Hastings, who was seven for 13 with a home run and five runs batted in against Stanford. “That’s just part of playing at USC.”

Aaron Boone is batting .384 and Walter Dawkins has hit nine home runs for the Trojans, who feature one of the country’s best offensive lineups. The key to the Trojans’ success, however, has been a pitching staff that has compiled a 3.16 earned-run average. Freshman Randy Flores, a left-hander, is 4-0 with a 1.46 ERA.

“He’s shown a lot of moxie for a freshman,” USC Coach Mike Gillespie said. “He’s not intimidated by any situation.”

USC is hoping to ride its No. 1 ranking to a Pac-10 title, a regional championship and its first trip to the College World Series since 1978. The Trojans will try not to stumble tonight against Loyola Marymount or this weekend against UCLA, which is 6-17 overall and 2-4 in conference.

“They’ve scuffled in a big way,” Gillespie said of the Bruins. “But they’re most definitely going to win some big games and ruin someone’s season.”

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Trivia time: If former Wichita State right-hander Darren Dreifort makes the Dodgers’ opening-day roster, he will become the third player from the 1993 draft to break into the major leagues. Who were the first two?

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Welcome to L.A.: Sixth-ranked Wichita State is completing its first regular-season visit to California since 1983, and Shocker Coach Gene Stephenson sounds as if he will be glad to leave Southern California behind.

“I asked our driver how long it would take to get from our hotel in Costa Mesa to Cal State Fullerton,” Stephenson said. “He told me, ‘It could be 40 minutes or it could be gridlock.’ I said, ‘Gridlock? What’s gridlock?’

“We don’t have gridlock in Wichita.”

What the Shockers have, once again, is a team that appears capable of reaching Omaha for the College World Series. After winning two of three against 14th-ranked Long Beach State last weekend, Wichita State (11-5) opened a two-game series against fourth-ranked Fullerton that concludes tonight.

Stephenson, in his 17th season at Wichita State, has built his program into one of the nation’s best. The Shockers, the 1989 national champions, regularly draw crowds of 5,000. Stephenson has popular radio and television shows. Even pitching coach Brad Kemnitz has a radio show.

Next year, Long Beach and Fullerton will visit Wichita.

“We do enjoy coming out here,” Stephenson said. “As long as the people we play return the favor.”

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Got your number: Pepperdine’s 2-1 victory over Fullerton last week was the Waves’ eighth in a row against the Titans, a streak that dates to 1990 and includes the 1992 national championship game.

“I can’t explain it,” Pepperdine Coach Andy Lopez said. “I wouldn’t even know where to start.”

Pepperdine begins an important three-game West Coast Conference series Friday against first-place Santa Clara, which entered the week 17-9 overall and 8-1 in conference. The Broncos have not won a conference title since 1978.

Fullerton (19-5) opens Big West Conference play Friday at San Jose State. Long Beach (17-5) travels to Nevada, and UC Santa Barbara (9-16) travels to New Mexico State in other Big West openers.

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Trivia answer: Left-hander Brian Anderson of the Angels, the No. 3 pick overall out of Wright State, and left-hander Jeff Granger of the Kansas City Royals, the fifth pick overall out of Texas A&M.;

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Howard’s end: Cal State Northridge outfielder Kevin Howard entered the week having hit four homers in his last six games.

The run started two weeks ago when he hit a grand slam in a come-from-behind victory over Hawaii to help the Matadors complete a Western Athletic Conference series sweep. Howard was one for 11 in the series before his homer.

“I don’t get that excited--that’s not really my game plan,” Howard said. “I just watch the game and kick back.”

Howard hit for the cycle and added an additional homer in a nonconference victory over Hartford, then homered against Cal State Sacramento last weekend. He is batting .283 with six homers and 30 RBIs. The Matadors (15-2) play host to Fresno State this weekend.