Northridge Finds Itself Regressing : Baseball: Matadors fall to San Diego, 4-2, their third straight loss after opening with six victories.

Let the inquisition begin.

After opening with six consecutive victories, Cal State Northridge lost its third in a row Saturday and managed only three hits. This on the heels of five- and four-hit efforts.

Five, four, three. . . . Some might consider this a trend, if not a red flag.

“Either we’ve gone backward and hit a slump or we just aren’t very good,” Northridge Coach Bill Kernen said. “We’ll know the answer in a few games, I guess.”

A few more like this one and the verdict will be indisputable. A trio of University of San Diego right-handers held the skidding Matadors to three singles in a 4-2 nonconference victory at Cunningham Field.

There are droughts and there are desert badlands. Northridge (6-3) has one extra-base hit over the past three games. In consecutive losses to San Diego, the offense mustered a total of seven singles--two on bunts. Saturday, the Matadors stranded four baserunners, three in the ninth inning.

Northridge fell for the pitch selection of right-hander Chad Halliburton, hook, line and sinker.

“I think guys have been fishing for bad pitches,” catcher Robert Fick said. “I know that’s what I’ve been doing.”

The slump certainly didn’t help freshman right-hander Carlos Velazco, who was making his first start. Velazco (1-1) allowed six hits over seven innings before everything unraveled with the score tied, 1-1, in the eighth.

With one out and a runner on first, Brady Clark’s grounder up the middle was smothered on a slick backhand dive by shortstop Chad Thornhill who, from his stomach, flipped to second.

Second baseman Grant Hohman dropped the feed for an error, however, and a walk loaded the bases.

Needing a strikeout, Velazco jumped ahead of designated hitter Steve Ashton, 0 and 2, then hung a curveball that Ashton pounded into left for a two-run single. Benny Flores relieved and San Diego (2-1) added another run on a squeeze bunt by Eric Morton.

Three of San Diego’s runs were driven in on 0-and-2 hits. In the two games, five of the Toreros’ eight runs came via hits on 0-and-2 counts. Bad luck? Bad pitching?

Little of both, probably.

“I made a lot of mistakes,” said Velazco, who allowed three earned runs on eight hits, struck out six and walked three. “They just didn’t make me pay until the end.”

The end was no walkover for Halliburton (1-0), though. A leadoff walk to Jonathan Campbell and a one-out bunt single by Fick put runners at the corners and prompted Halliburton’s removal.

Left-hander Brian Mazone retired Eric Gillespie on a run-scoring grounder to second that pared the lead to 4-2, but he hit Andy Shaw in the back and walked Jason Shanahan to load the bases.

San Diego finally turned to right-hander Brian Springer, who earned a save on his first pitch when Thornhill grounded to short to end it.

Shrugs and questions followed.

“A mediocre guy (Halliburton) pitches a three-hitter?” Kernen said. “Either I’m wrong about him or we just aren’t very good.”

Matador Notes

Freshman right-hander Carlos Velazco was given the last-minute start because junior Zeke Barrios forgot to bring his jersey.

Charlie Fick, the father of sophomore catcher Robert Fick, is home in Newbury Park recovering from a heart attack suffered Thursday. Fick, 66, is a retired Inglewood policeman who had open-heart surgery 20 years ago. The elder Fick has had eight pacemakers installed over the years. “He’s an ornery old guy,” Robert said.

Slumping third baseman Jason Shanahan, who won the Western Athletic Conference West Division triple crown last spring as a junior, was benched Saturday. Shanahan drew a walk as a pinch-hitter in the ninth inning. Shanahan is batting .188, lowest among Matador regulars.

Senior right-hander Keven Kempton, 25, pronounced himself ready to pitch in relief today if needed. Kempton, who won 10 games for Northridge in 1993, had reconstructive elbow surgery 11 months ago.