Kempton Can’t Stop CSUN Skid

To Keven Kempton’s ears, even the needling was sweet music.

The Cal State Northridge pitcher, his right arm in mothballs since undergoing reconstructive elbow surgery last spring, finally began his much-anticipated comeback for the Matadors on Wednesday.

There were high points, a low point or two, and some welcome sniping from the Pepperdine dugout when Kempton served up a home run in the third inning.

“It was a great time,” Kempton said. “It was fun to get ragged on, and it was fun to come right back (at them).”

Despite Kempton’s return, the Matadors extended their losing streak to five games in a 7-4 nonconference loss to 24th-ranked Pepperdine at Eddie D. Field Stadium.

Kempton gave up six hits over four innings. Apart from the three-run homer he surrendered to David Newhan in the third, Kempton was remarkably sharp. He responded to the homer, not to mention the dugout chirping, by striking out the next two batters.

The senior captain walked one, struck out two, threw 64 pitches and was clocked in the mid-80s on several radar guns. Losing aside, having Kempton back on board was encouraging for the Matadors.

“If we have him throw like this and get even stronger, it’ll be a big plus,” Northridge Coach Bill Kernen said. “He did much better than I thought he would, actually.”

Kempton, who won 10 games in 1993, was visibly pleased with his performance. The guy who had tendon replacement surgery on March 7--a procedure that typically sidelines pitchers for at least a year--said afterward that he “could have gone nine.”

As far as the big picture, though, Kempton was considerably more downcast. After a 6-0 start, Northridge has taken a serious header.

“I’m the least of this team’s worries now,” said Kempton, 24. “We need to find some guys like me who want to kill some people.”

Kernen eyed the scoreboard and could hardly disagree.

“We scored four runs, which will win you some games and lose you some games,” Kernen said. “It’s a middle-of-the-road score, we have a middle-of-the-road record and a middle-of-the-road team.”

Northridge (6-5) mounted a fair-to-middlin’ comeback after Newhan’s homer gave the Waves (5-4) a 3-0 lead. In the fifth, Josh Smaler and Robert Fick each drove in runs on groundouts to cut the lead to 3-2.

Designated hitter Andy Shaw opened the sixth with a solo homer against reliever Matt Wise (1-1) to tie the score, but it didn’t hold up long. In the bottom of the inning, Northridge reliever Jason Vargas (0-1) gave up a solo shot to Gerardo Gonzalez and a two-run homer to Ryan Christenson to extend the Pepperdine lead to 6-3.

Northridge moved to within 7-4 in the ninth when Tyler Nelson and Smaler each doubled against reliever John Workman, a sophomore walk-on from St. Francis High. Workman retired Fick on a grounder to second to end the game, however.

The Matadors had 11 hits--after rolling up 14 in three losses last weekend to San Diego.

“I thought we showed a better attitude overall,” Shaw said. “But it’s still not like the Northridge of old.

“I watched games (as a fan) and I can remember people didn’t want to play Northridge. They’d kill you. Northridge was fired up; the intensity was always there.”

There was plenty of the latter with Kempton on the hill. His only rough spot came in the third when Justin Hodgdon dribbled a double down the line in left and Christenson singled. Newhan followed with his homer to right-center.

The Pepperdine dugout pointed out this development to Kempton.

“Ragging only fires me up,” he said.

Playing, of course, remains the ultimate motivational force.

“I’m an old man playing a little kid’s game,” said Kempton, who turns 25 in May. “Of course it was fun.”

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Matador Notes

Outfielder Eric Gillespie had a hit in the fifth off Pepperdine starter Greg Gregory, a former teammate at Millikan High. . . .

Wave outfielder Mark Lopez, a sophomore from Chatsworth High, was hitless in four at-bats. Infielder Jason Cohen, an El Camino Real High graduate, is mired in a 1-for-23 slump and did not play.

Northridge third baseman Jason Shanahan entered the game batting .167 and went one for four. Last weekend, he was benched for the first time in two years. “I’m real worried about it,” Coach Bill Kernen said. “The guy wins the (Western Athletic Conference West Division) triple crown last year and he’s really struggling. Of course I’m worried.”

Strange-fact file: The starting battery of pitcher Keven Kempton and catcher Robert Fick, who weren’t teammates until this year, each had arm surgery performed by the same doctor, Ron Glousman.