Matadors Wanted to Up Grades as Frequent Riders

If there were awards offered for mileage by bus, Cal State Northridge would be taking its next trip for free.

The Matadors played back-to-back games Tuesday at the University of San Diego and Wednesday at UC Irvine, traversing local freeways to the tune of about 450 miles.

Northridge originally planned to stay Tuesday night in a San Diego hotel and make the trip up to Irvine the next morning at a leisurely pace.

Instead, the Matadors traveled to San Diego on Wednesday returned to Northridge after the game, arriving about 1 in the morning, and departed for Irvine at 3 in the afternoon.

Penny-pinching had nothing to do with it. Believe it or not, Northridge players opted to sandwich their games around long bus trips so they wouldn’t have to skip school Wednesday.

“It was their vote on it, and for the right reasons,” Coach Pete Cassidy said. “A couple of them had tests and they didn’t want to miss class.”

Indeed, Tom Samson, a reserve center, confirmed the coach’s account.

“We have scholars on this team who need to compete in the classroom as well as on the court,” Samson said, almost managing to keep a straight face.

Trivia question: Which Cal State Northridge baseball pitcher led all college divisions in strikeouts?

Slow week: Cal State Northridge’s top athlete of the past week, according to the campus newspaper, is a men’s basketball player who didn’t score a point, grab a rebound or, for that matter, even play in the past three games.

The honor went to Peter Micelli, who skipped a key American West Conference game last Saturday to stay with his family at his sister’s wedding reception.

The newspaper chose Micelli for having the “foresight to make the right choice in the midst of intense speculation and criticism.”

Micelli was in uniform but didn’t play in Northridge’s next game, at the University of San Diego on Tuesday. That situation, Coach Pete Cassidy said, stemmed from Micelli skipping a Sunday morning film session and not calling Northridge coaches to tell them of his whereabouts until he showed up for practice late Monday afternoon.

Trivia answer: In 1992, Northridge right-hander Kenny Kendrena led the nation with a school-record 176 strikeouts. Kendrena played two seasons in the Florida Marlin organization before being released last fall.

Quotebook

“On behalf of the entire division, I can honestly say that this is very bad news.”

Woodbridge High girls’ basketball Coach Eric Bangs, speaking in December after learning Alemany had opted to compete in the Southern Section’s Division II-AA.

Woodbridge and Alemany will play for the Southern Section championship at 4:30 today at the Pyramid in Long Beach.

Stats

Senior guard Ryan Martin established a Cal State Northridge record for three-point baskets in a career in Wednesday’s game against UC Irvine. He has 123.

Shane O’Doherty, Northridge’s senior center, tied a school single-season record by blocking a shot against Irvine. O’Doherty has 27, equaling the mark Cliff Higgins established during the 1982-83 season.

Things to Do

The high school baseball season is in full swing today. Chatsworth will play Montclair Prep in a game that features two of Baseball America magazine’s top 100 high school prospects. Montclair Prep center fielder Darrell Dent was rated 20th, Chatsworth first baseman Jon Tucker 31st. Game time is 3 p.m. at the Mission Hills Little League fields at the corner of Lassen Street and Haskell Avenue.

The Chatsworth High girls’ basketball team will make its first appearance in a City Section championship game when it faces Narbonne for the 3-A title at 6 tonight at Cal State Dominguez Hills.

Compiled by Mike Hiserman. Contributing: Dave Desmond, Steve Elling, Jeff Fletcher, Bryan Rodgers.