Matadors Bring Out the Bulldog in Former Buena Softball Star

Like many ballplayers who go away to college and only occasionally return to play in front of family and friends, Fresno State center fielder Jenifer Henry will have a little extra adrenaline coursing through her veins today at Cal State Northridge.

“I get real pumped for games in L.A. and close to home,” said the junior from Buena High, who expects to see her older brother, parents, grandparents and some aunts and uncles in the stands. “But it’s still under control to where I can play my game.”

But when the Bulldogs and Matadors square off in softball, everyone on the field and in the bleachers must practice controlled aggression.

The teams have become rivals since both joined the Western Athletic Conference three years ago.

“I think both teams play at their peak against each other,” Henry said. “When they come to our place it’s the same. We really want to beat these guys.”

Before joining the WAC, Fresno State won eight consecutive conference championships and had reached the championship game of the College World Series three times.

Then, up from the Division II ranks, along came the Matadors. Northridge has beaten the Bulldogs in eight of their past 12 meetings, including two out of three in the 1993 Division I regional at Northridge.

Last year, Northridge had a record of 21-3 while playing two fewer games in the WAC than third-place Fresno State, which was 21-5. The Matadors took the conference title by percentage points (.875) over Utah (22-4, .846). Fresno State and Northridge both reached the World Series, where the Bulldogs were eliminated in three games while the Matadors reached the final and lost, 4-0, to Arizona.

When the Bulldogs and Matadors play each other these days, they swing hard, slide hard, sometimes taunt, and make gestures at each other.

“We’re not friends with any team, actually,” Henry said. “We’re there to do a job.”

The players change but the intensity of the rivalry does not. Northridge beat Fresno State, 1-0, in a February tournament game in San Diego.

“It was the same game and the same attitude of them being competitive with us, where we had to take it personally and play our game,” Henry said. “I look at them as the same old Northridge.”

The Bulldogs (32-8) are ranked third in the nation behind Arizona and UCLA, and Henry, after slumping last year, is a catalyst. Entering Friday’s doubleheader at San Diego State, Henry was batting .352 and leading Fresno State with 37 runs batted in and 17 walks. She also had two home runs, three triples and 10 doubles.

Last season, Henry batted .237, only .151 in WAC play, and scored only 10 runs and had only five extra-base hits in 186 at bats.

“I take a lot of extra hits before and after practice,” Henry said. “I really feel comfortable. I’m having fun this year. Everything’s working.”

Henry failed to meet Prop. 48 requirements out of high school, but she now is a member of the dean’s list. Because of a learning disability, Henry couldn’t pass the Scholastic Assessment Test in four attempts, which forced her to a redshirt season in 1992. Last semester, the commercial recreation major earned five As and a B.

“(Redshirting) was the hardest thing to do in my life,” Henry said. “It was devastating, because I wanted to be with the team. (Bulldog Coach Margie Wright) helped me through thick and thin.

“I’ve come a long way with school. Now I feel I can’t get anything less than a B.”

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Around the Country: In baseball, Cornell sophomore first baseman David Jacobs (Calabasas) was batting only .190 two weeks ago. But he had a game-winning hit, a fielding average of 1.000 and has gone on a three-game hitting streak since then. . . .

Southern California College senior outfielder Ryan Seidel (Westlake) is batting .398 with nine home runs and 28 RBIs as the leadoff hitter. Seidel has struck out three times in 108 at bats, has a .787 slugging percentage and is 19 of 21 in stolen-base attempts.

In softball, freshman pitcher Crista Corpening (Notre Dame) had a rough debut for Boston College. She allowed seven runs--only two earned--in 2 2/3 innings of relief in a 17-3 loss to East Carolina, dropping the Eagles’ record to 1-5. But Boston College has gone 10-5 since then. . . .

Senior outfielder Katie Nollan (Campbell Hall) has started 13 of 14 games and is two for two in stolen-base attempts at Lafayette. . . .

Yale freshman pitcher Megan Kenny (Agoura) was chosen Ivy League Rookie of the Week for the final week of March after she threw a complete-game shutout against St. John’s and went 10 for 19 as a hitter. Kenny leads the Elis with a .362 batting average. . . .

Hawaii senior pitcher Kym Weil (Hart) is 8-8 with a 2.31 ERA. But she has 106 strikeouts and only 22 walks in 109 innings. She was 3-1 with 35 strikeouts in 22 innings in the Honeycuts Invitational, a tournament hosted by the Rainbow Wahine three weeks ago. . . .

Lilah Wilson (Hart), a freshman utility player at St. John’s, has started only three of 28 games but has scored three times as a pinch-runner. . . .

Wichita State junior pitcher Stacey Hart (Alemany) is 7-4 with a 1.23 ERA and three shutouts. Sophomore Carrie Brown (Saugus) is batting .326. Former Paraclete player Amy Ulberg is a backup catcher. . . .

UC Santa Barbara sophomore catcher Michelle Ray (Agoura) hit the first home run of her life last week in an 8-3 loss to Fresno State in the Fullerton tournament. It came with a runner aboard.