Titans Still Rolling in Baseball, Softball

Anyone who thought Cal State Fullerton’s baseball and softball teams might have a letdown this season after reaching their respective College World Series last year probably can forget it.

Coach Augie Garrido’s baseball team is 12-1 and Coach Judi Garman’s softball team is 8-2.

Fullerton won the Anaheim Hilton & Towers Baseball Classic during the weekend with victories over three schools that consistently are among the nation’s best: USC, Oklahoma and Florida State. All three were ranked in the top 10 in at least one of the preseason polls, and all three reached the final playoffs in Omaha last season.

The Titans’ combined score against the three: 31-10.

Maybe the Angels should think about having their best pitchers ready Thursday when they play the Titans in Tempe, Ariz.

Fullerton’s record matches the best starts ever at the school. The 1977 and 1994 teams were 12-1 and the 1983 team was 12-1-1. Last year’s team was 8-1 before losing a second game.

The three rival coaches in the tournament all left impressed.

“They’re No. 1 in my book,” said Oklahoma Coach Larry Cochell, whose team lost to the Titans, 11-5. “I vote in three different polls, and that’s where I’ll put them.”

*

USC Coach Mike Gillespie appeared a bit shell-shocked Sunday night after his team was beaten, 17-4, by the Titans. USC had won six in a row and 10 of 12.

“There’s no real weakness in that team,” Gillespie said. “They have a good blend of power and speed. There are nine tough outs up there. . . . And [Mark] Kotsay certainly hasn’t changed.”

Kotsay was seven for 13 during the tournament, with two home runs, four runs batted in and seven runs scored.

Florida State Coach Mike Martin said he wondered if Fullerton would be as strong at some positions where the Titans lost regulars. “I really liked D.C. Olsen last year,” Martin said. “But you know what? I see [C.J.] Ankrum play first base, and I like him even better defensively.”

Ankrum also emerged from an early-season slump against USC, going three for four with a two-run homer and six RBIs.

“It looks like a typical Augie team to me,” Martin said. “You’re going to have to go out and beat them because they’re not going to do anything to beat themselves. And I don’t care whether they’re ranked No. 1 or No. 35 now, when May comes they’re going to be there. They’re going to be ready.”

*

The softball team, ranked No. 6 nationally, also is off to a good start, and Garman is closing in on her 1,000th victory as a college and community college coach.

After a two-game sweep of Santa Barbara last week, Garman needs only six victories to reach 1,000. She had 211 in eight seasons at Golden West College, and has a 783-266-4 record in 17 years at Fullerton.

The Titans were scheduled to play at San Diego Sunday, but the game was rained out.

Fullerton plays Friday through Sunday in a tournament at San Diego State. The Aztecs handed Fullerton one of its two losses this season, 8-6, in the Arizona State tournament. Fullerton’s other loss was in a doubleheader split with Cal State Northridge to open the season.

“The nice thing about this team is that it seems to be so balanced,” Garman said. “That was what impressed me the most about Arizona last year. They had nine players who really contributed, and that’s the way I think we’ll be this season . . . everyone making something happen.”

The Titans have six players with five or more RBIs. Third baseman Traci Fischer, with nine, and outfielder Senetha Thomas, with eight, lead the team.

*

Outfielder Monica Bagalayos leads the Titans in hitting with a .483 average.

“Monica deserves a lot of credit,” Garman said. “She lost her starting second base position last year to Chris [Zboril] when Chris got such a hot bat that we had to have her in the lineup regularly, but she made the move to the outfield this year and really is doing well.”

Garman says Bagalayos has made a big improvement in her batting form.

“Last year, she was a slap hitter more than 90% of the time,” Garman said. “But she’s swinging into the ball more now, and the defenses have to play her much more honestly.”

The pitching has shown promise, even though both of the top starters have been bothered by injuries. Sophomore Brandi Isgar has a strained knee ligament and Liza Brown has a blister on the index finger of her pitching hand.

“That blister was bothering her so much in the Florida State game that you could barely tell the difference between her fastball and changeup,” Garman said. “We just told her to get the ball in, and let the defense handle it.” The Titans won the game, 12-11. Isgar strained the knee ligament sliding into third in an exhibition against the Puerto Rican national team. “We’re lucky if we can get five or six innings from her right now,” Garman said. “When her leg starts bothering her, she has to come out.”

Despite those problems, Isgar is 3-1 with a 1.83 earned-run average, and Brown is 4-1 with 3.03 ERA. The other pitcher, Gabby Guerrero, is 1-0, with a 3.15 ERA.

Titan Notes

The wrestling team completed its regular season last week with a 24-4 loss to Arizona State. Coach Ardeshir Asgari’s team finished with a 4-7 dual meet record, 0-5 in the Pac-10. Fullerton will be competing in the postseason Pac-10 championships Saturday and Sunday at Bakersfield. Three wrestlers finished the regular season with winning records: Darryl Christian was 23-7 at 142 pounds, Carl Sharamitaro 19-2 at 150, and Orlando de Castrovrde was 13-5 at 118 and 6-5 at 126. . . . The season-ending knee injury to Natalie Meyer in Friday’s meet against Seattle Pacific was the third major injury to a Titan gymnast in the last few months. The Titans lost Alexis Lott and Holly Tennison with knee injuries in preseason workouts. . . . Women’s volleyball Coach Mary Ellen Murchison is pleased with her recruiting class. She signed four players, including Rochelle Esparza, who was the Southern Section Division I most valuable player at Manhattan Beach Mira Costa High. “She’s the first Southern Section player of the year Fullerton has signed in recent years,” Murchison said. “We think the group we’ve signed will help us a great deal next season.”