CLU, Seeded Fourth, Launches Division III Title Quest

Salem, Va., might be a sleepy hamlet at the foot of the Appalachian Mountains, but the Cal Lutheran baseball team is thrilled to be there.

The city’s Memorial Stadium, brand-new home to the Salem Avalanche, a Colorado Rockies affiliate in the Class-A Carolina League, this week is the site of the NCAA Division III championships.

For the third time in five seasons, Cal Lutheran has qualified.

The Kingsmen (30-12-1), seeded fourth, will open the double-elimination tournament against fifth-seeded Wisconsin-Oshkosh (33-4) today at 5:30 p.m.

“We set a goal last fall to reach the World Series,” Kingsmen Coach Marty Slimak said. “Our pitching, our depth and the ability of our kids to rise to the occasion got us this far.”

Cal Lutheran qualified for the championships by beating Claremont-Mudd in a best-of-five Western Regional series.

Starters Andrew Barber (7-2 record, 2.22 earned-run average), Richard Bell (9-3, 3.25) and Eric Kiszczak (8-2, 4.44) each pitched complete-game victories in the regional.

Wisconsin-Oshkosh hitters will provide a formidable challenge. The Titans are batting .371, led by senior outfielder Jeff Zappa (.477, 17 home runs, 69 runs batted in) and sophomore catcher Chuck Anderson (.486, 50 RBIs).

Andy Kimball (10-0, 2.18), a sophomore right-hander, is the probable starter for the Titans.

Cal Lutheran, champion of the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, counters with four .300 hitters--Rik Work (.349), Frank Maldonado (.323), Richard Holmes (.330) and Mike Young (.320).

Junior center fielder Jamal Nichols is batting .274 with a team-high 15 extra-base hits and freshman outfielder Eric Buben is batting .278 with 14 extra-base hits.