Dog Day Finally Over for Huskies

A different day, a different hero for the North Hollywood High baseball team.

Thursday, senior Victor Solis was four for four with three runs batted in and pitched 3 2/3 innings in relief to earn the victory in a 6-4 decision over Monroe in a Valley Pac-8 Conference game at Monroe.

In a 13-2 victory over Monroe on Tuesday, all-league right-hander Merrill Dunn allowed three hits in five innings and had two doubles and two RBIs.

In the season opener against Eagle Rock, Pablo Rojas hit a pinch-hit, three-run home run to spark a 9-0 victory.

Third baseman Edgar Pineda and catcher Jesus Zepeda, who began the season as North Hollywood reserves, have stepped into starting roles because of injuries and performed admirably.

With contributions coming from so many different places, the Huskies (7-0) are off to their best start in recent memory.

“Everybody has contributed,” third-year Coach George Vranau said. “The kids realize that no one person is more important than or above the program itself.”

The program was at an all-time low when Vranau took over in 1995. The Huskies were 4-20 in 1994, and 5-22 in Vranau’s first season. But by using an offbeat approach off the field--he challenges his players to run in the L.A. Marathon to build a sense of accomplishment--and stressing teamwork and discipline, Vranau has molded a contender for the City Section title.

“I remember seeing [Vranau] standing there the first day,” said junior varsity coach Victor Zamora, who played for the Huskies in 1995. “He started talking all serious, saying, ‘Either do this and this, or you’re not on the team.’ At first everybody was laughing, saying, ‘Who is this guy?’ But he showed us who was boss.”

Of the seven seniors on the team at the beginning of Vranau’s first season, only Zamora and Jesse Jurado finished the year.

“He didn’t cut anybody,” Zamora said. “He just wanted everyone to make a lot of sacrifices for baseball, and they couldn’t handle it.”

The North Hollywood junior varsity team has practiced with the varsity team since Vranau arrived, in an effort to teach the system on every level. Players who were sophomores in 1995 and have been nurtured in Vranau’s system are now senior disciples.

“The team basically didn’t have character before,” Dunn said. “The first year I thought he was crazy, but now I see where he’s coming from.”

Even last season, when the Huskies finished 12-19 and reached the City Section playoffs, Vranau said the players had a hard time stepping up. The difference this year, he said, has been a team a total acceptance of the team concept.

“Everyone has realized that they don’t have to count on Merrill Dunn all the time,” Vranau said. “He’s simply a cog on the team like everyone else.”

Said Dunn: “That’s the biggest thing. It’s not just a one-person team. I’ve been waiting for that.”

Thursday’s hero, Solis, says it feels better contributing to a team effort.

“It doesn’t matter what I did,” he said. “I just want everyone to win.”