Lancers Tap Into Promising Power

John Smith, a sophomore designated hitter, should provide Thousand Oaks High with home-run power for three years.

Smith, 6-1 and 205 pounds, hit two home runs in the Lancers’ 10-9 victory over Victor Valley in the championship game of the Thousand Oaks tournament Wednesday and has three homers and four doubles among his eight hits this season.

Smith weighed 245 pounds in the eighth grade, but slimmed down and toned up by running and playing football.

John’s brother, Nick Smith, a senior outfielder who batted .330 last season, had three hits in the tournament final for the Lancers (6-4), who have won five of their last six games.

Tough luck: Senior right-hander Shaun Fishman of El Camino Real is 1-2. But he has 23 strikeouts, only one walk and a 1.67 earned-run average through 21 innings. Fishman’s losses were to Kennedy and Antelope Valley, and respective aces Jon Garland and Sean Douglass.

Fishman, however, gained a measure of revenge by striking out Garland four times in the Conquistadores’ 6-4 loss last week.

Antelope Valley defeated El Camino Real, 1-0, on an unearned run.

Familiar foe: When first-year Glendale baseball Coach Tony Zarillo hands in his lineup and chats with umpires at home plate before today’s Pacific League game against Crescenta Valley, he may have to check himself before he heads back to the dugout.

Zarillo was at Crescenta Valley for 24 years, the last nine as baseball coach.

But despite fond feelings for his old school, Zarillo says there will be nothing special about his first meeting against the Falcons.

“As far as I’m concerned, it’s just our next game,” he said.

Problem uncovered: Former La Reina soccer star Stacey Jensen was the subject of a recent Times article detailing her struggle to overcome anorexia nervosa.

Since then, Regent Coach Joe Laraneta said he has fielded calls from “between 12 and 15” high school girls’ soccer coaches asking about Jensen and seeking advice on how to deal with players with similar problems.