Player Holds No Grudge Over Beaning

Kyle Beswick, the North Hollywood East player who suffered a fractured skull after being hit by a pitch, said he harbors no ill feelings over the incident.

Beswick was beaned Thursday by Agoura Oaks pitcher Steve Lyons, twho should have been serving a one-game suspension after being ejected from his team’s previous game.

“I’m still a little lightheaded but I’m going to make it,” Beswick said Monday. “I’m not upset at [Lyons]. He came over after he hit me and apologized and I gained some respect for him after that.”

Beswick was admitted to Encino Hospital’s intensive care unit Thursday and released the next day. But he was readmitted Saturday after experiencing nausea and dizziness. He was released the same day and will be held out of physical activity for at least two months.

Baseball injuries are nothing new to Beswick. He broke his nose and a hand in separate youth league incidents, and suffered a broken cheekbone after being hit by a pitch as a freshman player at Harvard-Westlake.

Beswick said he intends to play baseball for the Wolverines as a senior next season and hopes to play in college.

“I love the game, so I’m going to continue on,” Beswick said. “I’ll try to see if there’s a store that has a new helmet that will secure my head a little better.”

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Ryan Cope, the Westlake Legion player who was hit on the left side of his batting helmet by a pitch on June 28 and hospitalized overnight, continues to improve.

“[Cope] seems to be getting better and better,” Westlake Coach Chuck Berrington said. “He should be ready to play by the fall, but we’re going to let him rest until then.”

Burbank South pitcher Robert Barillas suffered broken cheekbones when he was hit by a line drive the first week of the season. He returned to the mound much earlier than expected, pitching in three games in the final two weeks of the season.

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Sometime this morning, Antelope Valley North team members will meet at a fast-food restaurant in Rosamond and begin a two-hour caravan to Burbank for the District 20 playoffs.

Antelope Valley North draws from five desert high schools--Boron, Kern Valley, Rosamond, Tehachapi and Desert. Seeking better competition from teams in the Antelope, Santa Clarita and San Fernando valleys, Antelope Valley North began District 20 play six years ago even though many players live closer to Bakersfield than Los Angeles.

Antelope Valley North played a full schedule of 26 games, with long road trips saved for weekends. But home games at Rosamond High also present problems, with some players living more than an hour away.

“Most of the kids have full-time jobs,” Coach Dale Creighton said. “Sometimes I wouldn’t know until game time which kids would be there. But they’ve been very dedicated about making the games.”

A doubleheader loss to Palmdale on the final day of the season prevented Antelope Valley North from winning the Northern Division title.

The team still made the playoffs for the first time and will play top-seeded Van Nuys East tonight at 7 at Burroughs High. The team will likely stay overnight to avoid a long drive home.

“We wanted to show that the boys from the country can play a little, too,” Creighton said. “And playing against the good teams gives the boys plenty of experience.”

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With a victory over the Conejo Knights on Saturday, Camarillo A wrapped up the District 16 title and will represent the district at the Area 6 A championships beginning July 24 at UCLA’s Jackie Robinson Stadium.

District 16 co-Commissioner Marty Garcia said Royal has the best record among the district’s B teams, whose players are 17 and younger, and will play in an area tournament.

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State Legion Chairman Harold Hall received word Monday that an appeal by Agoura Oaks had been denied at the organization’s national level.

Earlier this month, Area 6 co-Chairman Julio Yniguez ruled that Agoura Oaks would finish the season winless because of multiple rules violations.

Chief among the violations was the June 26 disqualification of Scott Christensen and Dan Wasserman for using more than one transfer waiver in their Legion careers. Agoura Oaks Coach Lorry Gershon had appealed that decision.

“I understand the frustration of the parents and [Christensen and Wasserman],” Hall said. “We hope to change the [transfer waiver] rule for next year.”