HOT STUFF

They pop in and out of the Palmdale High baseball practice, hoping to play a little part.

Some are parents of players, some are opposing coaches, some are simply well-wishers.

A couple of them wave to a player or two, watch pitchers throw in the bullpen for a few minutes and leave.

One, a former minor league player and Palmdale graduate named Lanell Culver throws a little batting practice.

A few stay for the whole practice, soaking in not only the high-desert sun, but also the special feeling emitted by a team on a roll--a feeling that seems to have swept through the Antelope Valley.

The Falcons (21-5), who have won 16 of 17, play Crescenta Valley today at Stengel Field in Glendale in a 4 p.m. Southern Section Division I quarterfinal game.

It is the furthest a Palmdale baseball team has advanced since a quarterfinal appearance in 1991. The success has created a “Falcon Fever” of sorts.

“It’s pretty exciting,” Palmdale Coach Lance Pierson said. “Up here in the Antelope Valley we’re pretty close. Everyone seems to have rallied behind us.”

This team, however, is not satisfied.

Palmdale (21-5) has not been to the semifinals since 1980, before most of the current players were born. Nothing less than a trip to the section final June 6 at Dodger Stadium will quench this team’s thirst for success.

“This is the team we’ve been waiting for for three years,” said Jason Gorman, a senior pitcher-shortstop. “We want to keep winning. Satisfaction is Dodger Stadium.”

There are 13 seniors among the 17 players on the Palmdale roster and most came up through the system together.

Pierson was the junior varsity coach for three years before stepping in at the varsity level this season. His JV teams were a combined 66-9 and won three Golden League titles.

“This is my first year, but it’s not like I’m a first-year coach,” Pierson said. “I know all these guys pretty well and they know each other.”

Playing together all those years has not only helped the team members become close friends, but has clarified the common goal of the team: winning a section championship.

“The most special thing about this team is that we’re all friends,” said Mark Hendricks, a junior shortstop-pitcher. “We all understand each other. That helps a great deal.”

It helps in the hallways at school and during those late-night phone conversations between players who can’t sleep because of nerves.

“This is pretty exciting,” Gorman said. “We try to relax and just do what we’ve been doing, but the guys are all jumpy at school.”

Jumpy, like balls flying off Palmdale bats.

All season, Palmdale has been feared as a team that can hit from the top to the bottom of the batting order. The Falcons are batting over .350, average 8.7 runs a game and have five players who have hit at least five home runs.

“Everyone hits,” said Gorman, who is batting .471 with 10 home runs. “It’s nice because I know I don’t have to hit every day.”

Pierson revealed the secret to building such a good hitting team: They haven’t used a pitching machine for batting practice all season.

“We have one in the cage, but it just sits there,” Pierson said. “I think that’s why we hit so well. We always have live [batting practice].”

But Palmdale is much more than a bunch of bats. Hendricks (9-1) and Gorman (7-0) were the top two pitchers in the Golden League. Gorman, with a 2.45 earned-run average, was the only Golden League pitcher with an ERA under 3.00.

“You know going out there to pitch that the bats can explode any time,” Hendricks said. “It makes it a little easier to pitch, there’s a little less pressure.”

Defensively, the Falcons are greatly improved. A team that averaged 4.5 errors through its first five games is down to under two errors a game.

Center fielder Mike Arellano made a sliding, run-saving catch in the last playoff game against Crespi. Gorman and second baseman Manny Yanas turned a slick double play that helped the Falcons out of a jam. They made just one error in the 4-3 victory.

“We saw what was happening at the beginning of the season and knew we had to stop the problem,” Pierson said. “Now we take half an hour to 45 minutes every practice and just take routine grounders.”

The Falcons have dealt with obstacles other than a slow defensive start. After going 1-2 to open the season, some players figured out that they had to do more than just step out on the field to win.

“Our heads were kind of big because we knew the kind of team we had,” Gorman said. “But everybody’s done a good job getting over that.”

A season-ending neck injury at midseason to Matt Harrington, expected to be the Golden League’s top pitcher, forced Gorman into the role of stopper.

Harrington was 3-1 with a 4.11 ERA when the injury occurred. He still has the team’s only seven-inning complete game.

Gorman was up to the challenge.

“Harrington was our ace,” Pierson said. “But Jason and Mark have stepped up. We usually use two or three pitchers a game now.”

A testament to their pitching and defense, the Falcons have been held to four or fewer runs in three of their last four games and won them all. They defeated Camarillo, 4-3, in the first round.

But true to form, the team hit 42 home runs in 26 games and won both playoff games on home runs.

“That’s what this team is known for,” Gorman said. “We’re looking for that bust out game. We just want to bust out like we’ve been doing all season.”

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SOUTHERN SECTION BASEBALL PLAYOFFS

Quarterfinals--3 p.m. (unless noted)

Division I

Crescenta Valley vs. Palmdale at Stengal Field, 4 p.m.

Division II

Hueneme at La Mirada

Division III

Moorpark at Westlake

South Hills at Burroughs

Division IV

St. Francis at La Quinta

Division V

L.A. Baptist at St. Bonaventure

Viewpoint at Kern Valley

Division VI

Pacific Coast Christian at Grace Brethren