Titans’ Merrell Gets Tryout for Team USA

Darric Merrell, a freshman pitcher at Cal State Fullerton, has been invited to tryouts for Team USA June 16-19 in Tucson.

Merrell has a 5-2 record with a 1.92 earned-run average for the Titans.

Team USA will play approximately 30 games on a summer tour, beginning June 22 in Japan.

SWIMMING

Students from Capistrano Valley High will begin an effort to help raise money for a swimming pool at the school with a 24-hour swim-a-thon beginning at 6 p.m. May 18 at the Saddleback College pool. Athletes will be swimming 5,000 to 10,000 yards for sponsors. Teams of faculty, students and community members will participate in relays.

WATER POLO

Despite posting a 3-27 overall record in its first season, the UC Irvine women’s water polo team has been invited to play in the three-day, eight-team National Collegiate Select Championship tournament that begins Friday at Pacific in Stockton.

The tournament is for teams that did not qualify to play in the NCAA playoffs and an Irvine spokesman said that the Anteaters, seeded last, were awarded a spot after several higher-ranked schools declined.

The Anteaters face Hawaii at 1 p.m. in the opener. The Wahines drubbed Irvine in two previous meetings, outscoring the Anteaters by a combined total of 25-11.

Irvine’s only victory against a Division I opponent this season came March 3 in an 8-7 overtime win at Pacific. The Tigers got even at last week’s Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Tournament in Honolulu, eliminating the Anteaters, 6-4. The two are scheduled to play each other in Saturday’s second round of the Collegiate Select.