Ventura Again Writes Chapter on Winning

Ventura College’s winning basketball tradition has not gone unnoticed. The team has attracted a loyal following and typically draws home crowds of at least 1,000.

The Pirates have won seven consecutive Western State Conference titles--including this season’s North Division championship--and of the seven area junior colleges that field men’s basketball teams, none have won a state basketball championship more recently than Ventura (1987).

Additionally, the Pirates were riding a 12-game winning streak entering Wednesday’s game against Moorpark.

One of the most distinguishing aspects of the program’s success is that Ventura players undoubtedly sign more postgame autographs for swarms of youngsters than those of any junior college or four-year school in the area.

“The kids really like the program,” Coach Philip Mathews said with a smile, moments after signing an autograph after Saturday’s win over Oxnard. “They come (from my basketball) camps and they really enjoy it.”

The younger fans also appreciate a superior effort by an opponent. After Ventura beat visiting Valley, Monarch forward Russell Baldwin momentarily was taken aback when a group of youngsters sought his autograph.

Baldwin had scored 24 points.

TRADING PLACES

The football coaching staffs at Cal State Northridge and Alemany High would not stand pat--so this week they swapped Pats.

Pat Degnan, an assistant at Northridge the past six seasons, said Tuesday that he had accepted the coaching position at Alemany. He replaces Pat Blackburn, who resigned last fall after Alemany finished 6-4. Blackburn recently was added to the Northridge staff as a linebacker coach.

Degnan, 37, coached quarterbacks, receivers and special teams at Northridge. He will remain on staff until the spring semester ends. Before coming to Northridge, Degnan was an assistant at Mesa College in Grand Junction, Colo., from 1982-85.

A part-time coach and teacher at Northridge, Degnan said one reason he left the college ranks was because the opportunity to coach at the NCAA Division I level never materialized.

“I tried to get from CSUN to the Division I level so I could spend all my time coaching instead of teaching,” Degnan said. “But it never worked out. For whatever reason, I was never swooped up.”

Degnan, who graduated from St. Paul High and played quarterback at Utah, said he hopes to establish an identity for Alemany and himself.

COMING BACK

Although James Parker was kicked off the Oxnard men’s basketball team by Coach Remy McCarthy midway through the season, McCarthy expects Parker to play for the Condors next season.

“I plan on having him back, and he plans on being back next season,” McCarthy said.

McCarthy gave Parker the boot after the freshman from Crane High in Chicago talked back to him during a practice.

“That was the last straw,” said McCarthy, who was unhappy with Parker’s practice regimen. “It was unfortunate because I like the kid and I get along with him off the court. But my barometer of playing hard is a lot different than other people’s.”

Parker, a 6-foot, 180-pound guard, was averaging 13.1 points.

DISTRICT MANAGERS

The Master’s College, which has won 13 of its past 15 basketball games, will play host to Biola, the top-ranked team in NAIA District 3, on Tuesday, and the outcome will have a resounding impact on the district.

The Master’s (20-3, 9-1 in district play) is tied for second place with Southern California College (20-6, 13-4). The Master’s beat SCC and Biola lost to SCC this season.

Biola (25-3, 10-1) leads the district in rebounding (34.9 per game), field-goal percentage (54.9%) and three-point percentage (44%).

When Biola and Master’s met Jan. 28, 1,500 were on hand for host Biola’s 97-85 win.

Master’s is counting on the home-court advantage to improve its chances this time around.

LINEUP SHUFFLE

Bill Kernen, Northridge’s baseball coach, said he did not know what to think when the Matadors lost their first four games--the school’s longest losing streak at the start of a season since 1979.

“I’ve never been 0-4 before,” Kernen said. “Everybody has been talking about, ‘Since 1979 . . .’ For me, it’s been since 1948. That’s the year I was born. So I didn’t know what to think.”

In Northridge’s first victory, a 9-2 win over USC on Tuesday, Kernen moved Mike Solar from shortstop to first base and Andy Hodgins from center field to shortstop. Northridge used the same lineup against Chapman earlier and Kernen said he might use it regularly in an attempt to play his strongest group of hitters.

“It was really an outfield decision,” Kernen said. “(Kyle) Washington and (David) Prosenko have been swinging the bat OK and I wanted to get them in the lineup.”

Kernen said he will make one more adjustment, juggling the first three slots in the batting order for this weekend’s series at home against San Jose State.

Scott Richardson, who batted third against USC, will be moved to the leadoff position. Greg Shockey will bat second and Solar, previously the No. 2 batter, will bat third.

“They’ve been pitching our No. 3 guy a lot different,” Kernen said. “Solar, in my opinion, is the guy who has the best plate discipline and he’s swinging the bat pretty good, so we’re going to make that change too.”

Ron Twersky and staff writers Steve Elling, Mike Hiserman, John Ortega and Wendy Witherspoon contributed to this notebook.