Timing Is Right for University : This Could Be the Year Valley’s City Baseball Domination Ends

It’s been 20 years since a high school outside the San Fernando Valley won the City large-school division baseball championship.

That may help explain why University Coach Frank Cruz was nearly in tears Thursday after his team had pulled out an extra-inning victory over Van Nuys Grant in the quarterfinals.

Excited by the 3-2 victory, Cruz also realized that his team is in a position to take the title out of the Valley.

The Warriors, however, must beat San Pedro in a Division 4-A semifinal game Monday at UCLA’s Jackie Robinson Stadium. Sun Valley Poly and Chatsworth will play at Birmingham High in the other semifinal. The championship game is set for Wednesday night at Dodger Stadium.

“The bottom line is, they like baseball out there in the Valley,” Cruz said. “And they’ve got a lot of kids to draw from. It’s pretty hard for a young family with kids to buy a house and settle down in Brentwood or Westwood. Our draw hasn’t been as good.”

University, located in West Los Angeles, is 24-3 and top-ranked in the Times’ City poll. Although the Warriors began the playoffs with the best record, the Western League champions were seeded second. Poly, with four losses, was the top-seeded team.

Cruz was miffed when he walked into the seeding meeting last week and saw his team listed No. 5. With the support of other coaches, he was able to talk his club up to No. 2.

“We would have liked to been No. 1, but you have to beat everybody sooner or later,” Cruz said. “So in the end, it doesn’t make a lot of difference.”

The University-San Pedro semifinal assures that the final will not have two teams from the Valley, as has been the case in 11 of the last 19 title games.

Since Venice defeated Sylmar in 1972, there have been few challenges to the Valley’s streak, although Banning nearly broke it last year before losing to San Fernando, 3-2.

University appears to have a good chance to go all the way.

For starters, the Warriors have proven they can play with anyone, defeating playoff qualifiers Banning, Sylmar, Westchester and Chatsworth during the regular season.

Cruz also has two of the best pitchers in the City, a necessity in a single-elimination tournament.

Javier Mejia, a senior right-hander, is 10-1 with a 1.32 earned-run average. He went the distance in last Tuesday’s 4-0 victory over Carson in the second round, yielding only two hits.

Mejia, who has been invited to try out for the Junior Olympic team, has lost only three times in three years. The Warriors’ top prospect, Mejia will accept a scholarship to USC if his grades improve this semester.

If University reaches the championship game, the probable starter is junior Rich Rivera, a right-hander with an 8-2 record and 1.13 ERA. Rivera pitched all eight innings against Grant on Thursday, giving up five hits and striking out 11. But he was at his best in the seventh and eighth innings, holding the Lancers scoreless.

“When a pitcher looks as good in the eighth as he does in the first, that’s something special,” Cruz said. “That was quite an effort.”

The senior leaders are center fielder Randal Harris, batting .394; catcher Joey Gandara, .328, and first baseman Brad Slater, .282.

Slater was the star Thursday, hitting his first home run of the season, a drive over the right-field fence in the bottom of the eighth.

The run capped a comeback by the Warriors, who had trailed, 2-0, heading into the bottom of the sixth.

“That was the single most impressive thing I’ve ever done,” Slater said. “After we tied the score, I knew it was ours to win. I’m just glad I was a part of it.

“The fact that this victory was against a team from the Valley doesn’t really matter to me. It only makes it a little sweeter.”

If University goes on to end the Valley’s dominance in the championship, it will mark a rapid turnaround in the program.

When Cruz, 32, arrived in 1985, the team was coming off a 3-18 season. His main objective then was to change the losing attitude that prevailed.

Four years later, Cruz guided the Warriors to the 3-A title.

University moved up to 4-A in 1989, and has won league titles three of the last four years. But it could never get past the second round of the playoffs.

Until this season.

“This is not the most talented team I’ve ever had,” said Cruz, who played baseball at St. Monica High in Santa Monica and later attended Pepperdine. “But they know how to get after it and win. That’s something talent alone can’t do.”

This year’s team also is popular with students and community. The bleachers were full at the Grant game, and several former players were in the dugout to lend support.

Erik Lazerus, a reserve shortstop at Cal State Northridge, and David Ravitz, UCLA’s starting third baseman, both University graduates, gave pregame speeches.

“When you’re down, 2-0, the cheering really helps motivate you,” Cruz said. “But I like to think the people are coming out because they like what they’re watching.”