COLLEGES:

They’ll come from North Orange County, from the UC Irvine student dorms, from the neighboring communities and from parts far beyond. They’ll come to Anteater Ballpark in droves this weekend, spilling over from the 900-plus seats into areas of open grass inclines that typically serve as a children’s playground.

They’ll come to cheer two of the nation’s best teams, stirred by the recent acceleration of a rivalry that intersected in Omaha at the 2007 College World Series. It was a rivalry, heretofore largely one-sided, that thrilled a national television audience with the longest game in CWS history and introduced the masses to the competitive zeal of an upstart program from a research campus with the cartoonish mascot.

But some will come with more sinister intent.

These unfortunate few will come with signs and slogans, bitterness and bile, crude choruses of resentment and hateful harangues aimed primarily at Titans Coach Dave Serrano.

It was Serrano who guided UCI to its aforementioned apex, a 47-17-1 campaign that left it the No. 3-ranked team in the nation last season, the last of his three at the Anteaters’ helm.

It was Serrano, a former Titans pitcher and pitching coach, who then decided that home was the ultimate vocational destination.

It was Serrano who, after his somewhat awkward departure — one week after a public pledge of Anteater allegiance — apologized for the foot-in-mouth gaffe that had lulled some UCI students, staff and supporters, toward the faulty assumption that departure was somehow betrayal.

It was Serrano who has reached out to help repair some of the damage his departure did to relationships he still appreciates, particularly those closest to him, his former UCI players. He has also been gracious to those who have reached out to him with similar intent.

And so it is Serrano — as well as his assistants, Greg Bergeron and Sergio Brown, who also left Irvine for offices in Goodwin Field — who should be showered with applause and appreciation, if not all weekend, then at least in Friday’s series opener, for what he helped UCI accomplish during his tenure.

It is Serrano who, while viewed appropriately as a heated rival, who shall be always deserve his due from UCI baseball and its backers, for continuing the accelerated rise of a program resurrected after nine dormant seasons by current UCLA Coach John Savage for the 2002 campaign.

It is Serrano’s players who have almost completely been responsible for the Anteaters’ 19-3 start that has them ranked No. 4 by Collegiate Baseball, No. 5 by Baseball America. Cal State Fullerton (15-9) is No. 25 in the Baseball America poll. Both teams are 2-1 in conference play.

Serrano deserves anything but boos.

?The UCI men’s volleyball team will play its final regular-season home match at the Bren Events Center tonight at 7 against Cal State Northridge. A ceremony before the match will honor Anteaters seniors, most notably middle blocker Aaron Harrell, a four-year starter and captain of this year’s squad.

Harrell, who helped UCI win the program’s first NCAA title last season in its second straight trip to the final four, set a school single-match record by hitting 1.000 in the Anteaters’ five-game loss at UC San Diego Saturday. He had 13 kills in 13 attacks, breaking the record of his roommate and former teammate David Smith, who hit .938 against UC Santa Barbara in 2007.

With four regular-season matches left, No. 9-ranked UCI (12-13, 8-10 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) is in eighth place in the conference, one game up on Hawaii, a half-game behind USC.

BARRY FAULKNER may be reached at (714) 966-4615 or at barry.faulkner@latimes.com.