D C Olsen

To many of his friends, Steve Freidrich is known as "Fred," but if he continues to perform as he has for the Troy High School baseball team, another nickname may stick. "I don't want to jinx him," Troy Coach Dane Ilertsen said, "but we call him Roy Hobbs after 'The Natural' because whatever he tries he seems to do well at." When Troy needed a catcher this season, Freidrich, a junior in his first full year on the varsity, made the switch from center field.

Cal State Fullerton played errorless defense Friday night. But Miami, one of the nation's best defensive teams, committed three errors in the first five innings as the Titans built a 5-0 lead. With the bases loaded in the third inning, Fullerton's Phil Nevin grounded to Kevin DiGiacomo at first, and DiGiacomo threw to second to force out Chris Powell.

Donald Christian (D.C.) Olsen, Fullerton High School's slugging catcher, continued to pile up impressive numbers Friday during a 17-4 Freeway League victory over Sonora. Olsen led a 16-hit attack with two doubles and a single, raising his county-leading batting average to .607. He drove in his 37th run of the season, marking the 22nd time in 23 games he has driven home at least one run.

If pitching was the question for the Cal State Fullerton baseball team heading into Tuesday's season opener against Cal Poly Pomona, Ted Silva had the answer. Silva, the Titans' relief ace last season, allowed one run and seven hits in eight innings, helping the Titans to a 7-1 victory at Titan Field. "I had a little nervousness at first, but then relaxation kicked in and it was fun," Silva said. "The most I ever pitched here was four innings.

Dante Powell hit two home runs, drove in four runs and stole two bases as Cal State Fullerton defeated Chapman, 12-1, in a nonconference baseball game Friday at Fullerton. Powell, a sophomore center fielder, had two-run homer in the Titans' five-run first inning. Nate Rodriquez added a two-run single and D.C. Olsen singled in the first-inning onslaught.

Dante Powell had four hits, including a double and a home run, and drove in eight runs to lead Cal State Fullerton past Nevada Las Vegas, 22-4, in a Big West Conference baseball game Friday night in Las Vegas. Powell's three-run home run highlighted an 11-run outburst in the sixth when the Titans took a 16-2 lead. Titan starter Dan Ricabal retired the last 13 batters he faced, pitching eight innings to earn his sixth victory.

D.C. Olsen hit a two-out, two-run home run in the bottom of the 10th inning to lift Cal State Fullerton, ranked eighth in the nation, to a 6-4 victory over 12th-ranked Stanford in a nonconference baseball game Saturday at Titan Field. With two outs, Fullerton catcher Adam Millan was hit by a pitch, then Olsen hit Mario Iglesias' 2-0 pitch over the left-field fence to score pinch-runner Scott Allen. Olsen, a former Fullerton High standout, had three hits and three runs batted in.

Tony Banks hit two three-run home runs and finished with seven runs batted in to lead Cal State Fullerton, ranked second in the nation by Baseball America, to a 14-8 victory over Loyola Marymount in a nonconference game Tuesday at Titan Field. Bret Hemphill and D.C. Olsen also homered for Fullerton (26-9), which has won 18 of its last 20 games. Jeremy Carr added three hits, two RBIs, and two stolen bases for the Titans.

Cal State Fullerton freshman Kyle Evans, formerly of Katella High, hit two of the Titans' five home runs in a 10-1 rout of Nevada in a Big West Conference baseball game Friday at Reno. Also hitting home runs for the Titans were D.C. Olsen, Tony Banks and Dante Powell. Banks' homer in the first inning extended his hitting streak to 17 games. Mike Parisi (6-0) went the distance for the Titans, giving up eight hits. The victory extended the Titans' winning streak to 13 games.

Even big plays can't draw big smiles from Pat Ward, Fullerton High School football coach. Fullerton improved to 3-0 after scoring 21 points in the fourth quarter Thursday night to defeat Alta Loma, 36-18, at Chaffey College. But the Indians' coach wasn't impressed. "We are not a good football team at all," said Ward, in his first year at the school. "This was the worst football game we've played all year."