Orange County Prep Review : Everything That Can Go Wrong Has With Mater Dei Baseball

Ickes and Pains: Bob Ickes, Mater Dei High School baseball coach, might consider videotaping some of his players, practices or games.

If the rest of the season is anything like the past two weeks, he would have some good material for one of those baseball blooper films you see between innings at major league baseball stadiums.

You want freak mishaps? How about pitcher Mike McCarthy going for a drink of water in practice last Monday and getting his cleat caught between the asphalt and the grass surrounding the fountain.

You want spectacular collisions? How about center fielder Larry Sutton and shortstop Kevin O’Conner going after a popup in practice on March 18, with Sutton diving for the ball and crashing into O’Conner’s knee.

Amusing viewing, perhaps, but not for Ickes, who would consider the footage more appropriate for a horror film.

McCarthy lost that bout with the terrain, sprained his ankle, and missed his scheduled start against Servite Tuesday. He’s out of the lineup indefinitely.

There were no winners in the O’Conner-Sutton collision. O’Conner tore a ligament in his knee, underwent surgery the next day and may be out for the season.

Sutton was hospitalized with a concussion and missed two games. He should be able to return when the Monarchs resume play next Saturday.

Three starters lost in one week would be enough to demoralize any coach.

But there’s more.

In the March 19 game against Bishop Amat, a Lancer slid into second baseman Sean Kelly in an attempt to break up a double play. Kelly flipped over, landed on his arm and dislocated his elbow. He’s in a cast and will be out for about four weeks.

In the same game, third baseman Rich Huntington dived for a ball and jammed his glove shoulder. He had a cortisone shot later in the week and missed last Saturday’s game against Bishop Montgomery.

To compound matters, Huntington’s backup, Dave Randell, threw his back out last Sunday while helping his father move a refrigerator.

Then on Tuesday, during Mater Dei’s 9-2 loss to rival Servite, designated hitter Tony Copeland jammed his ankle while sliding into first base to avoid a tag. He is out indefinitely.

Huntington returned for Mater Dei’s game against Pius X Wednesday, but his shoulder is still sore. Randell, after a trip to a chiropractor, also played against the Warriors.

But the Monarchs are still missing five starters.

“I’ve never seen anything like this,” said Ickes, who has coached at Mater Dei for 13 years. “This has been a real test of my endurance.”

Ickes has 27 players on this year’s varsity roster, and he’ll need all of them and possibly more to get through the season.

Fortunately for the coach, the Monarchs (6-4) are on vacation this week and will have some time to heal. They don’t play again until Saturday’s doubleheader against Las Vegas Bonanza High School at Brookhurst Park.

Because of the injuries, Ickes has had to restructure the lineup, with several players out of position. Second baseman Mike Balsalmo is the shortstop and Huntington is at second base.

But Ickes is not dwelling too much on the injuries.

“We make practices real game-like,” he said. “I’m the type of coach who puts pressure on them in practice to go all out, and that’s what happened with the collision on the fly ball. They were going after it as hard as they could.

“Because of the intensity I expect, my kids go a lot harder during practice than other kids might at other schools. I expect them to hustle everywhere.”

Except, perhaps, to the drinking fountain.

You never know.

Return to Normalcy: It may be a year or two before Robert Rangel, a Valencia High School football player, fully recovers from injuries incurred in an off-road vehicle accident last October, but his condition is improving steadily.

Rangel, a linebacker and defensive captain for the Tigers, suffered a broken leg, broken collarbone and broken shoulder when he was hit by a dune buggy while driving a three-wheeled motorcycle (ATC) at the Glamis Sand Dunes near Brawley, Calif. on Oct. 19.

He underwent eight hours of surgery and spent four days in the intensive care unit of Pioneers Memorial Hospital at Brawley before being transferred to Brea Community Hospital. He returned home in late October and was confined to a bed for three months.

Rangel’s leg is almost healed. The cast has been removed in favor of a brace, and he is able to get up and around with the help of crutches. A pin was removed from his shoulder in January, and Rangel is undergoing therapy at Fullerton’s St. Jude Hospital to restore proper movement in his left arm.

“I’m feeling really good. My life is getting back to normal,” Rangel said. “I’ve been able to appreciate the little things, such as being able to go outside or over to a friend’s house. I sometimes get a little down, but my dad (Everett) helps me out a lot. He’s always there to give me a hand and encourage me.”

Rangel, who has been tutored at home since November, won’t return to school this year but will graduate with his class. He said he will attend a community college next fall.

Phooey on Hooey: Valencia soccer Coach Darrell Hooey will have a new job and a new name next year when he moves to Cal State Fullerton to become an assistant under Coach Al Mistri.

Hooey had his last name legally changed to Prescott on March 17, because he thinks it will be “more advantageous in dealing with the public to have a name that is easily recognizable.”

Hooey didn’t completely disassociate himself with the family name, though. Prescott was Hooey’s great grandmother’s maiden name.

Prep Notes

St. Anthony football Coach Ken Sharrar, formerly an assistant at Ocean View (1982-1983) and Capistrano Valley (1980-81), has accepted a position as a graduate assistant coach at USC and will begin next fall. . . . Jill Myers, a middle blocker who was an All-Sunset League player at Fountain Valley High, and Cyndi Kuhter, a back-row specialist and an All-Angelus League selection from Mater Dei High, have signed national letters of intent to play volleyball for United States International University in San Diego. . . . Janet Jensen, former female Athlete of the Year at Western High School and a three-sport athlete (volleyball, basketball and tennis) at Cypress College, and Michelle Lazorek, a two-sport athlete (volleyball and track) at Estancia High and a volleyball player at Orange Coast College, will be attending Chapman College next fall to play volleyball. . . . Applications are being accepted for the Des Flood Basketball Shooting Camps, to be directed by Western Coach Greg Hoffman and held in two sessions, July 7-11 and 14-18. Fees are $150 for one session or $275 for two. For further information, call Flood at 827-9927.