Orange County Roundup : Chapman Opens Tennis Season Against USC

The Chapman College men’s tennis team, the defending NCAA Division II champion, opens its season this afternoon at 1:30 against USC in Los Angeles.

The Trojans (5-0) are ranked fourth in Division I.

Senior Troy Turnbull, the preseason number No. 1-ranked player in Division II, will lead Chapman, along with All-Americas John Soldate, John Kline and Paul Wekesa.

Coach Mike Edles teams’ are 69-36 (a .657 winning percentage) in his three seasons at Chapman.

The Panthers play their first home match Feb. 8 against Cal Poly Pomona at 9 a.m.

Professional stunt man Brian Carson will open the U.S. Hot Rod Assn. Spectacular at Anaheim Stadium Saturday night with a mid-air automobile crash.

Carson will drive a stock sedan off a ramp 75 feet through the air into a stack of five cars.

Also scheduled are the tractor-truck pull Winter Championships, mud bog races and the battle of the monster trucks.

Events start Saturday night and conclude Sunday afternoon.

The Anaheim Chamber of Commerce Professional Sports Committee is sponsoring its second annual seminar for baseball fans Wednesday night at 6 at the Emerald Hotel in Anaheim.

Angel players scheduled to speak are Gary Pettis, John Candelaria and Ron Romanick. Mike Port, Angel vice president, is also scheduled to appear. There will be a buffet dinner after the seminar. About 200 tickets, which cost $12 apiece, are still available. For reservation information call 758-0222.

Santiago High School is seeking walk-on coaches for its spring sports programs. Girls’ and boys’ head and assistant track coaches are needed. Positions for an assistant softball coach and a diving coach are also open. Call 638-6215 for more information.

Softball players aged 55 and over are eligible to join two Costa Mesa seniors slow-pitch softball teams. Both teams, the Old Goats and the Clowns, compete in a 16-team league. The teams also play in state and national tournaments. For more information, contact Peter Similuk at 957-2515.

The Orange County Marathon, run for the first time last December, will return this year, it was announced by Orange County Supervisor Thomas F. Riley this week. The race is scheduled for Dec. 14 and will be run by Sports Directions Ltd.

Former WBC super bantamweight champion Jaime Garza will fight Arnel Arrozal in the feature bout on the Feb. 24 Irvine Marriott boxing card. Garza (40-1 with 38 knockouts) has not fought since he lost his title 14 months ago to Juan Meza in New York.

The Anaheim YMCA will be holding a water experience class for infants starting Feb. 3 and is continuing to offer classes to teach swim skills, endurance and safety to children who already know how to swim. All classes are held in a heated indoor pool. For more information, call the Anaheim YMCA at 635-9622.

Adult three-on-three basketball leagues are forming in the City of Orange. The three divisions are open, 6-foot 3-inches and under and 6-0 and under. Team entry fee is $45. Teams sign-ups are from 8:30 to 5 p.m. at the Orange Recreation Department at 326 E. Almond Street. For more information call 998-0189.

The SCOR Cardiac Cyclist Club will hold its fourth “Solvang Century” 100-mile bike ride on March 8. The mile course travels through Solvang, Buellton, Lompoc, Los Olivos and Santa Maria.

Entry fee is $16 if paid before Feb. 22. For entry or other information call (213) 945-6366.

Around the Area

Santa Ana Valley High School’s baseball program is holding a pancake breakfast Saturday morning starting at 8:30 in an effort to raise money to send a Santa Ana-area high school all-star team to Europe this summer. Dodger coach Mark Cresse will be the featured speaker. Tickets are $3. . . . Irvine orthopedic surgeon Dr. Robert J. Bielen was recently voted the president of the Southwest Chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine. . . . Dave McLiesh was recently named the new soccer coach at Southern California College. McLiesh, a Cal State Long Beach graduate, coached at Biola before replacing Tim Conrad, who resigned at the conclusion of last season. . . . Saddleback College is seeking contributions to purchase rings for the members of the 11-0 Gaucho football team that won the Mission Conference, the PONY Bowl and shared the community college national championship. People interested in making pledges can call 582-4545. . . . Five more members of the Saddleback team have signed letters of intent to continue their careers at four-year schools. Lineman Charlie Wright signed with the University of Florida, defensive back Orland Sylve with the University of Dubuque, tight end Tony Palamara and linebacker Robert Piehl with Cal State Northridge and wide receiver Alvin Pierce with Boise State. . . . Bill Reynolds has been named the assistant tennis coach at UC Irvine.