`BUM' KEEPS WORD BUMSTEAD HOMER IN 11TH LIFTS CSUN.

Byline: Chris Branam Staff Writer

His coaches and teammates call him ``Bummer,'' and for most of this college baseball season, that's how it's been for Mike Bumstead - a bummer.

Until Wednesday.

Bumstead, batting .077 for Cal State Northridge, led off the bottom of the 11th inning with a home run to give the Matadors a 6-5 victory over Portland and a sweep of the two-game series.

After losing four in a row, including getting swept at Nevada last weekend, Northridge (9-13) got its first series sweep since Sacramento State to open the home season.

What made the homer especially special for Bumstead was it helped atone for his error in left field in the 10th helped the Pilots (9-8) score a run to make it 4-3.

``After I booted (the ball), I was down,'' said Bumstead, a senior from Big Bear. ``But I thought `I'm going to win this in the 11th.' I actually said that to myself.''

Bumstead's opposite-field homer cleared the wall in right field by a foot or two and ended a game being played in shadows. It was his second hit in 14 at-bats this season and his first RBI.

``It would have been really easy for (Bumstead) to go into the tank (after the error),'' CSUN coach Mike Batesole said. ``That's one of those things we stress: answering back.''

That's what CSUN did in the short series against the Pilots of the West Coast Conference. The Matadors won Wednesday despite being out-hit 17-10 and striking out 14 times.

``This team won't give up,'' Bumstead said. ``We know we are a good team. We know we can do good things.''

Portland raked CSUN starter Bill Murphy, a freshman left-hander, for 13 hits in six innings. But Murphy only gave up three runs. He stranded eight Pilots in the first five innings.

``Murphy knows how to play baseball,'' Batesole said. He's one of the guys who are the future of this program. That's one of the reasons why I stuck with him. He knows how to make pitches.''

Portland's starter - freshman left-hander Justin Bellweber - is another name to remember. Bellweber retired the first eight Matadors and struck out six in a row in that span. He left in the sixth with the bases loaded and nobody out, and Northridge scored three runs off reliever Kyle Corra.