CHATTER: NEWS AND NOTES FROM LOCAL SPORTS FORMER TAFT QB WON'T START FOR VOLS.

Byline: Vincent Bonsignore Staff Writer

Former Taft High of Woodland Hills quarterback Ricky Clausen lost out to Erik Ainge for the starting job at Tennessee heading into the Vols' season opener Saturday against Alabama-Birmingham.

But that doesn't mean Clausen won't see time Saturday, and it definitely doesn't mean Ainge is assured of starting Tennessee's second game against Florida on Sept. 17.

The competition between Clausen and Ainge, the nephew of former Boston Celtics guard Danny Ainge, was so close during training camp that nothing is etched in stone at this point.

``I think both of them will win,'' Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer told reporters after announcing his decision over the weekend. ``Whoever starts the first game, it doesn't necessarily mean that's who will start the second game. In our opinion, we have two starting quarterbacks here. Both of them will play in the first ballgame.''

Clausen started the final four games of 2005, winning three and earning offensive MVP honors for his performance in Tennessee's Cotton Bowl victory over Texas A&M. The 6-3, 210-pounder finished the season with 949 passing yards, a 59.6 completion percentage and threw eight touchdowns against five interceptions.

``It's tough,'' Fulmer said. ``I could have flipped a coin, but I didn't want to do that. I wanted to make a decision from what I thought was right and I believe this is the right decision.''

--Agoura High junior right-hander Robert Stock, pitching for the USA Baseball Youth National Team at the IBAF Youth World Championships, set a tournament record for total strikeouts when he finished the event with 27.

Stock struck out eight in four innings of a 5-0 loss to Cuba in the championship game in Monterrey, Mexico. He finished the tournament 1-1 with a 1.29 ERA in 14 innings.

Stock, who was 2 for 2 with two RBI in a semifinal victory Saturday over Japan, was joined on the 16-under team by Crescenta Valley of La Crescenta junior catcher Chad Nacapoy. Nacapoy batted .333 with two home runs in the four games he played. The U.S. team went 7-1 at the tournament.

--Jason Hirsh from St. Francis of La Canada and Cal Lutheran earned Texas League Pitcher of the Year honors playing for the Houston Astros' Double-A affiliate in Corpus Christi (Texas), after going 12-8 with a 3.11 ERA and league-high 153 strikeouts through 26 starts.

--Casey Mulligan, a three-time All-Foothill League infielder at Valencia High, has verbally committed to play baseball at Cal State Fullerton.

Gerry Gittelson and Heather Gripp contributed.