CLU OUT FOR BETTER NCAA RESULT THIS TIME; KINGSMEN TRAVEL TO SOUTH FOR DIVISION III GAME.

Byline: Patrick Hipes Daily News Staff Writer

Adam Rauch says not a day goes by that he doesn't remember what happened that ominous evening.

Not many could forget. In 1996, Cal Lutheran took a 5-1 lead into the eighth inning of the NCAA Division III championship game against William Patterson (N.J.), a team it had beaten in an earlier round.

Alas, the Kingsmen allowed six runs in the bottom of the eighth, and Rauch lined out to second for the final out of the game, a 6-5 loss.

It was the second consecutive crushing final that CLU lost to Patterson. In 1992, it beat the Kingsmen with a three-run home run in the bottom of the ninth for a 3-1 win.

``It was the greatest experience of my life and at the same time it was heartbreaking,'' said Rauch, a senior outfielder who's hitting .415 with 31 RBI. ``Until this day I cringe.''

CLU will have a chance at redemption beginning today, when it opens the NCAA Division III baseball championships in Salem, Va., against Aurora (Ill.).

The Kingsmen (28-13) have made the postseason 17 times since their inception in 1962, including all seven years as a Division III school. One of the top offensive teams in the country, CLU took the West Regional title last weekend at Abilene, Texas, to advance to Salem, where the memory of two last-minute losses is fresh.

``There's not a day that goes by that I don't think about it,'' said Rauch.

But CLU head coach Marty Slimak said revenge is not a motivating factor for his team - at least not in his eyes.

``Even when we lost, we could still hold our heads up high,'' said Slimak, who in five years has a better winning percentage (151-61-2, .710) than any other coach in school history. ``For us to go back it's because it's a goal we've set. We're not going back to avenge anything.''

He's baaack: The often beleaguered Kingsmen pitching staff will get an added dose of experience in Salem.

Eric Kiszczak, the team's ace at the beginning of the season before a strained ligament in his throwing elbow limited him to just nine innings all season, has been cleared to play and threw in the bullpen Tuesday before the team left town.

Kiszczak, a junior from Lake Havasu, Ariz., was 1-0 with a 2.89 ERA in just two appearances this season. He has thrown 186-1/3 innings in his career at CLU, compiling 20 wins, one behind Mike Clark for the all-time mark.

``Now that we have him back, it gives us some options,'' Slimak said. ``Even at 70 or 80 percent he's better than two or three of our regular guys.''

Ho-hum: The trip to Salem will be nothing new for first baseman/designated hitter Jake Ganajian, who will be making his third appearance at the Division III championships with three different teams.

In 1995, he made his first collegiate start with La Verne against CLU in the West Regional. After a year at Pasadena City College, he advanced with Chapman University, which also beat the Kingsmen in the West Regional.

He had a pinch-hit single in his only at-bat last weekend in a 6-4 victory over McMurry University.

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PHOTO Cal Lutheran baseball coach Marty Slimak boasts a .710 winning percentage in his five years at the helm - best in school history.

Daily News File Photo