MASTER'S NEW BULLDOG FORMER RELIEVER SPENCER MAKES MOST OF NEW ROLE AS STARTER.

Byline: Chris Cocoles Staff Writer

NEWHALL - Chad Spencer used to melt down from the pitfalls he now easily flicks away.

``I'd get upset at the most little things,'' The Master's College ace right-hander from Quartz Hill High said. ``I recognize that I have a job still to do when I'm out there.''

Spencer does his job with a determined spirit that led to eight complete games and 11 victories to lead the Golden State Athletic Conference.

Spencer will be a tough matchup for opposing teams this week when the GSAC-champion Mustangs host the NAIA Region II championship at Reese Field. The Master's (28-15-2), ranked No. 21 in the nation and the tournament's top seed, plays fourth-seeded Point Loma Nazarene at 3 p.m. today.

The winner of the four-day, double-elimination tournament advances to the West Coast super regional that determines an NAIA World Series bid.

When the Mustangs lost rubber-armed senior Brad Hackworth from their 2002 regional tournament runner-up team, a similarly dependable ace was uncovered from a once unlikely source: Spencer.

``I was never a starter (at Quartz Hill High or Antelope Valley College),'' said Spencer, whose forte was using above-average fastballs and wicked breaking pitches as a closer. But he wasn't the unflappable presence back then. Even last season as the Mustangs' No. 2 starter, he lacked the confidence to match Hackworth's bulldog mentality.

``He was trying to take over, overthrowing, trying to blow it by people,'' Mustangs catcher Matt Wagner said. ``Trying to dominate the game instead taking the game with how it is. And letting his team work for him.''

Spencer and Hackworth roomed together. After games Hackworth pitched and usually dominated, he jokingly reminded Spencer about his complete games, a number that eventually would reach eight this season.

``He could just go out and throw and throw and throw,'' Spencer said. ``Last year I didn't have a complete game at all. I'd start thinking to myself, `Maybe I don't have the endurance to throw a complete game.' I thought I did because I worked out really hard. I just couldn't get over that hump.''

Spencer was an inconsistent 5-3 last year, but coach Monte Brooks said the pitcher now realizes he can't control everything on the field.

``I would say his approach has been, `Look, I'm going to work with my catcher, and it's going to be me and him. I'm going to hit the glove the best I know with the pitches that have been called,' '' Brooks said. ``It was him wanting to do everything, putting too much pressure on himself.''

But Spencer did control his faith. He became a Christian shortly after graduating from Quartz Hill. He enrolled at The Master's as a sophomore three years ago but struggled in the classroom. He went to AVC strictly as a student. The year off from baseball allowed him to redirect his priorities.

He pitched with a chip on his shoulder. Now he throws with purpose. In his final two regular-season starts, he earned victories over ninth-ranked Biola, topped by a seven-inning, complete-game four-hitter that clinched the GSAC title.

``I'm kind of relaxed more,'' Spencer said. ``I really felt like I needed to do too much. This year, no matter what happened, success or nonsuccess, I was going to have fun. This might be my last year playing baseball. I want to remember it as me having fun. I don't want to look back and think, `Man, what a jerk I was.' ''

NAIA REGION II TOURNAMENT

Today's games (at Reese Field): Biola vs. Azusa Pacific, 11 a.m.; The Master's vs. Point Loma Nazarene, 3 p.m.

Wednesday: Biola/Azusa Pacific loser vs. The Master's/Point Loma loser, 11 a.m.; Biola/Azusa winner vs. The Master's/Point Loma winner, 3 p.m.

Thursday: Games at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m.

Friday: Championship game, 2 p.m. if necessary

CAPTION(S):

photo, box

Photo:

Chad Spencer has eight complete games and a conference-best 11 victories for The Master's.

John Lazar/Staff Photographer

Box:

NAIA REGION II TOURNAMENT (see text)