Indians Assigned Fullerton Star

Tony Miranda, who helped Cal State Fullerton to the NCAA baseball World Series title last week in Omaha, Neb., was assigned Monday to the Spokane Indians.

Miranda, 22, a senior outfielder, who hit .452 in the College World Series as the leadoff batter for the Titans, was drafted in the 24th round by the Indians’ parent Kansas City Royals.

The Indians are undergoing training at Seafirst Stadium.

Miranda, from Lynwood, Calif., has a unique combination of power and speed. He had 14 home runs, including two in the 1995 CWS, and 22 stolen bases in his Fullerton career. He hit .352 during the 1995 season and was named to the All-Big West Conference first team.

Track and field

The direction in which the Washington State University women’s program is headed should be decided next week.

Marcia Saneholtz, WSU senior associate athletic director, said through a university spokesman the school is looking at several alternatives in the wake of the resignation of women’s coach Rob Cassleman.

Prime options are to consolidate the men’s and women’s programs, or to maintain separate programs and hire a new women’s coach.

Softball

The Amateur Softball Association has declared the titanium bat “inappropriate” for use in modified and fastpitch play, and outlawed it pending further study.

Spokane Metro ASA commissioner Fuzzy Buckenberger received a directive from the national office Monday stating preliminary examination of tests on the performance of bats made with Timetal 15-3 and Teledyne 15-333 titanium alloy led to its decision.

No mention was made of the bats’ use in slowpitch play.

However, because of safety concerns, several area associations have banned the bats from their programs. The Spokane Metro Softball Association took that action Sunday, ruling them illegal for slowpitch as well as modified and fastpitch.

Earlier, the Coeur d’Alene Park Department and Quad Park complex in Post Falls, which run slowpitch programs, banned the bats.

The bats, which cost $350 and more, are considered home run machines. Because the balls come off them much quicker than off a regular bat, the big fear is that an infielder or pitcher will be injured, unable to react by the time the ball arrives.

College rodeo

Karen Young of Washington State won one event and had a top-10 finish in another as the first round of the College National Finals Rodeo wound up in Bozeman, Mont.

Young won the breakaway roping at 2.6 seconds. Her time of 8.5 seconds was eighth in goat tying. Kelli Fowers of Weber State won in 7.4 seconds.

Walla Walla Community College is fourth after the first round in the men’s team competition with 70 points. Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo leads with 145. In the women’s event, Lewis-Clark State is fifth with 70 points. Vernon (Texas) Regional Junior College leads with 130.

Tyler Keith of Cal Poly-SLO is the men’s all-around leader after winning the first round of calf roping with a time of 9.5 seconds and tying for third in steer wrestling with a 5.0 clocking. Justin Davis of Montana State won the steer wrestling at 4.6.

Mandy Mankin of Wyoming is the women’s all-around leader. She finished fourth in both breakaway roping and goat tying.

The rodeo runs through Sunday with a championship go-round featuring the top contestants from the first two rounds.

Biathlon

Matt Seeley of Missoula won the eighth annual Post Falls Biathlon on Sunday, covering the 5-kilometer run, 30K bike and 5K run in 1 hour, 21 minutes and 25 seconds. Top area finisher was Brian Roberts of Cheney, sixth in 1:27.16.

Spokane’s Kelle Vigeland was the women’s winner in 1:38.34.

, DataTimes MEMO: Changed from the Idaho edition.