ALMOST ON THE PHONEBOOK—Members of the Thousand Oaks Big League team came within one game of winning a national championship two weeks ago in South Carolina. The squad is made up of players ages 16 to18 from T.O., Westlake, Royal, Oaks Christian and Oxnard high schools. During its memorable run, the team went 16-3 and outscored its opponents 141-52. Last year on Sept. 2, the city of Thousand Oaks celebrated the accomplishments of the Conejo Valley Little League team with a parade. This year, the T.O. 16-18 year-old Big League team came one game from achieving another World Series win, and possibly another parade.

Tuesday night at Cisco’s Restaurant in Thousand Oaks, the Big League team gathered with its coaches and parents to celebrate the accomplishments of this year’s team, which made it to the World Series final in South Carolina.

Thousand Oaks lost, 10-5, in the championship game against the same South Carolina team that beat T.O. in the final game two years ago, 6-3. But T.O. had a memorable run along the way in which it won 16 games and lost only three while outscoring its opponents 141-52.

The Thousand Oaks team dedicated the season to Jan Heyne, who was one of two people killed by a gunman in Thousand Oaks on Memorial Day.

Heyne’s husband, Tim, who was also shot but survived, was president of Thousand Oaks Little League for five years from 1995 to 2000.

Jan Heyne had been on the league’s board of directors. Jeffrey Heyne, the couple’s oldest son, played on the 1994 junior team that won a championship.

Ed Kitchen, who was the head coach of this year’s group, coached that team as well.

Jan Heyne’s tragic and untimely death—she would have turned 51 Aug. 9 –—gave the T.O. team a different perspective about the importance of baseball and life.

“I made a point of making that clear, that their families, their friends, that comes first,” said Kitchen, who was 14 when he lost his father in a car accident. “Baseball is fun and it’s great. It’s a lifebuilding experience. But family and friends is life, that’s the main thing.” The Thousand Oaks team was basically an All-Star team with players from various schools, including Royal High School, Thousand Oaks, Westlake, Oaks Christian and Oxnard.

“There’s an electricity when you’re around that much talent,” said Kitchen, now 46. “I think the best thing that we did as coaches was not to interfere too much. We didn’t want to obstruct their abilities.”

Matt Ricatto, Ron Peters and Mike Sheehan (who’s a nephew of Hall-of-Fame manager Sparky Anderson) were assistant coaches with Kitchen. Current Thousand Oaks Little League President John A. Short III was at the gathering Tuesday night and he praised this year’s players and coaches.

“The folks in South Carolina really fell in love with our boys,” Short said. “That’s a testament to not only their upbringing by their families, but also to the coaching staff from Thousand Oaks Little League.”

David Fonseca starred at Thousand Oaks and was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals. He didn’t sign with them, however, and will play next season at Howard Junior College in Texas. He hopes to get drafted again.

“This was the best baseball I’ve ever played,” said Fonseca. “Everybody on this team is a clutch player and everybody had a role on this team.”

D.J. Smith, who starred at Royal, will be playing at UC Riverside next year and will be roommates with Phil Boscarino, another team member who also played at Royal.

“This was a blast,” Smith said. “It was the best time.”

Another Royal teammate who pitched for Thousand Oaks’ Big League team was Clayton Edwards. He’ll be playing at UC Santa Barbara next year.

Chris Auten from Oaks Christian will play at Cal State Northridge. Kellen Fick (Newbury Park) and Eric Guillen (Thousand Oaks) will play at Moorpark.

Daniel Flickinger, Brett Fick, Eric Blackwell, Joey Gerig, Stephen Notaro, Edwin Quirarte, Matt Lorenz and Cole Kahle rounded out the squad.

On the team’s website, Short, the league’s president, honored Jan Heyne.

“Jan will always be remembered as a vibrant, beautiful woman, both inside and outside,” he said. “Her positive attitude and spirit were contagious. She was an inspiration for everyone who knew her…”

Peters, one of Kitchen’s assistant coaches, said the players felt her presence.

“I think all the kids learned that every day is a gift and there’s no promises for tomorrow,” he said. “I think dedicating the season to her was noble. The kids played hard and sometimes it felt like we had somebody watching over us.”