The 28th season opener in Ed Cheff's reign at Lewis-Clark State might have been an example of the deceiving nature of season openers. After the game, Cheff insisted that his pitchers are better than they looked while his hitters aren't as powerful as they appeared.

Fifty-five more regular-season contests should clear up the confusion.

But this much was obvious: The Warriors have their customary potential for yet another national title run. They scooted past Central Washington 12-6 in a Friday-afternoon contest witnessed by 225 chilled spectators at Harris Field.

LCSC bopped 15 hits, including three home runs, and scored in every inning but the fifth. Junior second baseman Justin Fuller, who missed last spring's NAIA World Series due to injury, provided two hits and three RBI.

Meanwhile, three Warrior pitchers, working a preplanned split, found only lukewarm success. A potent Central Washington lineup collected 12 hits and smacked two homers.

So what should we make of all this?

"We've got to see all these guys; there's a bunch of them," Cheff said. "It's going to be awhile before we sort it all out."

The coach was specifically referring to the pitching rotation. But the same thing could be said, to a lesser extent, of L-C's batting order.

Offensively, nearly all the Warriors were productive. Fuller and newcomer Anthony Slagle cracked two-run doubles early on, and catchers Tyler Best and Seth McCauley both zapped solo home runs. L-C's other bomb came from right fielder Daniel Ruberte.

So maybe these Warriors have homer power?

"Not really -- not much," Cheff said. "We don't want to fall into that trap, because that's not what we are."

L-C played errorless defense, and converted two double plays. The Warriors also closed the game with a heady sequence. With two outs, the Wildcats' Brian Thomson (an L-C transfer) singled to left, and the throw home to get the runner from second was late. But McCauley then gunned to second to catch Thomson, who was hustling for an extra base.

Rob Williams and Kyle Allen, LCSC's first two pitchers, gathered a combined five strikouts and three earned runs. But they also allowed a homer apiece.

The third hurler, submariner Scott Fairbanks, notched three straight strikeouts -- on just 12 pitches -- when he entered in the eighth. But Fairbanks also worked the three-run ninth, the Wildcats' most productive inning of the day.

To be fair, this CWU squad appears to have a flair for hitting.

"I think we've got the potential to have more pop overall in the lineup than even last year's team, which swung it pretty good," Wildcats coach Desi Storey said. "I hope we cut down on the strikeouts this year."

This is the fourth straight season L-C has made its Harris Field debut against the visitors from Ellensburg. This series allows the Wildcats to escape the snow on the eastern slope of the Cascades.

And "it gives us an opportunity to play at home," Cheff said. "When the weather is like this and you can play at home, it's kind of stupid to spend $10,000 and go play three games in some place. Those are $10,000 trips that you make to California."

The teams will play a doubleheader today, beginning at noon. Ben Newton will start the first game while Clay Johnson will open the second.