From the fields in Moorpark to the batting cages in Camarillo to the dugouts in Westlake Village, they were watching.

Young softball players across the county have spent the past two weeks rooting for Camarillo High graduate Jessica Mendoza to bring home from Beijing a gold medal to add to the one she earned at the 2004 Athens Olympics.

But Mendoza and Team USA had to settle for silver after being upset Thursday by Japan 3-1 in softball's last Olympic appearance for at least eight years.

Although Mendoza expressed disappointment, it didn't take any glimmer off her status in the eyes of little girls in the area.

They still view her as the approachable Olympian with a warm personality who always finds time to sign an autograph, give a batting lesson or offer a word of advice.

"You are not going to find one kid who plays who doesn't love Jessica Mendoza. Everybody wants to be like her," said Westlake's Bill Dinino, whose 13-year-old daughter, Emily, plays for the So Cal Jets.

"Jessica in my mind is one in a million. You can't duplicate that unless they start cloning her. You can only use it as a role model."

Despite a busy schedule that includes humanitarian efforts, educational causes and television commentary along with her softball, Mendoza, 27, rarely turns down a chance to help up-and-coming players.

When recent Simi Valley High School graduate Sam Fischer was seeking advice on her hitting, she asked a friend for Mendoza's phone number.

"I thought it would be like a celebrity and I wouldn't hear from her for a couple of months, but it wasn't like that at all," Fischer said. "She was totally just as excited as I was about getting together. It was awesome."

Mendoza's playing career started in the Camarillo Girls Softball Association, but Jeff Berman knew that wasn't a guarantee she would throw out the first pitch at the league's opening ceremonies last year.

But Mendoza not only accepted the invitation, she also stayed for nearly three hours while her family members were left waiting to go out to dinner.

"She went above and beyond by not turning away any of the kids who wanted to meet her," said Berman, the association's director of player development.

"We have 400 in our league, and there were a ton of others who came to the event. But she needed to make sure everybody had at least a couple of seconds with her."

Mendoza's close friend and former teammate, Brooke Lambert, gives hitting lessons at Future Stars of America batting cages in Camarillo and often asks Mendoza to drop by when she's in town.

"Jessica's favorite thing is to be able to inspire kids to get better, and they love watching her hit and listening to her talk," Lambert said. "She always says the same thing: It's not just going all out in softball; it's going all out in anything you want to do.'"

Part of what makes Mendoza so effective is her genuine approach. The emotion in the Stanford graduate's voice while discussing the sport and personal examples she cites resonate with the younger generation.

"There is nothing but positive that comes from Jessica, and they can see that," said Gary Keohohou, who coaches the Ventura County-based Pumas 18 Gold team.

"Jessica lives for giving back, and she is all over the county helping anyone she can. There are not too many like that around."

Although another gold medal was her goal, Mendoza plans to continue being an ambassador for softball. Her first objective is getting the sport voted back into the Olympics, so future players have a chance to experience similar Olympic dreams.

"The county has a tremendous resource in her," Berman said. "We need to treasure that for as long as she is willing to give us her time."