Ok....I'm more of a lurker and generally avoid predictions. I'm a bit superstitious and don't want to bring on bad karma or appear delusional. But I'll go out on a limb and take the bait....
There is optimism at NP this year for a number of reasons:
1) Coaching - Coach Matt Goldfield takes the head coaching helm this year. He has many years of coaching experience at NP, but this is his first stab at the head job. He is well respected by the players, and is giving a sense of direction after NP suffering the last couple years of a revolving door at head coaching spot.
Returning pitching coach Rich Rodriguez brings over a decade of MLB pitching experience, along with great chemistry and honesty to his coaching. His ability to maximize the talent he has to work with is unmatched and the kids listen and do what he says, making them believe in themselves. His ability to fix flaws in mechanics and techniques has made a huge difference. Which leads to #2 below...
2) Pitching - In a long season, depth is a key factor. Sherfy (Oregon) and Brower (Cal Poly) again fill the top spots in the rotation for the Panthers. Both were very effective last year and have only improved since then. But NP has several arms behind them that would be legitimate #2/#3 guys on other teams. With some squads, you can knock out the starter and then feed on the leftovers - a strategy that won't work when facing NP this year. No first round MLB draftees here, but sufficient talent and depth to stay in every game.
3) Hitting - The single biggest area of improvement over last year. NP was a very young team last year, and a number of the young bats now have a year of varsity experience under their belt. This year's team is not built to knock down fences in the outfield, but showed notably more power in the fall/winter than was present last year. Similar to the pitching situation, a solid lineup from #1 - #9, with well-coached situation hitting as a strong point.
4) Experience - Three of the returning seniors were starters on the team that beat Bishop Gorman (28W, 1L) two years ago. NP returned last year, and took second place to B.G. after major wins over powerhouses Galena (#2 in Nevada) and Vauxhall (Canadian national academy). While the past is no indicator of the future, the core of the team has regularly faced and had success against national talent, so the Panthers aren't likely to be intimidated by anyone on their schedule.
BOF - In regards to your not being sure why NP is listed by the LA Times, I'm sure it's a mis-print and I would strongly encourage you to have your team bring up freshman each time you face NP....
Disclosure: the above assessment includes any biases I may have based on my association with NP...