Photo by: Creighton Athletics
Baseball's 1991 Squad Becomes First Team Inducted into Creighton Athletics Hall of Fame
2/22/2016 7:30:00 AM | Creighton Athletics, Baseball, General, Ath. Development, Athletic Communications, Special Events
OMAHA, Neb. —The Creighton University Athletic Hall of Fame will add the first squad to its ranks as the 1991 Creighton Baseball team will be inducted as a unit on Saturday, April 16 at D.J. Sokol Arena inside the Wayne and Eileen Ryan Athletic Center.
The 1991 Bluejays reached the College World Series and finished with a 51-22 record, including a 9-4 mark in the postseason. The 51-win total remains a Creighton program record for victories in a season. Creighton finished 1991 as the nation's top offense, hitting a school-record .355 during the year. The Bluejays also broke and still hold school records for runs (667), hits (904), RBI (611), doubles (184), triples (60), home runs (107), total bases (1,529) and slugging percentage (.601). Every Creighton regular hit .330 or higher during the team's remarkable offensive season.
Making just its third NCAA Tournament appearance in program history, the team's journey to Rosenblatt began with a sweep of the West I Regional in Los Angeles, Calif. Creighton defeated Pepperdine, Minnesota, and host and top-seed USC to advance to the regional final against Hawai'i. The Bluejays then took out the Rainbows, 15-8, to advance to the CWS.
With the support of its home fans at Rosenblatt Stadium, the seventh-seeded Bluejays fed off the energy in upsetting second-seeded Clemson in the first round, 8-4. In an epic battle against MVC rival Wichita State in the second round, the Bluejays suffered a heartbreaking 3-2, 12-inning loss. In an elimination game, Creighton responded to rock Long Beach State, 13-4, to earn one more shot at the Shockers. However, Creighton's dream season ended shy of the national championship game, as Wichita State defeated the Bluejays 11-3.
Individually, junior Scott Stahoviak became the program's first National Player of the Year, earning the award from the American Baseball Coaches Association. Also named the MVC Player of the Year and a First Team All-American, Stahoviak led the Bluejays with an incredible .449 batting average. He set school records with 120 hits, 87 runs, 199 total bases and a .600 on-base percentage.
On the mound, senior Mike Heathcott turned in a season for the ages, winning a school-record 15 games and logging a Creighton-best 132 innings of work to earn Second Team All-America accolades from Collegiate Baseball. Joining Stahoviak and Heathcott on the All-MVC First Team were outfielder Dax Jones and designated hitter Steve Hinton. Jones still holds the Creighton single-season record with 11 triples, while Hinton is the record-holder with 278 at-bats and 90 RBI.
Six members of the 31-person squad (28 players and three coaches) have previously been inducted to the Creighton University Athletic Hall of Fame on individual merits (head coach Jim Hendry – 2001, Stahoviak – 2005, Heathcott – 2006, Rick Freehling – 2009, Alan Benes – 2011 and Chad McConnell – 2015).
The Saturday, April 16th event starts with a social hour at 6 pm and dinner to follow at 7 pm. Creighton's coaches and student-athletes from the 2015-16 academic year will also be honored at the event and Jim & Kathy Simpson will receive the 2016 Joseph J. Vinardi "Jaybackers of the Year" award. Additionally, the 2016 Rev. Carl M. Reinert, S.J., Female and Male Scholar-Athletes of the Year will be awarded. Banquet tickets are $50 per person or $500 for a table of 10.
To make your reservation online, click on this link: http://www.creighton.edu/athleticevents. For more information about the event, contact Rachel Grosvenor at 402-280-2720 or by e-mail at athleticevents@creighton.edu.
The 1991 Bluejays reached the College World Series and finished with a 51-22 record, including a 9-4 mark in the postseason. The 51-win total remains a Creighton program record for victories in a season. Creighton finished 1991 as the nation's top offense, hitting a school-record .355 during the year. The Bluejays also broke and still hold school records for runs (667), hits (904), RBI (611), doubles (184), triples (60), home runs (107), total bases (1,529) and slugging percentage (.601). Every Creighton regular hit .330 or higher during the team's remarkable offensive season.
Making just its third NCAA Tournament appearance in program history, the team's journey to Rosenblatt began with a sweep of the West I Regional in Los Angeles, Calif. Creighton defeated Pepperdine, Minnesota, and host and top-seed USC to advance to the regional final against Hawai'i. The Bluejays then took out the Rainbows, 15-8, to advance to the CWS.
With the support of its home fans at Rosenblatt Stadium, the seventh-seeded Bluejays fed off the energy in upsetting second-seeded Clemson in the first round, 8-4. In an epic battle against MVC rival Wichita State in the second round, the Bluejays suffered a heartbreaking 3-2, 12-inning loss. In an elimination game, Creighton responded to rock Long Beach State, 13-4, to earn one more shot at the Shockers. However, Creighton's dream season ended shy of the national championship game, as Wichita State defeated the Bluejays 11-3.
Individually, junior Scott Stahoviak became the program's first National Player of the Year, earning the award from the American Baseball Coaches Association. Also named the MVC Player of the Year and a First Team All-American, Stahoviak led the Bluejays with an incredible .449 batting average. He set school records with 120 hits, 87 runs, 199 total bases and a .600 on-base percentage.
On the mound, senior Mike Heathcott turned in a season for the ages, winning a school-record 15 games and logging a Creighton-best 132 innings of work to earn Second Team All-America accolades from Collegiate Baseball. Joining Stahoviak and Heathcott on the All-MVC First Team were outfielder Dax Jones and designated hitter Steve Hinton. Jones still holds the Creighton single-season record with 11 triples, while Hinton is the record-holder with 278 at-bats and 90 RBI.
Six members of the 31-person squad (28 players and three coaches) have previously been inducted to the Creighton University Athletic Hall of Fame on individual merits (head coach Jim Hendry – 2001, Stahoviak – 2005, Heathcott – 2006, Rick Freehling – 2009, Alan Benes – 2011 and Chad McConnell – 2015).
The Saturday, April 16th event starts with a social hour at 6 pm and dinner to follow at 7 pm. Creighton's coaches and student-athletes from the 2015-16 academic year will also be honored at the event and Jim & Kathy Simpson will receive the 2016 Joseph J. Vinardi "Jaybackers of the Year" award. Additionally, the 2016 Rev. Carl M. Reinert, S.J., Female and Male Scholar-Athletes of the Year will be awarded. Banquet tickets are $50 per person or $500 for a table of 10.
To make your reservation online, click on this link: http://www.creighton.edu/athleticevents. For more information about the event, contact Rachel Grosvenor at 402-280-2720 or by e-mail at athleticevents@creighton.edu.
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