Pages 1-92 - Creighton University Bluejays

The shining moment for the Creighton baseball program came during
a magical season in 1991, as the Bluejays advanced to the College World
Series in its hometown for the first and only time in school history. Making
only its third NCAA Tournament appearance, the Jays swept through the
West I Regional in Los Angeles, Calif. Creighton defeated Pepperdine, Minnesota,
top-seed and host USC and Hawaii in the regional final to advance
to the CWS.
With the support of its home fans at Rosenblatt Stadium, seventh-seeded
Creighton fed off their energy in upsetting second-seeded Clemson in the
first round, 8-4. Then in an epic battle against MVC rival Wichita State, the
Bluejays suffered a heartbreaking 3-2, 12-inning loss. Junior Steve Bruns,
the potential game-tying run, was thrown out at home plate in the bottom
of the 12th to squash the Jays’ hopes. 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 Jays, 11-3, for the
Shockers’ eighth win in eight games against CU during the season.
The 1991 squad re-wrote the record books, with many marks still standing
today, including the 51-win total reached during the season. Creighton
finished as the nation’s top offense, hitting a school-record .355 during
the year. The Jays also broke and still hold school records in runs (667),
hits (904), RBIs (611), doubles (184), triples (60), home runs (107), total
bases (1,529) and slugging percentage (.601). Every Creighton regular hit
above the .330 mark during the team’s remarkable offensive season.
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 Jays with an incredible .449 batting average.
He also 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 CU-best 132 innings of
work to earn second-team All-America accolades from Collegiate Baseball.
Joining Stahoviak and on the all-MVC first team were junior centerfielder
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 RBIs.
Six other Bluejays were named to the second-team all-Valley squad and
a total of six players from the 1991 team went on to play in the major
leagues: Stahoviak, Jones, Heathcott, sophomore Chad McConnell and
freshmen Alan Benes and Kimera Bartee. Head coach Jim Hendry left the
program following the season to take a position with the expansion Florida
Marlins.
2010 Bl u e j a y Ba s e b a l l
Bluejay NCAA Tournament Teams
1991 College World Series
West I Regional Results
May 24, 1991 Creighton 5, Pepperdine 3 Los Angeles, Calif.
May 25, 1991 Creighton 8, Minnesota 3 Los Angeles, Calif.
May 26, 1991 Creighton 8, USC 7 (10 inn.) Los Angeles, Calif.
May 27, 1991 Creighton 15, Hawaii 8 Los Angeles, Calif.
College World Series Results
June 1, 1991 Creighton 8, Clemson 4 Omaha, Neb.
June 3, 1991 Wichita State 3, Creighton 2 (12 inn.) Omaha, Neb.
June 4, 1991 Creighton 13, Long Beach State 4 Omaha, Neb.
June 6, 1991 Wichita State 11, Creighton 3 Omaha, Neb.
Final Record: 51-22
1991 Major League Baseball Draft
1st Rd. (27) Scott Stahoviak, 1B-3B Minnesota Twins
8th Rd. (220) Dax Jones, OF San Francisco Giants
9th Rd. (237) Steve Hinton, OF-1B Kansas City Royals
13th Rd. (347) Ryan Martindale, C Cleveland Indians
13th Rd. (359) Mike Heathcott, RHP Chicago White Sox
50th Rd. (1300) Bobby Langer, SS Chicago White Sox
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