Baseball to honor 50th anniversary of 1972 national championship Saturday
Mesa, AZ – It has been 50 years since their major accomplishment, but the members of MCC's national championship baseball team will be honored with rings to commemorate their feat Saturday.
Members of the 1972 NJCAA national championships squad will gather as the current T-Bird squad take on GateWay in an ACCAC contest at noon. The ceremony will start at about 11:40.
"It is so important that the current players know who came before them and started the T-Bird tradition," said MCC head baseball coach Tony Cirelli. "The Alumni have always and will continue to be, an important part of our program. We are really looking forward to meeting the alumni and having them share their baseball and life experiences with us. We are proud and honored to recognize them on the 50th anniversary of their National Championship."
Expected to be on hand are the following:
Stew Colton
Jeff Oscarson
Jamie Inglish
Jeff Straine
Julio Delgado
Corky Gowens
Rick Diveley
Edward Draper
Coaches: Jim Frye, Jeff Pentland
Each will receive a national championship ring to highlight the event.
That year, the Hokams, as they were known at the time, produced a 41-13 record in winning the title. They beat State College of Florida, 4-2, for the crown.
It was actually the last of three consecutive national titles for Mesa, and the final one until the T-Birds captured another in 2014.