\Ved;iesday.
March 23, 1955
MAROOX AND GOLL'
PAGK THREE
Elon Squad To Face Guilford In
On The
Sidelines
By JOEL BAILEY
Hamrick To Captain Baseball Team
Like the gu>
vs who argue about
Spotting
spring
the first robin in the
there have been heated ar-
uraen'ts concerning the appearance
of the first baseball on the Elon
carapus. Some authorities swear
that the horsehide made its first
appearaiice outside East Dormi
tory. while others seem to be of
the conviction that the spheroid
first showed up on the floor of the
old gym in North Dorm or along
side South Dormitory where a
number of the varsity baseballers
make their home.
Regardless of where and when
it came forth on' the local scene,
the moment has finally arrived.
Local baseball aspirants can be
seen streaking around the field or
trudging through the gymnasium
when the frequent precipitation
halts outside activities, as was the
case on several days last week.
Perhaps some of the more youth
ful and newer students at Elon
will wonder why Elon does not
play such traditional rivals as
Catawba, Lenoir Rhyne, Appalach
ian and Western Carolina, so here
an explanation of the baseball
set-up in the North State Confer
ence. which for the past three
years has operated under a split
league arrangement.
The Conference is divided into
two groups, with the four teams
listed above comprising the West
ern Division, while Elon, Guilford,
High Point. East Carolina and At
lantic Christian are grouped to
gether in the East Division. Each
team meets other opponents in its
division four times during the reg
ular season, and the league champ
ionship is settled by a two-out-of-
three series between the division
champs. Elon’s diamond forces
have captured the Conference cup
four times since 1949, which clear
ly illustrates the power of past
Elon nines.
This year’s team should be an
other powerful outfit, for it num
bers twelve lettermen and a host
of hopeful freshmen, from whom
Coach Doe Mathis will choose his
starters. Lettermen back in the
infield include Larry Dofflemyer
at second base, Nick Thompson at
shortstop, and All on Myers at
third base, but the first base posi
tion appears wide open. Bobby
Green, Don Packard and Paul
Watts patrolled the outer pastures
last year, and enemy hitters face
a tough task as they try to push
hits through this fleet-footed out
field trio.
It is among the battery forces
hat Coach Mathis finds most joy,
however, for Homer Hobgood is
back to bid for the catching as
signment, and there are five sen
ior veterans on hand for the pitch
ing tasks, including Captain Hank
Hamrick, Sherrill Hall, Luther
Conger, Charlie Swicegood and
Ronnie McIntyre. Four of this
group were All Conference last
year, and from all reports this
pitching staff should have enemy
hitters shivering in their . . spikes.
The freshman hopefuls should
give Coach Mathis a solid bench,
and now we get around to the fans.
If fan support keeps picking up.
the attendance figures should be
astronomical, but we doubt that
such will happen. The fans stayed
away in droves from the football
contests, and then they partially
vindicated themselves as they
thronged to the basketball games.
That made a definite difference,
so let’s all jump in behind the
baseball squad and give it our
solid support. The field is only
a short stroll from the campus and
is easily found. Let’s swell the
stands for the opener and then
continue to support the local nine
for the remainder of the season.
* * *
Although baseball is the chief
interest at the present time, foot
ball is still being played in this
■ection. Our Elon eleven journey
ed down to Presbyterian some
weeks back and scored an easy
33 to 13 victory over the Blue
Stockings in a game that climaxed
winter practice. In fact, the scrim
mage game took on the aspects of
a route as the Christians scored
almost at will.
Now comes the report that the
same Presbyterian squad walloped
Lenoir Rhyne by three or four
touchdowns in a later off-season
scrimmage game. It doesn’t take a
football strategist to figure out
that this spells a beneh-load of
trouble for Elon football foes in
’.■iS. Remember last year’s Lenoir
Rhyne contest when a good Christ
ian squad played a good game and
won by a 13-7 margin.
Hank Hamrick, veteran left-
handed pitcher from Draper, will
captain the Elon College Christ
ians through the 1955 diamond
season, according to an announce
ment made by Coach Doc Mathis
last week.
The clever little southpaw, one
of five senior mound stars on the
Elon roster, was named to the
captaincy by vote of his team
mates in the annual squad election,
and the honor comes as a climax
to a fine career that was broken
by two years of mihtary service
Hamrick, who has gained All-
Conference honors in both base
ball and basketball, came to Elon
in the fall of 1949 and played both
the court and diamond sport
through the 1950 and 1951 sea
sons before he was called to the
army for a tour of duty that in
cluded eighteen months of Kor
ean combat.
Returning to the campus in the
fall of 1953, the Draper boy picked
up where he left off in both sports.
He has just concluded his fourth
season of basketball, and last
spring he was one of four Christ
ian hurlers to win All-Conference on
posts.
During his freshman
■'•I
(laptaiii Hank Ilaiiirifk
aseball Opener
Quaker S(jiia(l To Invade
Local Field On April 2nd
The Christian baseballe'-s, hanc'.icappi'd in early sea^-m workouts
,')y the almost constant rain, will face Chiilford Quakers in the
opening encounter of the 1955 diamond season, the opener being
carded for the Elon field on Saturday afternoon, .\pril 2nd.
This marks the first of si.xteen North State Conferenie games
that show on the Christian schedule, which has been released in
incomplete form by Coach Doc Mathis. The card at present calls
for twenty games, with the possibility that two additional contests
may be scheduled.
The sixteen Conference battles include four games each with
Kast Carolina, Atlantic Christian, (Juilford and High Point, with the
Eastern Division title to be decided on a percentage basis and
with the eastern winner due to h.itlle the Western Division win
ners in a best-two-of-three series for the Conference title.
Coach Mathis found it difficult this year to line up non-Confer-
?nce battles with other college nines, with the North Carolina
"Big Four" teams turning a cold shoulder to proposed battles with
Klon. Only non-Conference college nine on the card is the Wiliams
College outfit, W'hich will be here on April 4th and 5th during a
southern tour.
The Christians also have a pair
I of exhibition battles with Caro
lina League professional teams,
'..uing carded to play the Bur-Gra
Pirates at C.raham on April Kith
and the Greensboro outfit at
Greensboro on April 18th. Two
the
staff that pitched the .'ng for three championship teams.
Christians to anrth.T loop crown. llathrr : mall for a pitcher at
season Last year, in his first campaign 5 feet 10 inches and 165 pounds.
Hamrick teamed with Lefty Taylor returi lng from the army, he I .tmrick h;is made up for his lack
and C. K. Siler in a "Big Three ,.jjjg ppur" pitch- of size wii.i a fighting heart and
that pitched Elon to the Confer- , -.u , ■ k i .i, t i
, ■ , . j ins staff that again clinched the with a s!oc: in trade tnat includes
ence championship, and then as ® ®
a sophomore in 1951 he joined ^’orth State honors for Elon. giv- plenty of speed, a good curve and
with Taylor and Austin Brewer ing him the unique record of pitch- excellent (ontrol.
Elon Cagers Set ISeiv Tecnii Mark
In Scoring As Maddox Leads Way
Hohi^ood Ijicrlod
I'ootbdU ]je(i(lor
Homer Hobsjood, who won
All-State honors at center for
the Klon C'olles'e football squad
last season, will captain the
Fighting Christian gridmen
through the coming 1955 cam
paign. Nick Theos. a junior
guard will be alternate captain.
Hobgood. who hails from Ox
ford. and •Theos, a native of
Charleston, S. C.. were elected
recently by vote of their team
mates to lead the Christian
squad for the coming year. Both
boys have lettered for the past
two years, and both played a
big part in the Christians* suc-
cesful 1954 season. .
I-
(Jiristian Stars
On Honor Teams
Dave Maddox and Ed Juratic,
the two pace-s?!tters in Elon
cage scoring through most of
the 1954-55 season, each topped
off the season by winning All-
Conference honors, with Mad
dox being named to the All-
Conference squad that was
named at the close of the regu
lar season play and Juratic be
ing chosen on the All-Tourna-
ment squad picked at the close
of the loop tournament.
Maddox, whose driving play
throughout the regular season
enabled him to lead the Christ
ian scoring for the year, never
really got hot in the Conference
tournament. Juratic then picked
up the slack and came within
one point of setting a new indi
vidual mark for a single game
when he hit 35 points against
Guilford.
The Elon Christians, who wound year as they held all opposing
up their 1954-55 basketball sea-.'teams to an average of 73.8 points
son with a mark of 17 wins and 11
Ten-Game Football Schedule Listed
By Coach Varney For 1955 Season
The Fighting Christian football,
squad will face a rugged ten-game
schedule during the coming 19551
gridiron campaign, marking the
first time since 1952 that the Elon
gridders have been able to line
up ten games. There were only
eight games in 1953, and last year’s
outfit played only nine contests.
The new 1955 schedule, which
'A’as released by Coach Sid Varney
recently, comprises one of the
toughest season assignments ever
faced by a Maroon and Gold squad,
and one of the roughest engage
ments of the entire season will be
roet in the opening game with Mis-
si^ippi Southern at Hattiesburg,
Miss., on Saturday, September
17th.
The Mississippi Southern out
fit has very definitely been a "Big
Time” contender in recent years,
for the Deep South squad has
"pened the season in each of the
past two years by defeating power
ful Alabama. Reports from down
Mississippi way are that the team
'"ill boast a line that averages
better than 225 pounds from tackle
•o tackle
Following the Deep South in-
1955 GRID SCHEDULE
Sept. 17—Miss. Southern, away.
Sept. 24—The Citadel, away.
Oct. 1—Appalachian, home.
Oct. 8—East Carolina, away.
Oct. 15—Newberry, home.
Oct 22—Catawba, away.
Oct. 29—W.C.T.C., home,
jjov. 5—Naval App., home.
Nov. 12—Lenoir Rhyne, away.
Nov. 19—Guilford, away.
vasion, the Elon gridders will
travel to Charleston, S.C., to face
The Citadel Bulldogs for a second
successive year, after which Coach
Varney’s lads will swing into the
thick of their North State Confer
ence campaign. Six Conference
battles will be interspersed by a
pair of non-
i-Conference tilts with
Newberry and Naval Apprentice.
Both of these non-Conference
Hilts wiU offer sharp tests for the
Christians this fall. The Newbe^
Indians, who have romped for de
cisive victories over Elon in both
1953 and 1954 are reported to
have most of their squad return
ing The Naval Apprentice outfit
which hails from Newport News
Va., appeared frequently on Elon
schedules in past years.
Advance information is that
many of the North State Confer
ence opponents will be improved
over their last year's teams, and
that will spell trouble tor the
Christians, who managed four vic
tories, one defeat and one tie in
their six loop battles last fall.
The Christian gridmen com
pleted a successful series of win
ter drills just prior to the annual
spring holidays, climaxing their
off-season workouts with a jaunt
Clinton, S.C., where the Elon
squad chalked a decisive 33 to 13
win over the Presbyterian College
Blue Stockings. Grape-vine re
ports on the campus last week
were that the Presbyterian outfit
later rolled over Lenoir Bhyne in
another practice encounter.
The bright spot for Elon as local
supporters contemplate the rugged
1955 schedule is the fact that
Coach Sid Varney lost only two
men by graduation from last sea
son, and eighteen lettermen are
expected to report for the work
outs next fall.
defeats set a new Elan team scor
ing mark for the year with an
average of 80.2 points per game,
>5reaking by nearly five points per
game the old mark that was set
in 1953.
The Christians al^o turned in
the best defensive mark in the
.\orth State Conference for the
Intramural
Basketeers
In Tonrney
The Day Student basketball
squad, which emerged winner in
the intramural play-offs here at
Elon, journeyed over to High
Point on Thursday of last week
and advanced to the finals of the
first annual North State Confer
ence intramural tournament. Each
school entered its intramural
champions.
The Elon outfit toppled the
Catawba intramural champs by a
47-32 margin the first round, while
High Point was advancing over
Guilford. The High Pointers then
defeated Elon by a 77-60 score in
the finals, while Guilford de
feated Catawba in a consolation
battle to annex third place. Glenn
Walker and Dickie Routh topped
the Elon scoring in the two games.
The scores of the two battles fol
low;
(FIRST ROUND)
Catawba (32)
yer game. The season totals showed
Elon with a total of 2.246 points in
28 games, compared with 2,066
points for alt Christian opponents.
Leading individual scorers for
the Christians were Co-Captain
Dave Maddox and Ed Juratic, both
of whom approached the 500-point
mark for the year. IVIaddox hit 491
points for an average of 17.5 points
per game, while Juratic had 462
points for a game average of 16.5
points. Juratic. with 35 points
against Guilford in the tourna
ment, came within one points of
the Elon single-game mark of 36
points, which was set by Koney
Cates against Atlantic Christian
in 1947.
With Maddox and Juratic be
coming the ninth and tenth play
ers in Elon history to top the 400-
Jay-Vee (la^e
Stjiiad Shows
Fine Record
The Elon Jay-Vee cagers coach
ed during the past season by Hank
Hamrick, turned in a fine record
twelve wins in fourteen starts,
and the Christian youngsters split
even with the two squads that de
feated them.
The record included two wins
over the Guilford juniors and
split decisions with both High
Point and Catawba's youngsters,
along with two victories over
Ayecock High and single wins
over Cone "Y”, Mayodan “Y”,
Aberdeen High Hampden Sidney
1 c "I V, Hargrave Military Academy,
point mark for a single season, ®
Elon had two others to hit better and Franklinviile High.
than 200 points this year. Theyi There were thirteen different
were Ray Whitley with 283 and players who played in junior var-
Don Packard with 206 points. sity games, and seven of the group
The final scoring figures for hit for better than 100 points for
seventeen players participating in the season, with six boys averag-
Elon games this year follow; ! ing in double figures. Topjcorer
Player
Pos. Elon (47)
F—Walker (9)
F—Miles (13)
C—Routh (16)
G—Stout (8)
G—Holt (1)
Beach (8)
Journey (1)
McKaig (4)
Randall (6)
Snyder (8)
DeRita
Stpne
Hamrick
Mazzilli
King
Citty .
Crump
Elon subs—Reavis, Hudson, Har
ris. Catawba subs—Swanner (5)
Kittion, Broome, Brown.
(SECOND ROUND)
High Point (77)
Smith (2)
Pos. Elon (60)
F—Walker (24)
F—Miles (4)
C—Routh (14)
G—Stout (8)
G—Holt (2)
Stegall
El.ON
OPFONENTS
Games
FG
FT
TP
28
166
159
4911
28
194
74
462
28
116
51
283
26
85
36
206
26
59
48
166
28
48
62
158
28
43
53
139
25
30
30
90
22
35
14
84
17
20
14
54
14
16
11
43
15
12
7
31
10
6
2
14
2
2
4
8
18
2
3
7
2
1
0
2
1
0
I
1
28
837
572 2,246
28 708 650 2,066
SERVICE RETURNEES
Skidmore
Royals (21)
Moore (17)
Harris (22)
Elon subs—Reavis, Hudson, Har
ris. High Point subs—Roberts (5),
Fowler 2), Hawkins. Newman,
Marbry.
A number of former Elon stud
ents have returned to the campus
this quarter after tours of military
Lnd naval duty. Among them are
Tim Holt, of Leaksville; Elbert
Peters, of Reidsville; George Nall,
of Burlington; Steve Gibson, of
Martinsville; and Bobby Rakes, of
Fieldale. Each of the group was
closely identified with either vars
ity or intramural athletics during!Mazzilli .— 3
his previous student days. Henderson 3
The scores of the junior varsity
games during the season just
ended were as follows;
Jay-Vees 81, Ayecock High 33.
Jay-Vees 89, Ayecock High 33.
Jay-Vees 76, Cone “Y” 37.
Jay-Vees 84, Aberdeen High 49.
Jay-Vees 102, Guilford 71.
Jay-Vees 64, Catawba 59.
Jay-Vees 67, High Point 78.
Jay-Vees 85, High Point 60.
Jay-Vees 70, Catawba 76.
Jay-Vees 85, Hamp.-Sidney 65.
Jay-Vees 124, Guilford 52.
Jay-Vees 99, Mayodan “Y” 56.
Jay-Vees 98, Franklinville H. 36.
Jay-Vees 109, Hargrave 77.
The individual scoring summary
for the thirteen youngsters who
played the Jay-Vee games follows;
Player FG FT TP
Crump 69
King 75
Rickover 70
Stegall 56
Sharp • 53
Brown .... 47
Citty 44
Allston - 34
DeRita 29
Stone 13
Cleary 15
38
18
20
39
25
19
21
9
7
10
6
2
0
games with the McCrary Eagles,
strong semi-pro outfit, are also
pending and will probably be ar
ranged.
All except two of the Confer
ence datos are set, but dates are
still to be arranged for a final
double-header with East Caro
lina. The double bill was origin
ally set for Saturday, May 7th, but
a conflict with Elon’s May Day
observance necessitated a change.
New dates are yet to be announced.
Coach Mathis, beginning his sec
ond season at the helm of the Elon
diamond squad, will have twelve
lettermen back from last year's
Conference champions, with an ad
ditional letterman from the 19.50
squad, who has just returned to
college after a tour of military
service.
Strongest point on the Christian
roster this spring may be found
on the pitchers’ mound, where
there are five senior lettermen on
hand for duty. They are Luther
Conger, Sherrill Hall, Hank Ham
rick, Charlie Swicegood and Ron
nie McIntyre. Conger, Hall, Ham
rick and Swicegood all won All-
Conference honors last year, and
Conger and Hall were on the All-
State team. McIntyre saw duty
mostly as a relief man last spring.
Homer Hobgood, who saw regu
lar duty behind the plate last year
until floored by an appendicitis
operation, is back to bid for the
catching assjgnmenl; and there
are veterans on hand for three of
the tour infield positions, includ
ing All-Conference and All-State
Nick Thompson at short, Alton
Myers at third and Larry Doffle
myer at second.
Bobby Green, Don Packard and
Paul Watts are regular outfielders
back from last season. Green hav
ing won All-Conference honors.
They will have competition from
Charlie Cassell, a 1950 letterman,
who re-entered college recently
after completing his military duty.
A number of youngsters and re
serves will bid for positions and
give the veterans keep competi
tion.
The schedule, as it stood last
weekend, still needing dates set
tled for two East Carolina games
and two McCrary battles, is as fol
lows;
April 2—Guilford, home.
April 4—Williams, home.
Aprils—Williams, home.
April 9—A.C.C., away (DH)
April 12—Guilford, away.
April 14—Guilford, hoiae.
April 16—Bur-Gra, away.
April 18—Greensboro, away.
April 19—Guilford, aoray.
April 23—E. C.C. away (OH).
April 25—H. Point, home (DH).
April 36—A.C.C., home (DH).
May 4—H. Point, away (DH).
176
168
160
151
131
113'
109
77
65
36
36
8
6