Wednesday, Oct. 3, 1945
CLOUDBUSTER —SPORTS
Page Seven
Varsity Teams Won 192 Events^ Lost 101
Show Win Average
Of .655 in Nine
Sports Since ’42
When the Pre-Flight program
was started by the Navy in the
spring of 1942, there was much
debate throughout the nation as
to the value of sports in war
time. There was never any
doubt in the Pre-Flight organi
zation, however, concerning the
usefulness of sports, and varsity
activities were superimposed on
the basic, more important inter
squadron program to heighten
the competitive spirit of the ca
det and to add interest and in
centive to his physical training.
The cadets were encouraged to
enter varsity sports and compete
against the best opposition avail
able, thereby providing a climax
for their physical training.
Nine sports have been con
ducted on a varsity level at this
Pre-Flight School, and the over
all record achieved against the
best competition available in this
section speaks well for the win
ning spirit of the cadets the high
calibre of instruction by the
coaches.
Cloudbuster varsity teams
competed in a total of 299
events, winning 192, losing 101,
and tieing 6 for an excellent win
percentage of .655.
Only in swimming and tennis
did Pre-Flight teams finish be
low the .500 mark, and in each
of these sports competition was
available for just a few games
in one season.
In the other seven varsity ac
tivities — baseball, basketball,
boxing, football, soccer, track,
and wrestling — Cloudbuster
teams hold a decided edge over
the opposition.
Baseball
The national pastime ranks
tops in number of varsity con
tests played, with 144 games
over four seasons. Pre-Flight
teams won 87 of these, dropped
55, and tied 2 for a win percent
age of .613.
Playing under Lt. W. G. Kil-
linger, the Cloudbusters in 1942
won 14 and lost five.
The outstanding nine was the
1943 edition which won 32
games while losing 13. Coached
by Lt. George D. Kepler, the
squad included a number of
former major leaguers. Most of
the losses came at the start of
the season before the arrival of
Cadets Ted Williams and John
Pesky of the Boston Red Sox.
In a special War Bond game
in New York City on Wednesday,
July 28, the Cloudbusters de
feated a combined New York
Yankee-Cleveland Indian team
by a score of 11 to 5. Well
known players on the squad, in
addition to Williams and Pesky,
were John “Buddy” Hassett, of,
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VARSITY SPORTS RECORD —Cloudbuster var
sity teams, competing in nine different sports,
participated in a total of 299 events, winning
192, losing 101, and tieing six for an excellent
win percentage of .655. The recdrd made in each
sport is shown here.
the New York Yankees; Joseph
Cusick, of the St. Louis Cardi
nals; Joseph Coleman, of the
Philadelphia Athletics; Louis
Gremp and John Sain, of the
Boston Braves; Harry Craft, of
the Cincinnati Reds, and Peter
Appleton, of the St. Louis
Browns.
In 1944, again playing under
Lt. Comdr. W. G. Killinger, the
’Busters won 24, lost 12, and tied
1. The Pre-Flight team finished
on top in the Ration League
which also included the Univer
sity of North Carolina, North
Carolina State, and Duke Uni
versity.
In 1945 the Pre-Flight nine fell
below the .500 mark for the only
time when it chalked up 17 wins
against 25 losses and one tie.
After a slow start which saw
them drop 13 of their first 17
games, Lt. E. W. Schulmerich’s
squad went on to play good ball
the rest of the way.
Basketball
Consistently good showings
were made during three seasons
by basketball quintets coached
by Lt. Richard A. Raese. Pre-
Flight teams won 40 of the 56
games played for a win percen
tage of .714.
The 1942-43 team broke even
in 14 tilts. The following season
was the best on the hardwood
for the Cloudbusters who racked
up 17 victories against only
three losses to rate high among
the top teams in the country.
The losses were to other strong
service outfits, the Cherry Point
Marines, Norfolk Naval Air Sta
tion, and Norfolk Naval Train
ing Station, by one, two, and 10
points, respectively. In their last
season, 1944-45, the ’Busters
continued their winning ways
by taking 16 out of 22 contests.
(Continued on page 8)