June 6, 2013

FRISCO – A day after placing six on the Southland Conference’s 1960s All-Decade Team, Lamar was once again recognized for its impressive baseball history as the school had 11 players on the 1970s All-Decade squad with Jim Gilligan earning recognition as one of the coaches of the decade.

The Cardinals were the dominant force in the Southland in the decade, picking up five conference championships and 252 wins to just 185 losses. Gilligan, who was a graduate assistant for LU’s first title in 1971, returned to Beaumont in 1973, helping Lamar set school records for wins in seven consecutive seasons. His head coaching record for that time was 217-122, taking home Southland Coach of the Year honors in both 1976 and 1977.

Gilligan shared Coach of the Decade honors with Louisiana Tech’s Pat Patterson.

“Sharing this award is one of the finest honors I’ve received in my career,” Gilligan said. “Pat was one of my best friends in coaching. He’s passed away now, but he had a great club. He was a really special guy.”

Lamar and Louisiana Tech were tied for the most players on the All-Decade squad with 11. McNeese State was third with six. Louisiana, UT Arlington and Trinity each had three. Arkansas State produced two, and Abilene Christian had one.

Leading the Lamar charge in the early part of the decade was the duo of David Bernsen and Mark Oldham. Each played a significant role in leading the Cards to their first-ever conference title as Bernsen posted a then-school record 1.89 earned run average with a 6-3 mark on the mound and six complete games to take home the conference’s Pitcher of the Year award in 1971. Bernsen also set a school record with four shutouts that season, a mark that has yet to be beaten. For his career, he ranks first in shutouts with six and second in ERA at 2.01

“David was one of the first really good pitchers that we had come through here,” Gilligan explained. “He had one of the greatest 12-to-6 curveballs. After watching him work as an attorney and in politics over the years, I can really see that he’s used the same type of preparation that he used when he was on the mound. I’m happy for him to get this kind of honor.”

Meanwhile, Oldham earned first team honors in both 1970 and 1971, hitting .302 with 53 runs batted in.

“Mark was on that 1968 team with me,” Gilligan said. “Man, he could hit and do it with some power. I think what I remember most about him was that he hit home runs off of Ron Guidry twice in one day to help us win two games. This is going to be really special for him.”

Following the 1971 season, the Cards really hit their stride in the mid-70s, beginning with Julio Alonso, who earned All-Southland honors in both 1974 and 1975. After taking home Pitcher of the Year in 1974 on the heels of an 11-1 year with a 1.32 ERA, Alonso became the first-ever LU player to take home national honors, earning a spot on the Freshman All-America team. He followed up a year later with a school-record 11 complete games and 1.98 ERA before joining the Detroit Tigers organization. His 1.65 career ERA stands as the best in school history, and his 19 complete games rank second.

“Julio Alonso is the best pitcher that I’ve ever seen in college,” Gilligan stated. “I’m including Roger Clemens. He was that good.”

Alonso was just the second pitcher in school history to toss a no-hitter, helping LU to a 6-0 win over UT Arlington in 1975.

Alonso, was joined by Billy Wearden and Mike Laudig for the 1975 campaign, helping the Cards to their second-ever Southland title, but the first of three consecutive from 1975-1977.

Wearden set five offensive school records in 1975 to earn a place on the All-Southland squad, becoming the first Card to break double digits in home runs with 10. He also knocked in 26 runs with nine doubles and scored 32 times. He followed up a year later with 35 RBI to join Oldham as just the second LU hitter to earn multiple first team honors.

“Billy was one of the first great hitters that we had here,” Gilligan said. “I’m so excited for him to be on the team. He was one of the guys from the first team I brought in here, and he was just so tough. He was a shy guy over at third base, and it wasn’t instinctive for him to play there, which is a testament to the kind of ballplayer he was. He could always hit, but he had to manufacture everything else from within. I’m very proud of how he turned out.”

Laudig was a regular in the line-up for four years and became the first-ever Card to earn SLC honors three times. The outfielder racked up 173 hits over the course of his career, but perhaps just as impressively, added in 117 walks, which ranks third in school history. After setting a then-school record in doubles with 12 in 1977, he went on to end his career with 37 two-baggers to go along with three triples and 18 home runs.

“Mike was a good left-handed hitter and good out in right field,” Gilligan said. “He was a compact hitter with a little bit of power, and pitchers really did not want to throw to him.”

Laudig’s record of three first team All-SLC selections certainly did not last long, as Joe McCann led the next wave of LU players from 1976-79. McCann, a second baseman, was rated as the best at his position in the Southland for all four seasons, standing as one of just two players in conference history to grab first team honors four times.

McCann is the school’s all-time leader in runs scored with 166 and stolen bases with 102. He also collected 215 hits, which ranks among the top 10 in school history. After tying a school record with 36 stolen bases in 1978, he went on to swipe 42 bags in 1979, which is still the second-best total in the record books.

“The funny thing about Joe was that he was never supposed to come to Lamar,” Gilligan revealed. “His team had a pitcher that everyone was after, but I went to the game looking for a leader and found Joe. He was all set to go to Yale, but we were able to convince him to come down here and he played every single game for us for four years. He was a gamer, a student of the game and a special, special guy. He was able to turn a double play like a big leaguer, and I haven’t seen too many players like him since.”

McCann was joined on both the 1976 and 1977 All-SLC teams by another terror on the basepaths in Harold Flynn. Known for his speed, Flynn ranks as one of the great outfielders in school history, compiling a .342 average in his time in Beaumont with 66 career steals in 69 attempts. He set five offensive records in 1976, and followed it up with five more in 1977. He currently holds the seventh-best batting average in school history and the fourth-most steals.

“Harold is one of the fastest guys that I’ve ever coached,” Gilligan said. “He very seldom made a great play in the outfield because he was always waiting for the ball by the time it got to him, and he could almost cover the whole outfield. He was so good at stealing as well. The guy used to steal second standing up. He didn’t need to slide.”

Rick Nesloney was on the pitching staff in 1976, setting school records for starts and innings pitched, but he really announced his presence a year later, guiding Lamar to a second consecutive regional appearance, setting record marks in starts (16), wins (12), innings (119)and strikeouts (109). He also tossed 10 complete games and posted a 2.34 ERA in 1977, earning SLC Pitcher of the Year in the process.

“Rick was another one of the great ones,” Gilligan said. “But what I remember most about him isn’t from 1977, it’s from the playoff game in 1976 against Texas. He tossed a real gem in front of huge crowd up there, and I’ll never forget it.”

Nesloney, who became the third Card to toss a no-hitter with a 5-0 victory over UT Arlington in 1977, went on to be drafted by the Boston Red Sox.

Louie Jones also garnered All-SLC honors in 1977 after hitting .304 with 27 scores. He scored 26 more times a year later to earn a spot once more, but Gilligan most remembers him for his stellar play at short.

“Louie came to us through a tryout camp back when we could still hold those,” the 36-year skipper said. “I had already slotted him at second base in my mind, but he wanted to play short, and he proved to be right. He just had a great arm over there and very quick hands. I’d take another one of him on my team almost every year.”

Jeff Martin and David C. Smith helped round out the decade for the Cards as Martin earned conference honors in 1978 and 1979, and Smith grabbed the 1979 Pitcher of the Year Award.

After playing in mostly a reserve role in his first two seasons, Martin completed his LU career in style, hitting .346 with 22 homers and 122 runs batted in over his last 110 games in the Red and White. His 50 RBI and 11 homers in 1978 were a record at the time, but he went on to put up 69 and 11 just one year later, setting a then school record with 117 total bases.

“Jeff was one of our best hitters ever,” Gilligan said. “He went to see Al Vincent to work on his hitting when he got here, and it really worked out for him. We had to win two of our last four games one in1979 to win the conference, and if he would’ve just hit triples, we would have lost. Swinging the bat was definitely his forte.”

After posting a 6-2 mark on the mound in 1978, Smith went 8-1 a year later with a jaw-dropping 1.05 ERA over 77.1 innings of work to lead the Cards to a conference title. One can find his name all over the LU record books, ranking first in career wins and complete games with 34 and 20, respectively, third in innings pitched with 349.2 and fifth in ERA at 2.73. He also became the first Card to toss a nine-inning no-hitter in a 4-1 victory over Louisville in 1979.

“David was more of a college pitcher than a pro pitcher, but man, he was good,” Gilligan gushed. “He won so many games for us in his time here, and he’s definitely one of the best we’ve ever had. He had a great slider and great command, and I don’t know what we would’ve done without him.”

 

#LUBaseball

 

Soutland Conference 1970s All-Decade Team (1970-79; 40 players)

Name, Team	Pos.	All-SLC First Team	Superlatives
Julio Alonso, Lamar	P	1974, 1975	1974 Pitcher of the Year
Jose Alvarez, La.-Lafayette	P	1978	1978 Pitcher of the Year
Chuck Bailey, Louisiana Tech	C	1978, 1979	 
David Bernsen, Lamar	P	1971	1971 Pitcher of the Year
Bobby Brasher, Louisiana Tech	OF	1974, 1976	1974 Hitter of the Year
Kenneth Clark, Texas-Arlington	1B	1971, 1973	 
Russell Conner, McNeese State	OF	1977	1977 Hitter of the Year
Billy Daffin, Trinity	3B	1970, 1972	 
Pete Davis, Arkansas State	OF	1971, 1973	 
Shanie Dugas, McNeese State	SS	1979, 1980	 
Larry Elmore, Arkansas State	1B	1974, 1975	 
A.C. Frese, Trinity	2B	1970, 1971	 
Ray Fontenot, McNeese State	P	1979	Southland Career Complete Games Pitched Record (29) & Career Shutouts Record (9)
Harold Flynn, Lamar	OF	1976, 1977	 
James Gallier, McNeese State	1B	1979, 1981	 
Dale Holman, Louisiana Tech	OF	1977, 1978, 1979	1978 & 1979 Hitter of the Year
Eddie Holman, Louisiana Tech	P	1974	Southland Career Strikeout Leader (336)
Kevin Jeansonne, La.-Lafayette	OF	1975, 1976	1976 Hitter of the Year
Mike Jeffcoat, Louisiana Tech	P	 	1983-94 MLB, Cleveland, San Francisco, Texas, Florida
Louis Jones, Lamar	SS	1977, 1978	 
Steve Lacy, Louisiana Tech	SS	1973, 1974, 1975	 
Mike Laudig, Lamar	OF	1976, 1977, 1978	 
Bruce Marshall, Texas-Arlington	P	1976	1976 Pitcher of the Year
Richie McAlister, Louisiana Tech	C	1974, 1975	1975 Hitter of the Year
Joe McCann, Lamar	2B	1976, 1977, 1978, 1979	 
Randy McGilberry, Louisiana Tech	P	1975	1975 Pitcher of the Year
Fred McGaha, Louisiana Tech	OF	1972	1972 Hitter of the Year
Jeff Martin, Lamar	3B	1978, 1979	 
Jerry Nalley, La.-Lafayette	OF	1979, 1980	 
Rick Nesloney, Lamar	P	1977	1977 Pitcher of the Year
Bill Norwood, Louisiana Tech	P	1973	1973 Pitcher of the Year
Alvin O’Dell, Abilene Christian	3B	 	1970 Hitter of the Year
Mark Oldham, Lamar	OF	1970, 1971	 
Bill Simon, McNeese State	2B	1973, 1975	 
David C. Smith, Lamar	P	1979	1979 Pitcher of the Year
Paul Stanley, Trinity	P	1972	1972 Pitcher of the Year
Billy Wearden, Lamar	3B	1975, 1976	 
Richard Wilkinson, Texas-Arlington	DH/IF	1978, 1980	 
Phil Winningham, Louisiana Tech	2B	1974, 1976	 
Paul Young, McNeese State	OF	1973	1973 Hitter of the Year

 

Co-Coaches of the Decade: Jim Gilligan, Lamar, and Pat Patterson, Louisiana Tech