Sports
The Rambler | www.therambler.org
September 22, 2010
Shauna Banks
Texas Wesleyan table tennis once again took a National Title in the 2010 Collegiate Table Tennis National Tournament, giving them 38 of 52 national championships in the past eight years. The Rams opened up their season this year by hosting an open tournament the weekend of Sept. 18. Competitors were sent to Wisconsin for the Badger Open the weekend of Sept.
18-20, where head coach Jasna Rather said she hopes to promote the program and prepare her players for the feel of collegiate events. “Recruiting is a very important part of what we do,” Rather said. Table tennis consists of both a varsity and junior varsity team. Both teams practice together and participate in stamina and reflex training as well as short- and long-distance running. “There’s good competition at practice so it makes you
get better,” said Jose Barbosa, sophomore transfer from Lindenwood University. Lindenwood was runner up to Wesleyan in last year’s National Championship. Barbosa is one of this year’s players to watch, Rather said. He brings with him a twotime Brazilian Championship in singles, a two-time Latino Team Championship and a doubles win in last year’s national championship. Rather said another player to watch is Diego Walsh, freshman business major
From a Gopher to a Ram to a Colt, Matt Chutchian has moved up the competitive baseball ladder in his high school, college and now professional career. After playing baseball for the Grand Prairie High School Gophers, Chutchian was recruited by coach Mike Jeffcoat at Texas Wesleyan. He spent five years as a business management major, playing baseball for four of them. Chutchian came to Wesleyan on an athletic and academic scholarship, recruited by Jeffcoat off of a recommendation from Chutchian’s high school coach. Although he started as an outfielder for the Rams, Chutchchian soon moved to relief pitcher. “The first couple of years I didn’t play that much,” Chutchian said. “The last two years were awesome. I was our team’s closer. Whenever they needed someone to get someone out, I came in.” Jeffcoat was the head coach for Chutchian’s entire time at Wesleyan, where his pitching skills were further advanced and honed. “I think Jeffcoat is a very smart coach,” Chutchian said. “He’s been around, and he always asks a lot of questions so he can learn himself. With all those questions, he’s actually teaching us.” During his senior year with the Rams, Chutchian signed with the San Angelo Colts. He played with the Colts for two months this past summer after graduating from Wesleyan, experiencing the professional end
of baseball. “I loved it. It was kind of like a dream come true,” Chutchian said. “That’s what I was working towards, playing pro ball, and I finally got there.” Jeffcoat said in addition to Chutchian, last year’s team ended up having five other players who signed with professional baseball teams, including Hayden Lackey, Ryan Reynolds, Jerry Fisher, Mikey Horn and Adam Resendez. The baseball program has had 19 players total within the past four years who signed with pro teams. “They were an integral part of our team’s success the last couple of years,” said Kevin Millikan, athletic director. “They achieved great things and helped set the expectations higher for the players that follow them, in terms of individual and team performance.” Both Jeffcoat and Millikan have worked with the scholarship money available for this year to recruit new players for the upcoming season. Jeffcoat said he thinks they may now have the best team yet. “Any time you lose such a talented group of seniors, there is an opportunity for others to step up and fill that role,” Millikan said. “Coach Mike Jeffcoat has done a great job recruiting and developing players to fill the gaps left vacant by guys like Chutchian and Horn, and I expect that our winning tradition will continue, with sights set on the NAIA College World Series in 2011.” Chutchian is currently living in the Arlington area, looking to work in the sports industry and hoping to play baseball again in late spring and summer next year.
Cornett said. “Both Canadians brought some really good attention to our program,” Cornett said. Mijovic and Leggat will be inducted into the NAIA Hall of Fame at the National Golf Championship in Silvas, Ill. Mijovic and Leggat will
both receive awards and are set to give speeches at the function. “This is something that should have happened a long time ago,” Cornett said. “It’ll be great to see these men interact with the college athletes there and share some of their knowledge.”
sbbanks@mail.txwes.edu
TWU table tennis picks up where they left off emmijangos@mail.txwes.edu
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Chutchian pitches his way to semi-pros
Jonathan Resendez | Rambler Staff Sarah Hazinski practices for singles competition at the Badger Open in Wisconsin Sept. 18-20.
Eliana Mijangos
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from El Salvador. Young in age but not experience, Walsh said he came to the Wesleyan team with a Junior Championship win in the 2009 El Salvador National Tournament and was part of the Latin American National team. “I am really excited to see how I perform for the Wesleyan team and on a collegiate level,” Walsh said. Wesleyan has another opportunity to do well this season, Rather said. “It’s all about staying focused,” she said.
Wesleyan golf alumni make NAIA hall of fame
Eliana Mijangos
emmijangos@mail.txwes.edu
Ian Leggat and Danny Mijovic, former Texas Wesleyan golf players, will join the ranks of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame at this year’s NAIA
National Golf Championship. “This will mark the first time since 1994 that someone from Wesleyan has been inducted into the hall of fame,” said athletic director Kevin Millikan. Leggat transfered to Wesleyan his sophomore year,
majoring in sports management. Graduating in 1989, Leggat took with him two AllAmerican awards on top of his numerous collegiate tournament wins. Leggat finished second in the 1999 National Gold tournament to his teammate Danny Mijovic. Mijovic, a four-year business administration major, was the only one in NAIA or NCAA to win the national championship four years in a row, Millikan said. He also won nine collegiate tournaments and was a four-time All-American in the NAIA national tournament. “Danny had an excellent work ethic,” said head golf coach Bobby Cornett, “at the same time, I don’t know that anyone has worked harder than Ian since I’ve been a part of the program.” These two Canadians
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continued their golfing careers winning various PGA Tours, Cornett said. Mijovic, currently 49, is now preparing for a PGA champions tournament. Leggate recently gave up his golf clubs and took a job as a sport agent where he travels between South Carolina and Fort Worth,
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