The Canton Community College/Spoon River College Alumni Association inducted members of the 1964 Canton Community College baseball team into Athletic Hall of Fame during the annual Alumni Association Awards Reception held November 6 at the Canton Campus.
Team members are Bill Anderson, Chuck Bentley, John Doolan (deceased), Mike Frisch (deceased), Ron George (deceased), Ed Hoffman, Carroll Herman (deceased), Dick Kautz (deceased), Jack Meyer, Jasper “Jay” Parrish (deceased), Rich Prosser, Paul Swiger, Ken Walker, Ed Warner, Randy Welch. Coach Harry Smith (deceased) and Manage Lee Baker.
The team was the 1964 NJCAA Region IV Champions and NJCAA Illinois State Champions
After a solid regular season, the 1964 Canton Community College men’s baseball team got hot at the right time and won the NJCAA Region IV Championship en route to being the NJCAA State Champions of Illinois. No CCC or SRC baseball team has ever advanced further into postseason play.
The team scored convincing wins in the playoffs over Black Hawk, Morton, and Belleville (now Southwestern Illinois College), allowing just five runs in the three victories. This advanced them to the Section Championship, where they won the first game against Ellsworth Community College (Iowa Falls, IA). Unfortunately, they dropped games two and three to end their season one game short of the NJCAA World Series in Grand Junction, CO — an eight-team tournament to crown the National Champion. Coach Harry Smith’s Crusaders ended the season with a record of 13-8.
