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WEST AURORA
BASEBALL
EST. 1969
1969 – The
inaugural year of baseball at West Aurora High School. A school with at
the time a student population of around 2,000 had gone decades without
baseball and in 1969 it would begin its first season. (It is believed
that baseball existed at West Aurora previously in the 1930’s) Since
that first season, West Aurora has developed one of the most respected
and feared baseball programs in the Chicagoland area. Since 1969 the
West Aurora Baseball Program has amassed 689 wins to 409 losses with 11
ties to sport a .621 winning percentage. The program has won 12
Conference titles (1974, 1975, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1986, 1987, 1989, 1990,
1993, 1994, & 1995) all while in the Upstate Eight Conference. West
Aurora has also won 19 Regional Titles (1970,1971, 1973-1976, 1979,
1980, 1982-1984, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1997, 2002, & 2005) and 7
Sectional Titles (1973-1976, 1979, 1987, & 1991) finishing 3rd
in the State twice (1973 & 1976), 4th once (1991) and 5th
four times (1974, 1975, 1979, & 1987). The Blackhawks made four
straight trips to the State Tournament, held in Peoria until the early
1990’s, from 1973-1976 that still is a state record. It all began in
the spring of 1969 under the guidance of one man, Robert Plaskas.
Robert Plaskas was
the first head baseball coach at West Aurora serving as the architect of
the program from 1969-1976. Plaskas was a graduate of Oswego High
School and Northwestern University who came back to West Aurora after
serving as the Head Wrestling Coach at University of Chicago. He began
the program from the bottom up and built a program rich in tradition and
high in expectations. After suffering through some dismal seasons at
the beginning, the Blackhawks soon found themselves regular visitors to
Peoria and the State Tournament. In 1973 West Aurora began what would
be a streak of four straight appearances at the State Tournament. The
Blackhawks finished 3rd in 1973 & 1976 and 5th in
1974 & 1975. They were a team built on pitching and defense rather than
offense and thunderous homeruns. The Blackhawk pitchers dominated their
opponents with ERAs of 1.17 in 1974, 1.01 in 1975 and 2.06 in 1976,
unbelievable statistics that will be tough to duplicate. The Blackhawks
of the 1970’s were led by Scott Ruddy, Joe Thorgesen, Jeff and Chuck
Halling, Mike Golich and Rod Wright along with a number of other great
players who have etched their names in the annuals of West Aurora
Baseball lore. The Blackhawks of the 1970’s under the guidance of
Robert Plaskas were a group of tough-minded players who thrived in
pressure situations. One such example was the 1974 sectional final
victory against Rockford Harlem. In that game Scott Ruddy came to bat
with men on first and second and two outs and the Blackhawks trailing
2-1. A victory sends the Blackhawks back to Peoria, a loss sends them
home. Scott Ruddy steps to the plate with the season on the line and
battles the pitcher from Rockford, fouling off eight pitches before
lining a pitch into left-center to score the tying and winning runs.
Another example is during the 1975 Sectional Final when ace pitcher Jeff
Halling struggled through the seventh inning against Wheaton Warrenville
South. With a 3-0 lead in the seventh, Halling found himself in trouble
by walking in two runs to put the score at 3-2. But with two outs and
the bases loaded, Halling prevailed by getting the Wheaton South hitter
to chase a pitch out of the strike zone after running the count to 3-2.
Plaskas built the West Aurora baseball program into a powerhouse but
following the 1976 season, he decided to step down as the head coach and
turn the reigns over to his long time assistant Arnie Verbic. Robert
Plaskas later became the Athletic Director at Oswego High School.
After the
departure of Robert Plaskas, Arnie Verbic took over at the helm of the
West Aurora baseball program and looked to continue the strong tradition
that had been built since 1969. Although Verbic’s early years were a
bit of a struggle, he to soon found his Blackhawks visiting Peoria and
the State Tournament. In 1979, the West Aurora Blackhawks finished 5th
in the State Tournament compiling a 22-5 record. 1979 also began a
string of three straight conference titles under the guidance of Arnie
Verbic. Verbic won 5 District Titles (1979, 1980, 1982, 1983, & 1984)
and had 5 teams finish with over 20 wins in a season. His 1981 squad
tied the school record at the time of 24 wins, also held by the 1976
squad. During his tenure as head coach Arnie Verbic amassed an overall
record of157-73-5 giving him a .668 winning percentage and a 106-48-2
record in conference games with a .679 winning percentage. Following
the 1984 season Arnie Verbic left coaching baseball and turned the
program over to the capable hands of Dave Rowell.
Dave Rowell has
been the head coach of the West Aurora Baseball Program since 1985. His
teams have won 8 Regional Titles (1987, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1997,
2002, & 2005), 2 Sectional Titles (1987 & 1991) and finished 5th
in the State (1987) and 4th (1991). He has amassed a career
record of 419-262-4 with a .612 winning percentage making him the coach
with the most wins in West Aurora History. He has had numerous players
play at the professional level and hundreds play collegiately.
Amazingly he has been with the program since 1972 when Robert Plaskas
was just beginning the tradition that has long been continued. His 1994
team now holds the current school record in wins with 32, a feat that
will be tough to duplicate. As head coach his teams have accumulated 7
conference titles with the last coming in 1995 while still members of
the Upstate Eight Conference. While serving as head coach he has had 4
Blackhawks play professionally and a number of others drafted. (See
coaches bio for more information) |
