Houston Christian Huskies baseball
The Houston Christian Huskies baseball team, known as the Houston Baptist Huskies until 2022, is a varsity intercollegiate athletic team of Houston Baptist University in Houston, Texas, United States.[4] The team is a member of the Southland Conference, which is part of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I. The team plays its home games at Husky Field in Houston, Texas. The Huskies are coached by Lance Berkman.
| Houston Christian Huskies | |
|---|---|
 2023 Houston Christian Huskies baseball team | |
 | |
| Founded | 1964,[1] 1990 |
| University | Houston Christian University |
| Head coach | Lance Berkman (2nd season) |
| Conference | Southland |
| Location | Houston, Texas |
| Home stadium | Husky Field (Capacity: 500[2]) |
| Nickname | Huskies |
| Colors | Royal blue and orange[3] |
| College World Series appearances | |
| NAIA: 2007 | |
| NCAA Tournament appearances | |
| 2015 | |
| Conference tournament champions | |
| NAIA: Red River 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006 NCAA DI: Great West: 2013 Southland: 2015 | |
| Regular season conference champions | |
| NAIA: Big State: 1997 Red River: 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 | |
History
The Huskies baseball team's first season was in 1964 before ending in 1970. The team was idle from 1971 to 1989 before returning in the spring of 1990, competing in the sport in every season since.
NAIA years
The Huskies competed at the NAIA level from 1966 to 1969 and again from 1990 to 2007. The team played as an NAIA independent eight of those seasons (1990, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 98). They also competed in the Big State conference for one season (1997) winning the conference championship. The Huskies competed in the Red River Athletic Conference for the final nine seasons (1999–2007) as an NAIA member winning the RRAC conference championship eight of the nine seasons (1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007) and the RRAC conference tournament championship seven times (1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006). In 1969, the Huskies played in the 1969 NAIA Area II Area Tournament, going 1-2.[5]
NCAA Division I years
In 2008, Houston Baptist transitioned to Division I (NCAA) competing as an independent for the first two seasons at the Division I level. From 2010 to 2013, the Huskies competed in the Great West Conference winning the conference tournament championship in 2013. The team was a finalist in the 2011 and 2012 conference tournaments. Houston Baptist University became a member of the Southland Conference before the start of the 2013–14 season. The Huskies won the Southland Conference Baseball Tournament in their second season as an SLC member. In winning the tournament, the Huskies won the SLC auto-bid to the NCAA Division I baseball tournament. The 2015 NCAA Division I baseball tournament marked the Huskies' first appearance in the tournament.[6][7]
Houston Christian career coaching records
| Coach | Number of Seasons | Overall record | Winning percentage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coaching records | |||
| Rickey Witt | 3 | 29–119 | .196 |
| Rusty Pendergrass | 5 | 177–92 | .658 |
| Brian Huddleston | 8 | 305–143–1 | .680 |
| Jared Moon | 16 | 401–441–2 | .476 |
| Lance Berkman | 2 | 29–73 | .284 |
| Overall | 34 | 941–868–3 | .520 |
(Records reflect game results through the conclusion of the 2023 season)
Year-by-year results
Information Source:[8]
| Year-by-Year Results | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Coach | Record | Conference Record | Conference | Notes |
| NAIA | |||||
| Independent | |||||
| 1990 | Rickey Witt | 4–40 | – | Independent | |
| 1991 | Rickey Witt | 11–40 | – | Independent | |
| 1992 | Rickey Witt | 14–39 | – | Independent | |
| 1993 | Rusty Pendergrass | 23–23 | – | Independent | |
| 1994 | Rusty Pendergrass | 39–16 | – | Independent | |
| 1995 | Rusty Pendergrass | 48–9 | – | Independent | |
| Big State Conference | |||||
| 1996 | Rusty Pendergrass | 37–18 | 15–0 | Big State | Champions |
| Independent | |||||
| 1997 | Rusty Pendergrass | 30–26 | – | Independent | |
| 1998 | Brian Huddleston | 26–26 | – | Independent | |
| Red River Athletic Conference | |||||
| 1999 | Brian Huddleston | 40–19 | 15–0 | RRAC | Regular season champions tournament champions |
| 2000 | Brian Huddleston | 43–16 | 12–3 | RRAC | Regular season champions tournament champions |
| 2001 | Brian Huddleston | 34–23 | 9–0 | RRAC | Regular season champions tournament champions |
| 2002 | Brian Huddleston | 40–17 | 12–0 | RRAC | Regular season champions tournament champions |
| 2003 | Brian Huddleston | 33–20–1 | 16–10–1 | RRAC | 2nd |
| 2004 | Brian Huddleston | 41–15 | 13–1 | RRAC | Regular season champions tournament champions |
| 2005 | Brian Huddleston | 48–7 | 14–0 | RRAC | Regular season champions tournament champions |
| 2006 | Jared Moon | 40–16–1 | 14–1 | RRAC | Regular season champions tournament champions |
| 2007 | Jared Moon | 44–20 | 12–3 | RRAC | Regular season champions NAIA World Series |
| NCAA Division I | |||||
| Independent | |||||
| 2008 | Jared Moon | 23–24 | – | Independent | |
| 2009 | Jared Moon | 11–40 | – | Independent | |
| Great West Conference | |||||
| 2010 | Jared Moon | 29–31 | 15–13 | Great West | 3rd place regular season 2nd in Great West Tournament Pool 1 |
| 2011 | Jared Moon | 22–40 | 16–12 | Great West | 3rd place regular season (T) Great West Tournament finalist |
| 2012 | Jared Moon | 28–33 | 15–13 | Great West | 4th place regular season (T) Great West Tournament finalist |
| 2013 | Jared Moon | 34–20–1 | 17–10 | Great West | 2nd place Great West regular season (T) Great West Tournament champion |
| Southland Conference | |||||
| 2014 | Jared Moon | 23–38 | 12–18 | Southland | 10th place SLC regular season |
| 2015 | Jared Moon | 28–27 | 14–13 | Southland | 7th place SLC regular season, SLC Tournament champion |
| 2016 | Jared Moon | 24–29 | 12–18 | Southland | 10th place SLC regular season |
| 2017 | Jared Moon | 29–25 | 18–12 | Southland | 4th place SLC regular season, 3–2 SLC Tournament |
| 2018 | Jared Moon | 29–30 | 18–12 | Southland | 4th place SLC regular season, 3–2 SLC Tournament |
| 2019 | Jared Moon | 18–35 | 10–20 | Southland | 12th place SLC regular season |
| 2020 | Jared Moon | 6–11 | 2–1 | Southland | Season cancelled due to Covid-19 |
| 2021 | Jared Moon | 14–38 | 11–27 | Southland | 13th place SLC regular season |
| 2022 | Lance Berkman | 18–36 | 11–13 | Southland | 6th of 8 SLC regular season [9] |
| 2023 | Lance Berkman | 11–37 | 7–16 | Southland | 9th of 9 SLC regular season [10] |
Postseason
Conference Tournaments
Sources:[11]
| Year | Head coach | Record | % | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conference Tournament Results | ||||
| Red River Athletics Conference | ||||
| 1999 | Brian Huddleston | 4–0 | 1.000 | Tournament champion |
| 2000 | Brian Huddleston | 4–1 | .800 | Tournament champion |
| 2001 | Brian Huddleston | 4–0 | 1.000 | Tournament champion |
| 2002 | Brian Huddleston | 4–0 | 1.000 | Tournament champion |
| 2003 | Brian Huddleston | 2–2 | .500 | 3rd Round |
| 2004 | Brian Huddleston | 4–0 | 1.000 | Tournament champion |
| 2005 | Brian Huddleston | 4–0 | 1.000 | Tournament champion |
| 2006 | Brian Huddleston | 4–0 | 1.000 | Tournament champion |
| 2007 | Brian Huddleston | 2–1 | .667 | 3rd Round |
| Southland Conference | ||||
| 2015 | Jared Moon | 4–0 | 1.000 | Tournament champion |
| 2017[12] | Jared Moon | 3-2 | .600 | Consolation Rounds |
| 2018[13] | Jared Moon | 3-2 | .600 | Consolation Rounds |
| Total | 42–8 | .840 | 12 Appearances | |
NCAA Division I Tournament results
The Huskies have competed in one NCAA Division I baseball tournament with a record of 0–2.
| Year | Round | Opponent | Result/Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| NCAA Division I Tournament Results | |||
| 2015 | First Round Second Round | Houston Rice | L 4–6 L 1–3 |
Source:[7]
NAIA World Series results
The Huskies participated in the 2007 NAIA World Series with a record of 3–2.
| Year | Round | Opponent | Result/Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| NAIA World Series | |||
| 2007 | First Round Second Round Third Round Fourth Round Fifth Round | Lindenwood (Mo) Cumberland (Tenn) Walsh Azusa Pacific Lewis-Clark State | L 4–18 W 5–2 W 10–5 W 5–1 L 7–8 |
Source:[14]
Major League Baseball
Houston Baptist has had 8 Major League Baseball Draft selections since the draft began in 1965.[15]
| Huskies in the Major League Baseball Draft | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Player | Round | Team |
| 1971 | Ron Mahood | 7 | Expos |
| 1996 | Ryan Thomas | 23 | Padres |
| 1996 | Trevor Enders | Rays | |
| 1998 | Galen Shea | 19 | Tigers |
| 2000 | Brian Steffek | 27 | Dodgers |
| 2003 | Kyle Smith | 18 | Reds |
| 2010 | Johnathan Moore | 45 | Rangers |
| 2012 | Robbie Buller | 35 | Diamondbacks |
| 2015 | Zach Nehrir | 16 | Diamondbacks |
| 2017 | Addison Russ | 19 | Phillies |
| 2018 | Tyler Depreta- Johnson | 35 | Rangers |
References
- "22 Apr 1964, 7 - The Marshall News Messenger at". Newspapers.com. April 22, 1964. Retrieved June 5, 2022.
- "2014 HBU Baseball Media Guide". Houston Baptist University Athletics. pp. 1, 68. Retrieved December 27, 2014.
- Houston Christian University Athletics Style Guide (PDF). April 4, 2023. Retrieved September 17, 2023.
- "Houston Baptist Huskies". d1baseball.com. Retrieved July 17, 2013.
- "31 May 1969, Page 62 - Arizona Republic at". Newspapers.com. May 31, 1969. Retrieved June 5, 2022.
- "2015 HBU Huskies Baseball". HBU Athletic Department. pp. 49–74. Retrieved April 3, 2015.
- Melissa Cebold (May 23, 2015). "Houston Baptist wins first Southland Baseball Championship". SportsNOLA.com. Retrieved May 24, 2015.
- "HBU Baseball". Houston Baptist University Athletics. pp. 172–180. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
- 2022 Baseball Standings Southland Conference
- 2023 Baseball Standings Southland Conference
- "RRAC Baseball Tournament Results". Red River Athletics Conference. Retrieved May 24, 2015.
- "2017 Baseball Schedule - Houston Christian University Athletics". 2017.
- "2018 Baseball Schedule - Houston Christian University Athletics". 2018.
- "59th Annual Avista-NAIA Baseball World Series – May 22–29" (PDF). p. 47. Retrieved May 24, 2015.
- "MLB Amateur Draft Picks who came from "Houston Baptist University (Houston, TX)"". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved June 13, 2015.