Hide Article Text (OCR)
PLATTEVILLE—The State Teachers college, Platteville, has had several championship teams of one kind or another but probably none as outstanding as the baseball team of 1903. Those were the days when schools were not so closely hooked up together in several kinds of official conferences and leagues, so this team played all the ball teams they could get games with, in cluding Whitewater Teachers, but that had better not be gone into. It was undefeated, the catcher of the team says, and lacked only a conference schedule to be a “championship team.” The last game of the year, a “revenge game,” was played against the Mineral Point high school team. The Point had an un usually strong team that year. In fact, it had not been beaten in four years. Ernie Ovitz was the pitcher, known as the “boy wonder.” He later pitched the University of Illinois to three championships, Charles Knight, another outstand ing player, was on the team. Knight was a left-hander and later was pitcher on the Univer sity of Wisconsin team. Point also had Knron Roth and Will Jones. Roth later became catcher for the St. Louis Cardinals, and Jones played with the Washington (D. C.) Nationals. James Breaks Up Game Platteville had played a 10- inning game on a Saturday at Mineral Point and won, but the Point team, previously unbeaten for four years, couldn't believe it. They insisted on a return game at Platteville the following Wed nesday or Thursday, commence ment week for the college. The game turned out to be an other 10-inning game and in the last half of the inning the score stood 1-1. Jack Ovitz of Platte ville, Ernie Ovitz'’s cousin, was on second, and John James was at bat. Ovitz was known as a can nonball pitcher, and James was known as a good batter, for he had led in batting averages for three years. It was one of those tense moments in a game when the crowd becomes perfectly still, for everything depended on the next pitch. Ovitz fired one of his hot ones right over the plate but James was ready for it and fired it back for a two-bagger and drove in the winning run. “That Platteville team was a great team,” Dr. Theodore Miller, catcher for the team, commented as he went over the players in the picture one by one. “ ‘Red’ Bainbridge later player second base on the University of Wis consin team,” he said “and ‘Bud’ Culver played on both the base ball and football teams at the university. He turned down a baseball trip with the team to Japan in order to be here for the football season.” This team, it should be added, has played well in the game of life. Scott Bailey, who played shortstop, became a rancher and “Sugar Beet King” at Corvallis, Oregon. He is retired now and is living at Long Beach, Calif. Theodore Miller, who was catcher, is a dentist in Platte ville. Harry Culver, who played third base, is a leading surgeon and professor of urology at Northwestern university. John James, center fielder, is professor of agricultural educa tion at the University of Wiscon sin. John Ovitz, pitcher, is a physician and surgeon in Syca more, Ill. Walter Bainbridge, second baseman, is a sales en gineer, Chicago, Ill., and lives at West Springs. John Burkholder, right fielder, is district manager of the New York Life Insurance Co., Hudson, Wis. Oscar Ishmael, sub., be came a physician in Madison. Francis W Hartsook, manager, is a physician and surgeon. Danville, Jr. Garth Rudolf, first baseman, is an attorney in Tulsa, Okla., and Ed March is a prominent farmer at Cobb, Wis.
Newspaper Details
Madison Wisconsin State Journal
Madison, Wisconsin, US
Wed, Oct 31, 1945
Page 13
Full Page
Clipped by
Anonymous
USA 11 Jun 2026
Other Publications Near Madison, Wisconsin
Peoples News
Madison Patriotic Crusader
Madison Democrat
Madison Password
Our Church Home
