Hall of Fame
1994 Mules Baseball Team
The 1994 Mules' baseball team made history by becoming only the second squad from a school outside the states of Alabama, California, Florida or Georgia to win the NCAA Division II crown and they did it by beating seven-time national champion Florida Southern 14-9 in the title game.
To get to Montgomery, Ala., for the Division II championship, CMSU first had to come back through the loser's bracket to win the MIAA Tournament, then captured the NCAA Central Regional on its home field.
At Montgomery, CMSU won its first two games, 9-6 over the University of California-Riverside and 8-7 over Armstrong State College, then lost 10-3 to Delta State University. In an elimination game the next night, the Mules returned the favor and beat Delta State 8-2. In the title game against Florida Southern, CMSU fell behind 4-0 after three innings and still trailed 6-2 after five innings, but a six-run sixth inning put the Mules ahead for the first time. The Moccasins came back to tie the game 8-8 going to the ninth inning. A bases-loaded double by Morgan Burkhart highlighted the Mules' six-run ninth inning that gave them an insurmountable lead and three outs later they claimed the championship.
Named to the Division II Championship All-Tournament Team for CMSU were outfielder Ed Lunders, who was five-for-five in the title game, second baseman Glenn Duckett, who hit .389 in the Mules' five tournament games, and outfielder Eric Stuckenschneider, who drove in a team-high seven runs.
The team's post-season accolades included the Division II player of the year award for third baseman Rick Ladjevich and the Division II coach of the year award for Dave Van Horn, first-team All-America recognition for Ladjevich and Stuckenschneider and second-team All-America honors for pitcher Bob Poisal. In producing a 51-11 record, the 1994 Mules established 23 individual school records, 21 team records, 18 individual MIAA records and 19 conference team records.
