Team picture for the first Gorilla Baseball Team in 1962 Note the uniforms borrowed form the old Pittsburg Browns class D minor league team. Al Ortolani is pictured standing on back row far right.

Al Ortolani, Chuck Sturdevant, and Don Gutteridge reflect on the upcoming '62 season. Gutteridge, a lifetime Pittsburg resident, played major league baseball in the 1930's and 1940's for the Cardinals, Browns, and Red Sox.

Batting practice by a member of the '62 team.

The '62 team on the practice field. Note the makeshift backstop - netting attached to a football goal post

Team picture of 1964 Gorilla baseball team.

Gorilla baseball team loosening up for a game in 1965

Members of that team included: Tom Swan front row far left Steve Bever front row second from left Wendell Cline front row third from left Fran Ferns second row far left Dick Long second row second from left Joe Fowler second row second from right V.J. Brown last row third from right Rene Mejia last row second from right Pat Harmon last row fourth from left

Team picture for the 1968 Gorilla baseball team. The '68 team finished 5-6 in a year hampered by weather. Back in those days PSU was known as Kansas State College of Pittsburg. Note the KSC on the uniform. The team was coached on the field by Jim Torrence (back row far left) and Dennis Watson (back row far right) with Al Ortolani overseeing the team from his training room and from the spring football practice field.

Steve Bever heading for first base in a game in 1968.

Double play combination for the Gorillas in 1969 and 1970 - shortstop Sanford Sigmon and second baseman Gary Grimaldi - lead the nation in double plays. The 1969 Gorillas were 15-8. Head coach Steve Bever and assistant coach Gary Grimaldi were teammates on the 1968 and 1969 teams.

Catcher Frank Nacarrato fires out from behind the plate in a game in 1969 at Jaycee Park. Nacarrato, currently an assistant football coach for the Gorillas, was also a member of the 1969 team.

Pitcher Don Brezavar works out of a bases-loaded jam in a game at Jaycee Park in 1970. Third baseman Fran Ferns, shortstop Sanford Sigmon, and first baseman Terry Tackett are in defensive position.

Coach Bever surrounded by players during a game in 1994 at Jaycee Park - the home of the Gorillas until the opening of Al Ortolani Field in 1995. 1994 was a breakthrough year for the Gorilla baseball program. After three years of building the program, the 1994 team finished 30-20 overall, 12-4 in the MIAA South and qualified for the MIAA post season tournament where they lost a hard-fought game 7-4 to eventual national champion Central Missouri State University.

Catcher Kenny Cook in action in a game at Jaycee Park in 1994.

Catcher Lance Yowell in action in a game in 1994. The Pitt State baseball family lost a close friend on November 17, 1998. Lance Yowell, a catcher for the Gorillas from 1992-1995, died as a result of injuries he suffered in a work-related accident. He was 25, and left behind his wife Mindy and an infant daugher, Abbie. A memorial fund has been established for Lance. Donations can be sent to Coach Bever at the Pitt State Baseball Office.

Team pictures of the 1999 Gorillas - the MIAA champions. The 1999 Gorillas won their first MIAA championship with a dramatic 8-7 win over Central Missouri.

We hope that alumni and friends enjoy our Pitt State baseball history Web site. If any alumni have pictures and/or stories or memories that they would like to share with us, please send them to:

Dr. Gary Grimaldi
Student Health Services
Pittsburg State University
1701 S. Broadway
Pittsburg, KS 66762
Phone: (620) 235-4452
Fax: (620) 235-4455