St. John's Red Storm

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St. John's Red Storm
Stjo-lg.png
University St. John's University (New York)
Conference Big East Conference
NCAA Division I
Athletics director Chris Monasch
Location New York City, NY
Varsity teams 17
Basketball arena Carnesecca Arena, Madison Square Garden
Baseball stadium Jack Kaiser Stadium
Mascot Thunderbird
Nickname Red Storm
Fight song Fight For Old St. John's
Colors Red and White

             
Homepage Red Storm Sports

The St. John's Red Storm is the nickname used for the 17 varsity athletic programs of St. John's University. St. John's 17 NCAA Division I teams compete in the Big East Conference, with the exception of the fencing and lacrosse teams, which compete in the ECAC. The athletic program fields sixteen intercollegiate teams: basketball, soccer, baseball, lacrosse, tennis, golf, and fencing for men and basketball, soccer, softball, volleyball, tennis, track and field, cross country, golf, and fencing for women. In 2002, the university eliminated five men's athletic teams and one women's team in order to comply with Title IX rules prohibiting activities that receive federal assistance from discriminating on the basis of gender.[1] Until 1994, the St. John's mascot was the Redmen, which referenced the red uniforms worn by the university in competition. However, the name was interpreted as a Native American reference in the 1960s, and was changed to the Red Storm after mounting pressure on colleges and universities to adopt names more sensitive to Native American culture.[2][3] The Redmen name still remains popular among fans, however, as does the pejorative "Johnnies". On September 18, 2009 the new mascot, which was voted on by students, was revealed; The Thunderbird.

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[edit] Basketball

St. John's is the 5th most winningest program in college basketball history (1673 wins), and has the 7th best winning percentage (.680) in the NCAA.[citation needed] St. John's boasts the 7th-most NCAA tournament appearances (27), two Wooden National Player of the Year Award Winners, 11 consensus All-Americans, 6 members of the College Basketball Hall of Fame, and has sent 59 players to the NBA. However, of the top 5 teams, Kentucky, North Carolina, Kansas, Duke, and St. John's, St. John's is the only team not to win an NCAA championship for basketball, and currently holds the NCAA Division I record for most NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship appearances without a championship.[citation needed] The Red Storm play most of their home games at Madison Square Garden,"The World's Most Famous Arena", while their early non-conference games are held at Carnesecca Arena on the St. John's campus in Queens.[4] St. John's University holds the second best winning percentage for a New York City school in the NCAA basketball tournament (second to City College of New York - which won two NCAA Div 1 Championships[5]) St. John's has the most NIT appearances with 27, the most championship wins with 6, although they were stripped of one due to an NCAA infraction.[6] St. John's also holds a Helms Athletic Foundation Championship. In 2008, St. John's celebrated its 100th year of college basketball.

[edit] Soccer

St. John's soccer has appeared in 15 consecutive NCAA tournaments, advancing to the Sweet 16 in each of the last ten seasons, and the Final Four on 3 occasions. They have captured 11 Big East Championships, including the 2006 season title, and in 1996, St. John's won the NCAA National Championship. Their home games are hosted at Belson Stadium, a state of the art 2,300 seat stadium on the university campus.[4] In 2006, the men's soccer team became the first American soccer team to be invited to play in Vietnam. The team played against several Vietnam Football Federation squads as well as participating in community service.[7]

[edit] Baseball

The St. John's baseball team has been to the College World Series six times, recorded 26 NCAA appearances, 6 Big East Championships and have sent 70 players on to professional baseball careers. Most recently, St. John's won the Big East Regular Season Title two of the last three years (2005/2007). The 3,500 seat "Ballpark at St. John's" was renamed "Jack Kaiser Stadium" in 2007 after the Hall of Fame Coach and former St. John's Athletic Director. The stadium is one of the largest college baseball stadiums in the northeast, and is a featured venue on the EA Sports MVP NCAA Baseball video game.[4] The stadium was conceived out of a deal between the university and the Giuliani administration. The administration wanted to find a location for a single-A team that would be affiliated with the New York Mets. Expressing concern about quality of life issues and the spending of public money for a private religious institution, surrounding neighborhood civic groups and local politicians protested the plan. In order to placate their concerns, however, the Mets offered to open it up to the communities for local high school games and youth programs.[8] This stadium was built despite large protests by community residents as well as State Senator Frank Padavan[9] (while also using city financing)[10] The Red Storm played the first ever game at the Mets' new ballpark, Citi Field on March 29, 2009.

[edit] Fencing

The St. John's fencing program has also attained national prominence including Olympians Keeth Smart and Ivan Lee. In 2001, St. John's won the NCAA Fencing Championship. The team has ranked in the top five each of the last 10 years, and finished 2nd in the NCAA during 1995, 2000, 2002, and 2007 seasons. In addition to team accolades, St. John's has won eleven NCAA Individual National Championship titles.[4]

[edit] Mascot

In spring 2009, St. John's allowed its students to vote on what the new official Red Storm mascot would be. At a soccer game in Fall 2009, members of athletics announced that a Thunderbird had received the majority of votes and would become the new mascot. After a vote, the new mascot was named Johnny the Thunderbird. He can be seen at many of the school's athletic events, cheering on the Red Storm. [11]

[edit] Notable Red Storm

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D00E2DE1E3AF937A25751C1A9649C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=1
  2. ^ http://www.stjohns.edu/alumni/resources/alu_athfaq.stj
  3. ^ http://www.poynter.org/column.asp?id=101&aid=131639
  4. ^ a b c d http://www.redstormsports.com/about/traditions
  5. ^ http://espn.go.com/classic/s/basketball_scandals_explosion.html
  6. ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NIT#Men.27s_Post-season_NIT_Championships
  7. ^ "St. John's Signs Historic Agreement with Vietnam". St. John's University. http://www.stjohns.edu/about/news/items/monthly/january06/vietnam/pr_uni_060119.sju. Retrieved 2008-11-19. 
  8. ^ Bagli, Charles (February 19, 2000). "Queens Groups Plan to Sue To Stop a Baseball Stadium". New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B06E3D61F31F93AA25751C0A9669C8B63. 
  9. ^ [1]
  10. ^ [2]
  11. ^ http://media.www.torchonline.com/media/storage/paper952/news/2009/09/09/Sports/St.Johns.Chooses.Thunderbird.To.Be.New.Mascot-3775784.shtml?reffeature=popuarstoriestab

[edit] External links

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