Hall of Fame
Brad Owens, 2008 - Owens remains one of the best all-around hitters in Leatherneck baseball history, hitting for both average and power in his career, which earned him the honor of being named 1990 Mid-Continent Conference Player of the Year. His career .382 batting average still stands as the highest mark in school history. Owens is second in the school record books for career triples with 14, career home runs with 24, and career total bases with 311. He is also tied for fourth in career doubles with 38, and doubles in a season with 18 in 1991. Owens finished his Leatherneck career tied for fifth in runs batted in with 109.Â
In the 1990 season, Owens was named to Collegiate Baseball’s First Team All-American Freshman Team, a team that consists of the top-13 NCAA Division I freshmen. The Leatherneck second baseman was the leading hitter among the group, batting .429 on the season, which ranked 13th among all Division I players in the nation. Owens hit four home runs in a single game against league foe Northern Iowa, and hit a ninth-inning home run against rival Eastern Illinois, which gave the Leathernecks a 1-0 win.
Owens was a 16th round draft pick by the St. Louis Cardinals and won the 1992 United Trophy, being named MVP for the Hamilton Redbirds, a Cardinals affiliate in the New York/Penn League. After professional baseball, Owens spent five years in the Springfield School District working in security and as the head softball coach and assistant girls basketball coach. Owens has spent the last seven years working as a marketing support specialist for AT&T, while coaching youth football and baseball. Brad and his wife, Lori, reside in New Berlin, Illinois, and have four children:Â Joe, Anna, Mark, and Julia.
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