West Haven, Conn., November 3, 2009— Former University of New Haven baseball coach Frank "Porky" Vieira has been named as one of seven honorees to be honored at the 2009 March of Dimes Elm City Legends second annual dinner on Monday, November 9 at the Omni New Haven Hotel in New Haven, Conn.
The University of New Haven boasts one of the most storied baseball programs in the history of NCAA Division II thanks to legendary former head coach Frank "Porky" Vieira. Vieira founded the program in 1963 and retired after the 2006 season with an all-time record of 1,127-324-6 in 44 seasons. That included a string of 42 straight winning seasons from 1963 to 2004. He is second among all-time Division II coaches in both career winning percentage (.776) and total victories. Vieiraanks sixth on the all-time, all-division coaching list for winning percentage and is one of only 29 coaches to ever win at least 1,100 games at any division of college baseball.
Over the program's first 44 seasons, the University of New Haven earned 17 College World Series berths (15 NCAA, two NAIA) and was the 1989 NCAA Runner-Up to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, which later had its participation vacated due to ineligible players. Under Vieira UNH produced over 75 professional players, including 10 who advanced to Major League Baseball. Most notable was 1987 Cy Young Award winner Steve Bedrosian of the Philadelphia Phillies. In addition to starring in baseball as a student-athlete, Vieira still holds numerous scoring records within the QuinnipiacUniversity men's basketball program following an outstanding career from 1953-57.
This year's Elm City Legends also include: Ed Aston (Head Coach, Cheshire High School Boys' and Girls' Swimming), Bob Dikranian (former Head Coach, Southern Connecticut State University Men's Soccer; Assistant Coach, Yale University Women's Soccer), Dick Gagliardi (former Head Coach, Hamden High School Boys' Hockey and Yale University Men's Hockey; former Athletic Director, Sacred Heart Academy of Hamden), Dan Gooley (Head Coach, Quinnipiac University Baseball; former Head Coach, University of Hartford Baseball), Jack Siedlecki (Assistant Athletic Director and former Head Coach, Yale University Football), and Anne Worcester (Tournament Director, Pilot Pen Tennis; Chief Marketing Officer, Market New Haven). This year's honorary Elm City Legends are Tommy John (former MLB pitcher; former manager, Bridgeport Bluefish) and Karl Ravech (ESPN SportsCenter Anchor/Baseball Tonight Host/Golf Commentator).
"Building off the success of last year's sold-out Elm City Legends event, we are excited to announce another class of truly outstanding honorees," said Chuck Menke, Elm City Legends Nominations Co-Chairman. "These individuals are pillars in the New Haven Region community and beyond, both for their accomplishments in the sports world as well as for their selfless contributions to improving the lives of others."
Tickets for the 2009 Elm City Legends, which will be held from 5:30-8:30 p.m. on Nov. 9, are now on sale at www.marchofdimes.com/connecticut for $95 each or $180 per pair. Reserved tables of 10 are $850, and sponsorship packages are also available. For more information, please call 860-812-0080. All proceeds benefit the March of Dimes, working to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth and infant mortality.
A leader in experiential education, the University of New Haven is experiencing a historic and nationally recognized surge in enrollment. Founded in 1920, the University provides its students with a unique combination of solid liberal arts and real-world, hands-on professional training. UNH is a private university with an 80-acre main campus. The University has an enrollment of more than 5,200; approximately 1,700 graduate students and more than 3,500 undergraduates, 70 percent of whom reside in University housing. The University offers more than 80 undergraduate degrees and more than 25 graduate degrees through its five colleges, in fields such as sports management, nutrition, forensic science, music and sound recording, engineering, computer science and criminal justice. UniversityCollege at UNH develops programs and courses to meet the emerging educational and training needs of educators, businesses and public and social agencies, focusing on academic excellence, convenience and flexibility. University of New Haven students study abroad through a variety of distinctive programs.
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