Jan. 6, 2013

 Blue Jay Jersey Countdown - #33 

As we countdown to '13, a season Blue Jay faithful hope will end with a 10 on the 27th, HopkinsSports.com offers its own countdown ... by jersey number ... to the season-opener against Siena on February 8.

Today - #33

Did You Know: Numerous Johns Hopkins players have earned All-America honors wearing #33, but only defensemen Janis Berzins (1963) and Michael Evans (2009) have garnered first team status wearing the double-threes. Players wearing double numbers (11, 22, 33, 44,) have garnered a total of 15 First Team All-America selections for Johns Hopkins.

Player Spotlight – Michael Evans
Evans helped Johns Hopkins to the 2007 NCAA Championship and a runner-up finish in 2008 as he anchored a JHU defense that ranked among the nation’s finest throughout his career. Evans was matched against the top attackmen the Blue Jays faced throughout his final three years after opening his career as a short stick defensive middie as a freshman.

Evans earned All-America honors in each of his three seasons as a starter, moving from honorable mention as a sophomore, to third team as a junior and first team as a senior. He was named the William C. Schmeisser Award winner as a senior.

Other Notable “33s” in JHU Lacrosse History
Pierce Bassett: Bassett will enter his fourth season as JHU’s starting goalie in 2013, a role he assumed midway through his freshman year. Bassett earned Second Team All-America honors in 2011 and honorable mention status as a junior. He is bidding to become JHU’s first three-time All-America goalie since Brian Carcaterra (1998-2000).

Janis Berzins: Berzins played defense for the Blue Jays from 1961-63 and earned First Team All-America honors as a senior in 1963. From 1962-65, Berzins was the only Johns Hopkins defensive player to earn First Team All-America honors.

David Cordish: Cordish played midfield for the Blue Jays from 1958-60 and was a member of the 1959 USILA National Championship team. As we countdown to the 2013 season, we also countdown to the first season for the Cordish Lacrosse Center, the new home of the Johns Hopkins men’s and women’s lacrosse teams.

Dudley Dixon: Dixon transferred to Johns Hopkins for his final two seasons and didn’t disappoint. He notched 45 goals and 20 assists as a junior in 1997 and came back with 20 goals and 22 assists as a senior. His efforts as a senior were even more remarkable when you consider that he tore his ACL on the first day of fall practice that year, but was in the starting lineup when the Blue Jays opened the 1998 season against Princeton.

Jim Head: Head was one of the defensive leaders as a senior in 1972, when JHU played in its first NCAA Championship game. Head grabbed Third Team All-America honors that season.

Jim Moorehead: Moorhead was a member of JHU’s first NCAA Championship team in 1974 and earned All-America honors as a defenseman in 1975 (2nd Team) and 1976 (HM).

Lou Ruland: Ruland earned All-America honors three times as a standout goalie for the Blue Jays from 1953-55. He earned honorable mention honors as a sophomore and junior and third team as a senior. He was the starting goalie in Bob Scott’s first season as the head coach at Johns Hopkins (1955).

Famous “33 s” in Other Sports

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – Los Angles Lakers (NBA)
Kareem scored more than 38,000 points, collected more than 17,000 rebounds and won six NBA titles. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1995.

Larry Bird – Boston Celtics (NBA)
While the people in LA will tell you Kareem was the best NBA player to wear #33, the folks in Boston might disagree … and they might have a case. Bird didn’t play as long as Kareem, but scored more than 21,000 points, had nearly 9,000 rebounds and more than 5,500 assists. He won three NBA titles and was a 12-time All-Star.

Eddie Murray – Several Teams (MLB)
Murray collected more than 3,000 hits and 500 home runs in a career than spanned from 1977-97. He won one World Series title with the Baltimore Orioles, was selected to eight All-Star games and was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2003.

Patrick Roy – Montreal Canadiens, Colorado Avalanche (NHL)
Roy was voted the greatest goalie in NHL history by a panel of sportswriters. He won a pair of Stanley Cup titles with both Montreal and Colorado. He won 151 playoff games and posted a 2.30 career GAA in the playoffs and won three Vezina Trophys. He won 551 regular season games and had a career GAA of 2.54 in the regular season.

Note: Johns Hopkins men’s lacrosse rosters are generally available back to 1950. In many years after 1950, only an alphabetical list is available. The Blue Jay Jersey Countdown is intended to be an enjoyable way to count down to the 2013 season. It is not intended to rank in any way the players who wore a particular number.

HopkinsSports.com Men's Lacrosse

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