Babson Announces Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2011
BABSON PARK, Mass. -- The Babson College Athletics Hall of Fame
Committee has announced the members of its thirteenth induction
class to be enshrined this coming spring. Men's lacrosse star
Chris Grant '81, men's basketball standout
Matt Miller '93, baseball great Kevin Higa
'03, and coaching legend Judy Blinstrub
will officially enter the Hall on Friday, April 8, 2011.
The program's all-time leader with 137 assists and 231 points,
Grant helped lead the men's lacrosse team to a 38-15 record,
including its finest season ever in 1979. His 47 assists that
spring remains a single-season program record, while his 61 total
points is the fifth highest total in Babson history. With Grant
leading the way, Babson won the Colonial Division Championship and
earned the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament bid. Grant then led
the Beavers to a second straight league title in 1980 while earning
All-Conference and All-New England honors.
A force at both ends of the court, Miller helped lead the men's
basketball team to a remarkable record of 62-17 during his three
years in the Green and White, including a pair of ECAC New England
Tournament bids and the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament berth
in 1992. Averaging 14.8 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, Miller
was a two-time CAC All-Star and was named CAC Player of the Year,
NABC All-Northeast Second Team, and ECAC All-New England Second
Team in 1993. His 1109 career points placed him 10th on Babson's
all-time scoring list at the time of his graduation and remains the
17th highest total in team history.
One of the most talented players to ever grace the Babson diamond,
Kevin Higa helped lead the baseball program to 83 wins, four
consecutive ECAC New England Tournament bids, and the program's
second ECAC Championship in 2002. In 143 games, he recorded 198
hits, 136 runs scored, 41 doubles, 10 triples, 137 RBI, and 313
total bases - all of which are second on Babson's all-time lists.
In addition, his 18 home runs are third most all-time (first among
right-handed hitters), his .353 average is seventh highest, and his
two 19-game hit streaks are the two longest in program history.
Higa still holds six single-season Babson baseball records,
including 68 hits, 50 RBI, and 117 total bases in 2002.
One of Babson's most successful and respected coaches and
administrators, Blinstrub has recorded more victories than any
other coach in school history. Before stepping down in 2005, she
guided the women's soccer team to 200 wins, four conference
championships, and six ECAC New England Tournament bids over 21
seasons. In basketball, she has led the Beavers to 444 victories,
five conference championships, eight ECAC Tournament bids, and five
NCAA Tournament appearances in 26 seasons, including the program's
first-ever trip to the Elite 8 this past winter. She has been named
Conference Coach of the Year 11 times in her career, was the New
England Coach of the Year on three occasions, and she is the only
women's coach in NCAA Division III history with at least 200 wins
in soccer and 400 victories in basketball. A member of the
Athletics Hall of Fame at her alma mater Bridgewater State,
Blinstrub has also positively influenced countless student-athletes
as Babson's Senior Women's Administrator and Associate Athletics
Director.
The induction of Grant, Miller, Higa, and Blinstrub will bring the Hall of Fame's total membership to 56.
