Georgetown Hoyas
Baseball is Georgetown's oldest sport, with the first recorded game taking place in 1866, and the team formally organized and sanctioned in 1870. The Hoyas have seen little national success, with no appearances in the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship since the event was established in 1947. The team was once known as the Stonewalls, and is one possible source of the Hoya Saxa cheer famous among all Georgetown sports teams. The Hoyas play their home games at Shirley Povich Field, a 1,500 seat stadium located in Bethesda, Maryland and named for "Washington Post" sports columnist Shirley Povich. The stadium was built in 2000. The Hoyas also utilize three lighted batting cages and two bullpen areas located on campus above Yates Field House, and adjacent to Kehoe Field.
1942–43 Georgetown Hoyas men's basketball team
In the tournament quarterfinals at Madison Square Garden, Georgetown faced New York University, which had defeated the Hoyas 16 times in their last 21 meetings dating back to the 1921–1922 season and was the 2-to-1 favorite of New York City sportswriters, but Georgetown won in an upset, 55-36, with Mahnken scoring 18 points for the Hoyas. In the semifinals, the Hoyas were 3-to-1 underdogs to DePaul under first-year head coach Ray Meyer and led by their dominating center George Mikan. Following Ripleys strategy for the game, Kraus and Georgetown sophomore guard Billy Hassett kept Mikan busy in the middle while Hoya center Mahnken scored with outside shooting. The plan did succeed in allowing Georgetown to score, but also left Mikan fairly free to score for DePaul at the other end; despite this, Georgetown closed to 28-23 when Hoya guard Lloyd Potolicchio scored on a 50-foot (15-meter) shot at the buzzer at the end of the first half. The Hoyas pulled ahead in the second half, but Mahnken fouled out with 10 minutes left. Ripley put Henry Hyde, seven inches shorter than Mikan, in to play center. Hyde managed to keep Mikan in check, and Georgetown upset DePaul 53-49, prompting a Hoya fan to shout "Believe it or not...by Ripley!", a quote which received wide publicity. Hassett, a very reliable passer and outside shooter for the Hoyas, had 11 points in the game.