Editor’s note: For more than six decades, the UA has been college baseball royalty, making 17 College World Series appearances and winning four national championships. The Star is re-living each of the team’s trips to Omaha.
1986: Wildcats capture third national title
What went down: Arizona rode two-run homers from Mike Senne and Gar Millay to a 10-2 victory over Florida State in the final, securing coach Jerry Kindall’s third College World Series championship in 10 years.
Arizona’s championship run began when it overcame a seven-run deficit to beat Maine 8-7 in a thrilling opener. The Wildcats engineered a 7-5 victory over Loyola Marymount two days later, then beat Florida State twice, sandwiched around a loss to Miami (Fla.)
The Wildcats’ first victory over the Seminoles came thanks in part to Senne, who belted a three-run homer in the UA’s comeback win.
Senne, first baseman Todd Trafton, and pitcher/designated hitter Gary Alexander all made the all-tournament team. Senne was named the tournament’s most outstanding player.
“This is the biggest thrill of my life,” he told reporters “I’ve never had anything like this happen to me before. It means everything to me.”
From the archives: There was a reason Arizona was able to tee off on FSU pitching in the national title game. The Wildcats knew which pitches were coming. A whistle from the UA dugout alerted players that a fastball was coming. The Star’s Jack Magruder wrote that the Wildcats treated the game like practice:
As in batting practice, the UA had 11 hits — six for extra bases.
As in pitching practice, UA right-hander Gary Alexander had a shutout for eight innings.
As in stealing practice, UA second baseman Tommy Hinzo stole three bases, including home in the seventh, to set a Series championship game record.
The UA led, 10-0, before Florida State, 61-13 and the top-ranked team in the nation, scored two runs in the ninth to avoid its first shutout in 173 games.
UA’s Mike Senne, right, clasps hands with head coach Jerry Kindall as he rounds third base during the team’s game against Florida State in the 1986 College World Series.
He said it: With the championship game in hand, Arizona’s Joe Estes began warming up in the bullpen. It was part of a tradition that began in the Wildcats’ opening-round win over Maine. Every time Gary Alexander threw a pitch, Estes would do the same from the ’pen.
“For karma’s sake,” Estes said. “The bullpen had a lot of karma.”
Former UA baseball coach Jerry Kindall and players Kevin Long, left, and Chip Hale, right, celebrate winning the 1986 national title. The UA won three titles under Kindall.
After Omaha: The Wildcats won the national championship for Kindall, whose wife, Georgia, was suffering from Lou Gehrig’s Disease. She attended the series in a wheelchair, but was unable to speak. Georgia Kindall died a year later.
Kindall coached 24 seasons with the Wildcats, winning three Pac-10 titles and a WAC pennant at Arizona.
His teams advanced to the NCAA postseason 12 times during his tenure at UA and played in five College World Series, winning three titles.
Kindall, who remarried, was inducted in to the College Baseball Hall of Fame in 2007. He died in 2017 at age 82.
The big number: 45. Hinzo’s big performance in the championship game set the school’s single-season record with 45 steals. His eight in the tournament were also a record.
