Was there anything Mark Beavers ’82 couldn’t do when he was “in the zone?” He saw plays unfolding on the football field the same way as he saw a baseball heading his way from the mound – one ended in a sack, the other with a whack.
The two-sport all-star was small by some standards – listed at 6-foot and 175 pounds – but Beavers came up big when it counted, especially his senior year. The future dentist followed up his ILH all-star selection as a junior in 1980 by being named the ILH’s Defensive Player of the Year of 1981. He made 134 tackles in 10 games en route to being selected to the all-ILH first team and all-state squad.
As good as Beavers was at football, he was even better in baseball. The left-handed pitcher led the ILH in hitting with a .463 average and was second in strikeouts (37). He also led the buff ’n blue in RBI, runs scored and doubles.
“He was the best pitcher we had for four seasons,” Punahou baseball coach Pal Eldredge ’64 said. “One of the toughest players I’ve ever coached. He could have played college football, but opted for the baseball route.”
Beavers chose Eldredge’s alma mater – Brigham Young University – and left his mark on the Cougars’ record book. He holds seven single-season records, including wins (14) and ERA, both of those in 1985. The all-Western Athletic Conference selection also ranks him in the top five in four categories, wins (29) and strikeouts (244).