Oldest Record in the Book: Preacher Roe's 26 Strikeouts vs. Tech

This is the first of a series of stories about the oldest records on the book at Harding University. I will start out with the oldest single-event records. For most sports, that would be the single-game or single-match record. I will have to tweak it a little for sports like cross-country and tennis where my plan does not work out as well. The series will appear periodically on HardingSports.com during the fall semester.

The first record and oldest record I can find for Harding baseball occurred on April 26, 1937. In a game against Arkansas Tech, future Major Leaguer Preacher Roe struck out a school-record 26 batters in a 4-4, 13-inning tie. Maybe even more remarkable was that Roe did not walk a batter in the game. The umpire called the game after 13 innings due to darkness.

The feat created quite a buzz on the Harding campus, with numerous Major League scouts coming to Searcy and Roe receiving several offers of professional contracts. Roe, whose father was a doctor in Viola, Arkansas, passed on signing a professional contract until the end of the next school year.

Strikeouts were the best option for Roe in retiring opposing hitters because the Bison defense that season struggled. In an 8-6 loss to Arkansas Tech on May 13, Roe struck out 15, but his defense committed 12 errors in the game.

Harding finally got the best of Arkansas Tech in the fourth meeting of the season, defeating the Wonder Boys 5-2 in Russellville on May 21. Preacher "only" struck out 10 in the game, but helped himself out with three hits and two runs scored. Members of the 1937 team signed the ball pictured with this story in a postgame meal at Ed's Place, a local restaurant in Searcy at the time.

The publicity generated by Roe's efforts in 1937 led to the college building a new baseball field for the team for the 1938 season. Roe's junior year in 1938 was even better. Against collegiate competition, he went 5-0 with 90 strikeouts and only 11 hits allowed in 49.0 innings. He added two more games with 20 or more strikeouts, both against Arkansas College, including a 20-strikeout, no-walk outing in the first game at the new ballpark.

The highlight of the 1938 season for Roe might have come on April 29, when Harding took on the Viola Independents. The starting pitcher for Viola was 56-year-old Dr. C.E. Roe, Preacher's dad. Preacher struck out 17 in an 8-3 win. His dad struck out seven.

After the 1938 season, Roe signed a professional contract with the St. Louis Cardinals and even made his Major League debut for the team later that summer. He compiled a 127-84 record in 12 seasons, pitching for the Cardinals, Pittsburgh Pirates and Brooklyn Dodgers, with whom he pitched in three World Series. Roe retired after the 1954 season and returned to his home in West Plains, Missouri, to run a grocery store.

Harding baseball lasted only one more season after Preacher Roe left Searcy. Following the 1939 season, Harding halted intercollegiate sports until 1957, when baseball returned. The modern day record for strikeouts in a game is 17 by Justin Phillips against Arkansas-Monticello in 2007.

Single-game team records for Harding baseball date back to the 1996 season, and the oldest date to Harding's 36-10 victory over University of the Ozarks on March 23, 1999. Records still standing from that game include runs (36), hits (33), RBIs (35), home runs (8) and total bases (64).

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