Boston College Athletics
Baseball Announces Dedication to Sonny Nictakis
October 17, 2001 | Baseball
Oct. 17, 2001
CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. - Boston College Head Baseball Coach Pete Hughes announced that the traditional "Maroon and Gold Fall inter-squad World Series" will now be recognized as the "Sonny Nictakis Series".
Nictakis lost a seven-and-a-half year battle with Hodgkin's Disease in August 2000. He was a two-time captain of the baseball team and received the team's Leadership Award in 1997 and the 1998 Jeff Keith Athletic Leadership Award. He served as the president of the BC Student-Athlete Advisory Board.
In a touching game-one pregame ceremony, the team buried Sonny's No. 8 jersey beneath home plate, where it will forever be. A moment of silence in memory of Sonny followed, and junior pitcher Matt Elfeldt, who is currently battling testicular cancer, threw out the ceremonial first pitch.
"Sonny made such a huge impact on the Boston College Community, and the Boston College Baseball program," Boston College baseball head coach Pete Hughes said. "Naming the series after him is our way of forever remembering his hard work and dedication to Boston College baseball. We also felt that there is no better place for Sonny's game jersey than at home plate, as a catcher Sonny spent most of his time on the field behind that same home plate."
