Photo by: WVU Athletic Communications
1996 NCAA Tournament Team to be Recognized This Weekend
April 28, 2026 12:37 PM | Baseball
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Chris Enochs believes he has at least one more pitch left in his right arm, and he is out to prove it on Friday night.
The former Oakland A's first-round draft pick will be in town this weekend to throw out the ceremonial first pitch before Friday night's game against Kansas State as the Mountaineers begin a critical three-game Big 12 series against the Wildcats.
Enochs, now the Director of Secondary Adult and Technical Education in Hancock County, and about 19 of his teammates on West Virginia University's 1996 NCAA Tournament team will be on hand this weekend to celebrate the 30th anniversary of that special season.
Reunion organizer Kevin Olkowski, working with WVU Varsity Club Director Kevin Johnston, expects to have about 65 former Mountaineer baseball players in town for its annual reunion weekend festivities.
As for the 1996 team, West Virginia's success that season coincided with Enoch's emergence as one of college baseball's most dominant right-handed pitchers in the mid-1990s. The Oak Glen product was a rare Ohio Valley signee for a Mountaineer program that at the time was experiencing mixed success recruiting in-state talent.
In the summer of 1994, Enochs and Circleville High's Travis Harper were the top two prospects in the state, and it was the hope in Morgantown of having the two pitching together at WVU.
But the Mountaineers were only able to get half of the tandem.
Harper opted to sign with James Madison, while Enochs spurned offers from Ohio State and several other top college programs to perform for his home-state university.
The WVU Sports Hall of Famer's freshman year in 1995 was a struggle, to say the least, the Newell native winning only one of his six decisions with an inflated 10.80 earned run average in 35 innings of work.
The beginning of his sophomore season in 1996 wasn't much better until he finally got command of his breaking ball and change-up during a complete-game, 3-2 victory over Rutgers at Hawley Field in early April.
"My curveball and changeup became more consistent, and I was able to throw three pitches for strikes," Enochs recalled earlier this week. "After the Rutgers game, everything just sort of snowballed from there.
"So much in athletics is about confidence," he added.
That pitching performance was the turning point in Enochs' college career, and it helped turn around coach Greg Van Zant's second season at West Virginia.
After getting swept by St. John's and Virginia Tech, the Mountaineers closed out the regular season by winning seven of eight, including a late-April doubleheader sweep at Notre Dame.
Enochs won a pitcher's duel in the first game in South Bend; earned the victory in West Virginia's wild Big East Tournament-clinching triumph over Connecticut at stormy Hawley Field and added his sixth win of the season against St. Louis to put the team's overall record at 27-22.
Then, following WVU's Big East Tournament opening-game victory over Notre Dame in Norwich, Connecticut, Enochs was just a sixth-inning infield single away from no-hitting Rutgers in the second game.
Considering he pitched all nine innings in the 5-0 victory over the Scarlet Knights, that likely meant Enochs would be a dugout observer for the remainder of the tournament. He did tell Van Zant that he might be able to throw an inning or two if the team continued to win.
West Virginia caught a big break when the following day's game against St. John's was postponed because of rain, giving the right-hander an extra day to recover if the Mountaineers could reach the championship round.
That happened when Scott Seabol knocked in the game-winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning to upset St. John's, 6-5.
An opportunity to secure the Big East title was denied the following afternoon when Notre Dame topped West Virginia, 5-2, setting up a Saturday afternoon rematch. Notre Dame needed to sweep West Virginia to win the Big East title, and with the Mountaineers almost out of pitching, that appeared likely when rubber-armed Mike Riley ran out of gas in the top of the ninth with the Mountaineers leading 7-3.
The left-hander gave up a pair of singles and a walk before exiting with the game-tying run standing in the on-deck circle in Irish No. 3 hitter Mike Amrhein.
So, Van Zant opted to roll the dice by bringing Enochs out of the bullpen to try and win the championship. It was one of the rare instances when Enochs had ever relieved a baseball game.
"It was definitely an adjustment for me," he chuckled. "In pro ball, I learned more about my body and my (pregame) routine, but back then I was just out there on pure adrenaline. I didn't really have a lot of time to warm up."
He got Amrhein to bounce into a double play and then fanned cleanup hitter Jeff Wagner to give West Virginia its first and only Big East Tournament title.
Just a month prior, the Mountaineers appeared headed toward another losing campaign before that late-season surge, propelled by its emerging ace.
Enochs provided more heroics in the NCAA Regional in Clemson, South Carolina, before a stadium full of pro scouts, cross checkers and general managers there to watch the Tigers' Kris Benson, taken No. 1 overall in the Major League Draft that summer by the Pittsburgh Pirates.
After Riley outlasted Tennessee and its ace RA Dickey - then still a fastball pitcher before discovering a knuckleball in the pros - Enochs blanked No. 14-ranked Georgia Southern through seven innings before tiring in the eighth.
Relievers Rodney Allen and Greg Stouffer came in to finish off the Eagles to keep West Virginia in the winner's bracket to face the No. 9-ranked Tigers.
Unfortunately for West Virginia, Clemson still had fourth-rounder Ken Vining available on the hill to toss a complete-game 6-3 victory. The Mountaineers' magical run concluded the following day when Tennessee outslugged WVU, 10-4.
This was before the current NCAA Tournament Super Regional setup, so through two days, West Virginia was just a couple of victories away from advancing to Omaha and the College World Series!
It was a remarkable turnaround season for West Virginia's baseball team, and it set Chris Enochs down the path toward All-America honors and being taken No. 11 overall in the 1997 Major League Draft.
Today, Enochs, who has spent the last 13 years working in the Hancock County school system, says he catches as many Mountaineer baseball games as he can on ESPN+ and is tickled to death with the interest and support the team now gets throughout the state.
Of course, membership in the Big 12 Conference, Kendrick Family Ballpark and the successful coaching tenures of Randy Mazey and Steve Sabins have had a lot to do with the program's recent resurgence.
"It wasn't always like this," Enochs said, alluding to his time spent playing at Hawley Field without locker rooms or a suitable place to use the restroom during baseball games. "The kids in the program deserve what they've got now, as do the people of the state.
"But I will always have fond memories of Hawley Field," he quickly added.
The former Oakland A's first-round draft pick will be in town this weekend to throw out the ceremonial first pitch before Friday night's game against Kansas State as the Mountaineers begin a critical three-game Big 12 series against the Wildcats.
Enochs, now the Director of Secondary Adult and Technical Education in Hancock County, and about 19 of his teammates on West Virginia University's 1996 NCAA Tournament team will be on hand this weekend to celebrate the 30th anniversary of that special season.
Reunion organizer Kevin Olkowski, working with WVU Varsity Club Director Kevin Johnston, expects to have about 65 former Mountaineer baseball players in town for its annual reunion weekend festivities.
As for the 1996 team, West Virginia's success that season coincided with Enoch's emergence as one of college baseball's most dominant right-handed pitchers in the mid-1990s. The Oak Glen product was a rare Ohio Valley signee for a Mountaineer program that at the time was experiencing mixed success recruiting in-state talent.
In the summer of 1994, Enochs and Circleville High's Travis Harper were the top two prospects in the state, and it was the hope in Morgantown of having the two pitching together at WVU.
But the Mountaineers were only able to get half of the tandem.
Harper opted to sign with James Madison, while Enochs spurned offers from Ohio State and several other top college programs to perform for his home-state university.
The WVU Sports Hall of Famer's freshman year in 1995 was a struggle, to say the least, the Newell native winning only one of his six decisions with an inflated 10.80 earned run average in 35 innings of work.
The beginning of his sophomore season in 1996 wasn't much better until he finally got command of his breaking ball and change-up during a complete-game, 3-2 victory over Rutgers at Hawley Field in early April.
"My curveball and changeup became more consistent, and I was able to throw three pitches for strikes," Enochs recalled earlier this week. "After the Rutgers game, everything just sort of snowballed from there.
"So much in athletics is about confidence," he added.
That pitching performance was the turning point in Enochs' college career, and it helped turn around coach Greg Van Zant's second season at West Virginia.
After getting swept by St. John's and Virginia Tech, the Mountaineers closed out the regular season by winning seven of eight, including a late-April doubleheader sweep at Notre Dame.
Enochs won a pitcher's duel in the first game in South Bend; earned the victory in West Virginia's wild Big East Tournament-clinching triumph over Connecticut at stormy Hawley Field and added his sixth win of the season against St. Louis to put the team's overall record at 27-22.
Then, following WVU's Big East Tournament opening-game victory over Notre Dame in Norwich, Connecticut, Enochs was just a sixth-inning infield single away from no-hitting Rutgers in the second game.
Considering he pitched all nine innings in the 5-0 victory over the Scarlet Knights, that likely meant Enochs would be a dugout observer for the remainder of the tournament. He did tell Van Zant that he might be able to throw an inning or two if the team continued to win.
West Virginia caught a big break when the following day's game against St. John's was postponed because of rain, giving the right-hander an extra day to recover if the Mountaineers could reach the championship round.
That happened when Scott Seabol knocked in the game-winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning to upset St. John's, 6-5.
An opportunity to secure the Big East title was denied the following afternoon when Notre Dame topped West Virginia, 5-2, setting up a Saturday afternoon rematch. Notre Dame needed to sweep West Virginia to win the Big East title, and with the Mountaineers almost out of pitching, that appeared likely when rubber-armed Mike Riley ran out of gas in the top of the ninth with the Mountaineers leading 7-3.
The left-hander gave up a pair of singles and a walk before exiting with the game-tying run standing in the on-deck circle in Irish No. 3 hitter Mike Amrhein.
So, Van Zant opted to roll the dice by bringing Enochs out of the bullpen to try and win the championship. It was one of the rare instances when Enochs had ever relieved a baseball game.
"It was definitely an adjustment for me," he chuckled. "In pro ball, I learned more about my body and my (pregame) routine, but back then I was just out there on pure adrenaline. I didn't really have a lot of time to warm up."
He got Amrhein to bounce into a double play and then fanned cleanup hitter Jeff Wagner to give West Virginia its first and only Big East Tournament title.
Just a month prior, the Mountaineers appeared headed toward another losing campaign before that late-season surge, propelled by its emerging ace.
Enochs provided more heroics in the NCAA Regional in Clemson, South Carolina, before a stadium full of pro scouts, cross checkers and general managers there to watch the Tigers' Kris Benson, taken No. 1 overall in the Major League Draft that summer by the Pittsburgh Pirates.
After Riley outlasted Tennessee and its ace RA Dickey - then still a fastball pitcher before discovering a knuckleball in the pros - Enochs blanked No. 14-ranked Georgia Southern through seven innings before tiring in the eighth.
Relievers Rodney Allen and Greg Stouffer came in to finish off the Eagles to keep West Virginia in the winner's bracket to face the No. 9-ranked Tigers.
Unfortunately for West Virginia, Clemson still had fourth-rounder Ken Vining available on the hill to toss a complete-game 6-3 victory. The Mountaineers' magical run concluded the following day when Tennessee outslugged WVU, 10-4.
This was before the current NCAA Tournament Super Regional setup, so through two days, West Virginia was just a couple of victories away from advancing to Omaha and the College World Series!
It was a remarkable turnaround season for West Virginia's baseball team, and it set Chris Enochs down the path toward All-America honors and being taken No. 11 overall in the 1997 Major League Draft.
Today, Enochs, who has spent the last 13 years working in the Hancock County school system, says he catches as many Mountaineer baseball games as he can on ESPN+ and is tickled to death with the interest and support the team now gets throughout the state.
Of course, membership in the Big 12 Conference, Kendrick Family Ballpark and the successful coaching tenures of Randy Mazey and Steve Sabins have had a lot to do with the program's recent resurgence.
"It wasn't always like this," Enochs said, alluding to his time spent playing at Hawley Field without locker rooms or a suitable place to use the restroom during baseball games. "The kids in the program deserve what they've got now, as do the people of the state.
"But I will always have fond memories of Hawley Field," he quickly added.
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