Johns Hopkins Blue Jays
Encyclopedia
The Johns Hopkins University
's intercollegiate sports teams are called the Blue Jays (after the bird Blue Jay
), and they compete in the NCAA's Division III, except for the lacrosse
teams that compete in Division I. They are primarily members of the Centennial Conference
. The team colors are Columbia blue
(PMS 284) and black
, and the Blue Jay
is their mascot. Homewood Field
is the home stadium.
Hopkins celebrates Homecoming
in the spring to coincide with the height of the lacrosse season. The Lacrosse Museum and National Hall of Fame
, governed by US Lacrosse
, is located on the Homewood campus and is adjacent to Homewood Field. Past Johns Hopkins lacrosse teams have represented the United States
in international competition. At the 1932 Summer Olympics lacrosse demonstration event
Hopkins played for the US. They have also gone to Melbourne, Australia to win the 1974 World Lacrosse Championship
.
team, which has won 44 national titles - nine NCAA
Division I (2007, 2005, 1987, 1985, 1984, 1980, 1979, 1978, 1974), 29 United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association
(USILA), and six Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (ILA) titles. Hopkins' lacrosse
rivals include Princeton University
, Syracuse University
, the University of Virginia
, and a budding rivalry with Duke University
due to intense recent competition, including one-goal victories over the Blue Devils in both the 2005 and 2007 NCAA Championships and in the NCAA semifinals in the 2008; its primary intrastate rivals are Loyola College
, Towson University
, the United States Naval Academy
, and the University of Maryland
. The rivalry with Maryland is the most prominent in college lacrosse and the two teams have met 105 times.
The Blue Jays Men's Soccer team has won eight Centennial Conference Regular Season titles along with another four ECAC titles previously to joining the Centennial Conference in 1993. The team has reached the NCAA tournament 12 times in the program's history. The team is currently on a streak of 16 winning seasons and has had over 20 All-American selections.
Hopkins also has an acclaimed fencing
team, which has ranked in the top three of Division III teams in the past few years and in 2007 defeated University of North Carolina
, a Division I team, for the first time. The Swimming
team also has ranked in the top two of Division III for the last 10 years. Hopkins also has a century-old rivalry with McDaniel College
(formerly Western Maryland College), playing the Green Terrors 83 times in football since the first game in 1894.
Johns Hopkins' latest team to encounter postseason success is the school's baseball
team. Although Blue Jays baseball regularly wins the Centennial Conference
regular season and tournament titles, 2008 was the first time since 1989 that the Blue Jays made it to the College World Series
for Division III baseball, hosted in Appleton, Wisconsin
. The Blue Jays finished runner-up to Trinity College
, losing a heart-breaker in the championship game.
The women's cross country team has experienced great success in recent years, finishing 7th at the NCAA championship in 2009 and 2010. The cross country and track & field teams have also had several All-American runners in the past few years.
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
's intercollegiate sports teams are called the Blue Jays (after the bird Blue Jay
Blue Jay
The Blue Jay is a passerine bird in the family Corvidae, native to North America. It is resident through most of eastern and central United States and southern Canada, although western populations may be migratory. It breeds in both deciduous and coniferous forests, and is common near and in...
), and they compete in the NCAA's Division III, except for the lacrosse
Lacrosse
Lacrosse is a team sport of Native American origin played using a small rubber ball and a long-handled stick called a crosse or lacrosse stick, mainly played in the United States and Canada. It is a contact sport which requires padding. The head of the lacrosse stick is strung with loose mesh...
teams that compete in Division I. They are primarily members of the Centennial Conference
Centennial Conference
The Centennial Conference is an athletic conference which competes in the NCAA's Division III. Member teams are located in Maryland and Pennsylvania....
. The team colors are Columbia blue
Columbia blue
Columbia blue, also known as Jordy blue, is a light blue tertiary color named after Columbia University. The typical Columbia blue is defined by Pantone Columbia Blue 3 .- Usage, symbolism, colloquial expressions :...
(PMS 284) and black
Black
Black is the color of objects that do not emit or reflect light in any part of the visible spectrum; they absorb all such frequencies of light...
, and the Blue Jay
Blue Jay
The Blue Jay is a passerine bird in the family Corvidae, native to North America. It is resident through most of eastern and central United States and southern Canada, although western populations may be migratory. It breeds in both deciduous and coniferous forests, and is common near and in...
is their mascot. Homewood Field
Homewood Field
Homewood Field is the athletics stadium of the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland. It was built in 1906 and has an official capacity of 8,500 people. The name is taken, as is that of the entire campus, from that of the estate of Charles Carroll of Carrollton. It serves as the home...
is the home stadium.
Hopkins celebrates Homecoming
Homecoming
Homecoming is the tradition of welcoming back alumni of a school. It most commonly refers to a tradition in many universities, colleges and high schools in North America...
in the spring to coincide with the height of the lacrosse season. The Lacrosse Museum and National Hall of Fame
Lacrosse Museum and National Hall of Fame
The US Lacrosse Museum and National Hall of Fame, located in Baltimore, Maryland, on the campus of Johns Hopkins University, is operated by US Lacrosse...
, governed by US Lacrosse
US Lacrosse
US Lacrosse is the national governing body of men and women's lacrosse in the United States, primarily serving the youth game. It provides a leadership role in virtually every aspect of the game, boasts 63 chapters throughout the United States, and offers programs and services to inspire...
, is located on the Homewood campus and is adjacent to Homewood Field. Past Johns Hopkins lacrosse teams have represented the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in international competition. At the 1932 Summer Olympics lacrosse demonstration event
Lacrosse at the 1932 Summer Olympics
Lacrosse was a demonstration sport at the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Teams from Canada and the United States played three games, with the team from the United States winning the series 2 games to 1...
Hopkins played for the US. They have also gone to Melbourne, Australia to win the 1974 World Lacrosse Championship
World Lacrosse Championship
The World Lacrosse Championship is the world championship for international men's field lacrosse. From its inception in 1967 through the 2006 event, it was sanctioned by the International Lacrosse Federation...
.
Origin of the name
Originally, the Johns Hopkins athletes were not called Blue Jays but the Black and Blue, a nickname derived from their athletic colors. Hopkins archivist James Stimpert has theorized that the Blue Jay name stemmed from Hopkins' student humor magazine, The Black and Blue Jay, first published in 1920. The "Black and Blue" came from the athletic colors and the "Jay" most likely stood for first initial in Johns Hopkins. Luckily, Blue Jays are black-and-blue birds that can be spotted in Homewood, providing a perfect match.Varsity Sports
- BaseballBaseballBaseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
- M/W BasketballBasketballBasketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
- M/W Cross CountryCross country runningCross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
- M/W FencingFencingFencing, which is also known as modern fencing to distinguish it from historical fencing, is a family of combat sports using bladed weapons.Fencing is one of four sports which have been featured at every one of the modern Olympic Games...
- Field HockeyField hockeyField Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...
- FootballAmerican footballAmerican football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
- M/W LacrosseLacrosseLacrosse is a team sport of Native American origin played using a small rubber ball and a long-handled stick called a crosse or lacrosse stick, mainly played in the United States and Canada. It is a contact sport which requires padding. The head of the lacrosse stick is strung with loose mesh...
- M/W Soccer
- M/W SwimmingSwimming (sport)Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
- M/W TennisTennisTennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
- M/W Indoor Track
- M/W Outdoor Track
- VolleyballVolleyballVolleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
- WrestlingWrestlingWrestling is a form of grappling type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. A wrestling bout is a physical competition, between two competitors or sparring partners, who attempt to gain and maintain a superior position...
- Water PoloWater poloWater polo is a team water sport. The playing team consists of six field players and one goalkeeper. The winner of the game is the team that scores more goals. Game play involves swimming, treading water , players passing the ball while being defended by opponents, and scoring by throwing into a...
Championships
The school's most prominent sports team is its men's lacrosseLacrosse
Lacrosse is a team sport of Native American origin played using a small rubber ball and a long-handled stick called a crosse or lacrosse stick, mainly played in the United States and Canada. It is a contact sport which requires padding. The head of the lacrosse stick is strung with loose mesh...
team, which has won 44 national titles - nine NCAA
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
Division I (2007, 2005, 1987, 1985, 1984, 1980, 1979, 1978, 1974), 29 United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association
United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association
The United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association is an association of institutions with varsity college lacrosse programs in all three NCAA divisions, founded in 1885.-Awards:...
(USILA), and six Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (ILA) titles. Hopkins' lacrosse
Lacrosse
Lacrosse is a team sport of Native American origin played using a small rubber ball and a long-handled stick called a crosse or lacrosse stick, mainly played in the United States and Canada. It is a contact sport which requires padding. The head of the lacrosse stick is strung with loose mesh...
rivals include Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, Syracuse University
Syracuse University
Syracuse University is a private research university located in Syracuse, New York, United States. Its roots can be traced back to Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, founded by the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1832, which also later founded Genesee College...
, the University of Virginia
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
, and a budding rivalry with Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
due to intense recent competition, including one-goal victories over the Blue Devils in both the 2005 and 2007 NCAA Championships and in the NCAA semifinals in the 2008; its primary intrastate rivals are Loyola College
Loyola College in Maryland
Loyola University Maryland is a Roman Catholic, Jesuit private university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Established as Loyola College in Maryland by John Early and eight other members of the Society of Jesus in 1852, it is one of 28 member institutions of the Association of Jesuit Colleges...
, Towson University
Towson University
Towson University, often referred to as TU or simply Towson for short, is a public university located in Towson in Baltimore County, Maryland, U.S...
, the United States Naval Academy
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located in Annapolis, Maryland, United States...
, and the University of Maryland
University of Maryland, College Park
The University of Maryland, College Park is a top-ranked public research university located in the city of College Park in Prince George's County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C...
. The rivalry with Maryland is the most prominent in college lacrosse and the two teams have met 105 times.
The Blue Jays Men's Soccer team has won eight Centennial Conference Regular Season titles along with another four ECAC titles previously to joining the Centennial Conference in 1993. The team has reached the NCAA tournament 12 times in the program's history. The team is currently on a streak of 16 winning seasons and has had over 20 All-American selections.
Hopkins also has an acclaimed fencing
Fencing
Fencing, which is also known as modern fencing to distinguish it from historical fencing, is a family of combat sports using bladed weapons.Fencing is one of four sports which have been featured at every one of the modern Olympic Games...
team, which has ranked in the top three of Division III teams in the past few years and in 2007 defeated University of North Carolina
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...
, a Division I team, for the first time. The Swimming
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
team also has ranked in the top two of Division III for the last 10 years. Hopkins also has a century-old rivalry with McDaniel College
McDaniel College
McDaniel College is a private four-year liberal arts college in Westminster, Maryland, located 30 miles northwest of Baltimore. The college also has a satellite campus located in Budapest, Hungary. Until July 2002, it was known as Western Maryland College...
(formerly Western Maryland College), playing the Green Terrors 83 times in football since the first game in 1894.
Johns Hopkins' latest team to encounter postseason success is the school's baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
team. Although Blue Jays baseball regularly wins the Centennial Conference
Centennial Conference
The Centennial Conference is an athletic conference which competes in the NCAA's Division III. Member teams are located in Maryland and Pennsylvania....
regular season and tournament titles, 2008 was the first time since 1989 that the Blue Jays made it to the College World Series
College World Series
The College World Series or CWS is an annual baseball tournament held in Omaha, Nebraska that is the culmination of the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship, which determines the NCAA Division I college baseball champion. The eight teams are split into two, four-team, double-elimination brackets,...
for Division III baseball, hosted in Appleton, Wisconsin
Appleton, Wisconsin
Appleton is a city in Outagamie, Calumet, and Winnebago Counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is situated on the Fox River, 30 miles southwest of Green Bay and 100 miles north of Milwaukee. Appleton is the county seat of Outagamie County. The population was 78,086 at the 2010 census...
. The Blue Jays finished runner-up to Trinity College
Trinity College (Connecticut)
Trinity College is a private, liberal arts college in Hartford, Connecticut. Founded in 1823, it is the second-oldest college in the state of Connecticut after Yale University. The college enrolls 2,300 students and has been coeducational since 1969. Trinity offers 38 majors and 26 minors, and has...
, losing a heart-breaker in the championship game.
The women's cross country team has experienced great success in recent years, finishing 7th at the NCAA championship in 2009 and 2010. The cross country and track & field teams have also had several All-American runners in the past few years.