Several thousand fans turn out to greet the Beavers at OSU

After being in Omaha, Neb., to watch his beloved Oregon State University Beavers win the College World Series Monday night, Mike Denison returned to Corvallis just in time to welcome the team home.

“I’m just the proudest Beaver ever,” he said.

Denison was among the more than several thousand fans young and old who crowded Parker Plaza Tuesday afternoon to pay homage to OSU’s national champions.

The area surrounding Reser Stadium looked like the red carpet at the Kodak Theatre before the Academy Awards. People crowded on balconies of nearby buildings, clamoring to catch a glimpse of Jonah Nickerson, Cole Gillespie and the rest of the team.

Kids clutched baseballs, hoping to get autographs from the players. Fans signed a giant vinyl jersey. Chants of “Oregon State, Fight, Fight, Fight!” filled the plaza, and shirts, hats, pom-poms and balloons all blended together to create a sea of orange and black.

Even though Denison was present for the big moment, when the Beavers defeated North Carolina 3-2 to claim the title, he wouldn’t have missed their Corvallis homecoming for anything.

The victory gave the Beavers their first national baseball championship and first national title since the men’s cross-country team won in 1961.

“I wanted to share any last minutes I could with the team, before they go off and become pros. They deserve our support,” said Denison, an OSU alumnus from the Class of 1989.

Julie Ragan attended with her niece and two kids, along with friend Brooke Jayne and her daughter, Riah.

Ragan has followed the Beavers especially closely for the past two weeks. She’s an alumna, and her son, 5-year-old Zack, loves baseball.

“I thought it would be great for my kids to come see the team,” she said.

“We’re being a part of history,” Jayne added.

Steve Kiel traveled from Bend to Omaha for the College World Series.

“It was the greatest experience of my life,” he said. “I never doubted (the Beavers would win). They’ve been a team of destiny all year.”

Kiel had to return home before the final games, but he held a viewing party Monday night.

The three-hour-plus drive from Central Oregon to Corvallis was totally worth it, Kiel said.

“How many times do you get to celebrate a national championship?” he asked.

Mike Parker, the “Voice of the Beavers,” led Tuesday’s celebration, and couldn’t contain his excitement.

“In 60 college world series, no team has ever faced six elimination games and won them all,” he said. “We’re so proud, we can hardly stand it.”

“The baseball team has made us the number one city in the nation,” Corvallis Mayor Helen Berg added.

OSU President Ed Ray and his wife, Beth, could not attend, but they sent their congratulations, as did Gov. Ted Kulongoski.

“Baseball fans across the nation now understand what it means to be a Beaver believer,” Ray said in a statement delivered by Parker.

Pat Casey, the baseball team’s head coach, said he’s proud of his players and the support system they have in Corvallis.

“You guys have the number one team in America, and we have the number one fans in America,” Casey said. He just finished his 12th season with the Beavers.

Darwin Barney, the shortstop who made OSU’s first hit Monday night, said the win hasn’t sunk in yet.

“It’s unreal. I think it’s awesome everyone here can be a part of it,” Barney said.

He credits the Beavers’ win to “never giving up, confidence and taking it one game at a time.”

Catcher Mitch Canham, author of the popular rap “O-State Ballaz,” said his favorite memory of the series was when everyone jumped on top of Casey for a big dog pile after Monday night’s victory.

“You could just see his one eyeball peeking out,” Canham said.

Kevin Gunderson was the closing pitcher in Monday’s game.

Gunderson enjoyed seeing all the fans at Parker Plaza, in addition to the thousands who gathered in Portland’s Pioneer Courthouse Square earlier Tuesday afternoon to welcome the team.

This was senior Chris Kunda’s final season with the Beavers. The Philomath native was happy to end his college baseball career on such a high note.

“It’s all I could have asked for and more,” he said.

Kunda has been drafted by the New York Yankees, and hopes to begin training with them soon.

Cheering for the Beavers is family affair for Melinda Schoonover. Her husband is an alumnus, her father helped build the old stadium and her daughter-in-law works at OSU.

“We bleed black and orange,” she said.

Schoonover was struck, however, by how colorblind fans at nearby universities have been throughout the World Series.

“It has nothing to do with black and orange, or green and yellow. It’s beyond colors, beyond school boundaries. It’s the whole Northwest,” she said.

Mary Ann Albright covers higher education. She can be reached at maryann.albright@lee.net or 758-9518.