University of St. Francis (III.)

After winning three consecutive NAIA World Series' over at Lewis University, Gordie Gillespie departed the Romeoville school to build up the CSF program. He started the construction with Jon Debus, a product of Homewood-Flossmoor H.S. and an athlete who would "make CSF baseball what it is today." One year later, with Debus hitting .347, the Saints took their 35-22 mark to St. Joseph's, Missouri for their first NAIA World Series Appearance. The next season, Debus hit for a team-high .374 average (10th on the CSF single-season list) in joining Larry Donofrio on the NAIA All-American honor roll as a designated hitter and catcher, respectively. However, it wasn't until 1980 when Debus really exploded. In a year that saw the Saints go 44-33, he batted .352 and tallied 99 hits (4th on the all-time single-season list), 44runs (4th), 87 runs batted in (1st), 20 doubles (4th) and 24 stolen bases (8th). Debus, a two-time All-American, ranks third on the all-time career list in runs batted in (188), third in doubles (50), fourth in hitting (.354), fifth in stolen bases (48), sixth in hits (248) and eighth in home runs (25). He went on to play in the Los Angeles Dodgers' minor league system and now heads up their short-season Class A team in Great Falls, Montana.