Sports History Network June 13, 1890 – An American won the US National Championship Women’s Tennis at the Philadelphia Cricket Club. Ellen Crosby Roosevelt defeated the defending champion Bertha Townsend 6-2, 6-2. Miss Roosevelt was the daughter of John Aspinwall Roosevelt, an estate proprietor, and Ellen Murray Crosby. She started playing tennis with her sister Grace eleven years earlier … Read more
The NFL saw two of its muddiest playoff games of all time during the decade of the 1970s. In 1970, the Miami Dolphins played on a certifiable quagmire at the Oakland Coliseum, and in 1977, the Minnesota Vikings competed against the Rams at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on a field that could be aptly … Read more
June 12, 1955 – Tragedy occurred at one of the racing world’s greatest spectacles, the Le Mans automobile race. 83 spectators ended up dying as a result of a flaming race car that rampaged off of the track after an accident at the highly attended 24-hour endurance race in France. One of the deaths was the car’s … Read more
June 11, 1903 – It was a matter of sibling rivalry, well sort of. At the British Open Men’s Golf Tournament, at Prestwick Golf Club, brothers Tom and Harry Vardon sat atop the leaderboard. Harry Vardon won his 4th British Open title by 6 strokes over his younger bro Tom Vardon. According to a story in … Read more
June 10, 1944 – The youngest player in MLB history makes his debut. Relief pitcher Joe Nuxhall at 15 years, 316 days, took the mound for the Cincinnati Reds. The current rules for Major League Baseball require athletes to be at least 18 years of age, but back then there was no such rule. Nuxhall stood … Read more