Hall of Fame
Ralph Van Peursem was a strong-armed third baseman who, by necessity, was turned into a pitcher. He batted fourth in the lineup and was a longtime RBI record holder. His record was even more significant, because in the 50’s and early 60’s, RIT only played 10-15 games a year. Ralph was the baseball team captain in 1957 and hit .351 with a .973 fielding average. His pitching record was 7-3 from 1955-57 with a 1.76 earned run average. When he graduated, Ralph held the record for most strikeouts in a season with 66 and most RBIs with 26. Van Peursem was All-County at Brighton High School along with RIT Hall of Famer Bruce Proper. Van Peursem also played basketball at RIT, including junior varsity and varsity. In 24 games he tallied 56 points. He participated four years and was a member of the 1955-56 undefeated basketball team (17-0).
