BRIDGEWATER, Va. - The Bridgewater College Athletic Department has announced its 2025 Teams of Distinction.

The 1978 baseball team and the 1980 women's lacrosse team have been selected for induction into the Bridgewater College Athletic Hall of Fame as Teams of Distinction.The 1980 women's lacrosse team will be inducted at the women's lacrosse contest against Ferrum on March 15. The 1980 baseball team will be inducted on April 5. 

The 1978 Bridgewater College baseball team embodied what it meant to put in hard work and determination on the field earning the college's first ever ODAC championship victory.

Under the great leadership of head coach Dr. Jim Reedy, the Eagles went on to a 17-7 overall record and an 8-4 conference record in the two-year old, Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Although the season did not start with a win as the team began their season on Spring Break in Florida. However, Reedy knew the team would click, as he quoted to the News-Record in 1978, "This trip was beneficial for us. We didn't just come here to win; we came here to get some work done outside." That season, the 1978 squad finished third in the ODAC regular season standings. Once the postseason hit, the Eagles were ready to soar. Bridgewater baseball pushed ahead to make it to the program's very first conference championship game, after beating Hampden-Sydney 16-6 in the first game. They later lifted the trophy in celebration, defeating Randolph-Macon at Richmond's Parker Field, 5-2. Coach Reedy was also awarded his first ODAC Coach of the Year honor.

On the day, Larry French and David Shields picked up wins while John Riley and David Bowers provided strong relief securing the ODAC title. Coach Reedy knew if he got well-pitched games, the Eagles would come home with a title; and Reedy's team delivered.

That season highlighted strong play from Butch Andrey and Robert Weeks. Andrey and Weeks both recorded six base hits in a game, which remains the most single-game base hits ever at Bridgewater. The 1978 team carried an overall batting average of .309 while senior captain, Russ Laub, was at the front of it all with a .394 average.

Freshman right-hander Bowers had a history of displaying shining-star games, as Bowers pulled off a one-hit feat against Shepherd earlier that season, being only one of five pitchers in program history to achieve a one-hit game. Larry French, First Team All-Conference played his part in bringing the 1978 baseball team to success. French pitched seven career complete games from 1977-80 while also recording four shutouts, the second-most career shutouts as of today in school history.

The 1980 Bridgewater College women's lacrosse team defined what competing at the highest level looked like, facing some of the nation's best programs.

Under the direction of Hall of Fame head coach Mary Frances Heishman, the Eagles ended the season 9-9 overall. Bridgewater finished third in the state tournament at the Virginia State Women's Lacrosse Division II tournament, qualifying them for the national tournament. Persistence paid off for Heishman's squad in 1980, as the Eagles closed out the season in fourth place on the national stage, making that the second-straight year the program qualified for the national tournament.

The United States Women's Lacrosse Association Division II national tournament took place in Catonsville, Maryland where Lafayette went on to claim the national title in 1980. Bridgewater fell short in the semifinals to a current-day Division I program, which led to Lafayette's induction to its Athletics Hall of Fame.

There were no easy matchups in 1980, as the Eagles went up against challenging Division I programs; facing Virginia, Longwood, Lafayette, Old Dominion, and Loyola (Md.). Bridgewater came up victorious in two of the games, defeating Longwood and Loyola.

In recognition of their accomplishments, the 1978 baseball team and 1980 women's lacrosse team have been deemed worthy of induction into the Bridgewater College Athletics Hall of Fame as a team of distinction.