Hall of Fame
Stephen T. Helmer ’79 – Class of 2000
With honors…
Chair of the Litigation Department at Mackenzie, Smith, Lewis, Michell & Hughes. Alpha Sigma Nu. Gamma Mu.
The Hammer.
His academic diploma is cum laude. His baseball credentials might well be summa. His achievements were of the highest order and he performed on teams that have no peers in Le Moyne’s history, with a combined 171-47 record during his four-year career on the Heights.
Under Coach Pete Palmer at Morrisville-Eaton High School, he had nurtured the sweet swing that led to his nickname, and at Le Moyne, Dick Rockwell needed that bat in his lineup. The Hammer was behind the plate or in the designated hitter slot his first two years as a Dolphin and then he anchored a stellar infield at first base, earning All-Star status at the position.
He rocketed 20 round-trippers in his collegiate career, playing on a home field without center and left-field fences, and once cleared Springfield road on the fly. His first homer came in the pressure of his first collegiate start, setting an often-repeated pattern of key hits in clutch situations.
Playing with strained knee ligaments in the 1978 Regional Final, he stroked a single to plate the tying run in the ninth inning to set up a Dolphin victory. Later that year, in the college World Series, he blasted a bases-loaded triple off future Cy Young Award Winner Steve Bedrosian. In his senior year, playing with a separated right shoulder, he hit for the cycle and drove in five runs in the NCAA Regional playoffs. He homered off MacArthur Field’s scoreboard and tripled off the 425-foot mark on the centerfield wall, to go with a double, single and sacrifice fly.
He played on spectacular Dolphin teams. They beat North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1978, when the Tar Heels went to the Division I World Series. They earned a berth in the Division II Regional Tournament every year, and advanced to the World Series twice, placing third in the nation in 1979 – Le Moyne’s all-time highest ranking.
On the diamond and in the classroom; and later as a distinguished attorney, sought-after lecturer on the law and courtroom strategy, parish council member, loyal Le Moyne alumnus and former president of the Gold Wave, he has consistently performed in a fashion that reflects high honor on his alma mater. Therefore,
Stephen T. Helmer ’79 is a member of the
Le Moyne College Athletic Hall of Fame
February 5, 2000
