Watch video above for complete video of Congress honoring the Fresno State Bulldogs (second video)
Read the Congressional resolution
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"Fresno State what they accomplished, winning the championship has all the makings of a movie," said Congressman Costa.
Tuesday morning Congress recognized the Fresno State Bulldogs for the university's first national title in men's sports. Congressmen Jim Costa and George Radanovich said their win was a true success story.
The team beat Georgia in the best of three College World Series finals last month. Fresno State is the first number four regional seed to reach the College World Series since the tournament expanded in 1999.
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Fresno State Press Release
Congressional resolution honors national champ Bulldogs
(July 15, 2008) – A resolution honoring the Fresno State Bulldogs NCAA champion baseball team was passed by the House of Representatives today (July 15).
The resolution, HR-1327, was sponsored by Valley Reps. Dennis Cardoza (D-Merced), Jim Costa (D-Fresno), Devin Nunes (R-Tulare) and George Radanovich (R-Mariposa) and joined by 23 other representatives.
The 'Dogs won the College World Series on June 26 in Omaha, defeating the Georgia Bulldogs for the national title.
The House resolution congratulates the team "on an outstanding and historic season" and "recognizes that the Bulldogs, in winning their first College World Series, concluded an unprecedented season and championship that captivated baseball fans across America."
Dr. John D. Welty, president of California State University, Fresno, said the resolution by the 110th Congress is a high honor.
"It is very fitting that our nation's leaders recognize Coach Mike Batesole and our student-athletes for their success in fighting through adversity and conquering what seemed like overwhelming odds to win the national collegiate baseball championship," Welty said. "It was inspiring to watch the Bulldogs' unselfishness as they demonstrated the importance of teamwork. And it's been gratifying to see the team praised around the world for what they were able to accomplish."
Coach Batesole said, "On behalf of our team, I am honored that we have received this recognition from the U.S. House of Representatives led by California's Congressional delegation and supported by our nation's leaders."
Among the comments from the House floor, Rep. Michael Castle (R-Delaware) acknowledged the Bulldogs' accomplishments not just athletically but in the academic arena as well.
"I watched some of these games on television and you see a Georgia vs. a Fresno State and your immediate thought is 'Georgia must be dominant in this situation as they are a very dominant athletic team in this country.' But, indeed, Fresno State fought to win two out of three of those games and they deserve a tremendous amount of credit, particularly considering the year they had gone through," Castle said.
"This is an excellent school and sometimes athletic excellence causes us to look at other things and looking at the academics at Fresno State, they deserve to be congratulated for the academic side of what they are doing as well as their great victory in the NCAA baseball tournament this year," Castle said.
The Congressional resolution follows tributes from Gov. Schwarzenegger, the city of Fresno, the Fresno County Board of Supervisors, Clovis City Council, and the California Assembly and Senate. Various hometowns of the players are also honoring their native sons.
On their return home from Omaha, the team and coaches were honored with a community celebration at Beiden Field that followed a parade on the Fresno State campus.
The university's award-wining viticulture and enology program has begun planning for a commemorative student-produced wine honoring the College World Series championship. The wine would be from the 2008 harvest and be available about 18 months after that.
Besides the Valley representatives, the Congressional resolution is supported by California's David Dreier, Grace Napolitano, Darrell Issa, Ken Calvert, Kevin McCarthy, Dana Rohrabacher, Jerry McNerney, Lucille Roybal-Allard, Mike Honda, Mike Thompson, John Doolittle, Brian Bilbray, Howard Berman, George Miller, Jerry Lewis, Rep. Mary Bono-Mack, Wally Herger and John Campbell. Other supporters are Reps. Greg Walden (R-Ore.), Lee Terry (R-Neb.), Don Young (R-Ark.), John Shimkus (R-Ill.) and John Boozman (R-Ark.).
Read the Congressional resolution - http://thomas.loc.gov/home/gpoxmlc110/hr1327_ih.xml
