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What happened in history on this day: March 31?
On March 31 in ...
- 1877 - Test Cricket debut of Fred "Demon" Spofforth, Australia versus England Melbourne Cricket Ground.
- 1909 - American Major League Baseball rules that players who jump contracts are suspended for five years.
- 1923 - Stanley Cup: Ottawa Senators (NHL) sweep Edmonton Eskimos (WCHL) in two games.
- 1935 - Fusahige Suzuki runs world record marathon (2:07:09).
- 1955 - Collie Smith scores 104 on cricket debut West Indies versus Australia, Kingston.
- 1968 - Mickey Wright wins LPGA Palm Beach County Golf Open.
- 1968 - Seattle's American League club is named Pilots.
- 1970 - Federal bankruptcy court allows Seattle Pilots to be sold to Milwaukee.
- 1973 - Philadelphia Flyers score 8 goals in one period vs New York Islanders, on 60 shots.
- 1973 - Ken Norton defeats Muhammad Ali in a 12-round split decision.
- 1975 - 37th NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: UCLA beats Kentucky 92-55; this is John Wooden's final game and UCLA's 10th NCAA championship in 12 years.
- 1976 - Cleveland Cavaliers clinch their first ever NBA playoff berth.
- 1978 - Red Rum wins third consecutive Grand National and retires.
- 1980 - Larry Holmes TKOs Leroy Jones in 8 rounds for WBC heavyweight boxing title.
- 1980 - Mike Weaver knocks out John Tate in 15 rounds for WBA heavyweight boxing title.
- 1985 - 4th NCAA Women's Basketball Championship: Old Dominion beats Georgia 70-65.
- 1986 - 48th NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: Louisville beats Duke 72-69.
- 1987 - 49th NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: Indiana beats Syracuse 74-73.
- 1990 - Dionisio Castro cycles world record 20 km (57:18.4).
- 1991 - 10th NCAA Women's Basketball Championship: Tennessee beats Virginia 70-67.
- 1991 - 20th Nabisco Dinah Shore Golf Championship won by Amy Alcott.
- 1991 - Saint Louis Blues' Brett Hull scores his 86th goal.
- 1992 - Delhi beats Tamil Nadu on first innings to win cricket Ranji Trophy.
- 1994 - Walkway from Cleveland's Tower City to Jacobs Field officially opens.
- 1995 - First game at Coors Stadium, Colorado (replacement Colorado Rockies beat New York Yankees 4-1).
- 1995 - Bombay beats Punjab on first innings to win cricket Ranji Trophy.
- 1995 - Federal judge orders injunction to end US baseball strike.
- 1996 - 15th NCAA Women's Basketball Championship: Tennessee beats Georgia 83-65.
- 1996 - First baseball Opening Day in March takes place in Seattle.
- 1996 - 25th Nabisco Dinah Shore Golf Championship won by Patty Sheehan.
- 1996 - Karnataka defeats Tamil Nadu on first innings to win Ranji Trophy.
- 1997 - 59th NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: Arizona beats Kentucky 84-79 (overtime).
- 1998 - Tampa Bay Devil Rays' first game; they host Detroit Tigers.
Births of sports figures on March 31
- 1923 - Birth of Donald Argee Barksdale in Berkley, California, USA; basketball player (Olympics-gold-1948).
- 1923 - Birth of Lawrie Miller in New Zealand; cricket player (opening bat in 13 Tests).
- 1928 - Birth of Gordie Howe in Floral, Saskatchewan, Canada; NHL right wing (Detroit Red Wings).
- 1931 - Birth of Miller Barber in Shreveport, Louisiana, USA; PGA golfer (1968 Byron Nelson Classic).
- 1932 - Birth of Godfrey Lawrence; cricket player (South African fast bowler, 8-53 versus New Zealand 1961).
- 1940 - Birth of Jim Criner; WLAF head coach (Scottish Claymores).
- 1946 - Birth of Aftab Gul; cricket player (Pakistani opening batsman in six Tests 1969-71).
- 1958 - Birth of Jay Feenan in Windham, New Hampshire, USA; rower (Olympics-1996).
- 1960 - Birth of Mark Tuinei; NFL tackle (Dallas Cowboys).
- 1961 - Birth of Ron Brown in Los Angeles, California, USA; 4x100 metre runner (Olympics-gold-1984).
- 1962 - Birth of John Taylor; NFL wide receiver (San Francisco 49ers).
- 1964 - Birth of Dave Wyman; NFL linebacker (Denver Broncos).
- 1964 - Birth of David Diaz-Infante; NFL guard (Denver Broncos-Superbowl 32).
- 1964 - Birth of Rod Jones; NFL cornerback (Cincinnati Bengals).
- 1965 - Birth of Marlon Vonhagt; cricket player (one ODI Sri Lanka 1984-85 World Series Cup).
- 1965 - Birth of Patty Fendick in Sacramento, California, USA; tennis star (1989 Auckland).
- 1965 - Birth of Tom Barrasso in Boston, Massachusetts, USA; NHL goalie (Pittsburgh Penguins).
- 1966 - Birth of Natalie Gosselin in Levis, Québec, Canada; 52kg judoka (Olympics-1996).
- 1966 - Birth of Thomas Fitzgerald in Brooklyn, New York, USA; team handball left wing (Olympics-1996).
- 1967 - Birth of Glenn Montgomery; NFL defensive tackle (Seattle Seahawks, Houston Oilers).
- 1967 - Birth of Nanci Bowen in Tifton, Georgia, USA; LPGA golfer (1995 Nabisco Dinah Shore).
- 1968 - Birth of J R Reid; NBA forward (New York Knicks, Charlotte Hornets).
- 1969 - Birth of Kevin Sargent; NFL tackle/guard (Cincinnati Bengals).
- 1969 - Birth of Steve Smith; NBA guard (Atlanta Hawks).
- 1970 - Birth of Derek Brown; NFL tight end (Jacksonville Jaguars).
- 1970 - Birth of Oleg Romanov; NHL defenseman (Belarus, Olympics-1998).
- 1970 - Birth of Stuart Carruthers; Australian field hockey fullback (Olympics-1996).
- 1971 - Birth of Pavel Bure in Moscow, Russia; NHL left wing (Team Russia Olympics-Silver-1998, Vancouver Canucks).
- 1972 - Birth of John Godina in Fort Sill, Oklahoma, USA; shot putter/discus thrower (Olympics-silver-1996).
- 1972 - Birth of Kelly O'Leary in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada; kayaker (Olympics-1996).
- 1974 - Birth of Anthony Hicks; NFL linebacker (Green Bay Packers-Superbowl 31).
- 1974 - Birth of James Burgess; linebacker (San Diego Chargers).
- 1974 - Birth of Jason Odom; tackle (Tampa Bay Buccaneers).
- 1980 - Birth of Jenny Smith in Western Australia; gymnast (Olympics-1996).
- 1980 - Birth of Chien-Ming Wang; Taiwanese Major League Baseball player.
- 1982 - Birth of Jessica Joseph in Royal Oak, Michigan; dance skater (and Butler-1997 National).
- 1988 - Birth of Hogan Ephraim, English football player.
Deaths of sports figures on March 31
- 1900 - Frank Milligan, cricket player (Mafeking 2 Tests England versus South Africa 1898-99), dies.
- 1931 - Knute Rockne, American football player/coach, dies in a plane crash at age 43.
- 1980 - Jesse Owens, American athlete (Olympics-gold-1936), dies in Tucson, Arizona at age 66 (born 1913).
- 2001 - Death of David Rocastle, English football player (born 1967).
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Other web pages of interest:
Chronology of World History
Today in Disney History
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