Former ENMU baseball standout dies

PORTALES — Former Eastern New Mexico University shortstop Stephen Marquez died Friday in an automobile accident in Wyoming.

Marquez holds the school’s single-season record for home runs with 12, a mark he reached in 1995 and 1996. His 24 career home runs are the most in school history.

“He was one of the most feared hitters in the Lone Star Conference in those days,” ENMU head coach Phil Clabaugh said in a press release. “In many ways, he was the one player who turned us from an average team into a team that could challenge for the conference title. In my 20 years of coaching, when I make my list of the top nine hitters I’ve ever coached, he’s certainly one of them.”

A mass in his honor will be held at 10 a.m. on Friday at Immaculate Conception Church in his hometown of Alamogordo.

Marquez was stationed in Wyoming while working for the Air Force.

Marquez batted .366 with 58 RBIs in 1995 and batted .339 56 RBIs.