Hall of Fame
Jay Kipp was an All-American first baseman for the Shippensburg University baseball team who ranks second in school history for RBIs (144) and third all-time in batting average (.383) after playing a part in teams that won both conference and regional championships.
Kipp competed in the NCAA Division II Baseball Championships (“College World Series”) as a junior in 1991 and contributed to a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championship as a freshman. In four years he helped the Raiders compile a record of 109-72-1 for a winning percentage of .602. During this stretch, Shippensburg earned three NCAA Tournament berths (1989, 1991, 1992) – winning the North Atlantic Regional title in 1991. The team won a PSAC title in 1989 and a PSAC East title in 1991.
Kipp is a two-time All-PSAC performer whose best season came as a senior, in which he was an ABCA Third Team All-American. Kipp set the SU single-season record with 134 total bases, while his 13 home runs ranked second-most in SU single-season history. He also had one of the longest hitting streaks in team history with 18. He had at least one base hit in the last 17 games of the 1991 season and then he hit safely in the season opener in 1992.
At the time of his graduation, Kipp’s career RBI total was a school record, while his career batting average ranked second. He also set single-season and career records for defensive putouts with 372 in 1991 and a career mark of 907. Though those putout totals have since been surpassed, his marks are still ranked third in team history. His .992 fielding percentage in the 1992 season ranks among the Top 5 seasons defensively by an SU first baseman.
As a freshman in the spring of 1989, Kipp appeared in 23 games as the Raiders compiled an overall record of 26-16 and won the PSAC Championship Tournament. Kipp batted .276 and hit two home runs and had six RBIs. In 1990, the Raiders went 17-24-1, but Kipp played in 37 games and hit .360 with three homers, 12 doubles and 30 RBIs.
Shippensburg went back to its winning ways in 1991, registering a 31-20 record. It won the PSAC Eastern Division, and while falling short of a conference title, the team bounced back to win the NCAA North Atlantic Region Tournament. Kipp boosted his batting average to .400 with 70 base hits in 175 at bats. He had 10 doubles, two triples, and six home runs. He also collected 49 RBIs and was named to the All-PSAC First Team.
In 1992, Kipp repeated as a first team All-PSAC player by hitting .413 with 76 hits in 184 at-bats. He hit 15 doubles and two triples to go along with his 13 homers. He also tied the team record for base hits in a game with six against Sacred Heart University. Shippensburg finished the season with a 35-12 record and competed in the NCAA Tournament.
Kipp currently lives in Mount Wolf and is in his 10th year working at Northeastern High School. He is in his sixth year in the classroom and previously spent four years as an assistant principal. Additionally, Kipp works as a PIAA football referee in the York/Adams League.
Jay is married to his wife, Danielle, a third-grade teacher in the Northeastern School District who is entering her ninth year in education. The couple are the proud parents of son Adam, a freshman accounting major at Juniata who is on the football and baseball teams, and daughter Marissa, a seventh grader at Northeastern Middle School.
