LOUISIANA TECH

wade Simoneaux Head Coach LA TECH

Entering his tenth season at the helm of the Louisiana Tech program, Wade Simoneaux has turned the Bulldogs into perhaps one of the more prolific offensive teams in the south. Simoneaux has compiled over 230 wins and has turned J.C. Love Field at Pat Patterson Park into a true home field advantage as LA Tech has built a .686 winning percentage since 2006.

The 2011 Bulldogs compiled a 34-27 record and had the best finish in the WAC tournament than any other team in school history (2-2). As a UNIVERSITY result, two players, Will Alvis and Ryan Gebhardt, were named to the all-tournament team. Over the past six seasons Simoneaux has totaled 148 wins including two 30-plus win seasons. The five year stretch marks the most successful period for a Bulldog head coach since Pat Patterson and Mike Kane combined to win 171 games between 1988 and 1992. Plain and Simple, Simoneaux has returned a winning tradition to Louisiana Tech as evident by the 16 student-athletes selected in the First-Year Player Draft, six all-Americans, two freshman all-American, one ESPN The Magazine’s Academic All-American and 28 all- WAC performers. In 2011, the Bulldogs reverted back to small-ball. With the new BBCOR bats, Tech totaled 28 home runs, the lowest Tech has compiled since the 1973 season. LA Tech made the transition to a team that can move runners and steal bases and stole 53 bases to rank fourth in the WAC while recording 32 sacrifice bunts and 19 sacrifice flies in 2011. Tech saw seven hitters surpass the .300 mark, led by Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American and second team all-WAC shortstop Ryan Geb- hardt. Gebhardt .343 with 23 RBI and eight sacrifice hits in 49 games. Kyle Roliard, Mark Threlkeld, Austin Hedges, Colby Johnson, Corey White and Justin Gordey each registered batting averages of at least .300. Roliard earned first team all-WAC honors after hitting .330 with 14 doubles, one triple, one and 26 RBI in 58 games. Threlkeld was named second team all-WAC after hitting .309 with 19 doubles, nine home runs and 45 RBI in 61 games. Tech’s defense shattered the putouts record as the team recorded 1,553 putouts, led by 508 by first baseman Alex Williams. The .962 fielding 2012 BULLDOG BASEBALL percentage tied four previous clubs for third best all-time in Tech history. The pitching staff set numerous records as well. The 2011 pitching staff combined to pitch 517.2 innings, the most in school history. Led by closer Caleb Dudley, the bullpen became one of the strongest in the conference as Tech set a school record with 18 saves. Dudley set the single-season mark with 12 saves and also set the single-season mark in appearances with 32. Mike Jefferson earned first team all-WAC honors after posting a 6-4 record with a 3.56 ERA in 86 innings. Jefferson made 14 starts and registered a complete game and led the conference in pickoffs, as the left-hander picked off 11 base runners. Trevor Peterson led the team in starts (16) as he posted a 6-4 record in 83.1 innings including one save. Jeb Stefan led all Bulldog pitchers with seven wins as he returned from Tommy John Surgery. He also led the WAC in fewest hits allowed by a starting pitcher (63). Picked to finish sixth in the conference in the preseason, the 2011 Bulldogs went into the WAC tournament as the three seed and advanced to the final game in the elimination bracket. In 2010, Simoneaux’s squad featured a prolific offense that shattered four school records for hits (697), runs (484), doubles (141) and RBI (441) while having five student-athletes named all-WAC performers. The five all-conference selections marked the most in program history since the Bull- dogs placed six student-athletes on the 1989 All-American South Conference. Nationally, the Bulldogs finished the season ranked amongst the NCAA leaders in 10 offensive categories including rankings in the top 25 in team batting average, scoring, home runs per game and slugging percentage. The Bulldogs’ .336 batting average last season marked the highest total since the 1958 squad hit at a .343 clip. Against conference opponents, there was no drop off offensively as Tech hit a blistering .363 against WAC schools. Although hampered with injuries to the pitching staff, the Bulldogs managed to put together several marquee wins in 2010 as LA Tech took key games against Baylor, Minnesota, Southern Miss and Fresno State. Against Minnesota, the Bulldogs took two-of-three against the defending Big 10 champions including the first ever game played at Target Field – the home of the Minnesota Twins. Despite being tabbed to finish near the bottom of the conference in 2009, Simoneaux led Bulldogs to a second place finish as the team littered their names throughout the LA Tech record books as the team finished the season with 408 total RBI (T-1st in Tech history), 92 homeruns (2nd in Tech history), a .323 team batting average (2nd in Tech history) and 438 runs scored (3rd in Tech history). Tech also ranked nationally in a number of offensive categories as the Bulldogs ended the season ranked 11th nationally in homeruns per game, 16th in total team home runs and 22nd in the nation in scoring. The anchor of the offense in 2009 was NCBWA second team all-American honoree, Devon Dageford. The Beatrice, Nebraska native also received first team all-WAC and first team all-state honors while also being named Louisiana’s newcomer of the year. The right fielder broke the school’s single-season homerun record after launching 23 homers on the year as well as topping LA Tech’s chart’s with 168 total bases in 2009. He also recorded 68 RBI on the year (T-3rd in Tech history) and 18 doubles (T-9th). Dageford was not alone in the 2009 team’s assault on the record books as third baseman/shortstop Chris Kersten set a then single-season school record with 20 doubles in a season while also recording 149 total bases (4th in Tech history) on his way to second team All-WAC. Joining Kersten as a second team all-WAC honoree was outfielder Patrick Thomas. The senior recorded a .370 batting average while hitting seven homeruns, 47 RBI and 112 total bases. Thomas was second on the team behind only Dageford with 58 runs scored. Second baseman Kevin Winn did not receive first or second team All-WAC honors, but did earn ABCA South Central All-Region First Team hon- ors and was also named All Ping! Baseball Third Team honorable mention. Winn recorded a magnificent season as he strung together the nation’s longest hitting streak since 2006-07. Between the 2008-09 seasons Winn put together a 33 game hitting streak on his way to 81 total hits on the season (T-4th in Tech history). He also totaled 19 doubles (T-5th) and 63 RBI (10th). Kersten and Winn were each drafted in the 2009 MLB First-Year Player Draft as well, moving the total number of Tech players drafted under

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Simoneaux to 11 in seven years. Kersten was drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the 39th round (1179th overall) while Winn was picked n the 26th round (774th overall) by the San Diego Padres. After the conclusion of the 2008 season, six Bulldogs were selected in the Major League Baseball draft, the most in school history. They in- cluded pitcher Luke Burnett, outfielder Adam Cobb, first baseman Albie Goulder, pitcher/outfielder Jericho Jones and pitchers Alan Knotts and Dylan Moseley. All of the draftees signed with their respective major league teams but Moseley who has decided to return for his senior season. Before the draftees were given the opportunity to play baseball at the major league level, several players received numerous individual awards leading up to, during and at the conclusion of the 2008 season. Burnett was named to the 2008 Brooks Player of the Year Watch List prior to the start of the season. During the year, Goulder was named Western Athletic Conference Hitter of the Week (Feb. 25). Knotts followed Goulder’s efforts when he was awarded WAC Pitcher of the Week (Mar. 3), then Jones received the final weekly WAC hitter award when he was named WAC Hitter of the Week (May 19). At the end of the season, Jones and Cobb received all-WAC honors. Jones was named to the all-WAC First Team and Cobb was named to the all-WAC Second Team. Simoneaux was awarded WAC Coach of the Year in 2007. During the same season, former Louisiana Tech baseball standout Brian Rike received WAC Player of the Year honors and was the first player from Tech to receive the prestigious award. Rike was also named Second Team All-America by Baseball America and Louisville Slugger. He collected his third All-America honor when he was named Third Team All-America by the American Baseball Coaches Association/Rawlings. LA TECH In 2006, Jones was named WAC Freshman of the Year. During his award-winning season, he batted .375, collected 66 hits, 10 doubles, 16 home runs and 56 RBI. He was the first freshman to receive the award during Simoneaux’s reign. UNIVERSITY There have been many changes off the field, as well under Simoneaux. Among the changes include strong team discipline and the team’s involvement in community outreach programs. Simoneaux has orchestrated the renovation of J.C. Love Field at Pat Patterson Park. The coaches and players have done almost all of the work as the facility has seen many changes and improvements. A new fence was installed and recently the team renovated its locker room, along with adding a new coat of paint on the stadium. The field is in its best shape in years due to the many hours Simoneaux, his staff and players have put in working on it. More than 400 new chairback seats were installed prior to the 2008 season, along with a new scoreboard and a new press box. Tech’s housing department aided in improving the look and feel of the ballpark by building apartments just beyond the left field wall. The addition of a new brick and wrought iron fence has also helped the stadium’s appearance. A visitor’s bullpen was added during the 2006-07 offseason down the right-field line. Simoneaux and his staff will renovate the batting cage in the summer time, making it twice the size it is now by next season. “There are a lot of things the guys have to buy into prior to this becoming a successful program. I will find the people to do this,” Simoneaux said. “It is going to be a slow but sure process. The facility is going to get better and the prospects we bring in are going to improve each year.” The Gonzales, La. native has been highly successful everywhere he has coached including seven years at Louisiana-Lafayette as Tony Robich- aux’s top assistant before coming to Tech in August 2002. While at UL-Lafayette, Simoneaux was part of five NCAA Regional teams, two NCAA Super Regional squads and the 2000 Cajun squad that finished third at the College World Series. Simoneaux was invited to participate in the YES Baseball Clinics as a camp instructor in 2003. The clinics were held in conjunction with the College World Series in Omaha, Neb. A small handful of coaches are selected every year to participate in the annual event hosted by Creighton University. He also was the featured speaker at the American Legion National Convention in July 2005 in Indianapolis, Ind. In addition, Simoneaux and his staff were the featured speakers at the 2008 Louisiana Baseball Coaches Association Convention in Baton Rouge. Simoneaux was a big part of the success of the Louisiana-Lafayette baseball program, serving as the recruiting coordinator and coaching the hitters and infielders before taking the head job at Tech. The Cajun hitters excelled under Simoneaux’s direction while posting a team batting average of at least .294 in his seven years as the hitting coach, and he earned the ULL Assistant Coach of the Year Award on two occasions. He has been a close follower of the Bulldog baseball program ever since the late Pat “Gravy” Patterson was the Bulldog skipper. Simoneaux graduated from Nicholls State in 1984 with a degree in business administration. He was a two-year starter at third base in 1982 and 1983. He also played at Central Florida Junior College in 1981 and served as one of the team’s captains. He was a finalist when Tech hired Randy Davis in 1996 and he again applied when Jeff Richardson was hired in 1999. The third time proved to be the charm for Simoneaux who was selected in the summer of 2002 to be the sixth head coach in the modern era of Tech baseball. Prior to his tenure at UL-Lafayette, Simoneaux served as head coach at Episcopal High School in Baton Rouge from 1990-95. He chaired the committee for completion of a $1 million baseball facility facelift. Other career highlights include four American Legion World Series appearances and nine state championships in 11 summers. Of the 104 high school players that played for him during the summer, 99 went on to receive college scholarships to junior colleges or four-year schools and 14 have gone on to play Minor League Baseball. He received the National American Legion Coach of the Year award in 1991. Simoneaux served as the head baseball coach at Ascension Catholic High School (1986-89) and was an assistant at East Ascension High School for one year (1989-90). Simoneaux is a member of the American Baseball Coaches Association. He also served as chairman of the World Games, an international

2012 BULLDOG BASEBALL baseball tournament with proceeds benefiting cancer and leukemia research. He is also a member of the local Lions Club and the St. Thomas Church men’s club. Simoneaux has recently married the former Susan Newman of West Monroe. Their new family consists of Simoneaux’s son Thomas, Newman’s one son, Adam, who is in the United States Marine Corps, and her two daughters, Mary Alice, and Caroline.

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Br ian Rountree Assistant Coach LA TECH

Brian Rountree is entering his 17th season at Louisiana Tech as the Bulldogs pitching coach. His 17 years of service is one of the longest tenures of all coaches cur- rently working at the university behind only head track and field coach Gary Stanley, assistant track and field coach Larry Carmichael and football assistant coaches Pete Perot and Ed Jackson. The 2011 pitching staff shattered two school records as the staff pitched 517.2 innings and recorded 18 saves to set the single-season marks in each category. Closer Caleb Dudley set two single-season records as he finished the season with 12 saves while making 32 appearances.

The rotation was anchored by sophomore Trevor Peterson, who led the team with 16 starts and left-handed pitcher Mike Jefferson, who pitched one complete game UNIVERSITY in 14 starts. Jeb Stefan returned after missing the 2010 season following Tommy John Surgery to lead the team with seven wins as the number three pitcher. Kyle Roliard rounded out the rotation. Peterson and Jefferson picked up six wins apiece in 30 combined starts. Peterson led all Bulldog pitchers with 16 games started, pitching 83.1 innings and compiling a 6-4 record with a 5.08 ERA. Jefferson led all starters with a 3.56 ERA and 86 innings pitched and led the conference with 11 pickoffs. Stefan led the WAC in fewest hits allowed by a starter (63) and led Tech with seven wins and pitched two complete games in 14 starts with one shut out. Roliard picked up one win in 35.1 innings as the dual-player made 13 appearances on the mound. Dudley broke Tech’s single-season saves and appearances records in 2011, while becoming one of the best finishers in the country. He went 5-2 in 2011 with a 3.30 ERA, 12 saves and 44 strikeouts in 57.1 innings pitched. He made 32 appearances, including two spot starts for the Bulldogs. He goes into the 2012 season only four saves away from tying Buddy Aulds for the top spot in Tech’s history (18). Mike LeBreton recorded a 3.19 ERA in 20 games, picking up two wins and one save in 42.1 innings. His 3.19 ERA was the lowest any Bulldog pitcher with at least 40 innings pitched recorded in a season since Andrew Alsup’s 3.05 ERA in 2006. In the 2011 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft, Roliard and Jefferson signed after being selected in the 13th round and the 22nd round, respectively. Roliard signed with the Kansas City Royals and Jefferson signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Both Roliard and Jefferson received first team all-WAC honors in 2011. Under Rountree’s tutelage, two players received Verizon WAC Pitcher of the Week honors, Ben Carlisle (3/7) and Dudley (twice; 4/4 and 5/2). Dudley also received CBI National Pitcher of the Week honors (5/4) after pitching eight perfect innings out of the bullpen vs. Nevada and UT Arlington. Despite facing numerous injuries throughout the 2010 campaign, a total of 17 Bulldogs made an appearance on the mound, led by a senior Jamey Bradshaw and a

duo of underclassmen in Trevor Petersen and Mike Jefferson who combined to toss 218.1 innings while fanning 175 batters. 2012 BULLDOG BASEBALL The LA Tech pitching staff accrued four complete games on the season as starting pitchers tossed five-plus innings on 33 occasions. In June of 2010, Jefferson was selected by the New York Mets in the 46th round of the 2010 MLB Draft. In 2009 Rountree coached an extremely young pitching staff that had just one senior on the staff in two-time MLB draftee Dylan Moseley. However, the young staff still helped the Bulldogs to a 29-22 record on the season. In the process, three youngsters emerged as possible rising stars on the staff in true freshmen Jeb Stefan and Kyle Roliard, and redshirt freshman Mike Jefferson. Stefan led the team in strikeouts while recording a 4-5 record in 13 games started while Roliard piled up a 4-0 record with 17 appearances out of the bullpen. Jefferson led Tech with 25 appearances while totaling a 3-3 record on the year. Under Rountree’s guidance, 15 Bulldog pitchers have been drafted or signed free agent contracts with professional baseball teams in the last 11 seasons, including Jefferson, Roliard, Luke Burnett, Jericho Jones, Alan Knotts and Dylan Moseley in 2008. Burnett was selected and signed by the Seattle Mariners. Jones was selected and signed by the Chicago Cubs. Knotts was selected and signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates, and Moseley opted to return to Tech for his senior year after being selected by the Cubs. Of the 14 players drafted, three pitchers were selected in the first 30 rounds of the 2008 draft for the first time in school history. In all, six players from Tech were drafted in 2008, the most in school history. Adam Cobb and Albie Goulder joined Burnett, Jones, Knotts and Moseley as major league draftees from the 2008 team. Rountree is now focused on the continued development of the young Bulldogs staff. In addition to handling the duties as pitching coach, Rountree is Tech’s recruiting coordinator. The Atlanta, Ga., native has recruited most of the players on Tech’s current roster and has built a solid reputation as a hardworking recruiter. “Coach Rountree brings a professional approach to recruiting and handles himself in a professional way,” Tech head coach Wade Simoneaux said. “He does an excel- lent job of bringing in excellent talent to this university.” In 2007, the South Carolina graduate helped mold a staff that tied a five-year-old school record for most strikeouts in a season with 452 and had two all-Western Athletic Conference selections in Andrew Alsup (first team) and Moseley (second team). Rountree also helped lead Burnett to the WAC strikeout title as he fanned 115 batters on the season. Burnett’s opponent’s batting average was a miniscule .221, also a league-best. “Brian’s tireless efforts at recruiting have put our ballclub in a position to compete in this conference,” Simoneaux said. “Since I’ve been here, our recruits have got- ten better and better. And he has developed many pitchers that were borderline college pitchers when they got here into possible draft choices.” His 2002 pitching staff posted Tech’s lowest team ERA since 1993 at 4.71 despite playing nine games versus teams that advanced to the College World Series. Rountree originally came to Tech from South Carolina in 1996 with former Tech head coach Randy Davis. Simoneaux is the third head coach that Rountree has worked with at the university. Prior to coming to Tech, Rountree spent four years as an assistant at the University of South Carolina. Rountree is a 1990 graduate of South Carolina with a degree in criminal justice. Rountree spent the summer of 2001 as the head coach of a collegiate summer league team in Thomasville, N.C. The team competed in the Coastal Plains League. Rountree played baseball at South Carolina and spent two years in the Detroit Tigers organization after college. One season was spent in the Rookie League with Bristol (Tenn.) and one season with Fayetteville (N.C) of the South Atlantic League, which completed the baseball playing career of the 6-4 right-hander. While in college, Rountree led the Gamecocks in starts and strikeouts as a junior and again as a senior. Rountree was the captain of the 1989 Gamecock squad that advanced to the NCAA Tournament in Miami, Fla. His 125 strikeouts in 1988 still rank as the seventh best single season total in USC history. Rountree recorded 13 wins in two years at South Carolina. He transferred to USC after a standout career at DeKalb Junior College in Georgia. While at DeKalb, Rountree earned All-America honors as a sophomore with a 12-1 mark and a 0.78 earned run average. He was also named 1987 Georgia Junior College Player of the Year. In high school, Rountree was a standout at North Clayton High School in Atlanta. He shattered the school mark for career wins with 26 and still holds most of the school’s career records. One of Rountree’s favorite aspects in coaching is building relationships with the players as they improve over time. “Watching players develop in our program on the field and in the classroom is a rewarding experience,” Rountree said. “I enjoy seeing our players set goals, work their plan and accomplish them.” Rountree is married to the former Kim Dupree of San Diego, Calif. and has two daughters, Caysee and Shelby Griffith.

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Fr an A ndeRMANN Assistant Coach

Entering his tenth season as the hitting coach for Bulldog baseball, Fran Andermann will once again lead an offense that hit .292 as a team during the 2011 campaign as Tech returns eight hitters who compiled at least 40 at-bats in 2011 including four starters. Under Andermann’s tutelage, the 2011 Bulldogs reverted back to small-ball as the offense combined to hit 28 home runs, the lowest total in a LA TECH single-season since 1973.

UNIVERSITY Using the new BBCOR bats, Andermann’s offense recorded 32 sacrifice hits and 19 sacrifice flies. Only one player, Will Alvis, reached double- digit home runs (10). Among the returning hitters, five ended 2011 with batting averages over .300, led by Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American Ryan Gebhardt’s .343 batting average. First baseman and senior Alex Williams led Tech with 53 RBIs in 2011 and will continue to hit in the cleanup spot. Two of the players drafted in the 2011 MLB Draft, Kyle Roliard and Mark Threlkeld, combined for 10 home runs, 71 RBI, 147 hits and 15 stolen bases. Roliard hit at a .330 clip while Threlkeld hit .309 in 61 games. Roliard was named first team all-WAC while Threlkeld and Gebhardt received second team all-WAC honors. During the 2010 season Andermann’s offense shattered four single-season school records for hits (697), runs (484), doubles (141) and RBI (441) while a total of five student-athletes were tabbed all-WAC. In total, the Bulldogs finished the season ranked amongst the NCAA leaders in 10 offen- sive categories including rankings in the top 25 in team batting average, scoring, home runs per game and slugging percentage. The Bulldogs’ .336 batting average in 2010 marked the highest total since the 1958 squad hit at a .343 clip. Against conference opponents, there was no drop off offensively as Tech hit a blistering .363 against WAC schools. Andermann’s instruction not only directly correlated to numerous team records falling, but he was also instrumental in various individual marks being set – most notably with NCBWA Pre-Season First Team All-American and ABCA All-South Central Region performer, Devon Dageford. In just two years under Andermann’s instruction, Dageford ranked sixth in school history for career batting average at .377, fourth in career home runs (40) and tied for 10th in school history with 325 total bases. Furthermore, the slugger established a new school record with 21 doubles in a season while his 85 hits in a season was the second most in program history. In 2009 Louisiana Tech hitters etched their names into the Tech record books in a number of different categories offensively. As a team the Bulldogs tied the 2007 team’s record of 408 RBI in a season. The team also hit 92 homeruns which was second most all-time at LA Tech. The team also totaled the second highest batting average ever at Tech at .323 as well as scoring the third most runs in Tech history with 438, trailing only the 2007 and 1988 teams. Tech’s offense was also ranked nationally in a number of categories. The Bulldogs ranked 11th nationally in homeruns per game, 13th in slugging percentage, 16th in total team home runs, 22nd in the nation in scoring, 46th in batting average and 64th in total runs scored. 2008’s team had its fair share of stars in the outfield as well. Jericho Jones finished the season leading the team with a .364 batting average and a .611 slugging percentage, earning All-WAC First Team honors. Centerfielder Adam Cobb concluded the season in the top three of several statistical categories among the Bulldogs, including batting average, hits, runs, doubles, triples and stolen bases. He was awarded all-WAC second team honors. Tech recorded one of its most productive seasons offensively in history in 2007 with an overall batting average of .310. The team compiled the most hits (642), runs (447) and RBIs (408) in Tech history. Under Andermann’s leadership, outfielder Brian Rike was named Tech’s first-ever WAC Player of the Year with a .346 average, 20 home runs and 66 RBI. Rike was also named to three all-America teams after the 2007 season. The 2006 team had an overall batting average of .311, third-best in Tech history, and hit 64 home runs. Led by freshman Jericho Jones who was not only awarded WAC Freshman of the Year, but he was also named to the Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American team. Jones batted .370 on the year and slugged 16 home runs. His home run total shattered the previous freshman home run total, which was 13 home runs, set by T.J. Soto in 1996. While helping produce some of the best hitting teams in school history Andermann has had 18 former hitters receive all-WAC honors. Three of the 18 received the award twice, Brandon Hudson (2005 & 2006), Jericho Jones (2006 & 2007) and Mark Threlkeld (2010 & 2011). Tech head coach Wade Simoneaux hired Andermann after becoming head coach in August 2002.

2012 BULLDOG BASEBALL “Fran brings a lot of baseball experience to the table, he coached with me for 15 years in American Legion and Connie Mack baseball,” Simo- neaux said. During his tenure, Andermann’s team accomplished 10 state American Legion titles, four American Legion World Series appearances, one Con- nie Mack state title and one Connie Mack World Series appearance. He also has seven years of major league scouting experience. Andermann is married to his wife Pamela and has two daughters, Lindsay and Cassie. Lindsay is married to Jerehmiar Maturin of New Iberia and the couple has three children. Cassie is married to Jules Guste of Slidel and they have one child. Both couples reside in Houston, Texas. Andermann is a 1968 graduate of Ascension Catholic High School and a 2000 graduate of Upper Iowa University where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in management. He also served in the United States Marine Corps and brings a strong, discipline approach to the game. “Fran has become one of the best hitting instructors in the South,” Simoneaux said. “His relentless work ethic has turned many average hitters into exceptional hitters. His hands-on approach has made a tremendous difference in the way our guys perform.”

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Brent P oRCHE Assistant Coach LA TECH

Brent Porche begins his second season at Louisiana Tech as the Bulldogs assistant coach. Porche will assist with the development of Tech’s catchers and will serve as the bullpen coach during the season. In addition to helping out in the scouting department for the Bulldogs, Porche will also assist Dr. David Szymanski with the strength and conditioning program. In 2011, catcher Clint Ewing threw out 15 base runners while picking off two in 53 games. The durable Ewing started 51 games with backup

Tyler Qualls starting 13 games at catcher/DH. UNIVERSITY A native of Baton Rouge, Porche began his collegiate career at Tech prior to transferring to Louisiana State University in Shreveport where he was instrumental in the Pilot’s first ever regular season Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Championship team in 2005. During his four seasons in Shreveport, Porche led LSUS to three consecutive GCAC tournament championships from 2006-08 as the squad finished as the Region XIII runners- up on three occasions. “He has tremendous catching experience,” said Simoneaux. “He is the son of a coach and he is a good kid and a family man. He’ll work with our catchers predominantly and be our bullpen coach during the season while helping out with scouting reports. He’s a good young man that will work hard for us.” While in school, Porche assisted LSUS associate head coach Chris Bertrand with the Gametime Academy Angels 18U baseball team during the summer of 2007 and 2008. The Angles notched back-to-back quarterfinal appearances in the Premier Baseball World Championships while totaling four tournament titles. After his eligibility expired as a student-athlete, Porche spent the 2009 season as a student assistant under head coach Rocke Musgraves while finishing his undergraduate degree before he was promoted to graduate assistant during the 2010 season. As a graduate assistant, Porche instructed both outfielders and catchers while assisting Musgraves with the Pilot offense as the team captured the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Tournament Championship in 2010. Under the direction of Porche, the LSUS offense established single-season school records in runs scored (614), walks (366) and homeruns (103) 2012 BULLDOG BASEBALL during the 2009 campaign. In his two seasons on the Pilots coaching staff, Porche instructed OF Chase Wentz, an 18th round selection in the 2010 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft and C Andrew Brouillette, a 2010 all-American honoree. Porche received his master’s degree in kinesiology in sports performance at Louisiana Tech in August, 2011. Porche is married to the former Crystal Jones of Bossier City and has one son, Braiden.

Dr.id Dav sZyMANSki Strength & Conditioning Coach

Dr. David Szymanski begins his fifth season as a member of the Bulldog baseball staff after joining in 2007 as a volunteer assistant. He is now the strength and conditioning coach. He is a full-time assistant professor of exercise physiology in the Department of Kinesiology at Tech. “It would be hard to replace what Coach Szymanski does with our players in the weight room and with their run techniques,” Tech head coach Wade Simoneaux said. “He does an outstanding job year-round.” Szymanski is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) with distinction through the National Strength and Conditioning Associa- tion (NSCA) and has been involved in training baseball players since 1992. Before coming to Tech, he served as the exercise physiologist for the Auburn University Baseball Team where he trained, tested and evaluated the players’ athletic performance. Through his evaluation, Szymanski es- tablished baseball-specific workouts and training methods. He has continued the same regime with the Bulldogs. This year, the Bulldog batters will also perform vision training using Vizual Edge® Performance Training software in attempts to further enhance their “on-field” hitting performance. Szymanski played at Texas Lutheran and later served as an assistant baseball coach and recruiting coordinator for the Southwestern Athletic Conference school for four years. He is a member of the American College of Sports Medicine and the NSCA. He has had multiple articles published on ways to improve baseball performance and has given presentations on sport-specific training and ways to improve throwing and bat swing veloc- ity. In the fall of 2006 he completed a 12-week training study in which players from five local high schools participated. Szymanski also has been collecting baseball-specific data, including strength, power, speed, agility, body composition, and throwing and bat velocities for the last three years with the players on Tech’s team. He presented his findings at the NSCA’s National Conference in Las Vegas last summer. He completed his bachelor’s degree in fine arts and kinesiology at Texas Lutheran and completed his master’s in physical education at Texas State, before earning his doctorate in exercise physiology at Auburn. A native of LaGrange, Ill., Szymanski is married to the former Jessica Gaytan of Seguin, Texas. Jessica was an All-American middle blocker for the Texas Lutheran volleyball team and is an interim instructor in the Department of Kinesiology. The couple has two sons, Dawson (6) and Justin (4).

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J oSH Bauml Athletic Trainer

Josh Blaum enters his second year with the Louisiana Tech Sports Medicine department as a Graduate Assistant covering women’s soccer and baseball. Blaum is a graduate at Northern Kentucky University where he received his B.S. in Athletic Training. While at NKU, he worked with the men’s LA TECH basketball team, men’s baseball team, completed a high school rotation, worked with football at Thomas More College, and finished 2 semesters at

UNIVERSITY St. Elizabeth Sports Medicine all while pitching his final two years with the Norse.

Kim Tanner Office Coordinator

Kim Tanner is now in her fourth year as office coordinator for the Bulldog baseball team after working the previous four years in the women’s basketball and women’s soccer office. Tanner also handles the secretarial duties for softball, golf, tennis, and facilities. She transferred to her previous job after working for seven years as office coordinator in the college of education at Louisiana Tech. Prior to that, she worked for three years in the school of performing arts at Tech. The Farmerville, La., native handles the business aspects of the program, while helping with all the travel reservations and handling the ac- counting duties in the office. Kim has been a die-hard Bulldog and Lady Techster fan since 1979 and has traveled all over the country following the Lady Techster basketball team, attending seven of the eight national championship games in which Tech participated, including the championship seasons of 1981 and 1982. Kim is married to Travis Tanner.

J oSH McDaniel Promo & Events Coordinator 2012 BULLDOG BASEBALL Josh McDaniel is in his second year as Multimedia Services Manager at Louisiana Tech, and with that title he wears numerous hats. McDaniel is responsible for the Louisiana Tech athletic department’s social media accounts and is head of LA Tech All-Access, the department’s web streaming subscription service. He maintains LATechSports.com, serves as the game producer for football games, and is charge of all music and video content at sporting events. McDaniel serves as the public address announcer for both soccer and baseball, as well as the play-by-play broadcaster for LA Tech volleyball. In the fall of 2011, Josh began his first year as men’s basketball marketing coordinator, while maintaining his role as head of baseball marketing and promotions. McDaniel was promoted in January 2010 to external affairs associate, webmaster, and director of the LA Tech Kids’ Club after working as a ticket office sales associate in the LA Tech Ticket Office in 2009. In his previous role, he assisted in various marketing and promotional events, and helped coordinate fan experiences and former athlete reunions, as well as marketing and fan promotion aspects of LATechSports.com. He returned to his alma mater after spending five years coaching football, basketball, and baseball in the high school ranks, where he was the head boys’ basketball coach at Spearsville High School. He was also an assistant at Merryville High School, where he helped lead his sister, Kristen, and the Lady Panthers to a number one ranking and coached with both of his parents, Nina and Tom. Josh earned a Bachelor of Science in Health and Exercise Science from Louisiana Tech in 2005, and is currently pursuing his master’s degree in sports management and coaching from the United States Sports Academy. While at Tech, he was an active member of the BCM and was the general manager and sports director of KLPI. McDaniel is also a proud alumnus of the Theta Phi Chapter of Pi Kappa Phi. Josh is a native of Dry Creek, La. and is married to the former Amanda King of Downsville, La., who earned both her bachelor’s and master’s from Louisiana Tech.

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