USD Baseball 2004

COACHING STAFF

RICH HILL HEAD COACH 6th-year Cal Lutheran 1984

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San Diego head coach Rich Hill completed his fd'th season as San Diego's baseball coach by taking the Toreros to the school's second consecutive NCAA Tournament and winning back-to-back West Coast Conference Champ ionships. Hill and his teams, ove r five complete seasons in San Diego, continue to shatter school records and receive national recognition as one of the best collegiate programs on the West Coast. In the past two seasons, Hill has been honored as the WCC Coach of the Year, led San Diego to a pair of conference championships and has become one of the youngest coaches in Division I hist01y to reach 500 wins. In 16 years as a collegiate head coach, Hill has enjoyed 13 winning seasons including five in as many years in San Diego. As a proven winner, Hill owns a 168-128-2 (. 567) record as San Diego's manage r and improved the Torero's record in each of his first four seasons in San Diego. Hill's Tore ros finished the record setting year of 2002 with the best overall mark in USD school history (39-23) and advanced into the NCAA Regionals for the fu-st time in 23-years of Division I play. Hill and tJ1e To re ros re-wrote the San Diego record books during tlie run, breaking countless school and conference records and Hill in tum was honored as tJ1e West Coast Conference Coach of tlie Year. The 41-year-old Hill has a record of success in each of his three head coaching stops - first at his alma mate r Cal Lutheran. In his first head

coaching job as tJ1e manager at Cal Lu, he won 83% of his games during his final tl1ree seasons (1991-93). Hill led Cal Lutheran to a record of 194-76 (.719) over six ~ r seasons, including two World Series appearances. His 1992 squad posted a 43-6 .,:, ' record before falling a couple of outs shy of the NCAA Division III title, while the 1993 team finished first in the Western Region with a 32-7 record. Unde r Hill's guidance, the Kingsmen knocked off Divisio n I opponents such as USC, Pepperdine, San Diego State, UC Santa Barbara and Cal State Notthridge. During his six seasons at Cal Lutlieran, 92 percent of his players received their degrees. Hill was hired by the University of San Francisco in 1994, taking tJ1e Dons from tJ1e WCC cellar to a school record 34-win season in his final year in 1998. During a five-year coaching stint at San Francisco (1994-1998), Hill !X)Sted tliree consecu– tive winning seasons, including a school best 18 wins in tJ1e West Coast Confer– ence in 1998 as tJ1e Dons finished tied witJ1USD for tJ1ird place in tJ1e WCC. Over his fi nal three seasons there, Hill guided USF to upper division fin ishes in the WCC; and !X)Sted tJ1ree straight winning seasons, including two campaigns of 30 o r more victo1ies. Hill's track record boasts record-breaking seasons for wins in a single season at eve1y stop - Cal Lu (43), USF (34), USD (39) and Chatl1am in Cape League(35)

Rich Hill w ith his w ife, Lori and two children, Robbie and Lindsey In addition to his collegiate coach ing positio ns, Hill was head coach for the Chatham A's of tJ1e Cape Cod League between 1990-93, winning tJ1e league title in 1992 witJ1 a franchise record of 35-11. He has twice been recognized as the ABCA West Region Coach of the Year (1992, 1993); was the 1992 Cape Cod Baseball League "Manager of tJ1e Year"; was twice named the SoutJ1ern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Coach of tlie Year (1992, 1993); and twice was the recipient oftJ1e California Lutheran Alumni Career Excellence Award 0 993, 1994). Hill's assistants have gone on to successful careers in baseball, including five earning head coaching !X)Sitions, and two w itli administrative positions with Major League clubs. Hill has made his mark off the fie ld as we ll . The past nine years he has served on the Ame rican Baseball Coaches Association Editorial Committee; and has been an advisor witJ1 tl1e Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He sta1ted an innovative peer-mentoring program with his USF team. Dons p layers and coaching staff volunteered at the nearby Hamilton Community Cente r, reading stories and playing games with homeless children. Fu1thennore, Hill is a speaker and clinician at various conventions and camps throughout tJ1e region.

6 • University of San Diego Toreros