William Paterson head baseball coach Jeff Albies captured his 800th
career coaching victory on April 22 when the Pioneers topped NJAC
rival Kean at home, 3-1. With the win, Albies became just the third
New Jersey college coach to reach the 800-victory plateau.
Ranked fifth among active Division III coaches in victories, Albies
is now 800-340-10 in 29-plus seasons and joins Mike Sheppard (Seton
Hall) and Fred Hill (Rutgers and Montclair State) as the only Garden
State coaches to reach the lofty milestone.
"It's a relief to get [No. 800], and to get it in conference play is
outstanding," said Albies, who has earned 26 Coach of the Year
awards in his career. "I'm proud of it. There are guys who have been
around longer than I have who haven't been blessed with the talent
I've had around me. I've been fortunate to have coached 30 years
with baseball players who have been very good and dedicated to
winning. It's a milestone that I'm very proud of."
Albies began coaching at William Paterson in 1975 and experienced
success immediately. With him leading the way, the Pioneers captured
national championships in 1992 and 1996, made seven trips to the
Division III National Championship Series, captured 11 New Jersey
Athletic
crowns and earned 20 postseason invitations. Also, 30 of his players
have signed professional contracts, including former New York Yankee
Dan Pasqua, while 27 of his players have earned All-American honors.
In addition, the victory over Kean on April 22 marked the 26th time
he has guided a team to
20 or more wins, including 14 straight years as the Pioneers
improved to 20-7.
"He deserves this. I'm just glad I was able to help give it to him,"
Pravkewitz said. "There are a lot of places you can go and play
baseball, but when it comes down to it, you look at the coaches.
He's a great coach."
"We knew about this all season and we were looking forward to
getting him his 800th win," junior second baseman Tim Banos said.
"There's such a tradition here and such pride with being a part of
this program. He takes a lot of pride in being the coach of the
William Paterson program. He's a role model and that makes you want
to play for him.”
"The reasons he is so successful is he takes it beyond the baseball
field," said Mike Lauterhahn, an outfielder from 1993-95 who was
played in the Chicago Cubs' chain after being drafted in 1995. The
son of 24th-year assistant coach Bob Lauterhahn, he is coaching one
of the state's top
programs at Rutherford High School.
"He doesn't just teach you the game," Lauterhahn continued. "He
helped me get through college and he helped me become a well-rounded
person. I think I'm a better person for being around him." |
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