April 4, 2007

NJCU'S HEATON CAPTURES HIS 250TH
CAREER BASEBALL COACHING VICTORY

REACHES MILESTONE WITH 9-6 WIN OVER JOHN JAY ON APRIL 3

With a 9-6 non-conference road victory over John Jay on April 3, NJCU head baseball coach Ken Heaton captured his 250^th career collegiate coaching victory. In his 18^th season at the helm of the Gothic Knight program, Heaton is the winningest baseball coach in NJCU school history. 

Heaton has also served as NJCU’s Assistant Director of Athletics since September 2004. In that role, he is the transportation and scheduling coordinator for the 15-team athletics program.

Heaton became the school’s career leader in wins on April 14, 1998, when he directed the Gothic Knights to a 13-1 victory over the United States Merchant Marine Academy. He won his 200^th career game on March 27, 2004 with a 19-10 victory at Polytechnic University.

After guiding the Knights to an 18-20 record in 2002 and 19 wins in 2005, NJCU has had five-of-the-seven winningest seasons in school history under Heaton’s leadership.

In 1995, Heaton was chosen as the NJAC and the New Jersey Collegiate Baseball Association Coach of the Year after guiding then-Jersey City State to a school-record tying 19 wins in 1995. The 1986 team also won 19 games. The Gothic Knights reeled off 11 wins in their final 13 games en route to their second-ever NJAC Tournament berth, and the first since 1978.

Heaton has served on the NCAA Regional Selection Committee and the ECAC Metro NY-NJ Selection Committee.

Heaton has also directed several community outreach programs for NJCU. In October of 1998, he directed Baseball Fest, a one-day youth clinic at Yogi Berra Stadium that served as a benefit to the Mountainside Hospital Foundation. He has conducted numerous clinics for Jersey City youth groups in his tenure at the University.

A 1983 graduate of the University of Delaware, Heaton came to NJCU from the prestigious Delbarton School in Morristown. His teams at Delbarton captured one county championship under his guidance.  A native of Dover, New Jersey, Heaton is a 1978 graduate of Delbarton where he was a three-year letter-winner in baseball, basketball and football.