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Jason Bagby – Director of Baseball Operations
Jason grew up playing baseball in Loudoun County. He was part of the first State Championship team in Lower Loudoun Little League in 1987. He attended Broad Run High School and was a member of their first State Championship in 1991. He was a first team All-State selection that year. He went on to play middle infield for James Madison University. After graduating, Jason ended up back at Broad Run as a Varsity assistant coach. For four years, he was responsible for the offense and infielders. Since his time at BR, Jason has been working with players in individual and small group settings as well as coaching travel teams ranging from ages 12 to 16. He has also spent a couple of summers coaching in the Clark Griffith League, a wooden bat summer league for college players and is now the assistant Varsity coach at Herndon High School. Jason was inducted into the inaugural class of the Lower Loudoun Little League Hall of Fame in 2009 for his career accomplishments as a player.
Brendan Burk - Assistant Director of Baseball Operations
Brendan grew up in the area and graduated from Loudoun County High School in 1999. He played all nine positions on the field and headed to college after twice being an All-District and All-Extra selection. Brendan played at Tusculum College in Tennessee which was nationally ranked in the top 25 two of the years he was there. After finishing his playing career, he coached for a year at Tusculum while finishing his degree and then spent a season coaching at Loudoun Valley High School. Brendan is currently a coach in the Herndon Braves organization.
Mike Nielson - Director of Hitting
Mike comes to us with a wealth of coaching and teaching experience. He has directed camps and clinics with the Virginia Baseball Club for eight years and was a lead hitting instructor at VBC for five years. He spent two years at Robinson High School as an assistant coach and hitting instructor. Before moving to VA, Mike spent his days in CA as the top assistant at Vanguard University and head coach at Quartz Hill HS. He was a two time Coach of the Year and four times his teams were league Champions. He played two years at Chabot Junior College before moving on to play two years at Vanguard University in Costa Mesa, CA.
Victor Kleine - Director of Pitching
Victor grew up in Kentucky and played at Northern Kentucky University as a centerfielder and pitcher. In 2000, he transferred to John A. Logan Community College. That season was highlighted when he threw a no-hitter and was a 7th round pick by the Cleveland Indians. Victor finished the 2003 season with the second lowest ERA in the league while playing for the Kinston Indians. He was promoted to AAA that year and spent the next three seasons pitching for the AA Akron Aero and the AAA Buffalo Bison. Victor finished his career by pitching in the Independent Northern and Atlantic Leagues. He was the pitching coach on the Herndon Braves Varsity summer team in 2010 and now coaches a 15U travel team.
Mark Rueffert - Director of Catching
Mark is widely considered the best catching coach in the business. He graduated from Herndon High School in 1997 as a four year varsity starter and played on teams that won two District and Regional Championships. As a catcher, Mark was named to All-District, Region, State, and Met teams. He went on to become a four year starter at University of Virginia as a catcher and DH. He played professionally in the Detroit Tigers organization. After his professional career ended, Mark began coaching at the STAB school in Charlottesville where he won a State Championship as a catching and hitting coach. He is now back at Herndon HS as the Head JV Coach. He has also spent a couple of summers coaching in the Clark Griffith League.
Greg Miller - Senior Hitting / Infield Instructor
Greg graduated from Herndon High School in 1997 after leading the Hornets to District and Regional Championships in 1995 and 1996. He was a first team All-Met selection in 1997 and set the all-time record for hits at Herndon. Greg went on to play for James Madison University where he was first team All-CAA (Colonial Athletic Association) in 1999 and 2001. He graduated with the record for hits in a season with 100 as well as the all-time hit leader at JMU, in the CAA, and the state of Virginia. Greg was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 20th round and spent three years in their organization, reaching AA Greenville. In 2002, he made the South Atlantic League All-Star team and was named MVP of the game. After retiring from baseball, Greg took a job at Herndon High School and is now their Head Varsity Coach.. He has spent two summers in the Clark Griffith League as the manager of the Herndon Braves which won back to back titles. Greg was just named to the CAA Silver Anniversary Team as one of the 25 greatest players in the history of the Colonial Athletic Association.
Jeremy Sowers - Senior Pitching Instructor
Jeremy graduated from Ballard High School in Lousville, KY where he was the 2001 Gatorade State Player of the Year, Kentucky Mr. Baseball, and the 20th overall selection in the first round of the MLB draft by the Cincinnati Reds. He decided to attend Vanderbilt University where he ultimately become the sixth overall selection in the first round by the Cleveland Indians in 2004. Jeremy was named the 2005 Indians Organizational Pitcher of the Year and spent 2006-09 pitching in the Major Leagues in Cleveland where he logged 400 innings and won 18 games. He is now coaching in the Herndon Braves organization.
Dan Coghlan - Senior Pitching Instructor
Dan is a 2000 graduate from Herndon High School where he was an All-District and All-Region performer in baseball, football, and wrestling. He went on to play baseball and football at Waynesburg College where he was an All-President Athletic Conference selection in 2002 and 2004. After graduating from Waynesburg, Dan has returned to Herndon HS to coach football and is the pitching coach for the Varsity team. He also spent a summer as an assistant on the Herndon Braves, a team in the Clark Griffith League.
John Fulcher - Senior Pitching Instructor
John played at Stonewall Jackson High School in Manassas where he graduated in 1993. He went on to pitch for George Mason University and was a 16th round selection of the Milwaukee Brewers in 1996. After playing three years of professional baseball, John became the Varsity pitching coach at TC Williams where he spent two years. He also worked at Pro Edge in Fairfax where he began giving pitching lessons. In 2001, John became the Head JV Coach at West Springfield HS and after two years, he moved to Herndon HS where he was the Varsity pitching coach for six years. He is now the pitching coach at Westfield High School. John also spent six years as the coach of the Northern VA Blackhawks, a youth travel team that finished 8th overall in the 2006 CABA World Series. He has also spent a summer as the pitching coach of the Herndon Braves in the Cal Ripken Sr. Collegiate League.
Chris Smith - Senior Hitting / Infield Instructor
Chris comes to us with a wealth of coaching experience. He is currently the General Manager of the Herndon Braves which plays in the Cal Ripken Sr. Collegiate League after managing the team for a year. He spent two years at Pallotti HS in Maryland as the Head JV Coach, three years at DeMatha HS as the Head Freshman Coach, and several years at Herndon High School as the Varsity Assistant. Chris has coached at the collegiate level as an assistant coach at Bowie State University and he has also spent summers coaching the Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts and the Herndon Braves.
Mike Puckli - Senior Pitching Instructor
Mike graduated from Loudoun County High School in 2002 where he was a Loudoun All-Extra, District, and Honorable Mention All-Met selection. He went on to pitch for George Mason University from 2003-05. He pitched in a NCAA Regional against Vanderbilt University in 2004 and holds the school record for fewest walks in a season with two. Mike then transferred to Marist College to finish his career. He was twice selected to the New York Collegiate Baseball League 2nd team as a relief pitcher. After finishing his playing career, Mike became the assistant coach for a Greater Loudoun Babe Ruth 14 year old team that advanced to the State Tournament. He then spent a couple of years as an assistant coach at Briar Woods High School and is now the Varsity pitching coach at Broad Run High School.
Ronnie Labrie - Senior Hitting Instructor
Ronnie attended Stanton River High School in Moneta, VA. He was an All-Seminole infielder in 2002, 2003, and 2004. He went on to play for Lynchburg College where he was named to the All-Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) team as a shortstop in 2007 and 2008. He was also a Virginia Sports Information Directors (VASID) All-State and an American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) All-South Region shortstop in 2007 and 2008. Ronnie was the Lynchburg College Male Athlete of the Year in 2007 and the ODAC Player of the Year in 2008. He was drafted by the Washington Nationals in 2008 and spent the 2010 season playing for the Vermont Lake Monsters in the NY-Penn League. He is now coaching in the Herndon Braves organization.
Mickey Rozakis - Catching Instructor
Mickey graduated from Herndon High School in 2004. He was a four year varsity catcher, an multiple time All-District selection, and part of the 2002 Concorde District Champion team. He went on to play at Virginia Tech University and spent the summer of 2005 playing for Greg Miller on the Herndon Braves. Since graduating, Mickey has coached the JV team at Centreville High School and has just been named the Varsity catching coach at Herndon High School. He has also coached three years in the Herndon Braves organization for their summer and fall teams.
Alan Stoupa - Hitting / Pitching / Catching Instructor
Alan attended George C. Marshall High School in Falls Church where he was a first team All-District selection in 2006. He started his college career at the University of Virginia's College at Wise but then transferred to St. Catharine's in Bardstown, KY. He was named first team All-Conference of the Mid-South Conference (MSC) in 2011. After he graduated, Alan went to be an assistant for the Waynesboro Generals in the Valley Baseball League.
Matt Griffin - Pitching Instructor
Matt graduated from Park View High School in 2007 where he was named to the Loudoun All-Extra team and was a first team All-District pitcher and second team All-District shortstop. He spent much of his time away from school at DST working as a camp counselor and walker. After high school he went on to pitch for Shenandoah University. During his time, the Hornets won a Conference Championship, Two Regional Championships, and competed for the National Title in back-to-back years. Matt is now the JV pitching coach at Briar Woods High School.
Pat Cassidy - Hitting / Catching / Pitching Instructor
Since 1997, Pat has served as the Head Varsity Baseball Coach at Broad Run High School in Ashburn. During his high school days, Pat was a teammate of Jason Bagby on the 1991 AA State Championship team at Broad Run HS. In 1995, Pat graduated from The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC., where he was a four-year lettermen and Captain of the basketball team. Since returning to Broad Run, he has been named Dulles District Baseball Coach the Year three times (2004, 2007, 2008), his teams have won over 100 games including the 2007 and 2008 Dulles District Championship, and more than 20 of his players have gone on to play baseball at the college level. Pat has directed many camps and has spoken at numerous baseball and basketball clinics and camps over the last decade. In 2005, he wrote and published the book "Effective Coaching: Teaching Young People Sports and Sportsmanship" (Westholme Publishing). He was just recently inducted into the second class of the Lower Loudoun Little League Hall of Fame.
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