Friday, June 22, 2012

MONMOUTH, Ore. -- Western Oregon baseball coach Jeremiah Robbins will replace athletic director Gary Picone as head baseball coach at Lewis-Clark State College. Picone, who had served as head coach the past two seasons, will remain as the LCSC AD.

Picone led the Warriors to a two-year record of 80-31, including a 42-14 mark last season and a postseason ranking of No. 8 in the NAIA.

Robbins comes to the Warriors after seven seasons as head coach with Western Oregon. He compiled a 252-109 record during his time with the Wolves, including a 170-34 record in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (NCAA D-II).

“Jeremiah Robbins is exactly the kind of person the LC program needs going forward,” said Picone. “He has established a strong reputation for his coaching ability in the college baseball community, and he has a proven record of excellent leadership.”

Robbins takes the helm of one of the premier teams in the NAIA and one of the most successful programs in all of college baseball. In the last 37 years, the Warriors have built a record of 1,785-461 while claiming 16 national championships.

Robbins led the Wolves to seven straight GNAC titles, and received seven conference Coach of the Year awards in the process. In 2006 and 2012, he was named the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association West Region Coach of the Year.

Robbins' 2012 squad won the school's 12th consecutive conference title with a 29-3 record in the GNAC, and earned their fifth bid to the NCAA West regional tournament under Robbins' guidance.

In 2006, his first season at the helm, the Wolves won the GNAC title and were the No. 1 seed and host of the NCAA Division II West Region Tournament.

A native of Winston, Ore., Robbins played baseball at Douglas High School before playing two seasons at College of the Redwoods and one at Western Oregon. He earned all-conference honors as a catcher with the Wolves in 1998 before suffering a career-ending injury.

Prior to coaching at Western Oregon he served two seasons as head coach at Douglas where his teams won back-to-back Far West League championships and he was honored with two league Coach of the Year titles.

Robbins, who earned a Bachelor's degree from Eastern Oregon University, will be joined in Lewiston by his wife, Mareena, and his sons, Luke and Cal.

Kellen Walker, who has served the past six seasons as an assistant coach with the Wolves, will serve as interim head baseball coach until a replacement is named.