Cooper Records Win #200
3/28/2011 12:00:00 PM | Baseball
March 28, 2011
Head baseball coach Rob Cooper recorded his 200th win at Wright State Saturday as the Raiders defeated Youngstown State 8-2 at Nischwitz Stadium.
In his seventh season at the helm, Cooper has guided his teams to five-straight 30+ win seasons, has made four appearances in the Horizon League Championship Game, winning two of them, and has led WSU to a pair of NCAA Regional berths.
The 2010 Horizon League Coach of the Year, Cooper is one of only five coaches to lead his team to multiple Division I NCAA Tournaments at Wright State, guiding the Raiders to a Regional in 2006 and 2009. He has watched 21 of his players sign professional contracts, nine of those being selected in the Major League Baseball Draft, while three players have garnered All-American honors, 29 players have been selected to the All-League teams and 13 players have earned All-Newcomer honors.
Cooper has also twice joined Team USA as an assistant coach during his time at Wright State, joining the 2007 and 2009 squads on their international tours. Two of Cooper's players have accompanied him on those trips, with Jeremy Hamilton making the '07 squad and Casey McGrew was a mainstay in the lineup for the 2009 Collegiate National Team. In 2007, Cooper helped Team USA to a silver medal at the Pan-American Games in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. Cooper helped Team USA compile a 25-12 overall record during their summer of play.
In 2010, WSU finished 31-25, including a win over a #1-ranked team for the second straight season with a 2-1 decision at Virginia on March 5. The Raiders won the Horizon League regular-season title with a mark of 17-6, the first regular-season conference crown for the program since the 1997 squad won the Midwestern Collegiate Conference title. Wright State then advanced to the championship round of the league tournament before falling twice to Milwaukee.
The 2009 Wright State team compiled a 33-30 overall record, including an 8-5 victory at #1-ranked Georgia on March 24. The schedule included four teams ranked among the top-25 and a handful of national powers that received votes during the season. WSU claimed victories over national contenders Tulane, Kent State and UNC Wilmington on the road, while facing the #1-ranked team five times during the season (four games at Texas A&M, one game at Georgia). Jeff Mercer was named the Horizon League Player of the Year after pacing the league in three offensive categories, with his school-record tying 74 RBI's giving him the resume to earn Third Team All-American honors from Collegiate Baseball Magazine. Michael Schum was named the Relief Pitcher of the Year in the league as he posted 13 saves and led the Horizon League in ERA. Schum also was named to the Collegiate Baseball Magazine's Freshman All-American squad, the first player in school history to earn the salutation.
The 2008 season was the third straight season that Cooper won 30 or more games, posting a 30-23 mark, and the Raiders completed their Horizon League schedule with a 16-6 mark. In 2007, Wright State enjoyed one of the most prolific offensive seasons in school history as they broke three career records and 11 single-season school records. Dan Biedenharn won the Rawlings Gold Glove at third base. Oeder and Justin Parker were each selected to the ABCA All-Region team and Hamilton was added to the USA Collegiate National Team roster during the summer.
The 2006 edition set six school records and posted the most season wins in five years. During the season, Cooper's squad defeated nationally-ranked TCU on the road, topped national-powerhouse Notre Dame in South Bend and was on the brink of an upset against eventual national champion Oregon State in the NCAA Corvallis Regional.
Cooper has seen 12 of his players sign professional free agent contracts and has had seven other players selected in the Major League Baseball Draft. Joe Smith, who was the 2006 Horizon League Pitcher of the Year, was drafted in the fifth round by the New York Mets and made his major league debut on Opening Day of the 2007 season with the Mets. Greg Robinson was drafted in the 32nd round by the Diamondbacks and Aaron Fields was selected in the 42nd round by the Cleveland Indians.
Cooper has coached 29 All-League performers, 13 All-Newcomer Team selections, two All-Americans and one Freshman All-American. Oeder and Smith were the first players in history to garner the Player and Pitcher of the Year honor since WSU joined the Horizon League/Midwestern Collegiate Conference. Oeder became only the sixth player in league history to earn the league's player of the year and tournament MVP honor in his career. With Oeder, Hamilton and Mercer winning the Player of the Year awards in 2007, 2008 and 2009, they became the first trio of teammates to claim the awards in three consecutive seasons.
