A veteran of 15 years with the California University of Pennsylvania baseball program, Mike Conte has continued the tradition of the Vulcans as one of the most successful and stable teams in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC).
Entering his 13th season as head coach, Conte has totaled a 328-237-4 record for an average of over 27 victories per season. While in the dugout, he has guided the Vulcans to six PSAC Western Division titles and eight PSAC Tournament appearances with a conference crown in 2004.
Cal U finished last season with a 28-18 overall record, marking the program’s ninth-straight year with at least 25 wins. Seven Vulcans received All-PSAC West recognition from the league’s coaches. In addition, pitcher Randy Sturgill was named PSAC West Rookie of the Year.
In 2007, Conte guided the Vulcans to a school-record 36 wins, a fourth-straight divisional title, a second-place finish in the PSAC Championship and the program’s first NCAA Regional Tournament appearance since 1983. Cal U featured six All-PSAC West First-Team players, highlighted by Player of the Year Lee Rohan, who led the conference in hits and stolen bases. Conte also earned PSAC West Coach of the Year laurels for the fifth time in his career.
Conte led Cal U to four-straight PSAC West championships from 2004-07 with the first PSAC Championship in recent program history in 2004. The championship team of 2004 featured two-time Academic All-American and PSAC West Player of the Year Mike Larson. Larson was an all-conference outfielder/pitcher after leading the team in average, homers, RBI, ERA and complete games.
The Vulcans won back-to-back PSAC West title in 2001 and 2002 after posting a then-school record 16 conference wins. Outfielder Bryan Hartung was an all-conference player on the 2001 team before finishing his career as the school’s all-time leader in hits, homers, RBI and runs scored.
During his 12 seasons as head coach, Conte has coached 30 different all-conference players, five conference Player of the Year and three conference Rookie of the Year. In addition to successful players on the diamond, he also has coached the only Academic All-American in program history and the only two players to receive the academic Top 10 Award from PSAC.
Since the start of the 2000, a total of 10 Vulcans have played professional baseball. Pitcher Ian Heisel played two seasons in the Pittsburgh Pirates system (2005-07) before joining former teammate Patrick Sadler in the Frontier League.
Prior to taking the head-coaching position in 1997, Conte served as an assistant coach for long-time Vulcan mentor Chuck Gismondi, who holds the school record for wins, games coached and PSAC wins.
A native of nearby Brownsville, Pa., Conte was a two-time all-conference outfielder at Virginia Tech University, when the Hokies played in the Metro Conference. As a junior in 1988, he led the team with a .352 batting average and received an offer to play with the Baltimore Orioles, which he declined. Conte returned to school for his senior season and led the team in triples, homers, RBI, stolen bases and at-bats. He finished his career and still ranks fifth in Virginia Tech history with 43 career home runs.
Following the 1989 college season, he was drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the 19th round and played with for their short-season Class A team, finishing with a .302 average to rank among the league leaders. He played five seasons in the A’s minor-league system before retiring after the 1993 season.
While playing professionally with Oakland, Conte completed his undergraduate degree in 1990. Following his playing career, he started his coaching career in 1994 at Cal U as an assistant and completed his master’s degree in Geography and Regional Planning.
Conte resides in California with his Jamie and their four children, Louden, Payton, Jessie and Nina.
CONTE YEAR-BY-YEAR COACHING RECORD
| Year |
Overall
Record |
Win Pct. |
Conference Record |
Post-Season |
| 1997 |
27-16 |
.628 |
14-6 |
PSAC Tournament
|
| 1998 |
17-25-1 |
.407
|
10-10 |
|
| 1999 |
12-26-1 |
.321 |
7-13 |
|
| 2000 |
29-20 |
.592 |
6-14 |
|
| 2001 |
29-17 |
.630 |
16-4 |
PSAC Tournament |
| 2002 |
28-16-1 |
.633 |
16-3-1 |
PSAC Tournament |
| 2003 |
27-23 |
.540 |
12-8 |
PSAC Tournament |
| 2004 |
32-21-1 |
.602 |
14-6 |
** PSAC Champions **
|
| 2005 |
30-20 |
.600 |
12-8 |
PSAC Tournament |
| 2006 |
33-18 |
.647 |
17-3 |
PSAC Tournament |
| 2007 |
36-17 |
.679 |
15-5 |
PSAC Tournament
NCAA Tournament |
| 2008 |
28-18 |
.609 |
12-8 |
|
| TOTALS |
328-237-4 |
.580 |
151-88-1 (.631) |
|
