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MEN'S BASEBALL
COACHING EXPERIENCE
Head Coach Joe PiottiCoach Piotti enters his 13th season as the head coach at Penn State Altoona and 24th as a coach in the area. Piotti was brought on board in 1996 to resurrect a baseball program that had taken a five year hiatus from competitive play. Since joining the AMCC in 1999, Piotti holds a 191-225-2 overall record including a WPCC league championship in 1998 and an Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) title in 2000. Piotti's teams have been to the AMCC playoffs four of the last five seasons and advanced to the conference semifinals in 2004. Along with two championships, Piotti has also been recognized for his coaching abilities, winning CCAC Coach of the Year honors in 1998 and 1999 and AMCC Coach of the Year in 2000. As a player Piotti is still active in the Altoona City Baseball League, competing for nine different teams in his more than 30-year career. When he is not playing or coaching Piotti remains active in the local baseball community and in 2000 established the Altoona Curve Baseball Academy. The training camp is held at Blair County Ballpark, the home of Altoona's minor league baseball team and runs for six weeks at the start of every year. Piotti and members of the baseball team work with aspiring ball players ranging in age from seven to eighteen. In 2007, there were over 200 participants as the clinic has become one of the most popular in the area. Contact Coach Piotti:
Assistant Coach Ryan Michaels
Coach Michaels returns to Penn State Altoona after spending four seasons as an assistant on the Lion staff from 2000-2003. Michaels is a 1996 graduate of Altoona High School where he was named the squad's Most Outstanding Pitcher and was a 1st team all-conference selection. He continued his education at Division I West Virginia University where he received a baseball scholarship to pitch. He was the 1997 Rookie of the Year at WVU and has thrown 14 career no-hitters. Michaels also competed for the Gunther Little Orioles tournament team in 1995 and was named to the National Amateur Baseball Federation's national team in 1996.
STUDENT-Assistant Coach JOHN WILSONJohn Wilson begins his first year as a student-assistant coach on the Lion squad after spending the last four seasons as a player. The 54-year-old Wilson, whose story of overcoming drug and alcohol abuse and playing college baseball as an adult student, has been featured in USA Today, SI.com, and appeared on Fox Sports Best Damn Sports Show Period. Wilson coached first base for the team during most of the last four seasons but will serve as bench coach in 2009. Wilson's experiences both on and off the diamond have proved instrumental in the growth and development of the Lion players, many of which are nearly three times younger. Wilson still remains active in the local Altoona City Baseball League, playing alongside and against head coach Joe Piotti. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||