After a mediocre 12-14 season last year, the UC High Varsity Baseball Team is moving in a different direction, as an entirely new coaching staff is being implemented, led by first-year Head Coach Cordell Hipolito.

Hipolito has been coaching for the past 19 years, 13 of which were at the collegiate level. He has coached at various colleges across the county, including Southwestern College and UCSD for the past seven years (ucsdtritons.com). At Southwestern, he led the Jaguars to a pair of conference championships, a trip to the California state title game, and a number 12 national ranking. At UCSD, his squad made the NCAA Division II World Series for two consecutive years. The Tritons were the national runners-up in 2010 after spending most of the season ranked as the top team in the nation. Hipolito is also the founder of the Golden State Sports Training and Recruiting Service, an organization that specializes in the development of baseball and softball skills (goldenstatestars.com).

Hipolito has a lot of work ahead of him if the Cents are going to be a winning team this season. “My first impression was that there was very little enthusiasm about the baseball program, and even less pride in the program. I want to start with changing the culture within the program. I want to develop a culture within the team that incorporates passion for the game, finding joy in playing baseball, pride in the facility, and a sense of family among players and coaches,” said Hipolito.

He also believes that UC has the right tools to become a winning program. “I feel that UC has the right combination of talent, administrative support, family support, and community support to create a very special and highly successful program,” said Hipolito.

As a first year coach, Hipolito will look to his seniors for leadership. “There is a core group of seniors I am depending heavily on.  They have a strong work ethic and lead by example. This year’s team will go as far as the seniors will lead us.  Connor Bingham, Tom Hogle, Fred Zhang, Dalton Smith, Clayton Carmody, Kevin Windt and Kyle Holder will lead this year’s team,” said Hipolito.

So far, the coaching change has been well received by players. “The new coaching staff is definitely a big step in the right direction for the UC baseball program. Our season might start off a bit shaky, but by the end we are all going to be better players,” said Senior Kevin Windt.