James Vilade
Baseball
Coach
Head Coach James Vilade was hired by the University in
January 1997, and helped establish the newly formed baseball
program. Prior to his employment with UD, he was on staff with
Richland College where he worked in Athletics and Sports
Administration.
Vilade is a 1990 graduate of New Jersey’s Bernardsville High School where he played four seasons of baseball under Coach Mike Hoppe. A first baseman for the Mountaineers, Vilade maintained a batting average of .498 during his senior year, and was named First team All-Conference, All-County and All-State.
Following high school graduation, Vilade attended St. Peter’s College in Jersey City, New Jersey. He maintained a batting average of .375 as a freshman and led the team in saves as a pitcher for the Peacocks.
After one season with St. Peter’s, Vilade transferred to Baylor University where he developed into a standout player for the Bears and was chosen as team captain during his senior year. He was twice named to the Southwest Conference Academic Honor Roll and was a three year member of the Baylor University Athletic Director’s Honor Roll. In 1993, Vilade was the recipient of the Judge Fred Harris Award for Leadership, Dedication and Sportsmanship.
His former playing experience also includes a three-year stint with the Atlantic Collegiate Baseball League where he was chosen to the All-Star Team in 1992.
Coach Vilade has served as a head baseball coach in the Spring Valley Athletic Association and remains actively involved with the Dallas area Special Olympics. He is currently coaching basketball and softball for the Special Olympics and has been with the organization since 1995.
A graduate of Baylor University, Vilade earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications from the institution in 1995. He is currently enrolled in the MBA program at the University of Dallas and is pursuing a Masters degree in Marketing.
Originally a native of Bedminster, New Jersey, James now resides in Coppell with his wife Jennifer. They are expecting their first child in March. (top of page)
The 1999 University of Dallas baseball team returns a solid core of 23 players, including 8 starters, who will take the field for the Crusaders this season. Beginning the second year of the new baseball era, the UD Crusaders, who made great accomplishments during the 1997-98 season, are expected to improve on their overall record of 25-17 and their fifth place finish in the American Southwest Conference.
Although this year’s team will rely heavily on a number of upperclass returnees, Dallas has added some solid new talent to fill in a few of the gaps in the lineup.
Offensively, Dallas should be consistent, with leadership coming from a number of senior lettermen that return for their final year with the team. First baseman David Biagini, who topped the squad with a .408 batting average and posted a team leading 49 hits, 14 doubles, seven home runs and 47 RBI last season, is expected to produce much of the same this year. Biagini was selected to the All-Conference Second Team following his performance last season.
Catcher Phil Cooley, who was mentioned in Collegiate Baseball’s Division III preview as one of its top players to watch, also returns a strong bat to the Dallas lineup. A Second Team All-Conference choice, Cooley managed a .338 batting average with 44 hits, 12 doubles and a team high 3 triples in 1998.
Seniors Scott Pacot (.279, 1HR, 23 RBI) and Bryan Goria (.274, 7 HR, 26 RBI) will add an extra offensive punch and solid defensive play in the field for Dallas.
Returning sophomores Tony Gallizzi (.383, 3 HR, 29 RBI), Dan Housten (.337, 1 HR, 17 RBI) and Nathan Aviles (.283, 2 HR, 17 RBI) will help round out a solid lineup at the plate, as will the return of Jake Helton and Jimmy Swink, who should both see more playing time in a reserve role.
Vilade has acquired the service of a few talented transfer students, as well, each of whom may find a spot in the starting lineup.
Juniors Merlin Greaves and Tapley Holland add a much-needed element of speed and power to the Dallas roster. Greaves, who plays shortstop, possesses a great deal of power and should secure a spot in the middle of the lineup, while Holland, who will most likely fill a spot in right field, is described as "an outstanding athlete with great capabilities at the plate."
The Dallas pitching staff should be a strong unit this season, fielding a combination of seven returning starters mixed with a handful of newcomers to the mound.
American Southwest Conference First Team selection, Scott Myers returns to the hill for his second year with the Crusaders. The sophomore from Waco, Texas, established a 6-3 record on the mound in his first season with UD. He was selected as the pre-season favorite for Player of the Year honors in the ASC East Division and was hailed by Collegiate Baseball magazine as one of the top pitchers in the nation in Division III.
Seniors Casey Hargrove and Rob Brauch, both of whom have previous collegiate pitching experience, bring solid depth to the starting rotation. Between the two of them, they combined for 10 wins and 86 strikeouts over the 1997-98 season.
Also returning to the pitching staff are sophomores Brad Williams, Adam Pitts, Chris Shiller and Mike Perdue. Williams and Pitts picked up two wins apiece in ‘98, and offered a mid-season spark to the Dallas squad. Perdue, who had no decisions, came on strong late in the season and was awarded two starts, while Shiller managed a 1-0 record in nine appearances last year.
The addition of three new pitchers, senior Larry Swink and freshmen Jake Carney and Jack Price, should bring an element of increased depth to the staff.
Overall, the UD Crusaders should field a strong combination of offense, defense and pitching to create what should be the correct formula for success. (top of page)
1999 Team Roster## Name Pos B/T Ht Wt Cl Hometown -- ---- --- --- -- -- -- ------------------- 1 Mitch Ruibal SS R/R 5-10 165 FR Seagoville, Texas 2 Brent Anderson INF R/R 6-1 175 FR Houston, Texas 4 Zac Thomson 2B B/R 5-8 160 FR Fort Worth, Texas 5 Nathan Aviles OF R/R 5-10 163 SO Irving, Texas 6 Adam Pitts RHP R/R 5-11 168 SO The Colony, Texas 8 Scott Pacot OF R/R 5-11 185 SR Castle Rock, Colorado 9 Tapley Holland OF R/R 6-1 208 JR Flower Mound, Texas 10 Mike Madary 1B L/L 5-10 175 JR New Orleans, La. 11 Mike Perdue RHP R/R 6-4 210 SO Traverse City, Mich. 13 Robert Brauch RHP R/R 6-2 191 SR Barringon, Ill. 14 Brad Williams RHP R/R 6-1 165 SO Oklahoma City, Okla. 15 Scott Myers LHP L/L 6-1 175 SO Waco, Texas 17 Kevin Alstrom RHP R/R 5-9 180 JR Victoria, Texas 18 Dan Housten 3B R/R 5-7 167 SO Bridewater, N.J. 19 Octavio Oropeza OF R/R 6-0 178 SO Plano, Texas 20 Jesse Nelson OF L/R 6-0 185 FR Colleyville, Texas 21 Bryan Goria SS/2B R/R 5-11 184 SR Carrollton, Texas 22 Jake Carney RHP R/R 6-2 170 FR Tyler, Texas 23 David Biagini 1B L/R 6-1 215 SR Dallas, Texas 24 Larry Swink OF/P R/R 6-0 176 SR Silver Spring, Mary. 25 Jacob Helton C R/R 6-0 175 SO Darnestown, Mary. 26 Justin Padden LHP L/L 5-11 160 SO Spokane, Wa. 27 Tony Gallizzi OF R/R 5-10 185 SO Colleyville, Texas 30 Merlin Greaves SS R/R 6-1 182 JR Decatur, Texas 31 Jack Price RHP R/R 6-3 180 FR Mansfield, Texas 32 Joe Smith INF B/R 5-11 185 SO Pilot Point, Texas 33 Andrew Ravaglia 1B/C L/R 5-9 180 SO New Orleans, La. 34 Brian Strok C R/R 6-2 175 FR Roswell, Ga. 35 James Swink SS R/R 5-11 179 SO Silver Spring, Mary. 36 Bill Westhoff UTL L/R 6-0 190 FR Frisco, Texas 37 Casey Hargrove RHP R/R 6-2 235 SR Lancaster, Texas 39 Philip Cooley C R/R 6-3 212 SR Grapevine, Texas 40 Chris Shiller RHP R/R 6-7 250 SO Arlington, Texas |
1999 Schedule & ResultsGame date Opposing team Score r h e/ r h e Inns Overall ASC
--------- ------------- ----- --------/-------- ---- ------- --------
Feb 6 Trinity University 2-7 L 2 4 0/ 7 8 1 7 0- 1- 0 0- 0- 0
Feb 6 Trinity University 1-4 L 1 6 2/ 4 9 3 (9) 0- 2- 0 0- 0- 0
Feb 13 at Hendrix 2-1 W 2 7 1/ 1 8 0 (8) 1- 2- 0 0- 0- 0
at Hendrix 1-6 L 1 3 3/ 6 9 0 7 1- 3- 0 0- 0- 0
Feb 21 at Southwest Adventist 15-0 W 15 6 0/ 0 0 2 5 2- 3- 0 0- 0- 0
at Southwest Adventist 12-0 W 12 16 1/ 0 2 2 5 3- 3- 0 0- 0- 0
Feb 23 Southwestern 2-12 L 2 7 2/12 19 0 9 3- 4- 0 0- 0- 0
Feb 26 at Mary Hardin-Baylor 4-2 W 4 8 0/ 2 7 4 9 4- 4- 0 0- 0- 0
Feb 27 at Mary Hardin-Baylor 7-8 L 7 11 2/ 7 14 2 (9) 4- 5- 0 0- 0- 0
at Mary Hardin-Baylor 12-7 W 12 17 1/ 9 12 1 7 5- 5- 0 0- 0- 0
Mar 5 at McMurry University 9-6 W 9 11 0/ 4 15 1 9 6- 5- 0 0- 0- 0
Mar 6 at McMurry University 1-2 L 1 7 2/ 2 8 1 7 6- 6- 0 0- 0- 0
at McMurry University 4-5 L 4 9 1/ 5 9 1 7 6- 7- 0 0- 0- 0
Mar 8 vs Notre Dame 16-19 L 16 14 6/19 20 3 9 6- 8- 0 0- 0- 0
Mar 13 at Hardin-Simmons (Rained Out)
at Hardin-Simmons (Rained Out)
Mar 14 at Hardin-Simmons 6-2 W 6 10 2/ 2 7 0 9 7- 8- 0 0- 0- 0
@Mar 20 Carleton College 6-3 W 6 12 0/ 3 6 2 7 8- 8- 0 0- 0- 0
@ Hill. Freewill Bap. 8-4 W 8 11 2/ 4 12 0 7 9- 8- 0 0- 0- 0
@Mar 21 Kansas Wesleyan 3-5 L 3 2 3/ 5 13 0 7 9- 9- 0 0- 0- 0
@ Kansas Wesleyan 3-5 L 3 7 1/ 5 8 1 7 9-10- 0 0- 0- 0
*Mar 26 Univ. of the Ozarks 29-12 W 29 26 6/12 11 2 9 10-10- 0 1- 0- 0
*Mar 27 Univ. of the Ozarks 14 |