Dusty Lepper Staff

Assistant coach Dusty Lepper heads into his third season with the Notre Dame baseball program in 2002, after spending the previous eight years as a player and assistant coach at schools in the Midwest.

Lepper ? who joined the Irish staff in August of 1999?assists with recruiting while working closely with the Notre Dame catchers and outfielders in addition to serving as the Irish first-base coach on gamedays.

He also combines with head coach Paul Mainieri for instruction of the Irish hitters, with Notre Dame set to return nine of its top 10 hitters from a 2001 team that hit .322 with xx home runs.

Position players coached by Lepper have filled key roles for the Irish during the past few seasons, including current seniors Andrew Bushey and Paul O?Toole (slated to split time behind the plate), All-America senior centerfielder Steve Stanley and junior leftfielder Brian Stavisky?one of the most potent power hitters in college baseball.

The 2001 BIG EAST awards saw several players who are coached by Lepper receive all-conference honors, led by first team all-BIG EAST performers Stanley and Bushey (as a third baseman) and second-team honorees O?Toole and Stavisky.

Stanley has evolved into possibly the nation?s best all-around centerfielder while earning preseason praise from Baseball America as the BIG EAST?s ?best pure hitter,? ?best baserunner? and ?best defensive outfielder.?

In addition to his coaching duties, Lepper helps coordinate Notre Dame?s diverse offerings of instructional camps.

?Dusty was recommended to me by several other head coaches, of whom I have tremendous respect,? says Mainieri.

?Dusty is an enthusiastic, tireless worker who interacts well with the players. His outgoing personality, combined with an ability to judge talent, makes him an excellent recruiter for the Irish baseball program. We were tremendously excited to add Dusty as part of our staff and he has been a real asset to our team.?

Lepper ? who has coached 12 future professional players during his brief college coaching career ? spent the previous four seasons as an assistant coach at three schools: his alma mater the University of Toledo (1996 and ?97 seasons), Ohio University (?98) and the University of Cincinnati (?99).

Lepper?s duties at Cincinnati included assisting in coaching of the infielders, outfielders, hitters and catchers on the 1999 team that posted a 30-29 overall record. He also helped oversee the practice and recruiting processes and coordinated team travel, field maintenance and academic supervision for the Cincinnati baseball program.

While at Cincinnati, Lepper assisted with production of the baseball team?s media guide and game programs, in addition to coordinating an offseason conditioning program and overseeing alumni relations with former Bearcats baseball players. He also served as director and administrator for the Cincinnati summer baseball camps and assisted in various fundraising and promotional events. During gameday situations, he served as the Bearcats? third-base coach.

While at Ohio during the 1997-98 academic year, Lepper held similar responsibilities, in addition to serving as the first-base coach on the 1998 Bobcats team that went 31-24.

A native of Findlay, Ohio, Lepper broke into coaching at his alma mater, serving as an assistant coach at Toledo from the summer of 1995 through the summer of ?97. Lepper?s duties at Toledo were similar to those at Ohio and Cincinnati, in addition to supervising the team?s strength and conditioning program and overseeing purchasing and budgeting for equipment.

He also established a gameday baseball program at Toledo and served as the third-base coach, with the Rockets compiling a two-year record of 45-60 in 1996 and ?97.

Lepper was a four-year letterwinner as an infielder at Toledo from 1992-95, with Toledo owning a four-year record of 86-123 in his career. He was named Toledo?s freshman of the year for the 1992 season and served as the Rockets? team captain in 1995.

Lepper graduated from Toledo in 1996 with a degree in sports administration and received his master?s in athletic administration from Ohio University in 1998.

epper and his wife, the former Katie Taylor, were married on Nov. 10, 2001, in Findlay, Ohio.