Mike Stone

Head Coach: UMASS

Since his hiring as head coach in 1988, Stone has led the Minutemen to eight Atlantic 10 regular season titles, two Atlantic 10 Tournament crowns and two NCAA Tournament appearances. He has also guided the Minutemen to the championship of the Beanpot Baseball Classic four times in the last nine seasons. Respected as one of the nation's elite coaches, Stone became the all-time winningest coach in UMass history when the Minutemen swept a doubleheader from Saint Joseph's on May 8, 2001. In 2004, he won his 500th career game on March 7, when the Minutemen defeated Rider in the first game of a doubleheader, 6-5. Last season, Stone won his 500th game as UMass skipper on April 7 in a 5-4 victory over Rhode Island.

The 1996 season marked the most successful year in school history, as Stone guided UMass to its third straight Atlantic 10 Conference regular season championship and a second straight Atlantic 10 Tournament crown. The Minutemen advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive year, reaching the East Regional finals and winning the school's first NCAA Tournament game since 1969. UMass finished the season on a 25-4 run, including a school record 18-game winning streak, (which was best in the nation) and posted 40 wins for the first time in school history.

In 1995, Stone led the Minutemen to their first NCAA Championship berth since 1978, while the team won 38 games, second-most in school history. In addition to claiming the Atlantic 10 regular season title, UMass won its first Atlantic 10 Tournament crown since 1980.

In winning the 1995 Atlantic 10 regular season title, UMass tied a then-Atlantic 10 record with 19 victories in conference play. The Minutemen had set that record only a year earlier, when they had a 19-4 mark in conference play, in addition to a 31-17 record overall. The 1994 squad also set what was then a school record with a streak of 16 consecutive victories.

From 1994-1996, Stone was a three-time Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year selection. He is only the second coach to win the award three consecutive years, following Fred Hill of Rutgers, who claimed the honor in 1991, 1992 and 1993. No other coach has even won the award twice in a row.

Stone has sent 33 players into professional baseball during his 20 years at UMass, starting with Steve Allen in 1988, averaging just under two players signing pro contracts per season. Included among those players are current major leaguers Chad Paronto and Ron Villone.

In addition to his teams winning Atlantic 10 Tournament titles in 1995 and 1996, Stone's squads finished as runner-up in the Atlantic 10 in 1988, 1991, 1997, 2000 and 2003. He has also led the Minutemen to 13 appearances at the Atlantic 10 Championship in 20 seasons.

Mike Sweeney

Assistant Coach: UMASS

Before coming to UMass, Sweeney had been the pitching coach for Amherst College for four years, where he worked closely under world-renowned pitching "guru" Bill Thurston. At Amherst, his duties included instructing pitchers on mechanics and fundamentals, recruiting, scouting and ordering equipment. He also organized and implemented instructional clinics as well as designing in-season/off-season strength and conditioning programs for pitchers, while organizing game and practice facility maintenance and management.

For the past five summers, Sweeney has been the manager of the Keene (N.H.) Swampbats of the NECBL. His team won the NECBL Championship and Sweeney was named Manager/Coach of the Year in 2003. His four-year record with the Swampbats is a combined 127-83, with a playoff record of 12-8. He also has coaching experience as the pitching coach for the North Adams (Mass.) Steeplecats of the NECBL.

Sweeney played three years of professional baseball, with two of them coming in the New York Mets organization. He also played one year for the New Jersey Jackals of the Northern League, helping the Jackals to their first-ever Northern League title in 2001.

Sweeney graduated from Amherst College in 1999 with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in economics. Sweeney was a two-sport standout at Amherst, helping quarterback the football team to a pair of Little Three and NESCAC co-championships. He also pitched the baseball team to a trio of Little Three titles, three NCAA post-season berths and an appearance in the NCAA Regional Final. Sweeney finished his collegiate career with a 21-3 record pitching record, was a two-time All-New England and All-NESCAC selection and was voted Team MVP as a senior.

Ernie May

Assistant Coach: UMASS

Coach May served as a volunteer assistant coach during the 2001 and 2002 seasons, after spending the 2000 season as pitching coach. May returned to UMass in 2000 after spending four seasons at Wofford College, where he served as head coach from 1995-1999.

May was responsible for taking the Wofford program from the Division II level to Division I. He led Wofford to a fifth place finish in its first season competing in the Southern Conference, after being picked to finish ninth.

Prior to his stay at Wofford, May served as the pitching coach for the Minutemen in 1995. He directed a pitching staff which set a school single season record for victories with a 38-14 mark. Before coming to UMass, May served as pitching coach at Wofford during the 1994 season and at Springfield College in 1993. May also spent two years coaching at Thayer (N.H.) High School. In 1990, May was the general manager of the Pittsfield Mets, a Class A affiliate of the New York Mets. He has also worked in public relations with the Atlanta Braves and CNN.

May was one of only 19 college coaches chosen nationwide to have articles printed in the 50th Anniversary Issue of Coaches Digest. May's article on the year-round conditioning of pitchers was published in the commemorative issue. In the summer of 1999, May coached the Keene Swamp Bats of the NECBL, a wooden bat collegiate league sponsored by Major League Baseball. The Swamp Bats won the regular season title in just their second year of existence. May has had 15 former players play at the professional level including 10 Minutemen, three from Wofford and two from Springfield.

A native of Amherst, May graduated from Keene State College with a bachelor's degree in Physical Education. While at Keene State, he pitched and played first base for the Owls. May received his Master's degree in Physical Education and Sport Management from Springfield College in 1993.